Wellington Today Michaelmas 2019

Wellington TODAY

MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

RECORD NUMBER OF TOP GRADES FOR THE CLASS OF 2019 (pg. 5)

US UNIVERSITY SUCCESSES 2019 (pg. 6)

WELLINGTON ENTERS THE SPORTING ‘SUPERLEAGUE’ AS THE ROBIN DYER CENTRE OPENS (pg. 22 - 23)

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Contents

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Academic

MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

RECORD NUMBERS FOR THE 10TH FESTIVAL OF EDUCATION

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STUDENT TEAM LAUNCHES NEW APP

GCSE RESULTS: “OUTSTANDING”

6 US UNIVERSITY SUCCESSES 2019

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TEAMWORK,

BY MATILDA AND KATE

“Wellington students were awarded some of the most coveted scholarships to some of the most prestigious institutions, across a wide range of disciplines.”

5 RECORD NUMBER OF TOP GRADES FOR THE CLASS OF 2019 “Best ever results at A*/7, with nearly 20% of the year group achieving either A*A*A* or 777 at Higher Level IB.”

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Wellington Community

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THE LIFE OF PI

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DRAGONS’ DEN

CRESSIDA HENDERSON APPOINTED AS SECOND MASTER

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Sports 24

WELLINGTON ATHLETES ENJOY AN AFTERNOON WITH SALLY GUNNELL “Self-belief can be the most difficult hurdle of all.’

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WELLINGTON: ALWAYS IN THE RUNNING

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WELLINGTON ENTERS THE SPORTING ‘SUPERLEAGUE’ AS THE ROBIN DYER CENTRE OPENS

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AN INTERVIEW WITH MARK RUSSEL, MENTAL SKILLS COACH AT WELLINGTON

Global Citizenship 36

THE HEALING GARDENS OF WELLINGTON “It is one of those projects where the students have the opportunity to try things and, if it doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world, so it’s great for resilience.”

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MONTGOMERY SINGING FINAL

LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS

Arts

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FIREFIGHTERS RELOCATE TO WELLINGTON COLLEGE

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BRAY SWORD PRESENTATION DINNER

JUNIOR MONTGOMERY FINAL

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Wellington College International

WELLINGTON COLLEGE INTERNATIONAL ‘SUMMER PRODUCTIONS’

WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

“I will remember this year group not only for their academic brilliance, but for the calm, purposeful way they went about achieving their goals.”

GCSE Results: “Outstanding” Wellingtonians have achieved another stellar set of GCSE results. Nearly a third (32%) of all grades awarded were Grade 9 (equivalent to a top A* in the old letter grading system); 61% were 9/8; 83% 9-7 and 95% 9-6. Overall, 9 was the most common pupil grade.

Julian Thomas commented: “I am delighted by these outstanding results and proud of everything this talented cohort has achieved. These pupils were the first to face the majority of their GCSEs in the new format, with increased course content and more demanding examinations. They have more than risen to the challenge, and have done so while honouring their many cocurricular commitments and adding so much value to College life. I will remember this year group not only for their academic brilliance, but for the calm, purposeful way they went about achieving their goals.”

These pupils were also the first to complete a Higher Project Qualification alongside their GCSE courses. The HPQ, for which pupils undertake an autonomous piece of work, is still graded according to the more familiar letter system. Here again, Wellingtonians achieved outstanding results: 56% of grades awarded were A*/A and 100% were A*-B. Fifth Form pupils demonstrated impressive independent research skills, expanding their knowledge beyond the curriculum, with topics ranging from women in sport to rocket science. Head of Middle School, Julia Sutcliffe, said: “The HPQ is excellent preparation for the Sixth Form, where all pupils will work towards an Extended Project Qualification alongside A Levels, or complete an Extended Essay if they take the IB route. With such superb GCSE results behind them and strong independent study skills already in evidence, we look forward to seeing what this talented cohort will achieve in the Sixth Form”.

Well done to them all!

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ACADEMIC

“Best ever results at A*/7, with nearly 20% of the year group achieving either A*A*A* or 777 at Higher Level IB.”

Record Number of Top Grades for the Class of 2019 It has been another record-breaking year for our Upper Sixth leavers at Wellington. At the start of the summer, we celebrated our best ever IB results, with this year’s cohort achieving an incredible 40.2 average, more than 11 points above the global average. With the release of A Level results, the full picture has emerged, and it is an impressive one.

Wellingtonians have achieved a record number of top grades, with 35% at A*/7 and almost 20% of the year group achieving either A*A*A* at A Level or 777 at Higher Level IB. 9 students achieved the maximum 45 points at IB, 62% achieved more than 40 points and 74% achieved 38+. At A Level, 10 students achieved straight A*s; across the cohort 23.6% of grades awarded were A*, 57% were A*/A and 85% were A*-B. Deputy Head, Academic, Matt Oakman commented: “I am thrilled for all our leavers, who have performed so magnificently this year. They have thrived and flourished studying their IB and A Level courses and will now go on to a broad range of leading institutions well equipped as independent learners to excel in the next stage of their lives. We wish them all the very best and could not be prouder of their achievements”.

Julian Thomas said, “Congratulations to the class of 2019 on these outstanding results. Not only have these students secured a record number of top grades, but they have contributed so much to the wider life of the College. This year group excelled in the arts, in sport, and they exhibited superb leadership, both within the College and in their generous contributions to the local community. They will be a tough act to follow. Well done to them all!”

This talented cohort will now head off to a range of leading UK, US and international universities, including Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, Bristol, LSE, Imperial, Yale, Duke, Chicago and NYU, to name but a few.

Congratulations and good luck to the class of 2019.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

US University Successes 2019 This year, 39 Wellingtonians applied to nearly 60 American universities, and achieved some impressive outcomes.

Wellington students were awarded some of the most coveted scholarships to some of the most prestigious institutions, across a wide range of disciplines. We are excited for the wonderful opportunities awaiting the Upper Sixth students heading to the US. Sophie Howard (O) received the University of Virginia’s prestigious Jefferson Scholarship after an incredibly competitive process that included a 4-day trip to Charlottesville to participate in exams, discussions and interviews. The mission of the scholarship is to ‘attract to the University the most promising leaders, scholars, and citizens in the world’. The scholarship covers the entire cost of attending the University of Virginia for all four years and scholars have enhanced educational and extracurricular opportunities throughout their university experience.

Sophie was one of about 36 scholars selected from a pool of over 2000 candidates nominated from around the world.

Eden Bray’s (Hn) academic prowess

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was recognised by Columbia University as she has been awarded the John Jay Scholarship. Eden has also been accepted to Yale university.

Michael MacLeod (Bl) was accepted to two of the most globally renowned acting programmes at the University of Southern California’s School of Dramatic Arts and New York University’s Tisch School for the Arts. Following rigorous applications and in-person auditions in New York and Los Angeles, Michael was one of a handful of students selected to these programmes from a pool of thousands.

Autumn Brown (C) was admitted to Princeton University, where she looks forward to joining the women’s varsity field hockey team.

