Sydenham Alumnae Newsletter 2016

SYDENHAM HIGH SCHOOL GDST

OLD GIRLS’ ASSOCIATION

Newsletter SPRING 2016

Committee Members President:

Mrs Kathryn Pullen

Vice Presidents:

Mrs Geraldine Baker Dr Denise Lodge

Committee:

Sarah Hopkins (King, 1977), Chairman Eleanor Brown (Orr, 1976), Membership Secretary Cath Higgins (Spray, 1966), Treasurer Barbara Kern (1967), Committee Secretary Jennifer Lester (Staples, 1964) Alison Miles (school representative)

Vacancies currently exist for Committee Members. We would be delighted to hear from anyone who is interested in joining the committee. Committee membership involves attending one meeting per term and the AGM. Assistance with running events is also welcome. If you would be interested in serving on the Committee (term of office four years), please get in touch with Barbara Kern or email shsoga@ntlworld.com.

Newsletter Editor:

Ms Barbara Kern 22 Queensthorpe Road Sydenham London SE26 4PH Tel: 020 8778 2156 shsoga@ntlworld.com

Welcome to the Spring 2016 Newsletter Latest news!

Kathryn Pullen announces her retirement Kathryn Pullen will retire from her role as Headteacher at the end of December 2016. In announcing the news, Kathryn said it had not been an easy decision to make as she has loved being part of a remarkable school, as Deputy Head and then for 14 years as Head, but her husband has now retired and her family is in Wales, so this felt like the right time for her personally and for the school.

Under Kathryn’s leadership the school has grown enormously, with academic standards going from strength to strength, and she can be very proud of her achievements.

Sydenham High School is now a significant force in independent education in the area and a very important and valued part of the GDST network.

More news to follow about ways in which the school and OGA will be saying their goodbyes.

Future OGA Events 2016 Annual General Meeting All members are invited to attend the AGM on Wednesday 29 June at school at 6.00pm. The AGM will be part of the Pimms

Evening (see next). This will be Mrs Pullen’s last AGM before she retires.

Pimms Evening The OGA will be hosting another Pimms Evening on Wednesday 29 June 2016 at school.

All Old Girls are invited and special invitations will be sent to those who left from 2010 to 2013 (Year 11 from 2008 to 2011).

The annual D'ArT Exhibition will be open for a private view from 5.00 to 6.00pm prior to the party.

Members of staff are also invited so it's a great reunion occasion.

130th Birthday Lunch A lunch to celebrate the school's 130th birthday will be held on Saturday 25 February 2017.

Please put this date in your diaries now and let all your school friends know too.

The OGA committee is already well advanced with the planning process and we will be touch later in the year with the final details. Once the event is open for booking, places will be allocated on a 'first come, first served' basis. All former members of the school (pupils and staff) are welcome!

News of Old Girls Jane Weaver (Gow) (1962) Jane hopes to attend the 2017 lunch with her sister, Anna Weaver (left Sydenham 1964).

Jane married a Scot and has lived in Paisley, Scotland since 1976. They have three daughters and - from December 2015 - four grandchildren.

Susan Hillyer (Elkin) (1965) Susan writes: A full-time freelance author and journalist for many years now, I wrote three (more) English Literature study guides for Hodder Education last year - all due to publish in 2016.

I'm also busy editing four earlier books for new editions.

Journalism seems to focus mainly on education and the arts these days and I write three columns a week for 'The Stage' along with interviews, features and more for various publications including book reviews for the Independent on Sunday. I'm @SusanElkinJourn on the useful and oddly compelling Twitter. My book about my first chaotic teaching job in Deptford is selfpublished via Kindle as 'Please

Miss We're Boys'. Writers, of course, don't retire.

On the home front, I've been contentedly married to my very own Alleyns Old Boy since 1969.

Our fourth beautiful granddaughter, Libby May Elkin, joined her sister Rosie, 4, and cousins Charlotte, 17, and Jasmine, 13, last year. Nick and I are planning to downsize back to South London during 2016 after nearly 39 years in Kent.

