The Master’s Speech Day Address

Due to a late and unexpected change to COVID regulations, Speech Day had to be delivered virtually on the last day of the Summer Term. James Dahl, 15th Master of Wellington, reviews the year, pays tribute to the work of pupils, parents and staff, and sets out his vision for the next decade. His speech was delivered in three sections, which were interspersed by short films depicting the rich variety of College life.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, members of the Wellington College Community, a very warm welcome to this year’s Speech Day film.

To lose my first Speech Day as Master last year may be regarded as a misfortune. To lose my second, well, it’s not so much carelessness as immensely frustrating and I am truly sorry that we have been denied the opportunity to be together as a whole and entire community today. But, as we have aimed to do throughout the past 16 months, when life gives us lemons, we try our best to make lemonade, and I do hope this year’s film, put together in a week, goes some way to marking and celebrating one of the most remarkable years in Wellington College’s 162-year history.

It was Otto von Bismarck who said that “Politics is the art of the possible, the attainable – the art of the next best”, and I think the same can be very much said of the educational world over the past 12 months, particularly the boarding sector, as Wellington College and schools like us have worked tirelessly and creatively, often within the context of ever-changing regulations to discover what is, indeed, possible and attainable, and to deliver, as successfully as we can, the next best.

And so, I would like to begin this Speech Day message by acknowledging the Herculean efforts, innovation, and indefatigability of the entire staff here at Wellington over the past year. As I have said to many people over the past 12 months, judge not the culture of any organisation by how things are going during the good times, but by how the community responds in times of difficulty and crisis; and how proud I have been of the entire Wellington Community over the past three terms, particularly the manner in which the Teaching and College staff have risen to the challenges of operating and delivering that unique Wellington experience in the most testing of circumstances.

As well as continuing our normal day-today existence as a school, we’ve built and operated a second dining facility, sanitised every classroom and dining-table between every sitting, operated three different timetables concurrently, and reconfigured every classroom and department with more one-way systems and marquees than I ever thought possible. As well as being a school, we’ve become an exam board – setting, marking, standardising and moderating our own GCSE, A-Level and IB assessments, with teachers teaching in person and remotely throughout the year, very often at the same time, and we’ve had no choice but to become a mass testing centre and to design our own track and trace facility. One of my proudest moments was when the local Public Health England team phoned up Mr Walker, our Deputy Head Pastoral, to ask his advice, so impressed were they with the protocols and procedures which he and his team had put in place at the College. Furthermore, we have supported hundreds of disadvantaged children by providing laptops to those pupils at our partner state schools without access to a device, through our Donation for Education scheme, as well as making five COVID recovery grants to local schools to supplement their work in supporting those children hardest hit by the pandemic. And I am proud that the College will be hosting a summer school in August for local primary school leavers ahead of their transition into secondary education to help bridge the gap which has emerged from the disruption of the past 16 months. At Wellington, we will never walk away from the responsibilities we have, not just to our own pupils, but to the wider education sector in this shared endeavour to support the young, who have been so adversely affected by the current pandemic.

It has been an astounding team effort and, in line with our honorary sixth College value of gratitude which our Heads of College introduced this year, I would like to thank every member of staff here in Crowthorne, from cleaner to

classroom teacher, from electrician to ELT member, for the role they have played in keeping the Wellington show on the road so successfully.

It is not just our staff, however, who deserve our thanks. You, our parents, have shown unwavering resilience, understanding and support, not least in recent weeks, as various diktats have pulled the rug from beneath our end-ofyear plans. As well as juggling your own professional and family lives, you have waded through dozens of my letters, adapted to numerous changes, often imposed at short notice, managed isolating offspring, facilitated online learning, dealt with January’s disappointment of a second closure of schools, and, for those of you with children in the Fifth and Upper Sixth Forms, you have been instrumental in supporting your daughters and sons through times of immense uncertainty. You have also spent the best part of this academic year watching your children’s education from afar or, at best, through Microsoft Teams, rather than here, in person at Crowthorne, something which runs so counter to our philosophy as a school, where our close and collaborative relationship with parents is so important to our way of doing things.