A number of other Wellington students received offers of admission to some of the most competitive universities in the world: Sam Van Druten (Hn) received an offer of admission to Cornell University, Finn Paisley will be attending Stanford University, Carlota Homan (O) will be studying at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, and Patrick Mayer (T) will be attending

Duke University. Charlotte Hochman (Ap) was accepted to George Tech.

Three Wellington students have been accepted to the University of Chicago: Sparsh Jain (R), Miles Chiu (Hg) and Non Charoenwattananon (L).

Wellington students have been recognised for their artistic promise as Non Charoenwattananon was accepted to the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), a top visual arts programme, Eva and Celeste Percy (Ap) will be pursuing their careers in fashion at the New School/Parsons Paris, where they also received scholarships. Wellington’s musicians are also heading across the pond to pursue their performing arts dreams: Mira Steenbrugge received a scholarship to the Boston Conservatory/ Berklee College of Music programme for violin and Alexia Taee (C) will be attending the Berklee College of Music.

Wellington College students received nine scholarships, including the abovementioned, as well as scholarships to Northeastern University, the University of Miami and George Washington University.

Well done to them all!

ACADEMIC

WELLINGTON COLLEGE STUDENT WINS PRESTIGIOUS JEFFERSON SCHOLARSHIP Sophie Howard (U6th, O) was awarded one of the most highly selective merit scholarships to university in the United States. The Jefferson Scholars Foundation at the University of Virginia selected Sophie as one of 38 recipients of the Jefferson Scholarship. She will commence her studies in the fall at U.Va.

To be named a Scholar, candidates must undergo a rigorous, highly competitive, multi-stage selection process. This year, over 2,000 students were nominated for the Scholarship, and 118 finalists were invited to take part in a fourday competition at U.Va., which included seminar discussions, essay and mathematics examinations, as well as interviews conducted by U.Va. alumni and faculty.

The 38 selected recipients of the 2019 Jefferson Scholarship boast a number of significant achievements and Sophie is no exception. During her time at Wellington College, Sophie has excelled in the classroom, on the hockey pitch, in musical performance and as a leader in the community both at the school and through her extensive volunteer work.

James Dahl Visits Our International Schools As part of his preparation to become our 15th Master, James Dahl spent 10 days in Asia in June visiting each of our six international schools. James was keen to experience and understand each school first-hand, and to strengthen connections with our partners, and the leaders and staff who are bringing to life the values and ethos of Wellington College in China and Thailand.

The visit was a huge success. James was received with warmth and enthusiasm (and even outright awe in the case of

one Year 5 class) in every school. The days were crammed with tours (from senior to nursery campuses), meetings with the Masters and school leaders, and attending school events and Governor’s meetings, allowing him to understand the schools at all levels. Among the many highlights was a performance of The Emerald Crown by the Tianjin prep school, a tour of the impressive new upper prep facilities at Bangkok (and the most crowded train journey ever experienced) and being accosted for an

interview by DukeBox in Hangzhou!

James’ clear support for the way in which each school is interpreting and delivering a tangibly Wellington education whilst respecting and incorporating their unique cultural contexts, was greatly valued by all. James takes up from where Julian leaves off, in demonstrating the depth of our commitment and supporting our partnerships with our overseas schools, for all the huge benefits that it can bring to all Wellingtonians in a globally-orientated future world. We are extremely proud of all our schools.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

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ACADEMIC

Our motto? “Run by students, for students”

Student Team Launches New App The Wellington College Computer Science Department, or WellyCompSci has had an incredible year. Upper Sixth student, Will M, shares his thoughts: The WellyCompSci team at Wellington is pioneering student-led education worldwide, by teaching programming and other industry relevant skills to an exceptionally high standard.With interest from all areas of the College, we now have a dedicated team of pupils from every year group. Our motto? “Run by students, for students”.

WellyCompSci was formed around the idea that practical skills, like programming, are very much ‘hands-on’ and cannot be truly grasped within the realms of a classroom. Therefore, the initial idea of WellyCompSci was to create a teaching platform where we can deliver high-quality training, in the form of videos, to pupils (and staff!) interested. Along with the training, the plan was to: • Invite students to be ‘interns’ within our company, receiving training videos and other material.

• Interns, once they have finished the video series, create a ‘mini-project’ to showcase their skills.

• The Interns would then request an informal interview with the current President/Vice-President (myself and Arjun in this instance) to highlight what they had learnt during the course, and their ambitions for the future.

• After the interview, Interns would formally join the company as a ‘Junior Programmer’.

The foundations of WellyCompSci really began with the creation of the Monday Night Football website. Monday Night Football, or MNF, is an internal football competition at Wellington run by students. I was approached by some of the students that ran it, asking if I could help modernise the organisation of the league, and create a website to show the results - and I said yes. This was the perfect partnership

between two student-led bodies. The overall result was a public website for all College users to use, utilising the skills I had taught myself. The website shows the upcoming fixtures between houses, results, goal-scorers and more.

Having shown the MNF website to Mr Hooper, the head of Computer Science, he suggested we should promote WellyCompSci around the College, and that’s when the first College-wide email was sent around.

From there, it all took off. We had a number of students apply for the roles - not only programmers, but writers, graphic designers, business students, video editors and more.

We started to create a blog, record podcasts, revamped our social media and rebuilt our homepage website to fit our new theme and design ideas. Now WellyCompSci was starting to take shape - a team of people that have a wide range of skills.

From start to finish, my time as President of WellyCompSci has been filled with success for all involved. We have received nothing but praise from students and staff alike about what we have been doing with WellyCompSci. Leading the members to be the best members they can be, has been truly rewarding and I’m proud to say that this will be my legacy at Wellington, and I intend to leave it in the capable hands of Arjun, who will be taking over as President next year.

One final note, none of this would have been possible without the help, guidance and counsel of Mr Jonathan Hooper who left Wellington at the end of the Summer term and who has been rooting for student-led learning for years. I am sure that he will be proud of the work he has put in motion. We couldn’t have done it without you, sir – it has been a pleasure.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

myWelly One of the major issues we had been hearing from students, even before the inception of WellyCompSci, was how prep is managed at Wellington. At the time, a team of us consisting of the Lower Sixth at the time, and myself in Fifth Form decided to embark on a website where a student could manage preps from their day to day lives at College.

I contacted IT services to see if we would be able to get class set lists, and very helpfully, they were able to do so – and so we set to work. I managed to set up a system where we could authenticate school users and download their timetable. Roy Hu (HI), Max Al-Hasso (M) and I managed to coordinate, as a team, how to display the data and what tasks needed to be accomplished by the 3 of us. At this point, we had now reached the end of the summer term, and had to say farewell to Max and Roy, who as the original Computer Science ambassadors, had managed to kickstart the department.

At this point, I was the only one left. Until I heard from the Head of Computer Science himself that we were due to receive our first Computer Science Scholar, by the name of Arjun Naha - a person who had already succeeded in completing a similar project to ours at his previous school.

Naturally, the first thought going through my head was “Computer Science Scholar? Not jealous at all...” (I think I may have actually said that aloud) but then Mr Hooper told me about the app he had created, and how it was similar to ours. So, I thought that Arjun could definitely help.