Miss Alison Cavendish (19601969) Alison has been thoroughly enjoying retirement, but at the time she wrote she was in the process of moving house in order to downsize, because she could no longer cope with her garden and needed to be in walking distance of her church, a few shops and some bus routes for when she may need to abandon driving. She observes that, as anyone who has moved house will know, it is a prolonged and stressful occupation, and requires haunting charity shops to divest oneself of an amazing

quantity of possessions! She will be moving to a new build in due course, but as it is not yet finished she would be staying with a friend in the gap.

She sends her best wishes to anyone who might still remember her after so many years.

Elspeth Thomson (Jenny Speed) (1972) Jenny is now a very happily retired primary school teacher and lives with her husband David near Wells, Somerset . She has two sons and two grandsons. They love travel, dancing, trekking and entertaining. Jenny comments that she has happy memories of her time at school.

Juli Hughes (Chapman) (1974) Juli writes: Hi! Those of you at school between 1967 and 1974 will remember me as Julianne Hughes. I am now coming up to sixty but instead of retiring I am moving from one career (teaching science in a secondary school) to the next. Finally, finally, I can call myself a novelist! My first novel is out on Amazon in Kindle and in book

format and is called 'The Glass Knight'. My pseudonym is Julia Colbourn.

I was always split between the arts and sciences, and having made a career in science I now have the time to do what I love best: writing! I have dedicated my book to Mrs Madeleine Chamberlain, my English teacher at Sydenham High, as she inspired me so much and gave me a life-long love of literature.

Surprisingly, they have put my novel in the science fiction genre, although I would never have described it as that myself.

Although it is set in the future, after the Earth has been devastated by the grossly underestimated effects of a pole shift, and it does explore a number of scientific avenues – how animal species would adapt and evolve and what technologies could be easily retrieved, and which ones should be avoided – it is primarily about people’s beliefs and morals.

Written in an easy style that is accessible to all, 'The Glass

Knight 'nevertheless has hidden nuggets for the more discerning to savour and some thought provoking ideas on religion and on relationships in general. Due to my background, the book contains a fair bit of science and technology, both contemporary and futuristic, and a lot of the book focuses on the gaping cavern between trained, logical scientific minds and the tendency of the masses to follow easy, more temptingly seductive explanations.

Try it – you may even like it!

Sue Astbury (1977) Sue writes: I left SHS in 1977, having taken my ‘O’ levels. I didn’t stay on to the 6th form which, actually, I now regret. I still live locally, I have one son (28) who is a maths teacher, and I would love to hear from anyone who remembers me! I keep in touch with Penny Hall who was also in my year and class. I am a school secretary in Dulwich but hope to retire early and do a lot of travelling! I still play the piano and I also sing in a choir.

Andrea Jebb (1979) Andrea writes: After leaving the school at 16, I went on to do my ‘A’ Levels at Newstead Woods, and from there I went to Leeds University to read Mechanical Engineering. After graduation, I worked as a graduate trainee for BXL Plastics, a wholly owned subsidiary company of BP. That lasted a couple of years and I then moved into IT and I never looked back to my engineering roots. I worked at NatWest Bank in the City where I learnt my programming skills. Six years later I moved to Morgan Stanley where I have been ever since. I progressed through the usual routes, programmer, senior programmer, project manager etc. and now with all those years of experience behind me I work in Operational Risk. I celebrated 20 years with the firm last year, hard to believe, it has gone by so quickly! I still remember my time at SHS, had great fun, good friends and good teachers.

Elizabeth Cooper (Wager) (1980) The third edition of Elizabeth's book, 'Getting Research Published: an A to Z of

Publication Strategy' was published in December 2015.

This popular and highly-regarded guide uncovers the ethics, conventions and often unwritten rules of publishing in peerreviewed journals and at conferences. It provides clear direction on how to choose the right journal, avoid publication delays, resolve authorship disputes and many other problems associated with being published that pose challenges to new and experienced researchers alike.

Elizabeth is also Co-Editor-inChief of a new journal on 'Research Integrity & Peer Review'. She continues to work as a Publications Consultant, running training courses for doctors, scientists, writers, editors and publishers all around the world.

Andrea Withnell (Bremner) (1986) Andrea writes: I left Sydenham High in 1986. It feels like a whole lifetime ago but then I suppose it is 30 years ago this year!!

