Issuu

OGA Chain 2021 The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

14.

10.

16.

20.

Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information supplied herein, St Swithun’s School cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions. Unless otherwise indicated, opinions expressed herein are those of the author/subject of the page and do not necessarily represent the views of St Swithun’s School. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any shape or form without prior permission from St Swithun’s School.

Front cover credit: Flyzolo.com

22.

Contents

Editors’ Welcome

3 Headmistress’ Welcome 4

Class of 2021

Legacies

School News

ASSIST

Prep School Update

10 Archives Update 14 Bramston Bursary Foundation 24.

26.

15 1884 CLUB 16 Old Girls’ Day 2021 18 Old Girls’ Day 2022 20 Spotlight – Zara Rutherford 22 Spotlight – Jenny Strathern 24 Spotlight – Beth Chalmers

28.

26 Spotlight – OGA Ambassadors – Lisa MacLaren and Emma Faid

34.

28 Medics Montage 32 St Swithun’s Summer Party 33 BBF Auction 34 In conversation with our Head Girl – Desire Ayoola 36 Former Teacher Feature – Conrad Brewer 37 Former Teacher Feature – Manu Grice 38 Join the Hub

37.

42.

40 St Swithun’s Way Challenge 2021 42 OGs’ Memories 46 Professional Guidance Department 48 School Events 50 Remembered with Affection

Contact Details 46.

50.

If you have any queries regarding the OGA Chain publication, the Old Girls’ Association or the Community Hub, please contact us using the details below: Veryan Vere Hodge Director of development and alumnae Email: verehodgev@stswithuns.com Tel: 01962 835734

48.

Kelly Carr Development and alumnae manager Email: carrk@stswithuns.com Tel: 01962 835782

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

From the editors A warm welcome to the OGA Chain 2021. What an eventful year this has been for all of us, coming back out of another lockdown and adjusting to our ‘new normal.’ We hope you and your families are keeping safe and well. We are pleased to share with you some of the highlights from our past year at St Swithun’s, news from our wider community and our plans for the future. We hope you will agree that this year, despite the pandemic, the OGA has gone from strength to strength. We have grown our Community Hub hub.stswithuns.com which now includes a photo gallery, a wealth of information on the school’s history and recordings of inspirational career talks. Please take a look and join up in order to gain full access and to be able to search for St Swithun’s friends. 1,600 OGs and parents have now joined the St Swithun’s Community Hub and many are supporting our Professional Guidance Department events. We are running another programme of talks this year, so if you would like to offer your professional experience and wisdom to help inspire and encourage 6th formers and recent leavers, please email us at oga@stswithuns.com. It has also been a pleasure to send out our monthly OGA e-news. We are always delighted to hear from you and share your updates with our community. Please keep in touch!

This summer we were thrilled to have our first ‘in person’ event for months at Tichborne House. Our Garden Open Day, in aid of the Bramston Bursary Foundation, was a resounding success and we were grateful to enjoy such amazing surroundings in the summer sunshine. We can happily announce that, by kind permission of the owner of Tichborne House, we will be returning for another Garden Open Day on Sunday 12 June 2022. Please make a note in your diary! September saw us back together again for Old Girls’ Day and it was wonderful to welcome online visitors as well as those who could attend in person. If you would like to get more involved with the Old Girls’ Association, why not sign up to be an OGA Ambassador? There is no need to commit to regular meetings, you just need a willingness to be called upon once in a while to help out. We always appreciate a helping hand at an event, spreading the word about something coming up; encouraging support from others or simply acting as a sounding board and offering advice. If you are interested, please email us on oga@stswithuns.com. To hear from two of our current OGA Ambassadors please turn to page 26. And finally, if you look at page 20 you can hear from OGs who have shared their recent experiences with us in our Spotlight features. You’ll learn about Zara flying around the world, Jenny painting in South Africa and Beth writing for the BBC. There’s also an article on three of our OG medics and their work during COVID. We hope you enjoy this year’s publication… happy reading! ■

Kelly and Veryan (Editors) OGA@stswithuns.com

OGA Chain 2021

Welcome to OGA Chain 2021 St Swithun’s is proud to have played its part in shaping the lives of many individuals who have gone on to become truly pioneering women. So often however, we learn about our Old Girls’ achievements quite far into their career path, or sadly sometimes, it is only when we read an obituary that we discover what an extraordinary life one of our Old Girls has led. It is our privilege and real pleasure therefore to be witnessing the first steps of an inspirational young St Swithun’s alumna right now. Zara Rutherford (featured on our front cover) only just completed her A-levels and

graduated from St Swithun’s in the summer this year, but she is already embarking on a courageous journey with the aim of becoming the youngest woman to fly solo around the world. I met up with Zara in August, at one of her stop off points en route - Popham airfield, which is very close to St Swithun’s.

Whilst undertaking this incredible challenge, Zara is supporting two non-profits that encourage girls and young women into science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM): Dreams Soar and Girls Who Code. I hope you enjoy reading more about Zara’s adventure on pages 20 and 21. ■

As I watched Zara’s tiny plane come into view on her approach to the landing strip, I was struck by how perfectly she reflects our school’s founding virtues: caritas, humilitas and sinceritas. Zara is not only a skilled and capable young woman, she is humble and focussed on helping others.

Jane Gandee Headmistress

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Welcome to the Class of 2021

(Photo taken prior to COVID-19 restrictions)

Destinations of 2021 leavers:

Destination

Course

Cardiff University

Architecture

City, University of London

Mathematics with finance and economics Anthropology Geography

Durham University

History Mathematics (four years) Psychology Theology and religion

Imperial College, London

Geophysics with a year abroad Physics with a year abroad Economics

King's College, London

Medicine Music Psychology with a professional placement year

OGA Chain 2021

Destination

Course Geography with economics

London School of Economics and Political Science

Language, culture and society Management Psychological and behavioural science

Loughborough University

Materials science and engineering (with placement year)

Newcastle University

Dentistry

Oxford Brookes University

Art and design foundation diploma

Queen Mary University of London

World history with year abroad

The University of Edinburgh

English literature Philosophy and psychology Arts and sciences with study abroad Biochemistry Biomedical sciences

UCL (University College London)

English Human sciences International social and political studies Psychology

University of Bath

Management (with placement) Classical studies Economics

University of Bristol

English and German History of art Politics and international relations with study abroad Asian and Middle Eastern studies

University of Cambridge

English Modern and medieval languages Business economics with industrial experience (four years) Classical studies

University of Exeter

Geography International relations Psychology

University of Kent University of Leeds University of Nottingham

Human biology and behaviour English literature International history and politics Architecture Geography

University of Oxford

Mathematics

University of Plymouth

Medicine

University of Southampton

Medicine Physiotherapy

University of St Andrews

Geography

University of Warwick

Economics

University of Winchester

Accounting and finance

University of York

History and French (with a year abroad) The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Launch of the St Swithun’s Legacy Society It is a common misconception that St Swithun’s is a wealthy school. In reality, it does not have a large endowment and relies on fee income for its annual running costs. It is only through a combination of the school’s financial resources and philanthropic support therefore, that it will be able to continue providing its girls with the top-class teaching facilities in which they can excel in traditional subjects and also keep up with the pace of innovation. In addition, voluntary contributions are essential in enabling the school to offer life changing bursary places. If you would like to help future generations of St Swithun’s girls, you may like to consider leaving a legacy to the school. As a charitable legacy, it will be deducted from your estate before the amount of inheritance tax is calculated.

OGA Chain 2021

If you decide you would like to leave a legacy, we would be very grateful if you would let us know. You do not need to provide the details of the legacy if you do not wish to, nor is the pledge in any way binding. It is simply a statement of your present intention - and we would just like to say thank you. All those who decide to make a legacy pledge, will be invited to join our new St Swithun’s Legacy Society and will be invited for an annual social gathering, which will provide an opportunity for guests to hear from the headmistress, Jane Gandee about the school’s progress. To discuss, please contact Veryan Vere Hodge, director of development and alumnae: E: verehodgev@stswithuns.com T: 01962 835734 Thank you.

School news: International Language Competition Success Education Perfect is an online learning tool based in New Zealand and used by thousands of students all over the world. It was first introduced to St Swithun’s by the former Head of Modern Languages, Anton Kendall, as he had experienced great success with it during an earlier teaching post in Sydney, Australia. The site teaches, tests and monitors students’ language learning and encourages competition worldwide amongst its subscribers. There are points given for progress in vocabulary learning and for completing tasks in reading, writing, speaking and listening. Last academic year, students from St Swithun’s school entered one of these competitions and were awarded first place in the UK as well as being ranked an impressive 58th worldwide.