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During the first couple of months of the new year, we began setting up WellyCompSci as detailed above. We brainstormed to see what new projects we should take on, to fulfil our mission statement. We had many different ideas, but I pitched the project we had already started, and in our first meeting we came to the conclusion that we shouldn’t just develop one singular app but create a platform upon which future projects could build. That was the end goal, a system for students that as a starter, contained their timetable, could create/set preps by teachers for their students. It was designed so that it could be extensively built upon in the future.

Skipping forward to a few weeks into the Summer term, we were preparing for our launch in assembly. We planned and created a launch video to highlight some of the problems we have at Wellington to do with technology, and on the assembly day, we launched to great reception.

The mobile apps were released shortly afterwards, and the feedback for both platforms was superb. I am proud to say that I have led this team to create a blossoming app for the entire College community to use for the future and have educated a developing group of individuals who have such a bright future.

Now for me, my next step is to go to Birmingham University to study Computer Science, where I have my degree apprenticeship with Vodafone waiting for me.

ACADEMIC

CHEMISTRY COLLABORATION In January Fourth Form students, Matilda Braje and Kate Sin, entered a European chemistry competition.

The task was to produce a 90 second video based on an element in the periodic table. Matilda and Kate’s short animation on helium impressed the judges and they were awarded 4th place in the Under 18 category – an incredible achievement. Below, Matilda and Kate explain how they worked together on this project.

TEAMWORK, BY MATILDA AND KATE As Matilda scrolled through her 111 unread emails some weeks ago, a banner that had previously been overlooked suddenly caught her eye. It advertised the EYCN chemistry video competition requesting video entries of no more than 90 seconds on an element from the periodic table.

The two of us buddied-up and headed towards the library, armed with a laptop, phone and whiteboard. Having considered a few other elements, such as krypton for its numerous manifestations in science fiction novels and uranium for its radioactive properties, eventually, we unanimously decided to do our project on helium because of some of its interesting uses and very funny voice changing effects.

At once, we set to work on writing the script. Given that each of our approaches to writing were like chalk

and cheese, we each wrote a short draft of the script for our video. The two scripts were soon merged into one Franken-script, and this method proved to be incredibly successful as it resulted in a fun but formal and (hopefully) informative script. Kate shone in her role as head of animation and the arts department, whilst Matilda made her directorial debut and ran the post-production department for the project.

“Given that each of our approaches to writing were like chalk and cheese, we each wrote a short draft of the script for our video.”

After four laborious hours of non-stop animating, the job was complete, and while we do cringe to hear ourselves speaking in it, we were happy with the end result. Recently we heard back that we had got fourth place in the Under 18s section and are both very proud.

We both had a wonderful time and we are looking forward to our (surely) bright and illustrious future in the short-science- video industry.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

150 Years of Debating at Wellington 150 years ago this year, in January 1869, Wellington College Debating Society held its first meeting. This makes it College’s oldest existing society. It is also one of the most well-documented, with a series of record books covering most of its history. Moreover, for many years detailed accounts of all debates were published in The Wellingtonian.

This rich resource allows us to explore over 100 years of political, social and cultural history, via the topics and motions debated.

During the Victorian era, debates on specific current political issues were popular. Over the 20th century, these gradually declined in favour of more general moral topics. Military subjects reached a peak in the 1890s, at a time when over half of Wellington’s students came from army families and many wished to make it their career. Debates on historical figures were also popular at this time, as students argued over the merits or otherwise of individuals such as Hannibal, Cromwell and Elizabeth I. Education has remained a perennial favourite topic throughout the society’s existence, since it’s one of which students have first-hand experience! At first, the debates focused on whether a classical education was superior to a modern scientific one, and whether the practice of fagging (younger boys acting as servants and errand-boys for older ones) was justified. During the 20th century, the arguments turned to private vs state education, and the desirability of admitting girls.

Debates on women’s rights reached a peak in the 1890s and 1900s, as Wellingtonians repeatedly failed to back votes for women, and lamented ‘the masculine tendency of the modern

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woman’. The 20th century saw several motions along the lines of ‘A woman’s place is in the home,’ although by 1964, this proposition was voted down. Oddly, once girls arrived at College in the 1970s and started to participate in debates, the topic was abandoned.

Sometimes, the subjects discussed paint a vivid picture of the events and concerns of a particular era. During the first decade of the 20th century we see an increasing preoccupation with national defence, with many debates on whether conscription would improve Britain’s Army, whether her Navy would keep her safe, and how she might prepare for a blockade.The 1930s seem to have provoked an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia, with many motions along the lines of ‘20th century progress is to be regretted’ and ‘This House would prefer to have lived in the good old times.’ Notable topics of the 1980s included nuclear weapons, capitalism, and the sex scandals of public figures.

From time to time ‘balloon debates’ in which students play the part of various well-known figures have been popular. The Society has also staged ‘mock trials’, and also mock elections, sometimes preceded by days of campaigning by the candidates.

In the 1970s, Wellington started taking part in debating competitions against other schools, culminating in winning a national championship in 1979. One member of this winning team was comedian and impressionist Rory Bremner.

Nowadays, as highlighted last term, the College team is again successful in competitions, but perhaps it is sad that no permanent written record of their debates is kept for historians of the future.

ACADEMIC

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

Cressida Henderson Appointed as Second Master We are delighted to announce the appointment of Mrs Cressida Henderson as Second Master, effective from September 2019.

Cressida emerged as the outstanding candidate from a strong field and is ideally suited to the role. After an undergraduate degree in Modern Languages at Keble College Oxford, where she won Blues in both tennis and netball, she completed a PGCE (via a short stint as a professional tennis coach) followed by three years teaching at Didcot Girls’ School. In 1993, she moved to Wellington College with her husband, Iain, and, fortunately for the College, they have remained here ever since. Cressida has held numerous

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positions of responsibility during her time at Wellington: Head of Department; Head of Middle School; resident in both the Hardinge and the Benson working alongside Iain as Housemaster; Assistant Head (Academies); and Deputy Head (Co-Curricular). There are few staff at the College who have a more intimate knowledge of Wellington and she has a proven track-record of success in all the roles she has fulfilled.

Cressida commented: “I am honoured and delighted to be chosen as Wellington’s Second Master and aim to serve the College to the best of my ability. I am excited to be part of the next stage of Wellington’s compelling adventure”.

“I am excited to be part of the next stage of Wellington’s compelling adventure”.

WELLINGTON COMMUNITY

The Life of Pi During his Speech Day address in May, Julian Thomas quoted Winston Churchill in observing that ‘We shape our buildings, thereafter they shape us’ and added that the same applies to landscapes. Thanks to the innovative work of our gardening team, this statement would not be more appropriate. This year, the Wellington gardeners have surpassed themselves in terms of creativity and commitment with a project that has brought together the academic and horticultural lives of the College. Head Gardener, Mark Dodd, tells us more…

‘The idea in both the areas was to try and do something fun with the planting and to reflect the subjects taught in the adjacent classrooms. Due to the

“The idea in both the areas was to try and do something fun with the planting and to reflect the subjects taught in the adjacent classrooms.”

grandeur of the main college building a lot of the planting has to be kept very formal but at both Maths and Chemistry we could play around and had a lot more freedom to be quirky and a bit different.