I am living in Fleet, Hampshire, with my husband and two children now aged 13 and 11.

Though they have been my key focus over the last 13 years, I have kept a small business running on the side. I am a Life Coaching specialising in NLP and I help people to change their behaviours so that they live a happier and more fulfilled life.

One of my recent areas of specialism is the psychology of weight loss where I help people conquer the relationship their mind has with food and exercise.

It is a really rewarding job as I see immediate changes and results in my clients. I have a garden office which I work from and really do enjoy being in my home all the time. My kids are very sporty but then so was I! My daughter is really into netball and my son football; they both play for the school and for clubs and my daughter has recently been scouted by Netball UK South Regional Academy which is very exciting.

I think often about the teachers that inspired me: Mrs Giles, Mrs Shaw, Mrs Simmonds and Mrs

McDonough to name a few. I hope that my children find that same inspiration at their secondary schools.

Emily Joyce (1987) Actress Emily Joyce recently came back to school to help Year 11 drama students get inside the text of their GCSE play, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Emily, who has many screen and stage credits to her name, has played Judy, one of the central roles in the acclaimed National Theatre production, and offered her perspective on the play through a workshop and Q & A. Michaela Lewis (2005) Having started her career in sales, Michaela is now Senior Manager in Customer Success at Domo, a major US computer software and business information company, for whom she is helping to establish UK operations and grow the Customer Success team for EMEA. In a recent interview with Changequest.co.uk for International Women’s Day, Michaela cited Sydenham High as one of her most important

influences for giving her the belief that she could achieve whatever she wanted to. You can read her full interview at: http://www.changequest.co.uk/bl og/international-womens-daymichaela-lewis/

Obituaries Mrs Susi Devlin (1984-2014) Kathryn Pullen, Headteacher, writes: Susi Devlin joined the staff of Sydenham High School in 1984.

If a week is a long time in politics then just think what 29 years is in the life of a school and Susi Devlin, deeply involved in the life of Sydenham High School, helped to shape that life in so many ways.

I worked alongside Susi for 23 of those 29 years and I can say, without hyperbole, that as Head of Spanish she touched the lives of so many SHS girls and helped shape them into the confident, cultured young women they become. Her gift to her students was that life and learning are fun.

She opened doors for the girls linguistically and culturally; she took them to cities she loved and

infected them with her belief in the civilising effect of travel through lessons, debates and assemblies. A testament to her success as a teacher is the number of girls who have pursued Spanish beyond school.

Susi was equally an exceptional pastoral presence in the school: as a much loved form tutor who has guided girls through crises ranging from broken hearts to UCAS applications. And for years Susi linked pupils and staff past and present by working as a key member of the Old Girls’ Association committee.

Susi Devlin: forthright, extrovert, generous, inclusive, sociable and above all fun. When we reflect on what makes SHS special people, it is teachers and role models like her.

Susi Devlin died peacefully at home on Sunday 22 November 2015.

Miss Hilary Pepper (1995) Diana Raine writes: Hilary Pepper, who died suddenly on 30 December 2015 at the age

of almost 81, was born in Wakefield, West Yorkshire. She lived there, attending Wakefield Girls High School, until she went to Gypsy Hill Training College in Kingston to train as a teacher of primary age children. After this she went to the Royal Academy of Music to qualify to teach music.

She returned to West Yorkshire to teach in a secondary school and lived with her father after her mother's early death. She spent approximately 10 years there before applying for jobs in the South, in Brighton and Sydenham. She was interviewed and offered both positions! It happened that she chose to accept Sydenham so that she could use the greater opportunities for musical experiences that London offered.

She purchased a flat between Beckenham and Bromley and settled there for several years, accompanied by her cat.

In 1974, her friendship with Diana Raine had led her to sell her flat and move to Addington, Surrey to share the purchase of a house there. They lived very happily in

Addington until 2014 when they moved to Cranmer Court near Warlingham. They landed on their feet and until the last month or so found great pleasure in living there.

She found Sydenham High School a very inspiring place to be and spent much time and effort in encouraging the young in their knowledge and enjoyment of music. Numerous letters and messages have come from various girls commenting on how much she helped and inspired them.