You’ve also given your time and money so generously through various Life Beyond Wellington talks and seminars, and through your ongoing support of our Prince Albert Foundation and hardship funds. Over a quarter of a million pounds was raised in Giving Week alone with an incredible 80% of parents participating. I am so grateful to you all for your unwavering support and generosity. You’ve been amazing and it is not hyperbole to say that we could not have achieved what we have this year without you.

The final group of people who must be commended and thanked is our College Prefects team, in particular our fantastic Heads and Deputy Heads of College – Rosie, Guy, Harry and Laura. Their values, commitment to the student community, drive and determination to do the right thing during a year in which the world has changed so fundamentally has, to be frank, been breath-takingly inspiring. All leaders want to leave office with their organisation in a stronger position than they inherited it, and this is most certainly the case for this year’s College Prefects; quite some achievement bearing in mind we operated as an online school for half of their tenure. To those Wellingtonians in younger years, I urge you to look at and learn from the example set by the Upper Sixth this year – they have been remarkable – and to Rosie and Guy, in particular, thank you for being the best co-pilots I could have wished for during this remarkable year.

Traditionally, a Wellington College Speech Day is a celebration of everything our wonderful pupils have achieved throughout the year, and I do hope that today’s videos and performances serve as a timely reminder that although we have been operating under COVID restrictions this year, Wellingtonians have accomplished some remarkable things over the past three terms. It was a joy to welcome parents back in October to a brilliant festival of musical theatre in memory and aid of the Ruth Strauss Foundation and Charlie Perry, and what talent we saw on show when the Third and Fourth Form staged their own School of Musical Theatre show earlier this term. The standard of performance at our annual Montgomery Competitions has been as strong as ever, and we’ve been treated to a superb Dance Show, Buckets and Love & Information, our junior and senior plays respectively, not to mention a glorious Shakespeare from the Master’s Garden and a quite simply stunning musical, Sondheim’s ‘Company’, in recent weeks. For our musicians, actors and dancers, it has resembled something close to business as usual; our only regret is, of course, that more parents have been unable to attend in person.

An unforeseen blessing which COVID has given us is the necessity to offer co-curricular activities in year group bubbles which has enabled significantly higher numbers of pupils to get involved. The year group Chapel Choirs are a perfect example, giving literally hundreds of Wellingtonians the opportunity to perform publicly, with the Third Form ensemble doubling in size over the course of the past 10 months. When it comes to COVID keepers, this is definitely one of them.

The same is true on the sports field, where our enforced separation of year groups for their games sessions has enabled our professional coaches and very proficient teachers to deliver sports sessions to a much broader range of pupils both in terms of age and ability. We may not have been able to play as many inter-school fixtures as we would have liked, but the quality of sports coaching across the entire school has, as a result, never been stronger and, as another COVID keeper, we intend to adapt our shape of the week next year to ensure that we can maintain this greater consistency and higher quality of sports provision across the board in the years to come.

Academically, Wellingtonians must be given great credit for the way in which they have approached their intellectual lives this year, both inside and outside the classroom. Attendance at and engagement with our extension programme of clubs, societies, lectures and academic competitions has never been higher, and our Fifth and Upper Sixth Forms have worked so incredibly hard in the face of deep uncertainty around their public examinations. In the face of a rapidly changing Oxbridge landscape, we were so proud of the 17 Wellingtonians who were offered places this year, two with choral awards and an organ scholarship, as well as eight Upper Sixth heading off to Ivy League universities in the US, five with prestigious early offers. Many congratulations, too, to our four Sixth Form Debaters who became national champions over the Easter holidays.

However, the greatest pupil achievement of them all this year is surely the incredible efforts of David Lofthouse and his support team in the Picton, in completing the Kingsley’s before half-term, in just under ten hours. David’s achievement, as I have written elsewhere, is a breath-taking and inspirational example of the art of the possible, and has shown us all that we can overcome whatever life throws in our way

if we have the right values, mindset, determination and people around us. In a year, where we have not been able to come together as a community as often as we would like, David has given the Wellington Community the most powerful example of the indomitability of the human spirit and genuine reason to rally round and celebrate. “Never let anyone tell you that you can’t do something” said David after the event. Let’s all take that message with us in the months, terms and years to come.