The basic theme to the Chemistry block is a molecular structure. The Box balls represent molecules with the low-level hedging as the bonds that join them.

The show piece is without doubt the Cupressus tree grown in a ‘Niwaki’ style which means Garden tree as opposed to Bonsai which refers to an indoor tree. However, the Japanese love of showcasing their trees meant we were able to use this specimen to show a greater degree of molecular structure

which is a real eye catcher.

At the Maths block it was felt that the old lawn area was very tired and not particularly inspiring and following the refurbishment of this area we had an opportunity to soften it and make some positive changes. It is often said that Geometry is at the heart of Mathematics and we chose a range of geometric shapes from the Yew pyramids and spheres, the Beech cubes and the Photinia circles to show this.The Pleached Hornbeam at the centre gives a sense of height to the garden and it is finished with a bench in the shape of the pi sign made from recycled timber and created by the college carpenters so people can go and sit and enjoy the space’.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

Dragons’ Den On Wednesday 15th May, Wellington’s entrepreneurship society, Disrupt, hosted its second Dragons’ Den competition. India Parsons, last year’s winner and student leader of Disrupt, shares her thoughts on the event: “It was a fantastic evening, in which we watched 10 Wellington pupils from a variety of year groups pitch their incredible ideas to our highly experienced team of Dragons.

We were extremely honoured to have such an outstanding panel of judges, including Hugh Chappell, Eric Nicoli, Jamie Moyes and Miss Fisher, judging the competition and offering our finalists invaluable advice. We are delighted to announce that the winner of our second Dragons’ Den competition is Imogen Reed with her innovative Elastirrups. Runners-up were Harriet Chappell and Orlando Getty.

Congratulations to all those who took part in the competition – the standard of pitches was incredibly high. The evening provided an opportunity for pupils to showcase their entrepreneurial talent and, aided by the expertise of our Dragons, all participants were encouraged to further develop their ideas with regards to the future. The event was great fun and beneficial to all, as both finalists and students watching the pitches had the opportunity to discuss business ideas with a panel of experts, receiving crucial advice in an enjoyable setting. We greatly look forward to next year’s competition, as we await the business ideas of more Wellingtonians and as Disrupt continues to thrive as Wellington’s fastest growing society.”

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“The evening provided an opportunity for pupils to showcase their entrepreneurial talent.”

WELLINGTON COMMUNITY

CONGRESS TO CAMPUS 2019 On 6th March, we welcomed visiting students to Wellington for our annual Congress to Campus conference.Anisa, a student from Tower Hamlets School, shares her reflections on the day: “Our trip to Wellington College provided our Politics class with a vivid insight into the US political system. This was best encapsulated by the panel of speakers, including former congresswoman Donna Edwards, a Democrat, and Republican, Charles Boustany, as well as lecturers from UCL, De Montfort and London

Metropolitan University. Our study of US politics in the classroom was brought to life by the university lecturers, who opened us up to the huge impact the American political system has, both at home and across the globe.

On behalf of my classmates I would like to thank Wellington College for inviting us to join them in an incredibly interesting and thought-provoking day, and for giving us the opportunity to gain a more thorough understanding of US politics”.

“An incredibly interesting and thought-provoking day.”

Anisa R

Wellington Wins Boarding Research Award In May, we were delighted to announce that Wellington College had won the Boarding Research Award at this year’s Boarding Schools’ Association Awards.

This award recognises the brilliant work of Delyth Lynch, Deputy Head (Safeguarding), who has recently completed a BSA research fellowship, exploring what makes boarding schools vulnerable and what we can do to create a safer culture.

The BSA Research Award recognises ‘research undertaken by a school or individual into how to continue to improve the boarding sector and better meet students’ needs’ and Delyth is a worthy winner. Her research was

conducted across numerous boarding schools, and the questions she raised, and the subsequent discussions, have already had a significant impact on the culture at Wellington.

During her career, Delyth has made a significant contribution to the cause of boarding. The impact she has had at Wellington College over the twelve years is undisputed, but her reputation and influence reach far beyond the College gates. With this accolade, Delyth has cemented her reputation as a thought-leader in safeguarding. Not only will her work continue to improve the experience of our boarders, but it will undoubtedly serve to improve standards across the sector.

“The BSA Research Award recognises research undertaken by a school or individual into how to continue to improve the boarding sector and better meet students’ needs.”

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

“What really excites me is the sense of collaboration, the way in which we work together to create a better system for all.”

Record Numbers for the 10th Festival of Education On 20th and 21st June, the educational world descended on Wellington College for the 10th Festival of Education. Record ticket sales, a stellar line-up, and a footfall approaching 7000, made this a birthday to remember. Even the sun made an appearance.

On Thursday, the G.W. Annenberg, home to the festival main stage for the first time, saw a diverse line-up of speakers, from hip-hop artist and social entrepreneur, Akala, to Baroness Estelle Morris and Lord David Blunkett. Day two saw Gyles Brandreth tapping into a Wellington favourite with his talk on ‘Making “Wellbeing” Happen’. Elsewhere, classrooms, tents and lecture halls hosted seminars on everything from curriculum innovation to cultural mobility. As always, there was something for everyone. As the festival tagline neatly puts it, ‘EdFest’ is the place “where those who inspire find their own inspiration”.

Julian Thomas, as he opened the 10th Festival of Education, said:

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“At this time of year, at this event, my belief and excitement in education receives its annual booster shot. I see, hear and meet people from all sectors, age ranges, countries and schools coming together with a single common purpose in mind: to make things better; to serve and educate the children of this country, for the future of this country, as well and as effectively as we possibly can. At this time of year all barriers come down.

What really excites me is the sense of collaboration, the way in which we work together to create a better system for all.

We don’t protect our patch. We give and receive. We listen and we learn from each other”.

Happy birthday, ‘EdFest’!

WELLINGTON COMMUNITY

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Mordaunts at Wellington A special meeting of Wellington generations took place at the rackets court earlier this term. In 1891 GJ Mordaunt and OC Raphael became Wellington’s first ever winners of the Public Schools’ Doubles Championships, then held at the Prince’s Club, London. In December 2018 at the Queen’s Club Issie Thorneycroft and Lauren Gooding (both C) became Wellington’s first winners of the Girls Doubles Rackets Championships.

GJ Mordaunt was the first of four generations of the Mordaunt family to attend Wellington. On Saturday 8 June his grandsons David (C 1950 to1955) and Gerald (C 1953 to 1957) visited Wellington to present their grandfather’s trophy from 1891,

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now on display in the trophy cabinet in the rackets gallery.

David was a highly distinguished sportsman himself, playing cricket for Sussex CCC then returning to teach at Wellington, where he was Master in charge of Cricket for twenty years, and Housemaster (then termed “Tutor”) of the Beresford from 1968 to 1980.

After the presentation at the court the girls took the Mordaunts to visit the Combermere, where they read and reminisced on the names which have stood on honours boards for seventy years, while admiring the recent developments in the house and meeting the latest generation of new Wellingtonians.

