The Bulletin 251 by RGS Guildford

FROM THE HEADMASTER

In Roman times, the fasces were a highly symbolic bundle of wooden rods or sticks, bound together by leather straps. This ancient symbol was carried by those officials attending to the Roman magistrates and was a visual representation of their authority and power, both to administer justice and also to enforce the law. Although this iconic image of the classical world clearly relates to another era, to another time, the symbolism of the fasces still chimes for us in the modern day. Individually, each rod is weak and can be easily broken; when bound together, however, the rods form a cohesive, unbreakable bond. Strength through solidarity. In this regard, Martin Luther King’s oftquoted line Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much feels particularly pertinent. If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.

Two thousand years on, the concept of the fasces remains timeless and feels particularly relevant as I write this introduction to the latest edition of The Bulletin. In times of pressure and stress, the strength of a community is tested, and it is through unity and collaboration that resilience and firm foundations are built. Our true strength lies in our ability to work together and support one another; the fasces serve as a poignant reminder of the strength that comes from uniting together. The last few days could not have illustrated this better. I am always immensely proud of our school and when I received the phone call from the Reporting Inspector first thing on Monday morning, I actually relished the opportunity to open our doors to the Inspection team. Over the past few days they have diligently and forensically looked into every area of school life, and I am delighted that they really got under the skin of the School to get an authentic feel for the RGS, and what makes us tick. What has made me particularly proud, however, has been how every single person in our community – students and staff, both support and teaching; parents and governors – have gone out of their way to talk passionately about the School and to showcase the RGS at its very best. An Inspection is inevitably a time of a certain level of pressure and stress but being part of this wonderful community has meant that my levels of angst were significantly reduced, albeit not completely!

At this stage, I am not at liberty to be able to share the headline findings but I very much look forward to providing a link to the report when it is officially published in the coming months. As you read the Inspection Report, I am sure you will be as proud of the RGS as I am. I would also like particularly to thank you, as parents, for the staggering number of responses to the Parent Questionnaire, especially when the turn-around time was so tight; your ongoing support is greatly appreciated. Just like the bound rods of the fasces, our collective strength lies in our unity, our cohesion, our community. And this is something which means that the RGS will continue to go from strength to strength.

Our collective strength lies in our unity, our cohesion, our community. “ ”

INCLUSIVITY SCHOLARSHIP INTEGRITY

RESPECT COURAGE COLLABORATION

OUR VALUES

SCHOOL PRIORITIES 2022-2025

Our current RGS school development priorities are Collaboration, Student Experience and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. These priorities are in the final year of our three-year cycle.

EQUITY, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

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

COLLABORATION

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 enrichment opportunities.

STUDENT EXPERIENCE

This is always 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.

NOTICES

Access to/at Broadwater School

Please be aware that there continue to be roadworks in the vicinity of Broadwater School so do allow yourself extra travel time.

In addition, in the school itself, they are carrying out a phased resurfacing of the roads. As a result, the main entrance is currently closed off; all parents should enter through the exit gates and park down next to the astro or in the caged area next to the Hockey Club if extra space is required.

There will inevitably be a level of congestion so please be patient and understanding! Thank you.

Tuesday 4 February

Market Day lunchtime concert in Holy Trinity Church. Fifth Form Parents’ Evening in the Great Hall.

Tuesday 11 February

LGBT+ History Month Seminar at the RGS; parents welcome.

Thursday 13 February

RGS Musician of the Year competition in the Recital Room.

CLICK HERE TO BOOK TICKETS

LATEST NEWS

MODEL UNITED NATIONS

15 RGS students went to Wycombe Abbey for their annual WASAMUN residential conference. Over the course of the two days, our students engaged in a variety of debates on a range of topics including: free speech; reparation payments; Rohingya persecution in Myanmar; protecting stateless refugees; and North Korea’s nuclear proliferation, to name just a few! The students impressed securing a number of awards: Brendan Clarke an Honourable Mention; Daniel Ward, Spandan Sahu and Zac Warham Highly Commended; Cameron Brown Outstanding Delegate; and George Christiansen a Special Commendation for his role in the prestigious Arctic Council.

NATIONAL OLYMPIADS

Having achieved an exceptional Top Gold in Round 1, Yuvan Rajah has now been invited to take part in Round 2 of the Physics and Astro Olympiads.

SPORTS NEWS CHESS

Our 1st VI travelled to St Peter’s Catholic School in the National Competition Regional Round 1 and achieved a comprehensive 5 – 1 victory in this first regional stage of this national competition. Our 2nd VI put up a good fight despite losing 4 – 8 against Kingston Grammar School’s finest. Ben Thain, Charlie Lefever, Arnav Nambiar and Joshua Topno all won their matches; of particular note was Joshua’s victory on his debut.