Individually, 12 year old student Cheryl Chu and 15 year old student Erin ThorneHenderson both placed in the top 100 in the world, finishing 63rd and 65th respectively. St Swithun’s students together answered over 350,000 questions and logged over 500 hours of answering language questions. More recently, the students entered another Education Perfect International Language Championship and, even though it took place

over three days in half term, St Swithun’s was once again awarded first place in the UK and 56th worldwide! Head of German at St Swithun’s, Anne Steer said, “Despite it being half term the girls made an incredible effort and once again achieved fantastic results. I am very proud of their hard work and delighted they are enjoying and benefiting from the use of such an outstanding learning platform.”

Vorsprung durch Technik und Studium!

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Caritas, Humilitas Sinceritas Concern for others has always been a key characteristic of the St Swithun’s community as reflected by the word Caritas (meaning a Christian love of humankind or charity) in the school’s motto. When scouring the school archives, we discovered that St Swithun’s started up its first charitable society, known as The Mission Society sometime between 1890-1892 to collaborate with the Blackfriars Settlement in London, which enabled women and children from the poorer districts of London to have access to education and excursions to the seaside and countryside. Later, in 1906, St Swithun’s joined the United Girls’ School Mission, which was set up in 1897 to run all the charitable work in the Peckham area of London. The UGSM went on to create a new settlement for women called the Peckham Settlement and a house was bought at 19 Peckham Road, to use as a base to train people in the principles of charitable work. Each school in the UGSM (including St Swithun’s) had a representative from their Old Girls’ society to spearhead a fundraising committee and collect funds for the work of the Settlement. The pupils would raise money by donating clothes and toys, for example. Over the course of the decades, many Old Girls and teachers from St Swithun’s worked there and kept the school up to date on the Settlement’s progress and work. These efforts continued for many years until 1996 when Dr Harvey, then Headmistress, spoke with Ken McSteen (former IT and design & technology teacher at St Swithun’s) asking him to oversee a group of students who wished to have a more local focus for their charitable work. Ken kindly agreed to take on responsibility for this group of students known then as the Social Services Committee and together they began to think of a name for the society. Bizarrely one morning, he noticed a recovery service sticker on the back of his car which said ‘ASSIST’ and he suggested it to the girls,

OGA Chain 2021

who liked it immediately and came up with a meaning for each letter which reflected what charitable work meant to them: A Assist S Self S Sacrifice I Involvement S Service T Tolerance Under their new leader, this bright and vibrant U6 committee acted upon their desire to do more locally and set about asking for more active involvement from the St Swithun’s community. Some of the activities they successfully ran included working with local primary schools,

donating unclaimed lost property to the homeless shelter in Winchester, visiting people in hospital, running hospital radio and supporting local Alms houses. Now, an incredible 25 years later, ASSIST is still going strong and represents the name of the students’ fundraising and charitable work. Each year, a girl from the incoming U6 is appointed as Head of ASSIST and a number of others are asked to be part of the ASSIST team. They now oversee, plan and encourage all of their fundraising activities for the following year, as well as organising the voting for which three charities will benefit from their efforts. It is a very important and highly valued committee continuing to uphold Caritas at St Swithun’s today. ■

Future Leaders? Present Leaders!

Here at St Swithun’s, we know that empowering the children is extremely important: it is only when the pupils are able to recognise and appreciate the practical consequences of their actions that our three guiding tenets of caritas, humilitas, sinceritas can be put into real and meaningful application. As a result, every child from Reception to Year Six in the Prep School knows that their contributions make our world a better place: they are the active agents of change. Since our return to school in September, we have implemented a new structure to ensure that each pupil feels valued and involved; absolutely no-one is left out. In addition to several traditional responsibilities in each class (such as art, library, science, music, digital, sports and organisational monitors) we have a revolutionary new Citizenship period on Tuesday mornings which runs on a three-week rolling programme: we might have House meetings in this slot (and, in line with prep tradition, everyone is either a Woodpecker, an Owl, a Robin or a Kingfisher), or we may be holding meetings of our various prep pupil committees, or the chairs of those committees might be meeting as the Prep Pupil Parliament.

Democracy, as one of the Government’s fundamental British values that we are very proud to promote actively, lies at the heart of our committee and parliament membership: lots of hustings and many elections have been evident over the past few weeks! We now have a democratically-elected group of children with powerful, relevant voices who can influence key areas of our work and practice. There are separate committees for culture, health, community, food, charity fundraising and ecological sustainability. Three of the members of each committee are pupils in Year Six, and each class from Reception through to Year Five has put forward an additional representative; the children concerned know that they represent the views of their constituents (the other children in their class) and they then debate proposals to put forward for discussion at Parliament. There is a member of staff present at each meeting, but they are most definitely not in charge of proceedings; that responsibility falls to the chair (democratically elected by the members, of course!) Parliament meets to discuss proposals with the deputy head and myself; we

then work with the children to refine ideas and, whenever we can, we facilitate implementation of the changes requested. Chairs of the committees also attend meetings outside the immediate prep school whenever possible: as one example, henceforth the chair of the food committee will, escorted by the head, attend regular meetings with the school caterers to enhance and improve menus at break and lunch. Does our Parliament have a Prime Minister? Well, yes and no. In keeping with the philosophy of this being essentially a position of service to others, we have adopted the title of Parliament Secretary. Indeed, for this first generation of children, elections to this highest accolade seemed determined to result in a dead heat. Hence, we currently have co-secretaries: something not in the original plans, but a good example in itself of pupil voice in action! I will keep you posted regarding developments and successful projects! Jonathan Brough Head of the Prep School ■

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

News from St Swithun’s Archives

Photo Challenge Following on from the success of an online puzzle challenge over lockdown, the St Swithun’s archivist set another competition for staff and pupils over the summer term. Taking inspiration from Fettes College in Edinburgh, who re-enacted a photograph from their archive for the school’s 150th anniversary, the aim of the challenge was for each house to choose a photo from the school archive and recreate it as accurately as possible. A point was awarded for every submission and extra points were given for how accurate the photo was compared to the original. Our judges consisted of the school archivist Elly Crookes, the head of history David Filtness and Dave Wallington our marketing and communications officer. The responses were fantastic! The winning boarding house was Hillcroft and the winning day house was Mowbray. Staff also got involved. The school’s domestic staff were strong contenders for 1st place with their fantastic recreation of the Earlsdown boarding house domestic staff in 1900. Headmistress Jane Gandee and our school chaplain Paul Wallington also submitted a strong entry with their recreation of the photo of our school founders Anna Bramston and Amélie LeRoy.

OGA Chain 2021

However, the winning submission was from the Senior Management team who covertly pulled off a fantastic and very accurate recreation of a gym class the 1950s… L-R: Martyn Gamble (Bursar), Graham Yates (Deputy Head, Pastoral), Jane Gandee (Headmistress – pictured upside down!), Charlie Hammel (Deputy Head, Academic) and Reverend Paul Wallington (School Chaplain). ■

Heritage Open Day Tours This year St Swithun’s was pleased to be involved in the Winchester Heritage Open Days (part of a nationwide initiative held every September) during which institutions across the country throw open their doors to celebrate their heritage, community and history.

Attendees from as far as London came to explore St Swithun’s on Sunday 12 September and were treated to three private tours of the school followed by a talk about our school history and an opportunity to see some of the amazing records we have in our collection.

St Swithun’s archivist, Elly Crookes, focussed her time and resources to make an informative and detailed presentation which resulted in our school heritage reaching a wider audience.