Mr Stuart Orford (1989-1993) Stuart Orford, Head of Music from 1989 to 1993, died, aged 57, on 30 October 2015. Stuart was a composer and arranger as well as a teacher.

Alison Pringle (Barnard) (1967) We have been informed that Alison died in January 2016.

Virginia Rushton (Susan Jones) (1963) Virginia (1944-2015) died in May. Her friend, Jenny Ashby (Pedley) writes as follows: Virginia, known at Sydenham High by her second name Susan, was a pupil from

Kindergarten right through to the 3rd Year Sixth, after which she went up to St Anne’s College, Oxford, to read Modern Languages. Subsequently she turned to music, with a career as a soprano and singing teacher.

She was involved with many organisations: the Incorporated Society of Musicians; the Brontë Society, where she was instrumental in the restoration of Emily Brontë’s piano; and Operahouse, which she herself set up in order to introduce children to the delights of operas which they themselves composed and put on with her help, and that of her team. She taught singing to pupils at schools including Blackheath High School and Forest School, Snaresbrook, as well as to adults at Blackheath Conservatoire (where she founded the Second Chance Choir), at summer schools including those of the Workers' Music Association and Music4People, and at a weekend singing course in the Isle of Arran. She will be much missed by her family and her very wide circle of friends.

School News Cutting edge of STEM comes to Sydenham High This year’s Science Week was kicked off by an event that brought the cutting edge of STEM innovation into school.

Through a series of classroom workshops students discovered how some of the biggest challenges of the modern world are being answered.

Jonathan O’Halloran, microbiologist and inventor of a revolutionary hand-held device (resembling the famous Star Trek Tricorder) that can identify a disease profile in just 15 minutes, showed the students how his device is helping tackle the treatment of drug-resistant infections. The 2015 Chief Technical Officer of the Year, whose idea gained his company,

QuantuMDx, funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, then helped the students to isolate their own DNA using everyday materials.

A post-doctoral team from Imperial College explained the amazing properties of ionic liquids, currently attracting worldwide attention as the next generation of industrial solvents.

Dr Chris Sinclair, from UCL’s Institute of Neurology, demonstrated how the latest MRI scanners provide a better understanding of the brain and identify neurological problems.

Finally, James Veness from The International Antarctic Expedition talked climate change, energy waste and how to find a more efficient system for powering the planet.

The workshops were followed by an evening exhibition of curricular and extra-curricular work, plus practical demonstrations by both students and outside experts, attended by pupils and parents from Year 5 upwards. Subjects ranged from an investigation of the properties of hydrogels by the

Science Club to examples of future sustainable foods.

Science Week continued with a trip to CERN for Year 12 physicists, a food demo day and a science fair, organised by Year 8, which was attended by Junior School students.

Sustainability Sustainability is a buzz word across every aspect of our lives these days but it is being given particular importance in encouraging the next generation of female engineers, as girls at Sydenham High have been finding out.

Sydenham girls were part of a group of thirty five Girls’ Day School Trust students visiting Wildpoldsried in Bavaria to study for a Level 3 Award in the Rational Use of Renewable Energy in the autumn of 2015.

The trip, funded by Erasmus+, was led and delivered by Sasie Ltd and German partners Christiani GmbH, with support from School Energy Efficiency CIC. The aim of the trip was to encourage women into STEM careers and university choices, with a focus on renewable energy and sustainability.

Wildpoldsried was the perfect base for the educational experience as the village generates 600 per cent of its annual electricity demand through renewable integrated technologies such as: biogas plants, wind turbines, district heating system, biomass and combined heat and power plants.

Students began the trip by constructing their very own mini solar PV system inside a case (pictured), under the expert

guidance of the solar case manufacturers Christiani GmbH. Daily trips included visits to local universities and colleges, a waste combustion plant, hydroelectric power plants, Elektro Guggenmoos GmbH, Sonnenbatterie GmbH and the construction of a brand new 150m wind turbine.