As we look back and celebrate all that has gone before, we must also say a fond farewell to a number of staff and Governors who have served Wellington so faithfully but who are destined for new adventures. On the Teaching Staff, I must pick out the contributions of three teachers whom among them, have given over 50 years of service to the College. Aidan Sproat joined Wellington from Westminster School in 2010 to become Head of the Maths Department where he has been an inspirational teacher and leader, and the driving force behind the development of Harkness teaching, not to mention the wonderful job he has done as President of the Common Room. We wish him every success as he becomes Director of Studies at Alleyn’s School in London. Ian Frayne has been an outstanding Contingent Commander of the Wellington CCF, as well as a superb Physics teacher. Ian has done so much to maintain and enhance the College’s reputation as one of the leading cadet units in the country, and we wish him every health and happiness for his retirement. Denise Brown joined the English Department in 1998 and, as well as her excellent teaching and tutoring, has done so much to pioneer and champion diversity and inclusion at the College, as well as leading our Charities work superbly in recent years. Wellington has been left a better, more tolerant and equitable community thanks to Denise’s unwavering commitment to these issues and we wish her every success for her new life in Portugal as IB Coordinator at the International School of Cordoba. We also say goodbye and thank you to our Vice President, Mr Peter Mallinson today who steps down after 18 years on Wellington’s Board, the last five of which he has served as Chair of Governors. Peter’s relationship with the College began in 1973 when he entered the Picton Third Form and during his time as a pupil he excelled not only in the classroom but also on the sports field, particularly with a racket in his hand. Back in the 70s, virtually no Wellingtonians went to America for university, but not one to follow his peers and an early adopter of the pioneering spirit which characterises modern Wellington, Peter was awarded the prestigious Morehead-Cain Scholarship to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, before a stellar career with Goldman Sachs. As well as being a Wellington parent himself, Peter has served with distinction on the Board, overseeing significant growth in the College’s endowment, and being a key member of the team of trustees who have helped transform Wellington into the incredibly successful, modern, outwardfacing and progressive school it is today. I will be forever grateful to Peter for the care, interest, guidance and sage counsel he has offered me over the first two years of my Mastership in the most challenging of circumstances, as well as the significant philanthropic support which he has given the College over a large period of time. It is fair to say that the modern fabric and facilities of Wellington would not be what they are without Peter’s support. He leaves behind a wonderful legacy for our next Vice President, William Jackson, and, on behalf of the entire Wellington Community, I wish Peter and his family every health and happiness for the future, and thank him for his truly remarkable service to this great school.

As we come to the end of this year’s Speech Day film, I hope you will forgive me for spending a few moments looking to the future. As most of you will be aware, as well as coping with COVID this year, the Executive Leadership Team, Governors and I have been spending a significant amount of time and energy thinking about the next 10 years. We listened carefully to the views of the 250 Wellington parents who gave interviews as part of the Mungo Dunnett research project back in February and March, and we have also thought long and hard about the strategic work we should be completing over the next decade to continue its purpose of pioneering education to serve and help shape a better world.

Central to this work is our aim to make Wellington an even more inclusive and balanced coeducational community which represents more accurately the world as it really is. In the short term, September will therefore see the first girls arriving in the Talbot and the numbers of Prince Albert scholars in the College will also increase by 25% as we continue to widen access to a Wellington education for children of potential from backgrounds of disadvantage. To promote the inclusion of all pupils even further, it remains our intention to create a new home for the Raglan at the heart of the College so our day boys are placed as centrally as the Wellesley girls are; and we continue with our plans to open an 18th boarding House – a coeducational Sixth Form community for 15 new Lower Sixth boys and 20 new Lower Sixth girls, which will enable us to hit our target of a 50/50 gender balance within the pupil body by 2025.

Next year, we will complete our review of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at the College in partnership with Professor Paul Miller, as well as conducting a long-overdue review of our current uniform regulations. We also intend to develop significantly our facilities for girls and coeducational sports, particularly around the Selassie courts area – those rather run-down tennis and clay pigeon shooting facilities located between Bigside and the bridge across the railway to Derby fields – to ensure that our facilities for all sports and sporting endeavours are as good as they should be.