The event was a resounding success with one attendee commenting: St. Swithun’s is an important part of Winchester’s history and the history of education for women. Hope

(there are) more events next year! A great way for the school to give back to the local community. The St. Swithun’s shortbread also went down very well! Elly produced a small tour guide for the attendees to follow and you can see the digital version on the Community Hub hub.stswithuns.com/pages/archiveresources ■

The St Swithun’s Coat of Arms, granted on 9 June 1936. Paid for and presented by Dr and Mrs Simpson in memory of their daughter Puck (HH 1935), who sadly died from typhoid. The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Photograph of a School Chronicle from 1897 showing Winifred as sub-editor

Jane Austen’s Descendants at St Swithun’s At the start of this school year we were very excited to discover that the great-great nieces of Jane Austen attended St Swithun’s. Dorothy, Honour, Winifred and Lois AustenLeigh were the daughters of Reverend Arthur Henry Austen-Leigh - the great nephew of Jane Austen. They lived at Winterborne rectory and Arthur sent all of his daughters to St Swithun’s, which was known as Winchester High School for Girls at the time. Dorothy, the eldest, joined in the summer term of 1894 but as the school chronicles start from 1896 the only information we have about her time at school is that she was in Hillcroft. In 1895 she is listed on the Old Girls’ register as living in Reading, where she worked as an honorary assistant secretary for a hospital supply depot. In the 1913 register she was staying with her sister Winifred in

OGA Chain 2021

India but by 1919 she was living with her other sister Honour back in Reading. More is known about Violet Winifred Austen-Leigh as she joined a little later. In fact, she was the sub-editor of the first school chronicle in 1896 which features an article written by her. She was also the captain of the first XI hockey team in 1896 and representative of the games committee in the same year. By 1897 she was treasurer of the tennis club and in 1899, president of the newly formed music committee. After leaving school, Violet lived in Botley and then married Hugh Jenkyns on 14 June 1910. They moved to Lahore, India in the October of 1910 and she gave birth to two children in the following years. Honour Austen Leigh arrived at Winchester High School in the summer term of 1895. She was a member of the tennis and hockey teams, a member of the science society, she

managed the school aquarium and received a commendation from the Royal Drawing Society in 1899. She worked as a voluntary aid detachment in Aldershot, Malta and France between 1915 and 1917. Lastly, Lois Austen-Leigh arrived in the Easter term of 1899. She played for both the first and second hockey XI teams, was a representative of the hockey committee in 1900 and assistant secretary of the tennis committee in 1901. During the WWI she worked as a gardener for the Red Cross and later in life published four mystery novels between 1931 and 1938. All of the sisters were in Hillcroft. To read more about the family and their connection to Jane Austen, you can visit this website: www.winterbourne.freeuk.com/ chaustenleigh.html

Part of the archives display at Old Girls’ Day 2021

Old Girls’ reunion The school archive played a big part in Old Girls’ day on Saturday 11 September and had the opportunity to display some of its records for visiting alumnae. The archivist toured Old Girls round the school and for those who joined online, a special tour was recorded beforehand which can be watched on the St Swithun’s community hub. hub.stswithuns.com/pages/our-history

Records chosen for English A-level students to study

English lessons At the end of the summer term the English department held taster sessions for prospective A-level students. Our archivist was asked to help deliver two taster sessions on using context and culture when approaching and analysing literature. A selection of records was chosen and students were asked to choose an item, analyse it and research the context of the period it was created in. Amongst the records selected were a scrapbook containing articles and pictures about popular culture in the 18th century and a medal awarded to our school founders in recognition of their work in rehabilitating Belgian refugees during WWI.

Elly Crookes, archivist, speaking to L4 students

In a second English collaboration recently, L4 students learnt about the importance of letter writing and our archivist was invited to talk about the significance of letters in the 19th and 20th centuries. Elly spoke about the postal systems during this period, common writing implements and even brought along some of the important letters in the school archive collection to show how letters were structured. L4 were particularly impressed to see the letter signed by Queen Victoria herself ! The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

w The Bramston Bursary Foundation’s mission is to offer life changing opportunities for girls in care, or on the edge of care, by providing fully funded boarding places at St Swithun’s. We work in partnership with three organisations who have networks across the UK and who can help identify girls who would benefit tremendously from the safety and stability of a boarding education at St Swithun’s.

Finding girls who really need our help Hampshire and Isle of Wight Virtual School and College for Children in Care exist to improve the educational outcomes of all children and young people who are in care of the local authority. They monitor the educational progress and attainment of children as if they attended a single school and work in partnership with schools, social workers, carers, and professionals to act as an ambitious and aspirational ‘corporate parent’. Their mission statement states: Vulnerable young people will enter adulthood not as vulnerable adults but as confident citizens with the tools, self-confidence, and resilience to lead worthwhile and fulfilling lives. Nicola Blake, Executive Head Teacher for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Virtual School and College came to meet with key members of St Swithun’s staff and for a tour of the school. She said, “It is clear from my visit to St Swithun’s that they have a strong ethos and nurturing approach that works alongside the routine, structure and high-quality teaching that an independent boarding school provides. This and the wide opportunities for academic enrichment and personal development would make it an excellent option for some children and young people in or on the edge of care. The St Swithun’s team are committed to developing a relationship with the Virtual School and we look forward to strengthening this in the year ahead.” We work with Royal National Children’s SpringBoard Foundation (RNCSF) and Buttle UK, two national charities that are focused on ensuring vulnerable young people are able to secure places at boarding schools as part of their care arrangements. In 2020 RNCSF were announced as the main partner in a significant new initiative launched by the Department for Education - “the Broadening Educational Pathways for Looked-After Children” scheme - to expand

OGA Chain 2021

the number of children in, and on the edge of, care able to access an independent education. “There is a large body of evidence that we have collated over the years to demonstrate the transformative power that boarding school bursary places can offer for children and young people facing some of the most challenging circumstances. We are delighted that this Government has recognised this in awarding us a contract to encourage more Local Authorities to refer young people for these opportunities. We are working in partnership with Authorities across the UK to identify the young people who most deserve and desire the opportunities that a boarding place offers, and then carefully prepare both the young person and the school for how to ensure the highest levels of care before they arrive, as they settle in, and throughout their school journeys. We know from our impact evidence to date that with this careful scaffolding, a boarding education can unlock a world of opportunities and hope for hundreds of vulnerable young people facing vulnerabilities.” Ali Henderson, CEO of RNCSF “Buttle UK has long believed that the use of boarding to support vulnerable children and young people is something that should be utilised more widely by statutory services. We have seen over many years how effectively boarding can support a child’s developmental needs, and result in consistently impressive outcomes. We are delighted to be working in partnership with

RNCSF on the Broadening Educational Pathways scheme. Together we have an important opportunity to build the case for more Local Authorities to use the practice in the future, while offering this transformational experience to more children.” Joseph Howes, CEO of Buttle UK “I’m so proud of everything we are doing at St Swithun’s through the Bramston Bursary Foundation to first find, and to support girls who, through no fault of their own, have had a very challenging home life. I fully recognise that a boarding school place for a child in, or on the edge of care, can be simply life changing.” Alison McClure, Chair of St Swithun’s School Council “Our aim is to provide two fully funded boarding places for girls in, or on the edge of care, each academic year - so that by 2027/28 we will be supporting two girls in each year of the senior school. I sometimes pause to think of the girls who as yet, we don’t know, and who as yet, don’t know us. They may be having a really tough time right now and have no idea that the whole St Swithun’s community is coming together to help them. If you want to do your bit to help, please join the 1884 CLUB. All members donate £18.84 (to commemorate the school’s founding year) every month, every quarter - or just once a year. To join, simply visit hub.stswithuns.com/pages/1884-club - thank you.” Veryan Vere Hodge, Director of Development and Alumnae

Care leavers make up 25% of the homeless population1

Photo by whoismargot on Canva

Help change a girl’s life by joining the 1884 CLUB All members donate £18.84 (to commemorate the school’s founding year) every month, every quarter - or just once a year To join, simply visit hub.stswithuns.com/pages/1884-club

Thank you 1

homeforgood.org.uk/statistics/ Reeve, Kesia and Batty, Elaine. 2011. The hidden truth about homelessness: Experiences of single homelessness in England. Crisis. The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Old Girls’ Day 2021

Lunch together

OGA Chain 2021

Archives tour and display

Prosecco and pastries in High House garden

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

The Old Girls’ Association is delighted to invite you to a rather different

Old Girls’ Day on Saturday 17 September 2022

We are re-launching St Swithun’s Old Girls’ Day and each year we will invite leavers from 5, 10, 25 and 50 years ago

For those who are unable to attend in person there will be an opportunity to join online during the day All former staff are warmly encouraged to join us If you are an Old Girl from a different St Swithun’s class year but you would still like to attend, you would be most welcome

OGA Chain 2021

Class of 2017

Class of 2012

5 year reunion

10 year reunion

Class of 1997

Class of 1972

25 year reunion

50 year reunion

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Fly Zolo At the time of going to print due to weather delays and visa expiry, Zara Rutherford (HA 2021) will be half way through an incredible adventure. Even though she just graduated from St Swithun’s this summer, she has already enbarked on the breath-taking challenge to become the youngest woman to fly solo around the world!