WELLINGTON COMMUNITY

“There is something in the sculpture for everyone: military precision in the uniform details; historical facts; emotional connection to the soldiers, their families, the Regiment and its place in Halifax, Calderdale, the West Riding and Yorkshire”.

STATUE DEDICATED TO THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON’S REGIMENT UNVEILED IN HALIFAX On 17th May, a new memorial dedicated to The Duke of Wellington’s Regiment was unveiled in Halifax, West Yorkshire.

The memorial sculpture, which was designed and sculpted by Andrew Sinclair MRSS, tells the history of the Regiment by ‘weaving a sculptural story throughout the bronze’.

The unveiling was preceded by a service in Halifax Minster.

Serving members of the Regiment, past and present, joined His Grace, the 9th Duke of Wellington OBE DL and other distinguished guests to celebrate with residents of the town.

As Canon Hilary Barber, Vicar of Halifax expressed in her words of welcome, the service was an opportunity to “give thanks for the three hundred and four years of service by the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment to our nation and to honour the communities of the West Riding of Yorkshire from whom the Regiment drew its soldiers for nearly all those years”. During the service Major David Harrap narrated the

story of the Regiment, accompanied by the Band of the West Yorkshire Police, who provided a musical journey through the life of the Regiment. Pieces included The Duke of Wellington’s Regimental march, The Wellesley, from George Frideric Handel’s ‘Occasional Oratorio’ and a rousing rendition of ‘Ilkla Moor Baht’At’, the unofficial anthem of Yorkshire.

Following the service, guests and townspeople gathered for the unveiling of the memorial, which now sits in a prominent position in the heart of the town. In the words of the service programme, “There is something in the sculpture for everyone: military precision in the uniform details; historical facts; emotional connection to the soldiers, their families, the Regiment and its place in Halifax, Calderdale, the West Riding and Yorkshire”.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

Wellington Enters the Sporting ‘Superleague’ as The Robin Dyer Centre Opens Friday 7th June saw the official opening of our new indoor sports facility: The Robin Dyer Sports Centre. Named in honour of outgoing Second Master, Robin Dyer, who has given 33 years of exceptional service to the College. the centre will provide space for cricket, tennis and, for the first time, a showcase court for netball.

The opening event saw a fantastic display of tennis, cricket and netball, celebrating these sports in their brand new arena. The evening started with masterclasses for our current students in tennis and cricket, led by our current professional and head coaches.

The headline event was a netball match, with the current 1st VII playing alongside Superleague and international netball players such as Rhea Dixon, Yas Parsons and Rachel Dunn.

Wellington teachers, Amy Flanagan and Sophia Candappa, our very own Superleague players, were also to be seen running around and joining in the action on court. With a cheering crowd of students, it was a great display and a chance to see players such as Rachel Dunn who represented England at the World Netball Cup this July.

Speaking at the event, Robin Dyer praised those whose contributions had led to this moment:

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“This building is the product of so much work from so many quality people. Malcolm Callender put his heart and soul into it – he would have been rightly proud of the outcome. We have lost an extraordinary person but this building, and his other projects, will stand as testimony to him. Thank you to Andrew Blackie and the team and to the excellent contractors – Collinsons and S & C Slatter.They have all done an incredible job.

Julian Thomas has supported this project in so many ways, and has been critical to its success; the stand you are sitting in, for example, is his masterstroke. We are so fortunate to have Lucy Pearson here who led us brilliantly through the first stages of the co-ed sport era; she handed the baton to Liz Worthington, also here, who sustained that progress and now we have Cress Henderson, as the SLT lead on sport. All three are brilliant sportswomen in their own right and great leaders. I have no doubt that this building will help to provide a springboard for girls’ cricket and tennis and for our excellent netballers to go into orbit. Boys’ cricket and tennis will undoubtedly thrive. I hope and trust that the local clubs and community, and OW clubs, will be able to use this place as much as possible. It is a remarkable facility”.

SPORTS

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

WELLINGTON ATHLETES ENJOY AN AFTERNOON WITH SALLY GUNNELL On Thursday 2nd May, we were delighted to welcome Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European gold medallist, Sally Gunnell, to Wellington.

Sally led an afternoon of top-class coaching on Rockies, before delivering an inspirational talk in the Christopher Lee Theatre. Those listening, many of whom were sports scholars, were engrossed by the story of how a ‘farmer’s daughter from Essex’ became an Olympic champion. The audience went away

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with some powerful messages about the importance of team support, about the extraordinary power of visualisation, and about how self-belief can be the most difficult hurdle of all. A replay of that famous victory in the 400m hurdles Olympic final left many members of the audience on the edge of their seats and brought waves of nostalgia to some of the staff in the theatre as they found themselves transported back to Barcelona,1992.

“Self-belief can be the most difficult hurdle of all.’

SPORTS

“One of the biggest equestrian events in the international equestrian calendar, where some of the greatest riders in the world come to compete.”

ROYAL WINDSOR HORSE SHOW SERVICES SHOW JUMPING The Royal Windsor Horse Show took place on the 11th and 12th May, and we were lucky to have three Wellingtonians riding in the Services Team Show Jumping class in the prestigious Castle Arena. This is one of the biggest equestrian events in the international equestrian calendar, where some of the greatest riders in the world come to compete.

Our riders jumped brilliantly for the Queen’s Plate and finished in an incredible second place. The team consisted of Ella Evans, Gus Crewdson and Imogen Reed. Gus and Ella rode fantastic clear rounds, and Imogen rode another beautiful round, although was unlucky to just rub a pole off one of the fences; our team finished the first round with only four faults, which put Wellington in second place, and secured a place in the afternoon finals with a healthy lead on the rest of the teams below us in the rankings. The team

needed to select one rider to jump in the afternoon finals, and Imogen Reed was selected as our jump off rider as she and her new horse Prada have been on brilliant form this season.

Before the jump off, all competitors had to parade in front of the huge crowd and the royal family, including Her Majesty the Queen. This is a huge honour and an unforgettable moment for the Wellington riders. The riders ensured their horses were groomed to perfection and their kit was sparkling before making their way to the arena.

Salutes had been well practised ahead of the day, and riders were ready for their presentation to Her Majesty the Queen!

As soon as Imogen was out of the arena from the parade, it was straight back to warming up for the jump off. The jump off was a twisty course and, in such a big arena, Imogen knew she needed to

be tidy and clear to hold on to second place. The tension was palpable, but Imogen did not let this phase her: she rode a stunning round and had the entire crowd on the edge of their seats. She managed to get around fast and clear, which resulted in huge roars of support from the audience when she landed her final fence. Her tidy round secured the team placing of second in the Queen’s Plate, which was truly deserved.

The team worked very hard in the lead up to this event, with an eye-wateringly early start on Saturday morning to plait horses, polish boots and course walk.

They worked brilliantly as a team to support one another on what was a very pressured day. They did the College and our CCF very proud.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

Wellington: Always in the Running Wellington College has a proud history of cross-country running, stretching back to the 1860s; in more recent years, the College has acquired a name for Wellbeing, being one of the first schools in the UK to pioneer the teaching of Wellbeing as part of the curriculum. This year, these two traditions will combine.

