HEAD’S WELCOME GEOFFREY STANFORD

WELCOME

BY GEOFFREY STANFORD HEAD

Iam delighted to be able to introduce this latest edition of the ONA Magazine. I took over the leadership of the RGS from John Fern (17-19) this year and have been very grateful for the warm welcome that I have received from the RGS community. Although John had a relatively short tenure, he was clearly a hugely respected Headmaster and his focus on building our Bursary and other philanthropic programmes, have clearly benefitted our great school.

As the Development Team were putting the finishing touches to this magazine – and I am greatly indebted to David Goldwater (51-62) for stepping in as Guest Editor of this splendid edition – the Coronavirus, Covid-19, outbreak hit the UK. This is an extraordinary time for the school, indeed the last time that RGS was mandated to close, was in 1939, when our (then 800) students, were evacuated to Penrith, and Eskdale Terrace became the North East’s regional war room.

I have no doubt that the school’s closure in 2020 will feel surreal to students, to parents, to staff and to Old Novocastrians but the most important thing is to look after people within our community. As a school, we remain open for vulnerable children and the children of a number of key workers who have no other alternative provisions of care in order to ensure that NHS and other key services are able to continue their vital work. All other students are being taught via remote learning. At the moment it is not clear how long these arrangements will need to continue.

However challenging the Coronavirus outbreak turns out to be, I firmly believe that there is a tremendous amount that we can learn from the current situation, whether it be in facilitating pupils learning independently, in engaging with education technology or in developing resilience in the face of adversity. I also believe that the RGS is not just a building; it is a community, of students, of parents, of staff and Old Novocastrians, as well as former staff and parents. Many of our community will find themselves challenged, whether by losing loved ones or by suffering from the economic impact of the Coronavirus. Every single member of this RGS family now has a role to play in maintaining our sense of community.

We recently launched #RGSGives on our social media channels, which celebrates the proactive roles that everyone can play in supporting our community. In particular, we are grateful for parents and Old Novocastrians who work in the emergency services on whom we all rely; RGS’s single parent families; or our bursary families who are likely to be most affected by the economic effects of the Covid-19. If you are an Old Novocastrian in need of contact, then please do let us know; if you are an Old Novocastrian who could join our efforts to help others in need, then please do get in touch.

I have no doubt that the school and our community will experience some indelible changes in this most challenging of times, but I also know that our solidarity is our strength, and the RGS community, will emerge from this episode with our values as steadfast as ever.

Finally, I must wish the ONA President, Kate Harman (06-08) and her husband Tom Harman (Teacher of Modern Foreign Languages) many congratulations on the birth of their first son, Louis. He is a small blessing of hope at this most difficult of times.

With all good wishes.