Teaching and qualification material was supplemented with inspirational talks and interactive presentations from organisations such as 2041, 5 Gyres and Barefoot College. Students are now engaged within a variety of campaigns related to human impact on the environment, which they have brought back to their school.

has given our students experiences beyond the classroom. They have developed their skills as independent learners through this university-style learning method.

In addition, the unique opportunity of Q&A over Skype with inspirational speakers at the cutting edge of sustainable development has broadened their horizons and understanding of the opportunities available to them.”

Giraffe girls ‘flourish and fly’ to be principled

“Having always learned from a book, being actually able to come and see these technologies in practice have made me realise that the age of the renewables is now and not just a strategy for the future,” said Year 12 student Greta.

Head of Science at Sydenham High, Janie Tilley said: “This trip

Junior School’s first Flourish and Fly week of 2016 explored what it means to be principled and the

importance of striving to always do the right thing.

Embedded into all aspects of Junior School life, Flourish and Fly is an extensive programme of activities and challenges that complements the school’s highly developed PSHE curriculum and student development programme. The initiative, which includes activities and challenges, works across subjects and year groups to stretch ability, build confidence and develop collaborative learning.

January’s Flourish and Fly week also marked the first birthday of Junior School mascot - Fina the Giraffe.

Fina has helped inspire all Junior School girls to flourish and fly by being Giraffe Girls who always stick their necks out and look over the excuses wall to try new things.

Throughout the week an artist-inresidence, worked with the girls to create a beautiful silver giraffe installation that now resides in the Junior School playground.

Good Schools Guide Award for Sydenham High Sydenham High School has won a Gold 2015 Good Schools Guide Award for girls taking computer studies at GCSE. The school has been presented with the award for outperforming all other English schools in its category. The prestigious annual awards, which are now in their 9th year, are based on a detailed analysis of the most recent examination results, and are designed to highlight consistently good teaching.

Sydenham High swiftly embraced the Government’s introduction of a new computer science curriculum and has launched the computing curriculum at Key Stage 3. The scheme of work explores areas such as digital literacy, skills and careers.

The curriculum is designed to help the girls become creators of tech, instead of just consumers.

It will also better equip them for the real world of work and industry – especially as women are currently underrepresented in the tech arena.

percentage of pupils taking the subject.

Junior School begins French partnership

Kathryn Pullen said: “The UK’s tech scene is booming and skilled employees are in demand. We therefore want to ensure that our girls are ready and able to take advantage of the opportunities that brings.”

Ralph Lucas, Editor of The Good Schools Guide, commented: “Our annual awards scheme is designed to recognise and reward excellence in teaching in every subject area. Our awards give individual teachers and departments, where teaching is at its very best, the recognition they deserve.”

The Good Schools Guide Awards are based on a series of calculations which take into account relative popularity and performance of the subject, absolute performance, and

The Junior School has partnered with a small school in the HauteSavoie region of France.

Year 5 girls have already written brightly decorated letters to the children of Ville-en-Sallaz, helping them to hone their written French skills. In return, the girls received a DVD about school and local life, including the notion of skiing to school in winter!

The girls have also been curious to find out the difference between schooling in France and the UK. French children’s lack of uniform and two-hour restaurant-style lunches were chief among the

attractions of moving to France.

The girls are looking forward to receiving letters from their French pen pals.

Students’ fundraising will help build future for education in Nepal

and under a canopy for shelter and shade. The aim is to build a new school that will not only house the current pupils but also encourage more local families to send their children there for an education.

The new fundraising effort is being led by the Sixth Form, in partnership with the In Your Hands charity for the people of Nepal.

Founded by long-standing friends Pauline Sanderson and Sydenham High parent Jo Pawley, the In Your Hands charity is already helping to rebuild the community.

Inspired by the success of their Big Trek to Nepal in June 2015, the School is now aiming to raise more cash for the stricken region – this time to build a school.

The chosen location is the isolated village of Bishinghar in Sindhupalchok, Central Nepal.

This is one of the areas worst hit by the earthquakes in April and May, which left more than 200 children and their teachers without a secure building and proper sanitation. The children are currently taught in aid tents

The first fundraising event was a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party '; including entertainment from performers across the school; a fancy dress competition and an exciting auction of promises. The themed evening was so

successful that it raised more than half the ÂŁ3,000 school rebuilding target.