Thanks to the dedication of Delyth Lynch, Deputy Head (Safeguarding) and Head of Running, along with her team of running enthusiasts, the College has been recognised as a #RunAndTalk organisation. #RunAndTalk is an England Athletics initiative supported by Mind, the mental health charity. The idea is to improve mental health through running by getting people talking, sharing their experiences and removing stigma. The #RunAndTalk programme will be a great addition to Wellington’s Wellbeing programme: staff and students will have the opportunity to be trained as Mental Health Ambassadors and Mental Health Champions, providing additional support and guidance to raise awareness of mental health issues. Delyth Lynch and Sarah MacKenzie (HM Combermere and a member of the running club) have recently trained as Mental Health First Aiders and Delyth, Sam Gutteridge and George Wells have completed their courses in Mental Wellbeing in Sport. #RunAndTalk is the latest in a long line of running initiatives at Wellington and will join such traditions as the annual Kingleys races, in which more than 1000 enthusiastic students and staff weave their way through Wellington’s 410-acre site, a 5K challenge that culminates in a plunge through Swan Lake. The Boughey Run, a more recent but nevertheless a much cherished tradition, sees 18 gutsy individuals, one from each House, attempt to run from Front Quad to Swan Lake and back in the time taken for the clock to chime twelve (a near-impossible feat, but contested in true Wellington style). Other events, such as the Waterloo halfmarathon and the Pink Pavilion Dash, mean that running remains at the heart of the Wellington experience.

This year two waymarked running courses will be set out in the College grounds to encourage students to run as part of their wellbeing and in the Summer Term, the College also hopes to host its very own ‘ Park Run’ equivalent for the students, staff and parents.

This year, to coincide with the Kingleys, the College archivist, Caroline Jones, created a magnificent showcase in the V&A to celebrate the history of running at Wellington: video footage, images and first-hand accounts brought this great Wellington tradition to life. Opposite is the text from Caroline’s display.

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SPORTS

RUNNING AT WELLINGTON

THE PANCAKE RUN

Cross-country running is believed to be the first sport ever practised at Wellington College – probably because it was possible even before the surrounding heathland was made into rugby or cricket pitches. Tradition says that running was introduced by the Rev Charles Kingsley, a well-known writer and the Rector of nearby Eversley. Our most famous races, the Kingsleys, are named after him, and were first run in 1860.

During the 1880s, a paperchase for under-16s was initially held on Shrove Tuesday. This soon became an annual event known as the “Pancake Run.” It was compulsory, meaning that fields of between 200 and 400 regularly took part. It became the custom that the “hares” who laid the paper trail should be the Head of School and the Captain of the First XV. It was also traditional that other senior boys (often members of the XV) would take part and help the younger boys along, as shown in these illustrations from the Wellingtonian.

For the first hundred years of Wellington’s history, running took two forms: steeplechases, such as the Kingsley, and the longer paperchases, which were more frequent.

PAPERCHASES Historically, most cross-country running at Wellington took the form of paperchases, in which a pack of runners known as the “hounds” would follow a trail of ripped-up paper laid by two runners known as the “hares”. Thus the sport was as much a test of navigation across country as of running skills, and runners might have to negotiate hedges, ditches and ploughed fields.The pack would usually pause and gather together about 1 kilometre away from College before racing home in the final “run-in.”

The run became so much a part of Wellington tradition that in 1915 two Old Wellingtonians, serving as Army officers in northern France, decided to go for a run of their own when they realised it was Shrove Tuesday.

The Pancake Run was the last school race to be a true paperchase, but by the 1950s, views on litter had changed and attempts were made to pick up the paper the following day. In 1954 sawdust was used instead of paper, but was found to be unsatisfactory, and the race was not run again.

The hares carried the paper, known as “scent,” in large shoulderbags, and photographs show extra paper being delivered to them half-way round the course by teachers on horseback or, later, in cars. Most paperchases covered a distance of between 11 and 13 miles (17 to 21km), and took around 2 hours, although in some cases the runners got lost and did not arrive back until after dark! For the Fleet Run, which started in about 1870, participants would take the train to Farnborough and run from there back to College.

STEEPLECHASES Like the horse race of the same name, steeplechases included natural obstacles such as fences, hedges, ditches and rivers.The course was much shorter than a paperchase, taking between 12 and 15 minutes to run, and was marked out with flags or rags tied to fences and trees. Wellington’s main steeplechases have always been the Kingsleys, begun in 1860, only a year after the College opened. These usually consisted of the “Big” and “Little” Kingsley, for senior and junior runners respectively.

Initially they were run in November, but from 1883 onwards have generally been held in March or April.

Until 1963, the Kingsleys were run in the Blackwater meadows and included crossing the Blackwater River. By 1964 the river was considered too polluted for the races to continue, and so from 1965 they have been held in the College grounds, with crossing of the lake replacing that of the river. The maps above and below show the old course, from 1957, and the first example of the new course in 1965.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

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SPORTS

Mental Skills Coaching at Wellington An Interview with Mark Russell, Mental Skills Coach at Wellington Professional mental skills coach, Mark Russell, tells us how he has been helping Wellington’s top athletes to fulfil their potential and to be “the best version of themselves”, both on and off the sports field.

How did you become a mental skills coach?

I was lucky enough to be involved in sport at the professional elite level. I played rugby union for Harlequins FC, Blackheath FC and England A in 1990s. I travelled the world, playing in some fantastic stadia and against some incredible teams. I had a great time, learned loads, had some fabulous experiences and made lifelong friends – it’s fantastic how sport creates these kind of opportunities for you.

After I retired from rugby, I got a job in the City. I quickly realised that it doesn’t matter whether it’s sport, business or life, it’s a game played largely in the mind! What you think determines how you feel. Feelings drive your emotions. Emotions are the bedrock of how you behave, your habits, the decisions/ judgments you make and the attitude you have. It all starts with a thought! So, what you are thinking is really important.

I quickly realised that helping people figure out how to be the best version of themselves is something I would love to do as a career. I went to business school and used my MBA studies to focus on understanding emotional intelligence (how emotions work and how to use them effectively). If you know how to drive your emotions so that they work for you, you can build rapport and motivate others. You can also be more influential and more persuasive – someone who leaves a positive, lasting impression.

I came to the conclusion that emotional intelligence is much more important than your IQ when it comes to dealing with challenging situations, getting things done, achieving goals and getting the best out of who you already are!

And it’s the same in sport. Talent is as common as table salt in sport, especially at somewhere like Wellington – there are lots of talented athletes! For me, ATTITUDE and EFFORT is

what makes the difference in how the athletes perform and the accomplishments they achieve. The bit between the ears, the top two inches is the difference that makes the difference when talent abounds. I’ve always believed that the game is won in the mind, and then you go out and play it!

As a qualified mental skills coaching professional, I help athletes understand how the mental side of their game can impact and drive performance; if they focus on what they need to do in terms of developing that toughness, resilience and mental agility, they’ll stand a really good chance of being the best version of themselves in sport and fulfilling their potential.

What impression have you formed of the athletes at Wellington?