Zara in training

Zara is a 19 year-old Belgian, with an English father and Belgian mother who are both pilots. Her younger brother is also a qualified pilot. She holds dual nationality and completed her education in Belgium and England, joining St Swithun’s when she was 14. She specialised in mathematics, further mathematics, economics and physics at school and is hoping to become an astronaut. Before she left, Zara kindly gave us the answer to some of the many questions we had… Why take on this challenge? At first, I was planning to fly around the world as an adventure during my gap year, not realising I would become the youngest woman to do so if I achieved it. It was only when I started researching more that I noticed I could be the first Belgian and the youngest woman to solo circumnavigate the globe. I’m hoping to get more girls interested in aviation. With this in mind I am supporting two non-profits that encourage girls and young women into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The non-profits are Dreams Soar and Girls Who Code. Dreams Soar aims to inspire women and girls to achieve their dreams and enter STEM fields of study and careers and Girls Who Code aims to support and increase the number of women in computer science by equipping young women with the necessary computing skills to pursue 21st century opportunities. What route are you taking? The route has been chosen to fulfil Guinness World Records’ requirements to be an ‘around the world flight’. It currently takes in 52 countries and crosses the equator twice to satisfy the ‘two antipodal’ requirements for an around the world flight. Antipodals are points perfectly opposite to each other on the earth (if you were to dig vertically down from where you are now, it’s where you would pop out on the other side). My antipodals are small towns: Tumaco in Colombia (just above the equator) and Jambi, Indonesia (just below the equator). I am hoping that they will ‘twin’ as a result of my visits.

OGA Chain 2021

Zara on the British Virgin Islands

I am incredibly excited by this route and can’t wait, there will be many challenges on the way but experiencing all these cultures (and their food!) will be amazing and worth it. I am most looking forward to South America and Greenland. The journey should take two to three months, but it is very dependent on weather. I am flying Visual Flight Rules (VFR) or solely by visual reference when possible so I need to make sure I won’t be flying in clouds or at night. I should accumulate around 250 hours of flying time. I hope to meet the local schools at every stop, particularly the young girls. It is also my hope to stay with a local family each time as this is a fantastic way to understand where I am and with whom. It will make the entire experience much richer.

What would you like to achieve by doing this? My aim is to inspire young women and girls to pursue whatever they may be interested in, even if that is seen as traditionally male. Through my round the world trip I’m hoping to encourage other girls to start flying too or enter STEM related careers. Zara has already inspired 51 St Swithun’s girls to sign up for a taster flying lesson this term. Shaesta Waiz is the current female record holder and she was 30 years old at the time of her circumnavigation. The youngest male record holder currently is Travis Ludlow at 18, having just beaten Mason Andrews, who was 18 years and five months old at the time

of his journey. The gap in ages between the men and the women is huge and shows the disparity in the number of male and female aviators. With my journey, I am attempting to break the following Guinness World Records: ■ Youngest woman to fly solo around the world. ■ First woman to circumnavigate the world in a microlight ■ First Belgian to circumnavigate the world solo in a single engine aircraft Follow Zara’s adventures at www.FlyZolo.com

Greenland landscape taken from the plane

What airplane will you fly? A Shark ultralight, the world’s fastest microlight aircraft. It is extremely fast (300km/h), has a very long range, is very safe and extremely capable. Mine has been modified with extended range to 1800nm (3500km) and satellite communications. I would particularly like to thank Shark for their loan of such a beautiful machine. It has an exemplary safety record, including options for when/if anything goes wrong and I am receiving special training for problems both in the air and on the ground. I will also be following a ‘Dunker’ course how to safely get out of an aircraft that has ditched in the water. The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Art in Africa Jenny Strathern, née Grindle (ED 1972) left St Swithun’s to study radiotherapy at Guy’s Hospital in London as for her it was the perfect combination of physics and people. She went on to work in the neutron clinic at Hammersmith hospital, then St Luke’s and the Royal Marsden before heading over to Groote Schuur in Cape Town, South Africa, the site of the first ever heart transplant. Woven in between these medical jobs, Jenny also dabbled in catering, running a sandwich bar at one point and catering for birthdays, weddings and other events. It has been a reliable back-up trade for times when she needed greater flexibility and it was also another wonderful way to meet people. Jenny met her husband Chris whilst sailing on a yacht from Cape Town, via St Helena Ascension Island and the Azores, to Turkey. She remembers their trip as a life-changing experience, not only because they decided to get married but because the forestay broke and the prop shaft sheared! And in those days, there was no GPS either… Since leaving the UK, Jenny has lived in many countries - South Africa, Eswatini (Swaziland), Zambia and currently Uganda, where she and Chris have been for almost ten years. Zambia was one of Jenny’s favourite places as they were surrounded by wide open spaces and the most beautiful game reserves. She also loved Cape Town as it was gloriously cosmopolitan. Being built around Table Mountain and the sea there was always a feeling, for Jenny, that nature was at its heart too. Wherever she has lived, the common theme for Jenny has been community and she has worked hard to be part of each area, make connections with people and give back to society however she could. An amazing example of this is Jenny’s artwork. A talented artist, Jenny often sells her work and donates the proceeds to local charities. She has sold wildlife pictures in aid of the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation (who are committed to fight against wildlife crime, protect endangered species and engage local communities in wildlife protection) and other paintings to support the work of the Rays of Hope Hospice in Jinja, Uganda (who do phenomenal work in cancer detection and treatment, amongst other things).

OGA Chain 2021

Jenny feels that both her sense of community and the realisation that with privilege comes great responsibility is something she learnt back in her days at St Swithun’s. Being at boarding school taught her to get along with everybody even though you might be cleaning your teeth next to someone you don’t like every morning! It also helped her build resilience and independence - two other characteristics which have served her well in diverse ex-pat environments. For the best part of the last decade, Jenny and Chris have lived in Jinja, Uganda, where Chris has managed a sugar plantation. Whilst the actual COVID case numbers in the Jinja area are low its impact has made life very difficult for so many. Jenny explained that local children haven’t been

to school for two years and there is no home-schooling either. The rates of teenage pregnancy are horrific and there is no NHS or unemployment benefit to help the ill or unemployed. In Uganda generally, the population has now risen to a staggering 47 million people with roughly half of those being age 15 or under. However, for Jenny and Chris it is almost time to move on once again as Chris retired a few weeks ago. Horrifyingly, Jenny was attacked recently whilst out on her usual walk around the plantation. She bravely fought off her attacker and reached safety but it has shaken her. She is using her creativity to process her feelings and has written a poem about her experience.

Together, they have decided to take some time out in Kenya and have hired a beach house as the perfect place to rest and mull over ideas for their future. One thought is to come back to the UK and travel around the coast of Scotland in a camper van! I am sure that wherever they end up, Jenny will make more friends and produce yet more stunning artwork. You can see some of Jenny’s work here: www.jennystrathernart.com/about ■

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

It’s great to hear your voice! Beth (Alison) Chalmers (ED 1991) left St Swithun’s after A-levels to study teaching at Homerton College, Cambridge. It provided her with a profession to support her whilst she pursued her real dream of acting. Beth during some voiceover work in the studio

OGA Chain 2021

Beth and Amy taking a break from filming in New Zealand.

Beth on set in New Zealand filming Mystic before lockdown

Beth did a six-month tour with the famous Footlights troupe (Cambridge University Footlights Dramatic Club) and worked alongside people like David Mitchell and Rob Webb before starting at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. Beth feels she learnt more about acting whilst she was at university but her drama school provided the opportunity to meet agents and enter competions. Beth went on to win the Carleton Hobbs award, giving her 6 months’ work experience in BBC Radio Drama. During that time, she met many producers and has worked in radio ever since, notching up over 250 radio plays. In addition to this, Beth has also acted, written and produced her own material. In addition to radio work, Beth is the voice of various Numberblocks and the Queen in Mike the Knight; has acted in Midsommer Murders and The Lenny Henry Show and written episodes of Horrible Histories. She is currently writing and showrunning a multi-award winning children’s drama for the BBC entitled Mystic. Filmed in New Zealand, the series focusses on a young girl, Issie Brown, who has just moved to New Zealand with her mother and is struggling to make friends. A chance encounter with a mysterious stallion soon changes things for Issie. Seasons one and two are available to watch on BBC iPlayer now. Of all the things Beth does she gets the most satisfaction from writing – even though it is also usually the longest process. Beth

says, “I love acting and the variety of it and voiceovers are fun too but there’s a huge sense of achievement from finishing a script. For me, the sense of pride is bigger.” That said, one of her favourite times acting was up in Edinburgh working on the Alan Ayckbourn trilogy The Norman Conquests with Olivia Coleman and Amy Shindler. Beth went to university and drama school with Amy and over time they have become lifelong friends and writing partners. Beth says, “You have to be sure of yourself and be confident in your ability but you get knocked down a lot. In a writing partnership you both bring different things to the team and can always find something positive to say about each other. You share the same successes and the same tribulations. Amy and I are a calming influence on each other.” Beth feels her time at St Swithun’s helped instil a sense of confidence in her and a feeling of being worthy of (rather than entitled to) being listened to when she walked into a room. This has helped her in many situations. In the future, Beth will be continuing to work on Mystic and would like to head back to America too. She finds the work better paid (she has worked with networks like ABC) and there are many more channels to collaborate with. It is a career that has brought her much joy and we wish her every success in her new adventures. ■

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

OGA Ambassadors The Old Girls’ Association relies on the support of many St Swithun’s alumnae who volunteer their time to help with the annual calendar of activities. We call these kind OGs our OGA Ambassadors. They share their expertise and give us their advice and time… all things we are hugely grateful for.