In the run up to Christmas, the Sixth Form sold specially produced wall calendars, featuring the photos from the London through the Ages History photographic competition, and school branded shopping bags.

Breaking News story on saving the Coronet at Elephant & Castle.

The award haul was all the more exciting because this was the first year that the school had taken part. Two more young reporters are entered into this year’s programme.

A scoop for the School's young reporters Three Year 10 students scooped a total of four awards in the 2015 Newsquest South London Young Reporter Awards.

Rachel Honeysett (on the right in the photo) was highly commended in the Best Feature category for her piece on the future for sci-fi heroes and in addition took the award for Most Read report with an amazing 1,250 views for her story on the Penge Mystery. Evie Richards (photo left) won the Interview category for her interview with Tessa Jowell and Sophie Allen (not pictured) gained a Commended award for her

The Young Reporter programme is run by Newsquest, publishers of the News Shopper and Guardian titles, to give South London students the opportunity of experiencing first-hand what it is like to be a journalist and see their work published and responded to. All candidates had to submit a set number of articles of the period of the programme within strict deadlines.

Mrs Pullen said: “To have scooped four awards in our first year of trying, including one for most read article, is fantastic.

The girls are to be congratulated not only on their excellent writing but also on successfully juggling the programme’s deadlines with the demands of their intensive GCSE studies.”

powerful performances, moving many to tears during the finale.

To read the latest school news, please visit the website: www.sydenhamhighschool.gdst.net

Or follow the school on Twitter: @SydenhamHigh

Retirements and staff news Jesus Christ Superstar delivers stellar drama performances

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• The senior school production of Jesus Christ Superstar (9-11 February 2016) will certainly rank amongst the best productions ever put on at Sydenham High School. The cast of more than 50 girls, who have been in rehearsal since September, wowed their audience over three nights with professional and

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Dr Colin Laverick left after 17 years to teach part time and to work as a GDST timetabling consultant.

Andrea Erling, Head of German, relocated to Spain; Eddie Rowe, ICT teacher (formerly Head of ICT), left to take up a post in a local primary school; Caroline Paice, Head of English, embarked on a new career path with her venture into café society in Herne Hill; Donna Richardson, Junior School teacher/ Maths Coordinator, took up a new post at Bromley High School Zoe Shippey has been promoted to Head of Maths at Notting Hill Preparatory School.

School report to the AGM for 2014 - 2015 In the absence of Mrs Pullen on sabbatical and Dr Laverick, who as Acting Head was hosting the Open Evening at the same time as the AGM and Pimms event, Alison Miles, the school’s Marketing Manager, warmly welcomed those present and gave an update on the school’s activities in the last year.

Firstly, a major development had been the completion of the wonderful Orangery in which the meeting was held and the reopening of the dining hall, which are served by newly refitted kitchens and a brand new

serving counter. The dining hall was officially opened by Tom Beardmore Grey, Finance Director of the GDST. The opening was combined with talks about the importance of healthy

eating by the cookery tutor (trained chef, Ms McKeeverWillis) and nutritionist and author Fiona Kirk, and a cooking demonstration in the new cookery suite. Parents were able to sample the new school menus for the first time.

The Sixth Form has, in addition to studying hard, been enjoying a very broad co-curricular programme called ‘Stretch‘, and a number of outward bound opportunities. These included a geography trip to Snowdonia.

The school’s Head Girls also attended the GDST Young Leaders Conference in Bath, to network with other members and take on training challenges there.

External successes have included the Young Enterprise Challenge, the teams for which are run jointly with Dulwich College. They put in a brilliant performance at the South and Central London final, with their iTap Wallet to prevent card clash when travelling round London winning them the best Interview and Trade Stand awards. The Year 12 Politics students won a

place on the Euroscholar UK delegation to Strasbourg for the second year running and experienced being MEPs for the day.

Drama is a big part of Sydenham life and the past year has been no exception. The new Head of Drama, Ms Yandell, is taking the girls to new heights with a fantastic showcase of works plus great A-level and GCSE performances. These were topped off in the previous week by a Middle School production of ‘Daisy Pulls it Off’; the energy of the performers was amazing.