FENCING

RGS fencers impressed in the Surrey Youth Foil Championships. Lucas Ngai secured Gold out of a field of 20 fencers to become County Champion at Under 14 level; Harry Radforth won Bronze at Under 16 level.

CHESS SPORTS NEWS

The senior teams have been out in force over the last fortnight, once again cementing the strong reputation of RGS football on the circuit. This included a clean sweep of victories across the board against Kingston Grammar School and City of London Freemen’s School. In particular, the free-scoring 3rd XI scored an extraordinary 20 goals in two matches including Will Mellor with four, and Zayan Ali and Oscar Robertson with hat-tricks.

In the traditionally tough, but well-balanced fixtures against Charterhouse School, all three RGS XIs were very much in contention at half time, either drawing or behind by the odd goal. However, clinical second half performances in the 3rd and 1st XI games saw Charterhouse run out clear winners. In the 2nd XI, a superb second half saw Bajo Loye equalise and the team narrowly miss out on the win, as their unbeaten start to the season continued.

SHOOTING

It proved to be a very close contest against Charterhouse School in a grouping, rapid, snap match. Ayaan Bhagat achieved a highest possible score of 95, as the RGS A team narrowly lost. Our B team produced some excellent scores and won their match 439 – 437.

HOCKEY

In the National Cup Round 1 our Under 14A secured a convincing 4 – 0 victory against Cranleigh School to progress to the next round and the Under 16As beat Charterhouse School 4 – 2 in the same competition, while the Under 15As also won by the same scoreline in the Independent School Hockey Cup against Merchant Taylors’ School.

After a stop-start opening to the hockey season because of frost and extreme weather, it was great to play a full block, as 19 teams from the Under 12Fs all the way through to the 1st XI played fixtures against St George’s College, Weybridge. The 1st XI managed to bounce back from a tough match against Whitgift School, by matching one of the best hockey schools in the country under the lights on Friday evening, narrowly losing 0 – 1. There were a number of standout performances including strong wins for the Under 16Bs, Under 15Bs and the Under 12Fs.

After weekends of freezing, wet conditions, the block predominantly against Hurstpierpoint College saw games being played in both Sussex and Surrey in bright sunshine. Highlights included a closelycontested 2 – 2 draw for the 1st XI as the senior teams went unbeaten, a clean sweep of victories for the Under 16 teams, and good wins for the Under 15A and Under 14A teams.

SPORTS NEWS

CROSS-COUNTRY

After qualifying to represent Guildford in the Surrey Schools Championship, 13 RGS runners from the First to Fifth Forms ran at Reigate Priory. In the Junior Boys, Etienne Victor qualified to race in the South East Schools Inter Counties race. Hugo Wilson came third, winning a bronze medal and will go forward to race in the English Schools National Final at Ardingly in March. In the Inter Boys, Eddie Wilson came in seventh place and qualified to race in the South East Schools Inter Counties race. Whilst the others did not qualify, they all put in 100% effort and deserve huge praise.

SWIMMING

The RGS took a team of 25 swimmers to Churcher's from across the year groups. In a fast and furious gala, all over in less than an hour, our boys swam superbly, often with very little rest between races. The RGS A team won all 8 relay events, a dominant performance. In the individual events, there were victories for George Robinson, Abhay Khanna, Eli du Preez, William Browne, Ralph Cotonet, Galahad Reeve, William Jones, Dylan Fuller and Thomas Fowler to secure a resounding victory for the RGS.

A very strong RGS team of 15 swimmers then participated at Guildford Spectrum in the annual SSSA Individual Championships. This is the highest level of competition at school level in the county. Nine of our team gained medals on the night, very impressive indeed: George Robinson (2nd, 100 Back), Dujun Huang (3rd 100 Fly), William Browne (2nd 200 IM), Ralph Cotonet (3rd 100 Free), Lucas Goodey de Diego (3rd 100 Fly), Freddie Browne (1st 200 IM), Thomas Fowler (3rd 100 Fly), Dylan Fuller (3rd 100 Free) and Frederik Duetoft (2nd 100 Breast). Eoghan Fuller, Eli du Preez, Cillian Lee, Alex Song, William Jones and George Fowler all narrowly missed out on medals but contributed to a fine team effort. Overall, the RGS were crowned Surrey Schools Overall Champions, pipping Reed’s School to the title by just one point: an incredible feat, not matched in recent memory.