One of these Ambassadors is Lisa MacLaren (HA 1988). After finishing her A-levels at Epsom College Lisa took a year out in South Africa with her dad and then came back to the UK to study Business Law at City, University of London. Her next stop was the College of Law, York which looked right out on to the racecourse.

who look after the recruitment and human resource needs of their many clients.

Although Lisa was sponsored by the Army from the age of 16 and dearly wanted to work as part of the Army’s legal services, changes made to funding by the government at the time meant that the arrangement was terminated. Lisa didn’t enjoy the ‘civvy street’ law firm she went in to after university and left after nine months to take a different career path. She has never looked back! It is a career that has been global, provided her with the opportunity to work and live in APAC and North America and given her the chance to experience so many cultures.

The pandemic has also caused previously unseen problems for companies and Lisa and her team have had to be creative with their responses in order to support their clients’ talent strategies. Lots of changes have been fast-tracked due to COVID as many employees needed to relocate or change their core hours. It has required some thinking ‘outside the box’ and added more vital experience to Lisa’s 24 years in the profession.

Lisa is now the Senior Vice President of Cielo Talent, a recruitment outsourcing firm Lisa

OGA Chain 2021

One of the things she enjoys most about her work is that every day is an unknown. She says, “Working with people is fascinating as they are the most unpredictable commodity there is.”

One of the events Lisa helped us with this year was to give L6 students a practice interview before they applied to universities. She feels it was a privilege to help them

understand what institutions and employers are looking for and how they can put ‘their best self ’ forward. We are extremely grateful for the time Lisa has given us and look forward to working with her again soon. Emma Faid (HH 1983) is another of our OGA Ambassadors. Emma left St Swithun’s to study Latin and Greek at Cambridge followed by postgraduate studies in Classical Archaeology, also at Cambridge University, and business studies at Anglia Ruskin University. Then she trained as a Chartered Accountant with PwC before working in management accountancy in the public sector. Emma is still a practising accountant, but has also chalked up nearly 20 years as an academic administrator/office manager in various departments of Cambridge and Anglia Ruskin Universities. Her current role is in the Sainsbury Laboratory, a plant sciences research laboratory based in Cambridge

University’s Botanic Garden, where she “does a little bit of everything apart from actual plant sciences!”

considering volunteering then you probably already have an idea of how you might help”.

Emma’s other passion is helping others in their time of need and she has volunteered for the Red Cross for almost 24 years, originally in event first aid and training other first aiders, but now volunteers in emergency response. Most recently, she helped to staff the Coronavirus Supportline and local responses in Cambridgeshire and Essex.

So whether it’s baking cakes, stewarding guests, talking to students or helping us to grow the OGA network, please get in touch to join in the fun when you can. There will be a warm welcome waiting for you.

Emma’s first aid background was one area where she was able to help us. She spent the day with us at our Tichborne Garden Open Day (in aid of the Bramston Bursary Foundation) and was our dedicated first aider, helping to ensure that our first event ‘in person’ since coming out of lockdown went smoothly. She also joined us at Old Girls’ Day in September, but this time just as a guest to catch up with old friends. Emma says, “If you are thinking about being an OGA Ambassador, then go for it! If you’re

You can get in touch on oga@stswithuns. com and we look forward to hearing from you. ■

Emma

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Medics Montage We had the pleasure of catching up with three OGs whose career paths in medicine have taken them all on very different journeys… Kate (Kathleen) Meyer (HA 2009) Kate studied chemistry, biology and geography at A-level with an AS-level in design technology and initially thought she would study occupational therapy. However, after attending a few open days she realised it wasn’t quite what she wanted to do and she chose to study medicine at Brighton and Sussex Medical School as an International student instead. Kate’s year was only the 5th cohort for what was, at the time, the smallest medical school in the country - there were only 140 people in each year so she was able to get to know her year and the year above quite easily. She has high praise for the School and says they were always open and responsive to feedback. Kate left with her degree in medicine and went on to do her F1 (Foundation) year in Worthing working in urology, diabetes and geriatrics. Her second year (F2) was at St Helier in London and her rotations included paediatrics, A&E and intensive care. After this Kate opted for a year out and worked in refugee camps in Greece and in a rural hospital in South Africa (her parents are from South Africa). Kate found it to be a tough placement as the hospital was severely under-resourced and there was little guidance for a junior doctor. It did however have its positives and seeing elephants on the way into work every day is one of Kate’s favourite memories! Back in the UK, Kate spent the next two years at Charing Cross hospital, London, working in anaesthetics and intensive care before she moved to the Chelsea and Westminster hospital in 2019. It was here that Kate was working as a Junior Registrar when the pandemic first started and she was called out of paediatrics to help with adult COVID cases. This was followed by a promotion to Senior Registrar at Northwick Park, which was the epi-centre for COVID cases at the time and frequently in the BBC news with headlines such as Coronavirus: The London hospital hit by a ‘tidal wave’ of patients. Kate recalls this as being the most impactful time of her career to date as it was exhausting and emotional. Families were unable to be with their loved ones and having to give them updates over the phone

OGA Chain 2021

was difficult, particularly as little was known about COVID to begin with. Kate really felt this particular job gave her a huge amount of experience and improved her confidence and personal growth as a doctor.

helping to deal with cases that were put ‘on hold’ during the pandemic. There’s also the added pressure of children’s immune systems playing catch up due to so much time in isolation.

Now Kate has returned to Chelsea and Westminster and is taking another year out of training to work in paediatric A&E, whilst studying for her post-graduate certificate in clinical education. She feels work is manageable now from a COVID point of view but still ridiculously busy as they are

With so much going on professionally, you could be forgiven for thinking Kate doesn’t have much spare time for anything else but she is currently planning to marry her partner (an oncology doctor) in South Africa early next year! Congratulations to both of you and thank you Kate. ■

Georgina Edmonds (CG/Blore House 1976) Georgina left St Swithun’s shortly after beginning her A-levels as she wanted to work with horses and managed to convince her father it was a good idea! She had a wonderful time eventing and continued for a while after her father had passed away until she made the adventurous decision to head off to Kenya. It was there for seven years that Georgina lived in mud and wattle huts with an elephant’s jawbone to sit on for the latrine, in a camp in the African bush. She worked alongside the famous George Adamson MBE, the wildlife conservationist and author depicted in the book and film Born Free. Whilst she was there, Georgina was responsible for a wide variety of jobs such as, supply trips to Nairobi, answering fan mail, bottle feeding abandoned lion cubs and looking for lions with George for the many visitors they had to camp. It was a very happy time for Georgina. Once a year she used to come back to England to visit her mother. It was during one of these return visits that Georgina shockingly learned that George had been murdered by bandits and sadly that chapter of her life came to an unexpected close.

worm and there were also plenty of snakes and scorpions. Georgina tried to help local dogs too, with a rabies vaccination program and first aid. She remember them following her around like the Pied Piper! Later Georgina worked in Rumbek, which was an SPLA (Sudan People’s Liberation Army) stronghold, in a big clinic with a TB and leprosy program. She trained a handful of local people to carry out basic diagnostic tests like blood grouping and malaria etc. After that she went to Juba, where she used an old motorbike to get around and ran her own clinic with the luxury of a helicopter on standby for medevac. In January 2008, Georgina received yet further shocking news when she heard her

mother had been murdered at home in Hampshire. She came back to England to be with her family and deal with the investigation and court case which took many years. She made the decision to stay in the UK and worked in a hospital in Brighton on the gynaecology ward, thoroughly enjoying the role and working with her talented colleagues. Now Georgina has settled in West Sussex and works as a community nurse on twilight and overnight shifts. She visits patients at home and in residential homes to help them with emergency situations and palliative care – a very varied role which means she never quite knows what will crop up next. Thank you Georgina for all you do. ■