In due course, we will also look to expand the V&A considerably to create a central

space fit for a school community of 1100 pupils, as well as exploring the possibility of creating a specific Sixth Form Centre with both social and academic facilities, so that our 480 A-Level and IB pupils have a space to work, rest and play, as well as to explore their career and higher education options.

On the academic side College life, January 2022 will see Matt Oakman, our Deputy Head Academic for the past 9 years, move into the role of Senior Master to support me in delivering our various strategic workstreams, as well as taking responsibility for pupil performance in the College, through the Heads of Year. He will also lead a brand-new Higher Education, Careers and International Universities team to ensure that whatever future route a Wellingtonian wishes to explore, the support and guidance they will receive at the College will be second-to-none.

Mr Oakman is currently overseeing a review of our Third Form curriculum to ensure that it is as challenging and inspiring as it needs to be, as well as delivering the first stage of a 2-year Tutoring Review in response to the issues raised both in the Mungo Dunnett report and via Murray Lindo’s Parental Committee earlier in the year. This work involves a root-and-branch review of our traditional staffing model, redefining what it means to be a teacher at Wellington to allow those staff with a real passion for tutoring to tutor more, and likewise on the academic and sporting fronts.

Our new Deputy Head Academic in January will be Mr Benjamin Evans who is currently Director of Teaching and Learning at Prince Alfred College in Adelaide, one of South Australia’s leading private schools. Prior to emigrating to Australia, Ben was Director of Studies – effectively Deputy Head Academic – at Oundle School in the Midlands. We are blessed that someone with 10 years of senior leadership experience and a track record of delivering numerous pioneering curriculum changes as well as significant improvement in academic standards and outcomes, is joining the ELT here at the College.

Part of Ben’s remit will be to play a key role in a significant curriculum review which I want us to undertake. The last two years, for so many different reasons, have made us re-evaluate what the purpose of a Wellington education should be, as well as looking again at what and how we teach, particularly in the Third, Fourth and Fifth Forms. We will not be rushing any reform quickly and we look forward to engaging deeply with the wider Community, particularly parents, as we explore different models of what a future Wellington education might include.

As part of this work, I am keen to explore how we can create an Innovation Hub here at College, a multi-disciplinary space for pupils where technology, design, entrepreneurship, science, coding and creativity can come together, offering each and every Wellingtonian hands-on experience and space within the curriculum to experiment creatively with so many of those skills and dispositions required for the future workplace. Aligned with this, I want to create a Centre for Transformative Education, a hub for our teachers to engage with contemporary research in collaboration with other schools, universities and third parties, to inform our own practice, to share with others, and to maintain Wellington’s position within the vanguard of the educational debate. Both facilities would play a huge role in our partnership work with our own family of schools as well as our partner state schools. As we come out of COVID, I also want to ensure that our provision in teenage wellbeing, pastoral care and mental health is as strong as it can. To this end, we are already advertising for a new position at the College – a Head of Student Emotional and Mental Health – to supplement our existing staff and structures, and my dream is to create a state-of-the-art facility which brings together both physical and mental health provision in a collaborative, innovative and fit-for-purpose manner.

I hope that this gives you some idea of the strategy work which we have been doing and inspires both pupils and parents alike as we look to drive the College forward with the same pioneering spirit of innovation, progression and modernity which has come to define the very essence of a Wellington education. This work will take years, possibly the best part of a decade, and we may not be able to deliver it all…but I am determined that Wellington College emerges from the current crisis with an exciting and forward-facing strategic roadmap to ensure that the sort of organisation we strive to be and the holistic educational provision we offer here in Crowthorne is as pioneering, successful and inspiring over the next decade or so as it has been over the past 15 years.

Until then, I wish every single member of the Wellington Community – pupil, parent, Governor and staff member – a truly wonderful summer. Thank you again for everything you have done to support the work of the College this year, and I do hope to see you all in person very soon.”

In the short term, September will therefore see the first girls arriving in the Talbot and the numbers of Prince Albert scholars in the College will also increase by 25% as we continue to widen access to a Wellington education for children of potential from backgrounds of disadvantage.