Immediately I noticed there was a need to improve what was being done to help athletes to develop the mental side of their game. As I talked to athletes about building confidence, coping with expectations, dealing with distractions, trusting your skills, they would say to me things like, “I wish I had known this years ago – it would have really helped me.”

“People say I haven’t got confidence, but I don’t know what that is!”

“How do I go about understanding what my sources of confidence are, or indeed identifying the ones I can control?”

“How do I deal with this negative self-talk that can happen to me and how do I rebut it?”

I also noticed that when the athletes learned how to develop the mental skills there was a dramatic improvement in their performance and the fun and freedom they started to experience in playing sport.

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

In your experience, what are the three most effective ways of building confidence?

The first way is to identify your sources of confidence. It might be things like: how I prepare; how I practise; my talent; the coaching I receive; how fit I am; how well I’ve slept the night before; the weather and the state of the pitch; the opponents and the venue; who is officiating?; who is playing in my team?; my relationships with teammates, and so on…

There are all sorts of things that might feed into your confidence.

The next step is to ask yourself, “which of those can I control?”

Can you control eat, sleep, move? Yes, I can! Can you control your practice? Yes, I’ve got a big say in that! Can you control how you prepare? Yes, I can! Can you control your opponents and where you’re playing? No, so drop that one. Can you control the weather? Can you control who’s officiating? No, so why waste your effort and focus in investing in those areas?

FOCUS on what can you control and let go of what you cannot.

The second way to build confidence is to put together a ‘Confidence CV’. Start by writing down all of your

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accomplishments and achievements – detail the awards, trophies and medals you have received. Also list your strengths are, and what people say about you when you’re playing well.

Get some photographs and newspaper clippings of games you’ve played where you have been the best version of yourself. Now create a poster sized Confidence CV – make it colourful, bring it to life with pictures. Be CREATIVE! The brighter the better! Now refer to your Confidence CV a regular basis, particularly when you find things are becoming tough, or before a match, or before training. If you’ve got a really good CV, every time you look at it, it will make the hairs on the back of your neck rise!

The third way to build confidence is to learn how to how to deal with ANTs. What’s an ANT, you ask? An ANT is an Automatic Negative Thought. What might be an example of that? “Oh, it’s raining, I never play well in the rain!” I’ve known athletes go from a rain drop on the windscreen of their car to being homeless 30 seconds later by allowing all sorts of automatic negative thoughts into their mind. So, how do you deal with ANTs? You introduce a CAT. A CAT is a Conscious Alternative Thought that negates an ANT. “Oh, it’s raining! Well, I might need to stand closer to the person passing me the ball”.

Can you see how you can use a CAT as a way of driving your performance?

SPORTS

Can you give an example of the most significant change you’ve seen in an athlete?

What place can you see for this kind of mental skills coaching in the classroom?

I’ve got some great sports stories and life stories from my work. The best thing about what I do is that when the athletes develop mental skills they don’t just use it on the sports field, they take it everywhere, wherever they go – into their studies and relationships, and all sorts of areas… it’s one of those life skills.

A lot of what I do in terms of mental skills development helps an athlete develop resilience and toughness and that is where I see it contributing. Of course it’s not the only intervention, but that’s where I see it contributing significantly in helping young people become more resilient, to be able to not just bounce back, but bounce forward, and take responsibility for what’s happening in their world. My view is that if you can learn how to build confidence when you’re playing hockey, football or any sport then you can also learn how to build confidence when you’re doing algebra or Latin. And I see it developing at Wellington by being available to the wider sports community and maybe in other disciplines, such as music, drama and other performing arts.

Let me illustrate this with a short story – there was one athlete who was diminutive in stature and when they were standing in the holding area prior to the race, they felt intimidated by all of the tall, powerful looking athletes around them. But as soon as they realised what their sources of confidence were and focused solely on those they got a bit of a swagger on and that really helped them to perform and achieve. Off the sports field, this same athlete happened to be a school prefect too.

Being confident and trusting in their skills really helped them build rapport and motivate others and be a prefect to the best of their ability. It was a win, win situation!

One of the exercises I do with young athletes is called the ‘responsibility pie’ – in involves plotting the factors that contribute to an athlete’s performance. And what most conclude it that the most significant factor in an athlete’s performance is themselves. It’s up to YOU. Your ATTITUDE and your EFFORT are key to what you will accomplish!

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

“A gorgeous setting and some simply stunning performances.”

MONTGOMERY SINGING FINAL This year’s Montgomery Singing Final was held in Waterloo Hall on Friday 3rd May. As ever, there were some superb performances, with singers from across the year groups and songs from a range of genres. Congratulations to this year’s winner, Hayley Canham (L6th, O) and to runners-up Amelia Hutton (5th, W), Charlotte Du-Cann (U6th, Hn) and Hugo Williamson (5th, R).

We were delighted to welcome British singer, composer and choral leader, Joanna Forbes L’Estrange, back to Wellington to adjudicate the competition. Joanna gave extremely thoughtful and personalised feedback to the performers and later tweeted: “I had a wonderful evening judging the Montgomery singing competition…

A gorgeous setting and some simply stunning performances”.

FINALISTS

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Hayley Canham

(L6th, O)

Sebastian Carroll

(L6th, R)

Charlotte Du-Cann

(U6th, Hn)

Oscar Farrell

(L6th, R)

Amelia Hutton

(5th, W)

Jemima Huxtable

(L6th, O)

Alice Nicoli

(L6th, C)

Mathilda Noble

(5th, C)

Will Ryan

(U6th, Pn)

Millie Selman

(L6th, C)

Baxter Westby

(5th, S)

Hugo Williamson

(5th, R)

THE ARTS

JUNIOR MONTGOMERY FINAL The final of the Junior Montgomery Instrumental Competition took place on Friday 7th June in Waterloo Hall, adjudicated

by Anthony Williams. The evening was a brilliant showcase for our talented junior musicians. Ten finalists from the Third and Fourth Form performed music from a broad range of genres.

Congratulations to this year’s winner, Yvette Zheng (3rd, Ap) and runners up Andrea Lam (3rd, Ap), Honor Mival (4th, A) and Varun Sanjeev (3rd, R).

FINALISTS Katya Ferrier (4th, W) Violin Tiggy Cottle

(3rd, W)

Bassoon

Cindy Guo

(3rd, O)

Violin

Honor Mival (4th, A) Viola Tayisha Flower

(3rd, Ap)

Violin

Varun Sanjeev

(3rd, R)

Classical Guitar

Andrea Lam

(3rd, Ap)

Violin

Adam Reed

(3rd, Bn)

French Horn

Benedict King

(4th, Bn)

Viola

Yvette Zheng

(3rd, Ap)

Violin

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS

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THE ARTS

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

THE HEALING GARDENS OF WELLINGTON Over the last few years, students from Wellington College and Eagle House have been working hard to convert the old Health Centre garden behind the Apsley into a magnificent healing garden. There is a lot of work still to do but, this spring, there are signs that all the hard work is about to pay off as the project gradually comes to fruition.

“It is one of those projects where the students have the opportunity to try things and, if it doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world, so it’s great for resilience.”