Georgina decided to train as a nurse at the Royal Free hospital in London where she specialised in tropical nursing and soon she went back to Kenya. To register as a nurse there and before she could have her own clinic, Georgina had to also become a midwife and trained at Nakuru provincial hospital to achieve this. Alongside this, she also worked in private nursing jobs dealing with a variety of situations from burns to family planning and crocodile attacks! Georgina was later offered a job in Keew, South Sudan where there were no cars, phones or laptops and they relied on an old radio for communication with their base in Nairobi in case they had to coordinate an evacuation. Drinking water was flown in every fortnight (weather conditions permitting) and water for showering came from a swamp over a mile away from camp and was filtered and treated with alum. It was an area contaminated by Guinea The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Grace Ding (ED 1982) Grace left St Swithun’s in 1982 with 5 A-levels and went on to study at Southampton Medical School. After graduating she did her house jobs in Southampton and in Lymington. This was in the days when Lymington was still a cottage hospital and Grace was very much ‘in at the deep end’ where weekend shifts could last 84 hours with no guaranteed sleep or meal times. “The years in St Swithun’s taught me the discipline and the resilience necessary to work as a medic.” After a stint in A&E, Grace completed her 3 year GP rotation which included a year in a GP surgery in Romsey. She passed her membership exam for the Royal College of General Practitioners in 1991 and has worked as a GP ever since. “My heart was always in General Practice. My father was a GP in Hong Kong and I have always liked

OGA Chain 2021

Employees of Sabeti Wain Aerospace Ltd demonstrating some of the PPE they made

Grace wearing her Pringles lid medal

the variety and continuity that General Practice provides.” Now based in Oxfordshire with her husband, a Consultant Cardiologist, she has made the choice to work part-time. She feels the current workload of a full-time GP is not conducive to good mental health, particularly given the last 18 months and COVID. “Despite the pressures, I have always felt privileged to work in the NHS where, unlike most other countries in the world, I can practise without the financial constraints of private medicine.” The pandemic was one of the most significant periods in Grace’s career. She witnessed the rapid spread of the infection amongst patients and staff, especially in the care home population during the first wave. As the lead research GP in her practice, she was able to take part in rapidly evolving

COVID research such as the PRINCIPLE trial and antibodies studies. “The vaccine was a miracle. There was a real Dunkirk spirit amongst GPs when the roll-out began.” Grace felt strongly that her practice should step up and she, like many others, volunteered to administer it in her free time. A contact of Grace’s husband was also able to help out and kindly re-tasked his factory workers from making aircraft seats to making long sleeve gowns for PPE. What’s more, they did it for free. These acts of kindness were appreciated by us as a nation and also as individuals. After one clapping session on a Thursday night, the young daughter of Grace’s neighbour posted something special through her letterbox. It was a medal for Grace made out of a Pringles lid - an example of how much we all value the efforts made by Grace and all our NHS workers. ■ The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Photo by Helena Yankovska on Unsplash

St Swithun’s Summer Party Friday 1 July 2022 7.30 pm to midnight St Swithun’s School

Due to obvious reasons, we have had to cancel the summer party at St Swithun’s for the last couple of years. We sincerely hope that by the summer 2022, we will all be able to get together and party the night away! The party, which will raise much needed funds for the Bramston Bursary Foundation, will provide the perfect opportunity to meet up and celebrate with your St Swithun’s friends. More details will be published on the St Swithun’s Community Hub soon, but if you would like to register your interest please email oga@stswithuns.com. We are very much looking forward to welcoming you.

Providing life changing opportunities through fully funded boarding places for girls in, or on the edge of care. 32

OGA Chain 2021

Online Auction Success Thank you to everyone who kindly supported our Bramston Bursary Foundation online auction in June this year. We are enormously grateful to all our prize donors and all our prize bidders. When the hammer came down, the final bidding total was a fantastic £12,902. Here is a reminder of some of the prizes that were on offer, with thanks to our St Swithun’s OGs!

A week’s holiday on the Isle of Wight Kindly donated by Janice Aslin, née Smith (HA 1955)

Three pieces of art plus a commissioned piece of a person or pet Kindly donated by Ruby Bateman (HC 2013)

Four night break in the south of France for four Kindly donated by Caroline Hammond, née Russell (HA 1990)

Anyone Game - party games book (signed by the author) Kindly donated by Laura Plant (HH 2008)

Delivery of cheese & wine tasting experience Kindly donated by Sarah Barr, née Preston (HA 1992)

A stay at the 5* St Raphael Resort & Marina in Limassol, Cyprus Kindly donated by Farah Shammas (HA 1998)

A private cooking workshop via Zoom Kindly donated by Farah Shammas (HA 1998)

Polo lesson Kindly donated by Tae Ormerod, née Nelson (Blore House 1978) - Druids Lodge Polo llp

Dyson Supersonic hairdryer Kindly donated by Dyson UK and kindly secured by Madeleine Steer (D 2013)

If you feel you might be able to support our 2022 auction by donating a prize, we would be very grateful. Please do get in touch by emailing oga@stswithuns.com, thank you. Tribute to Ollie Gadney In addition to the support received from our alumnae community, the auction was also very well supported by a number of St Swithun’s parents. One of these kind parents was Ollie Gadney. Ollie generously donated the wonderful prize of a whole day of foursomes golf at The Royal St. George’s Golf Club in Kent. Tragically, Ollie, much loved dad to Sienna and Natasha and

husband to Jo, was involved in a fatal collision whilst out cycling not long after the auction took place. The prize day went ahead as Jo firmly believed that is what Ollie would have wanted. A donation in memory of Ollie was kindly given to the Bramston Bursary Foundation by those who so wished Ollie could have been with them on the golf course that day. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Gadney family.

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

OGA Chain 2021

Desire Ayoola, Head girl of St Swithun’s 2021-22

In conversation with our Head Girl What were your first impressions when you joined St Swithun’s? I joined St Swithun’s in L4 in 2015 coming from a very small day school where I was one of six in a class. My first impressions were how massive the buildings were – it felt like a maze and I frequently got lost between lessons to begin with. I didn’t know anybody before I joined but it didn’t matter because everyone was so friendly. I went into Le Roy and became a boarder for the first time. Being an only child, it was refreshing to be with other girls of the same age who had the same energy levels as me. Our house talent show performance was one of my best memories in LeRoy. There is a great sense of community amongst the boarders and I have lots of great memories. I can remember one school play in which I played a pirate. I had to wear a dodgy wig which fell off during the production! I have been too busy to get homesick and have tried a bit of everything at weekends over the years. I like to go offsite – to the cinema or into town and I often have sports matches on Saturdays. My mum has come to see me at some of the matches and I think me being away has been harder on her than it has been on me! How did you feel about becoming Head Girl? It has taken a while to sink in. I remember being in L4 and watching the Head Girl thinking it would never be me but it’s an honour for me now to represent the St Swithun’s community in and out of school. I am really looking forward to Fundraising Friday even though I will have water tipped over my head, arranging the Christmas Chocolate Hunt and organising The Game (an annual chase/hunt game amongst the students). I am also organising a whole school Culture Day to celebrate the diversity within the school community and to encourage cultural awareness. In my free time I like to relax by keeping a journal. This allows me to collect my thoughts and realise I have a lot to be grateful for. It often proves to me that my week has been more productive than I

thought! I also play netball and lacrosse and have been part of the choir since L5. Performing in St Mark’s Basilica during the Italy choir tour is my favourite memory as a choir member. My friends and I are always singing together – we were even walking along harmonising on the last Duke of Edinburgh trip. What would you like to do after St Swithun’s? I’m taking biology, chemistry and French A-levels as I would like to study medicine at university in London, perhaps Imperial or UCL. At the moment I am interested in cardio-thoracics and neurology and I am looking forward to gaining experience in both areas of medicine during my time at University. I plan to keep up with French after A-levels too as it would be an amazing opportunity to train or work in a French speaking country. What qualities has St Swithun’s helped you to develop? This is a kind community and I have never felt judged. Being here has really helped me to develop my self-confidence, for example, having the courage to apply for the Head Girl position. I was always (and still am sometimes) my own biggest critic but I now understand that my strengths outweigh my weaknesses and I am more than my weaknesses. I have resilience and I will keep on trying. It has also taught me time management; this school is very vibrant and there are so many exciting co-curricular opportunities available, I have learnt how to effectively manage my time so I can make the most of all that’s on offer. Do you have any advice for future Head Girls? Try to do as much as you can for your community and you’ll be halfway there. When I was head of house for Hillcroft, I tried hard to make an already amazing house even better and it shows if you are dedicated and devoted to making a difference. Also, be kind. You will become someone people rely on and you want to be the sort of person they are happy to come and talk to.

