Churchill

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Churchill

From the Housemaster

As Gwilym has put far better than I in his House Captain’s report, the year 2020/21 has been a challenging one for us all, as well as for school and house.

With almost more lockdowns than house events filling the year, it has not been until this most recent Summer Term that the flurry of house competitions has kicked in, with house sport competitions including: croquet, cricket, swimming, water polo, tennis and athletics suddenly all on a more normal horizon. Looking back over the course of the year with regards to house competitions, there were the usual disasters in House Singing Competition and the

House Pancake Race, but there were tremendous highlights too as the Lower Sixth proved all conquering in rugby, football (James Searle – 1st XI Goalkeeper Elect and Eden Jobsz – what a hit son!!!!) and water polo. The Lower Fifth also carried the flag, carving up their rugby opponents, Kyle ‘the fish’ McTurk devouring the pool, and there was special recognition for the House Film Competition entry – the first ever fully animated feature, masterminded by the Moore brothers and Zak Winefield. On the academic front, with so much uncertainty, as well as many indecipherable emails and assemblies to contend with, the Upper Sixth and Upper Fifth boys coped quite brilliantly with the shifting sands beneath their feet and I commend them on all of their efforts.

With the end of the year in sight we looked forward to the farewells, prize-giving, and the return to the normality of everyday life over the summer to come. It has been a year that many of us will never forget, but also one where I think we will all try to forget its lows quickly. Churchill House has simply not been the same, with only the Upper Sixth calling it home and all other year groups spread about the School in their bubbles. The camaraderie, the contact, those cross-year connections that we strive so hard to build to make everyone feel a part of the House community have been largely non-starters. I feel for the Upper Sixth, who have been an outstanding year group, and had a great year, though I know how brilliant they would have been leading the House as role-models for their younger peers, but sadly they were denied the opportunity to shine as brightly as they might have. One looks to the current Lower Sixth to take the reins and quickly set the tone for September.

Finally, as for me, I would like to say how much I have loved being Housemaster of Churchill over the last five years. It is the role in any school that allows you to have, in my opinion, the greatest impact on the course of the young pupils who pass through the doors; celebrating successes, educating about mishaps and dealing with them as they occur. I have been fortunate to have the support of a fantastic tutor team, three Assistant Housemistresses and our wonderful House Matron, Jane, in my five years at the helm, and I thank them all for passing on their wisdom over the last five years; I merely hope I gave some back! In Reverend Moloney, I have every confidence that, the boys have someone who will do a great job as their new Housemaster and continue to drive the success of Churchill on all fronts.

Whilst I am of course excited to be heading to Christ’s Hospital for the new challenge of being a Head of Department, there will always be a big piece of my heart here at St John’s. Having arrived in 2013, commuting from Battersea and living for weekends in London; to actually becoming a grown up; building a family/menagerie of three daughters and a dog with Sarah – it all happened here at St John’s and I shall always think of the School fondly, particularly Churchill House. I look forward to when I shall next round the corner of West by the Hamilton building and have the full beauty of The Quad come into view as the sun starts to set over the Chapel. I wish all of the boys who I have overseen in Churchill House the very best of luck in their future endeavours and I will enjoy hearing about their continued successes in the years to come.

Tom Leonard, Housemaster

HOUSE COLOURS

Finding a way to keep as a unit became another hurdle to jump. But this didn’t stop us!

From the House Captain

2020/21 will be, for many, the year that we all might like to forget. The year-long blur of dipping in and out of online schooling posed a tough challenge for many of the boys in Churchill.

Lockdown introduced new problems that we had never faced before, technological issues were no longer classed as minor inconveniences, and the stress of trying new ways to sneak in breakfast during a lesson almost conquered many pupils. However, with an ounce of resilience and a fistful of determination, this was a challenge that every Churchillian evidently took in their stride.

The Autumn Term began as semi-normal. The major difference being the physical disconnect in the House. With the boys being spread across the School with no physical connection, finding a way to keep as a unit became another hurdle to jump. But this didn’t stop us! The Lower Sixth and Lower Fifth both brought home House Rugby silverware, proving that our house spirit was far from broken. Connecting through a weekly Zoom call meant that house assemblies could go ahead as planned, with a familiar ‘press, press, press’ keeping morale high and spirits in check.

The House Singing Competition was a resounding success. Whilst not placing a podium position, a special mention for best choreography was enough to put our singing on the map. The angelic Churchill choir sang Rick Astley’s Never Gonna Give You Up with every fibre of their being. It is fair to say that this performance proved that music may be unbroken ground to explore, and I have every confidence that this area of expertise will be explored thoroughly in the future.

As the year progressed further into the Autumn Term, suspicions rose as to whether schools would remain open for much longer. It became quickly apparent that the connection in school would be short lived, and in the winter, these suspicions proved to be true, and the second major lockdown flung the boys back into their bedrooms for a second time. Proving to be another kick in the teeth, we carried on regardless, finding amazing success in the House Film Competition. With thanks to the efforts of Zak Winefield and George Moore meant that Churchill placed a special mention, for the first ever fully animated picture. On return to school for the Spring Term, House Football saw the Lower Sixth bring home more silverware, winning their year group competition with an absolute screamer from outside the box in the dying embers of extra time from Eden Jobsz. A touch of drama to round off a difficult year was fitting as we head into the final stages of the school year with a bang. Morale has remained high as the light began to show at the end of this very long and gruelling tunnel, and it would be fair to say that every boy wearing the blue and white hoops deserves a long and well-deserved break this summer.

A special thanks must go to two very important Churchillians this year, Jane our Matron and Dr Leonard, our Housemaster. Jane has been our mother away from home in Churchill for the last 13 years, so saying goodbye will be done so with a heavy heart and a misty eye. Dr Leonard has never failed to keep morale at an absolute high, thus it will be an enormous loss as his journey as Housemaster of Churchill comes to an end. On behalf of the House, I would like to send our deepest thanks for their services as Housemaster and Matron, and we all wish them the best in the future.

Gwilym Davies, House Captain 2020-21