The idea was first planted by Delyth Lynch, Deputy Head (Safeguarding), who suggested creating a space that the whole Wellington community could use for wellness and reflection. Nestled close to the Health Centre, some of the planting has been influenced by herbal remedies, the idea being that those recuperating could go and sit in the space. However, the hope is that this

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garden will be a space for everyone and, perhaps, in future, even a resource for the wider Crowthorne community.

Over the last few years, various groups of students have made ambitious plans and have come together on Wednesday afternoons to dig, decorate, plant, weed, and paint fences, much of the work led and overseen by Wellington Art teacher, Rachel Humphries, and Head Gardener, Mark Dodd.

Head of Global Citizenship, Rebecca Park, commented: “The idea is to have a space that anyone within the Wellington Community can use. There was talk of using it for an outdoor cinema, or having yoga sessions there, but it is a project that will take time to develop. It is one of those projects where the students have the opportunity to try things and, if it doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world, so it’s great for resilience”.

“It is one of those projects where the students have the opportunity to try things and, if it doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world, so it’s great for resilience.”

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP

BRAY SWORD PRESENTATION DINNER On the evening of March 25th senior cadets from the Army Section of Wellington College CCF welcomed Brigadier Michael Bray CBE (OW) and his wife Anne to dinner in Great School on the occasion of the Brigadier presenting a sword to the Army Section.

No ordinary sword, the Bray Sword has been carried by four members of the Bray family spanning three centuries and is a symbol of the Bray family’s service to

their country over more than a hundred years.

Brigadier Bray presented the sword to Cadet WO2 Josh Perry, Senior Army Cadet who accepted it on behalf of the section and gave thanks to the Brigadier for such a generous gesture. The sword will now be displayed in the Armoury in a bespoke case and presented annually on Speech Day to the most worthy cadet within the Army Section.

The history of the sword and those who carried it will feature on the display case along with the names of the winners.

Attended by guests, cadets and adult members of the Wellington College Contingent this dinner represented a little piece of Wellington History in the making.

An enjoyable yet important evening for the contingent was concluded in a novel manner with a toast from the Brigadier: “Fortune favours the brave!”

A VISIT FROM MAJOR GENERAL BEN BATHURST, CBE On Wednesday 20th March, Wellington College CCF was honoured to welcome Major General Ben Bathurst CBE who commands London District, which includes the Household Division. The Major General lunched with cadets aspiring to the role of Cadet RSM in advance of taking a salute from the Colour Party and escort outside The Lodge. The Major General was invited

to inspect the Colour Party and escort, and spent time talking with them.The Major General’s party then spent the afternoon touring training stands and talking with cadets and adult volunteers.

in Front Quad and ended the afternoon viewing the RAF Section, going through their paces on the high and low ropes courses along with the MPC Section shooting on the range.

Of particular interest was the House Drill Competition which the General viewed on South Front. He was then treated to a display by the Drum Corps

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

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GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP

“Crowthorne firefighters have taken up residency in their temporary home within the grounds of Wellington College to facilitate the rebuild of the local fire station.”

FIREFIGHTERS RELOCATE TO WELLINGTON COLLEGE Crowthorne firefighters have taken up residency in their temporary home within the grounds of Wellington College to facilitate the rebuild of the local fire station.

On 15 April 2019, the crew of 14 officially relocated to Wellington College while the work on the fire station gets underway. The brand new, contemporary fire station will provide the local community with a modern facility. It will have space for a fire engine and 4X4 vehicle, the modern equipment used by the firefighters, an office space for fire service staff, as well as the police and ambulance, a bookable

community room and a compact gym to support firefighters in maintaining their high fitness standards.

Watch Manager, Tony Jell, said: “We are really grateful to Wellington College for rehoming us while the work takes place. Crowthorne Fire Station is on-call, which means we respond from our home or place of work so need to be able to reach the fire engine within a certain timeframe. Due to Wellington College’s location in Crowthorne, we will be able to continue to respond to emergency calls, which is always our top priority.”

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WELLINGTON TODAY MICHAELMAS 2019 EDITION

WELLINGTON COLLEGE INTERNATIONAL ‘SUMMER PRODUCTIONS’

At Wellington, performance has always been an essential component of the all-round education, allowing children among many other things to discover and hone interests and talents, build confidence, develop teamwork and leadership skills, and foster a strong community spirit.

Our International schools continue this tradition with enthusiasm and vigor, led by their dedicated teams of talented and inspiring staff. This year they have once

BANGKOK Our school in Bangkok the upper prep led with a glittering performance of Pirates v. Princesses. The nursery and pre-prep also put on, among other things, a beautiful Christmas performance on the Nativity theme. With Carol Concerts, recitals and a Chinese New Year spectacular, they too got off to a fantastic start. We are all looking forward to what happens when their 600 seater Performing Arts Centre opens next year!

HANGZHOU This year in Hangzhou, the pupils participated in a drama workshop led by British theatre educators from ‘Round Midnight’, crafting truly unique, creative theatre tableaus which highlighted different aspects of their life at Wellington College. In the Lent term, they also participated in the very first Wellington College Hangzhou House

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Singing Competition, with performances such as The Eye of the Tiger combining song and dance with verve, courage, and an infectious beat. With many other music and dance performances, and the spectacular Chinese New Year productions, they have been exceptionally busy in their first year.

again produced an exceptional breadth and quality of productions, celebrating the very best of both British and local cultures and traditions. The children always bring an impressive energy and courage to these events, which for many is their first experience of performance.

And it particularly impressive when you remember that for some, this is also accomplished in an English language only very recently acquired! Here we bring a brief roundup of the highlights of 2018/19 in the Wellington family.

WELLINGTON COLLEGE INTERNATIONAL

SHANGHAI Shanghai, now 5 years old, has seen many great performances in its impressive theatre. This year the senior school performed Little Shop of Horrors, whilst lower prep put on The Bee Story.

An experimental production of the Greek tragedy Medea performed in an underground car park, finished the year for upper prep, whilst the whole Prep school, put on a colourful performance of Shrek. It was a huge success, providing a spectacular and fun way to celebrate another great school year and the start of summer.

TIANJIN Tianjin, our oldest school at 8 years, also put on a prep school music performance for summer – The Emerald Crown. On the theme of the destruction of the rainforests, it was powerful for both its artistic and didactic qualities! And the guest of honour at the show was none other than our 15th master-elect James Dahl, who visited all of our International schools this month.

Earlier in the year Tianjin also staged West Side Story, one of the most

challenging stage musicals ever written.

By all accounts they produced the show of their lives – even delivering Peurto Rican accents!

Julian Jeffrey, Master at Tianjin, captured the importance of these productions in all our schools, when he wrote in his newsletter: “This sort of event West Side Story is only possible because of ... the confidence our young people have in

their ability to perform the extraordinary, to push themselves to heights which many never thought they were capable of. Young people thrive when challenged in a nurturing environment, revelling in an atmosphere in which taking risks with drama and music projects has become the norm. Wellington fosters this sense of stretching oneself, whatever the context, and encouraging a willingness to try something new”.

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Wellington College, Crowthorne Berkshire, RG45 7PU www.wellingtoncollege.org.uk +44 (0)1344 444 000