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Former teacher feature

Conrad with two of his pets, Charlie and Bella, on a walk in the woods

Many of you may recognise former member of staff Conrad Brewer, who taught for 12 years at St Swithun’s from 1989 to 2001. Leaving the state school system as head of maths, Conrad joined St Swithun’s to teach maths and further maths to all year groups. Quite early on in his time at St Swithun’s he was also sent on a course at Exeter University to specialise in statistics, which enabled future cohorts to have a broader grounding in maths at A-level. Coming from a state school teaching background, it was a very different atmosphere at St Swithun’s: smaller classes, better resources and even an afternoon off! It was a welcome but significant change and Conrad settled in with the support of the then head, Joan Jefferson (now Lady Appleyard). He has happy memories of watching horse racing in High House with his colleague Jan Bowes (High House housemistress

OGA Chain 2021

at the time) and recalls another occasion when his purple sports car was covered in a flag on national No Smoking day as an encouragement for him to stop! He is still in contact with other teachers from the time and exchanges Christmas cards with some. Conrad also enjoys coming back to visit on Old Girls’ Days and has been a regular since 2013. Since leaving, he has continued to mark exam papers - something he has done since the 70s - only now they are done online instead of on paper. He also enjoys playing the piano every day and has fond memories of playing for himself on the wonderful piano in Bramston Hall (the former assembly hall, now the Bramston Library).

Growing up as one of five boys, Conrad was always playing football and cricket and he was Captain of his university football team. He continued to play cricket for six years after retiring but has now swapped that for badminton and table tennis. And, if that wasn’t enough, he swims two or three miles a week as well! At home, Conrad and his wife Lindsey have many pets to look after, including hens, cats, dogs and a horse. The lovely Bella (a Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen) also works as a therapy dog locally when COVID restrictions aren’t in place. It is always a pleasure to catch up with Conrad and we look forward to seeing him at the next Old Girls’ Day. ■

Former teacher feature

Manu Grice first came to work at St Swithun’s in 1995 and taught German and Spanish for two years before taking a career break to have her twin boys. She returned in 2002 part time and stayed on for another 16 years! Manu remembers many happy times working with her colleagues. They used to celebrate department birthdays in whatever outrageous ways they could come up with… one year they created a Standard Poodle called Gloria as a wife for the House Mistress’ dog. They even mounted it on wheels in DT so they could pull it along! She loved the school trips to Rhineland and Normandy with the U4s and Christmas assemblies too. When Dr Harvey left, Manu remembers she and other staff hilariously created a St Trinian’s style story book complete with photos. There was a deep friendship with those in her department and she misses that although they visit her from time to time in her new cottage.

Originally, on retirement, Manu and her husband had planned to buy a B&B on the Isle of Wight but that sale fell through and they bought a cottage instead. It was a serendipitous change of plan that led them to their new village; a lively place with a wonderful community spirit.

Recently Manu was able to visit her family in Germany for the first time in two years. Whilst she was there, she swam in a glacier lake but cold water swimming is not unusual for her as she normally swims in the sea every day from May to October… and of course, on New Year’s Day! Who doesn’t?!

Manu explained that during the pandemic their local delivery driver’s van broke down and he couldn’t afford to fix it or replace it, as it was customised for his disability and therefore very expensive. Within hours, the community had raised enough money to get it repaired and for the next two weeks they took turns delivering his parcels so he wouldn’t lose his job. Add to that the beautiful beaches and rolling countryside and it’s not difficult to see why they are happy there.

Alongside swimming and feeling guilty from time to time about not working, Manu also manages to enjoy gardening and painting. She loves to create seascapes and pet portraits and has just been offered her first commission after a friend saw Manu’s painting of a lurcher. She helps out at a local playgroup and of course is learning a new language! This time it is Welsh and with the help of an app on her phone she is picking up new vocabulary every day. “Now I know how the L4s felt learning German!” she laughed. ■

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Join the St Swithun’s Community Hub Here at St Swithun’s OGA we want you to keep in touch with us and with each other. If you haven’t yet joined the Hub please go to hub.stswithuns.com and join our community!

OGA Chain 2021

Once you have logged on, you can easily update your contact details, add university and career information and choose how you would like us to contact you. One example of how we like to keep in touch is with our monthly OGA e-news, keeping you up to date with news from Old

Girls and St Swithun’s. Take a look at the map which shows whereabouts in the world OGs were when they opened the last e-news from us! It’s great to have contact with so many overseas OGs! On the Hub you will find your friends, news, Professional Guidance department events,

Bramston Bursary Foundation events, photographs, archive materials and a new business directory and shop. Come and take a look and join us…we look forward to welcoming you. ■

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

St Swithun’s Way Challenge 2021 The St Swithun’s Way Challenge was a resounding success! Students, staff, families and friends all came together to run and walk their chosen distance and raise funds for the Bramston Bursary Foundation. After the challenge, there was a party atmosphere back at school with hot food, live music and other entertainment. Well done to everybody who battled the bitter winds and conquered their challenge!

OGA Chain 2021

Headmistress, Jane Gandee (pictured second from left) ran 30km

With thanks to our corporate supporter Rathbones

With thanks to our event Corporate Champion Knight Frank The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Memories of St Swithun’s

Parents’ Day at St Swithun’s, 1949 Kindly written by Beryl Cooke neé Rowland (Venta 1950) I started in the new ‘Transition’ department in the summer term of 1943. I was seven on May 2nd and, as I remember it, there were only 5 of us in the form. Miss Mack was our form mistress, newly employed I think, to teach very young children. Miss Hobson was very much around too; in fact may have taken us before Miss Mack came. We had a form room on ground floor of Chilcomb looking out onto the garden with a slope just made for rolling down! Susan Jennings was a classmate and Judy Watson joined too. Miss Mack was lovely and so was Mrs Wilson, who joined the staff in those wartime days, to help teach the ‘little ones’. She was one of only two mistresses who were titled ‘Mrs’ although she may have been widowed too. She was gentle too but then she didn’t have to try and teach maths to people like me! We were soon given a form room upstairs which seemed like the attic! Claire Hensley joined us after that and she became my best friend. Unfortunately, she was whisked off to board at Cheltenham Ladies’ College a while later and that was the end of that. The same thing happened to my best friend, Sarah Burrowes, whose father was Archdeacon of Winchester, and who lived in a lovely house in the Cathedral Close.

OGA Chain 2021

When Sarah came to tea with us (at Christ Church Vicarage) she thought it odd to see my mother washing the kitchen floor herself ! I do remember once being invited to an evening party at Sarah’s, which was to celebrate her somewhat older brother, Simon’s birthday. Every day, we had to walk along the road, lined with sycamore trees, to the Senior House for lunch, then back again. It was fun when the wings fell and we would stick them on our noses! In the grounds of that house (near the top of St Giles’ Hill), there was a ‘building’ where we could play indoor games. Once we even rehearsed and put on A Midsummer Night’s Dream and I was Monsieur Mustard Seed! Sometimes we had our school dinner across the road in Palm Hall, which we was called ‘Waiting House’. The girls who boarded there were waiting to be placed in one of the established boarding houses: Earlsdown, Hillcroft, High House and Hyde. Le Roy was the junior boarding house and that was based in a house next door to Chilcomb. I was a day girl, as we lived in Winchester. In those early days, my parents had arranged for me to get to school each day in Miss Hobson’s old Austen 7 and she used to pick

me up outside the prison, which was very close to our house. I had to stand in the back till she dropped somebody off at the station so it was a squash! Bridget Jackson was another passenger, as she and her widowed mother lived next door to ‘Hobbie’. I wonder now if, perhaps like my father, ‘Hobbie’ had extra petrol coupons. Other people, like my grandfather, had to ‘lay-up’ their cars for the duration of rationing. When the Americans vacated the school after using it as a hospital, we all moved lock, stock and barrel back up there. I’m sure that was a huge relief for the teachers. I felt very grown up then, but actually was still only a junior. As my name began with an R, I was put in Venta. It bothered me that Caer Gwent was mispronounced and I knew this, because I am Welsh! The boarders in Hillcroft and Earlsdown walked back and forth to their houses each day for lunch, while the day girls and boarders from High House and Hyde were catered for at school. We played netball in winter and rounders in summer until we were beyond Upper Three,

when we started to learn lacrosse, tennis and cricket. Miss Snowball was the games mistress when I started at St Swithun’s and she had been Captain, I was told, of the England women’s cricket team, so we were quite proud of her. Even my father, who had been a very good cricketer in his younger days, was impressed! He used to play for the fathers’ team against the girls in the annual cricket match as a cunning slow bowler. The girls had to be out twice, to make it fair! The war ended when I was nine and then uniform rules became strict again. I do remember feeling very grown-up in my brown tweed skirt with two kick pleats back and front. My parents were part of a scheme in Winchester in which a large party of Dutch children were brought over to stay with host families for two months. This was to give them better nourishment and a happier time after the trauma of the war years in their country. We shared our home with Trussje (pronounced Troosha) Baaker and she was permitted to come to school with me. She was a year or two older than me and learnt English very quickly, of course!