The Junior School’s production of WWl play ‘Archie Dobson’s War’ drew high praise from the BBC who created the play. The author, editor and musical arranger attended the last performance and declared it exceptional and stunning. The

girls gave performances that were a poignant and moving tribute to those who lost their lives.

Continuing with the Junior School, the new Head, Miss Boyd, has introduced lots of new ideas. One of these is the launch of ‘Flourish and Fly’, the Junior School’s most ambitious cocurricular initiative yet [see School News section earlier].

Each half term focuses on a different GDST value: be bold; girls first; be principled; and be networked. Activities included a forensic workshop, career talks including Women in the Army, planting saplings for the community and creating a whole school mosaic.

Music continues to be part of the heart of the school and music groups go from strength to strength. The Jazz Collective is now well established and would be playing at its first outside school concert the following weekend in Beckenham. Jazz Café and other concerts are regular calendar features and the biannual choir tour took an adventurous route this year - to

Estonia - where the girls’ performances in some of the country’s top venues were celebrated in the local media and audiences were moved by their musical ability.

Dance has also come increasingly to the fore during the year. Thanks to the encouragement of both Ms Yandell and Mrs Calvert, the girls entered the ‘Step into Dance’ national programme and, despite this being their first year, were selected from 500 schools to audition for the Royal Academy of Dance. The result was an invitation perform at the Step LIVE! Show at Sadler’s Wells on 12 July 2015.

Sporting successes continue in a wide variety of sports:

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The school came fourth in the London Schools Cross Country Championships with a third place on the podium.

The School took part in the GDST Gymnastics rally for the first time and another star, Edith Alderton, won the vault against competition from 73 other entrants.

The netballers continue to win in Kent and Lewisham

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competitions, and the school now has a Rugby Kent medalist too. The rugby team is lucky to be coached by Mr Chris Copper, who plays for Bromley RFC and whose team recently won the RFU Senior Vase trophy at Twickenham.

The Athletics teams are also doing very well. In the Lewisham Schools competition, they gained five first places in a variety of track and field events, from the 100m to the Discus. At the London Athletics competition, Sydenham High girls won first places in the 300m Hurdles and the Hammer.

Community action is something that the school is very proud of too, and there are always activities throughout the school to raise money for charity. Girls and staff wanted to respond to the tragedy in Nepal, so devised a simulated trek of 7,192km in a day - the distance to Nepal.

This has been a whistle-stop tour of what has been happening at the school, which continues to excel in every area.

Alison Miles

June 2015

Year 13 University destinations 2014/15 Aston University Bath Spa University

University of Sheffield University of Southampton University of Sussex

Politics & Sociology Business & Management with Geography Art Foundation Art Foundation Architecture Drama Actuarial Science Art Foundation Art Foundation Pharmacy Sport & Exercise Science History & Political Science Law with Business Intl. Relations & Modern History Intl. Relations & Politics History of Art Medicine Business Administration Law & Criminology History & Ancient History History Urban Studies Urban Studies & Planning Physics American Studies & English

Gap Year

Four students

Camberwell College of Arts Central Saint Martins, UAL De Montfort University Guildhall School of Music & Drama Kingston University Ravensbourne University College London University of Bath University of Birmingham University of Brighton University of East Anglia

University of Exeter University of Greenwich University of Liverpool University of Manchester

School Dates For a full School Calendar please send a stamped addressed envelope marked “School Calendar” to the School or look at the Term Dates tab on the website:-

www.sydenhamhighschool.gdst.net Summer Term 2016

12 April - 7 July

Autumn Term 2016

5 September - 16 December

Spring Term 2017

5 January - 4 April

Summer Term 2017

20 April – 11 July

School Address:

Sydenham High School 19 Westwood Hill Sydenham London SE26 6BL

Keeping in Touch Do we have your correct contact details or do we need to update our records?

Perhaps you would you like to receive future communications by email , rather than by post – even this newsletter?

To keep us up to date please download and complete a contact form from the Community/ Alumnae & OGA page on the school website and email this to a.miles@syd.gdst.net or post it to the school for the attention of Alison Miles, Marketing Manager.