Outside Hyde Abbey, 1967

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Kindly written by Rosemary Ormerod neé Comley (Hyde Abbey 1969) The outdoor swimming pool was freezing as it was up on the top of the hill where the wind came straight through the holes in the fence. There was a lean-to with hooks in the roof to hang our wet towels and costumes on. They never dried properly so the first hurdle was going into the wooden changing cubicle - redolent of creosote - and trying to wriggle into a damp cozzie. Taught in small groups, the rest of us stood shivering on the side of the pool waiting our turn, eventually trying to dry ourselves with damp towels and then getting dressed when we were still damp all over. So of course we tried everything to get out of swimming! The ‘wrong time of the month’ seemed to come fortnightly, coughs and sneezes were endemic and one friend even tried painting a verruca on her foot… but it didn’t fool Miss Roberts.

Back to school after the war, 1945

OGA Chain 2021

I wish I could remember all the dormitory names in LeRoy - Bannockburn, Calcutta, Blenheim, Rorke’s Drift, Lucknow - I know there were others! What else? The locked sweet cupboard and Miss Taylor ringing the bell when we were allowed to line up and get some from our tins. Puppy baskets and chamber pots under the beds. Going to ‘the palace’ (the toilet) before lights out! Egg bread and eiderdowns. Listening to Radio Caroline under the bedclothes – we had a radio smuggled inside a book with pages carved into a radio shaped hole! Pinching and eating the raw rhubarb growing below the bottom lawn. Lining up outside to wait for the school bus from Chilcombe to take us to Medecroft and exchanging insults with our mortal enemies, until somebody crossed their fingers and said, “Pax!”

At the end of my first term it was time for ‘HP’. We newbies were told that we would be collected by coach, driven to London - in our nightwear - to see the horses of parliament. Yes, I believed it. It turned out that HP meant doing the ‘Hokey Pokey’ on the landing outside Calcutta/Blenheim, although it is really called the Hokey Cokey! I think Le Roy made more of an impression on me than Hyde Abbey. I was just nine years old, 3000 miles away from home in Africa. My first letter to my grandmother she kept, and I have it still. It asks her to send me a soft toilet roll because Le Roy only had hard paper and I was getting spots. We had boxes of Jeyes interleaved toilet paper in ceramic holders and I had developed a rash!

When Miss Finlay retired, I was chosen to present her with her leaving present from the juniors and I remember my senior getting my hair tidy and telling me what to do. She had very thick hair and a long central plait. I did the presentation to Miss Finlay and her gift was an electric iron. Think of what she might have had now!

Kindly written by Jeanne Yates (Venta 1949) I started at St Swithun’s in the autumn term of 1939 when I was eight years and two months. Form two was on the first floor just to the left at the top of the stairs and our form mistress was Miss Joan Hobson. There were about 25 in the class and I was assigned a desk at the back. In those days there were inkpots with blue ink in them and we used pens with detachable nibs. Biros were invented much later. Quite often, blotting paper would be wedged into the inkpot, making an awful mess and using the pen impossible. We had rough books so that we could write in pencil during the lesson. Miss Finlay was the headmistress and was a very formidable person with her black choker around her neck. She often took prayers in the hall where we would sit on the floor with crossed legs. I could not do it then or now, aged 90! After the declaration of war on Germany on September 3rd, preparations had been made and air raid shelters had appeared near the trees at the back of the main buildings. We had to practise going out to them if the air raid alarm went. I had been given a wristwatch for my 8th birthday and can remember asking the member of staff in the shelter if she wanted to know the time. “No,” was the answer, “we have to wait until the all clear.” There was an air raid shelter smell distinct from any other smell and it was the same when we had to move out of the school buildings into two houses on St Giles’ Hill. We were told that the buildings had been requisitioned and would be turned into a hospital, which eventually did happen. We learnt to play netball and we used the hall for gymnastics. Even as a new child I longed to climb the ropes and sign my name on the ceiling but that did not happen until we came back to school after the war. During my first term, Miss Hobson had brought in some bulrushes and placed them in a big vase which was on top of a cupboard. She told us later that when the top brown bits were ripe we could have some

seeds. I think she was starting to tell us about the birds and the bees! I do not remember who suggested putting a thumbnail into the bulrushes but I was chosen to do the deed and nobody confessed! She also took us on a nature walk on the hill next to the head’s house and we drew pictures of the plants we saw. Many years later after an AGM she told me that she had been out the night before so she would know the names of the plants and where they were. None of us had guessed that had happened. We were given gas masks and had to take them into school each day. They were in cardboard boxes with a long string attached and awkward to carry with a satchel. Miss Hobson taught us sewing and we had to make a bag to keep our sewing things in. The first thing we had to do was embroider our names on them. I think it was a good way of learning who we all were and I have still got my bag. Spring term in 1940 was very different as there were two houses for teaching and we sometimes had to go to the other house for a specific lesson. We were allowed five minutes to get from one house to the other. The juniors like me were in the smaller one and we had an upright piano in our form room. This was used for prayers in the morning when we sang a hymn. I played When I survey the wondrous cross in E flat on Good Friday. I did not study music at school but I did quite well. My sister Sheila tells me that a duster was put inside a piano where she was on April Fools’ day and many sniggers followed. Sheila and I took our lunch to school and were allocated a ground floor classroom to eat in. There was no central heating but we sat by an open coal fire in the winter looking at a large painting of a Saint with nothing on lying on a cloud and with a pointed finger looking as if he was waiting to land. I wish I could remember the title – anyhow it was another lesson in the birds and the bees!

The war years went on and our routines were well established. We trekked up to fields to play lacrosse, tennis and cricket but we were only allowed to play on the side next to the by-pass. We heard one day that a Spitfire had dared to fly under the bridge and we hoped it would happen again when we were there. It did not. We were allowed to go and swim in the outside pool in unheated water and that meant walking past the school buildings and the injured American soldiers dressed in their red ties, white shirts and blue suits. Of course there were wolf whistles for the senior girls. The temperature in the pool had to be 60⁰F (15.6⁰C) for three days and it was VERY cold. I learnt to dive there off the top board and the spring board but injured my lower back. We also did lifesaving and I got a bronze medal. I can still remember the sounds of the doors to the cubicles banging as we shut them. Towards the end of the war I was chosen to go and see the American admin people in the main building and we went back to the hill with chewing gum, popcorn and dried bananas – an unheard of luxury – even though sometimes things ‘fell off the back of a lorry’. When at last in May 1945 the war in Europe ended, girls living in or near Winchester were asked to help with the moving back of the library. This involved making a human chain to pass heavy books (which were tied in heaps) down the stairs into a Pickfords lorry. Then when there were enough books in the lorry we sat on the heaps and were driven up to school where we made a similar chain to get the books up to the first floor. That was a really good day’s work. I remember going to the City Kitchen to have lunch. It was heavily subsidised and we paid the equivalent of 5p (sixpence in old money). It was wonderful to go back to the proper school buildings but things were different and I was growing into a senior and had another four years of education. Alas! I preferred PT and games and I got my name on the ceiling in the main hall but I learnt how to learn and that stood me in good stead throughout my professional life as a nurse. The first five years in school through difficult times were really good and improvisation was the key. I could go on further with events that were after 1945 but that is another story… ■

The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Professional Guidance Department We are looking for friends of St Swithun’s to offer advice and guidance to our students on topics such as: ■ universities ■ courses ■ qualifications ■ interviews ■ career paths

If you think you can help, please see hub.stswithuns.com or email us on oga@stswithuns.com for more details 46

OGA Chain 2021

Thank you

Professional Guidance Department Virtual talk highlights

Caroline Hammond neé Russell (HA 1990) spoke about running her design and construction company, Vivid Design Works, making spaces, sets and props for TV and events.

Hope Francis (ED 2016) spoke about history of art at University College, London and her FGA in gemmology.

Ella Jonas (D 2015) spoke about English literature at the University of Sheffield and the Cadburys graduate scheme.

Henrietta Neish (D 2013) spoke about geography at University of Bristol.

Rhiannon Williams (HA 2014) spoke about English literature at the University of York and management information and data analytics at the University of Sheffield.

Christina Gregson (HC 2017) spoke about her MSci in international relations and global issues at the University of Nottingham and about being a Study Abroad Ambassador for Sweden.

Madeleine Steer (D2013) spoke about mechanical engineering at Jesus College, Cambridge and her Dyson Institute degree apprenticeship. The annual publication for St Swithun’s Old Girls and former staff

Upcoming School Events

Friday 17 December 2021

16:00-20:00

Wednesday 2 February 2022