Woldingham 2018

WOLDINGHAM News and reviews from Woldingham School and Alumnae October 2018

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From The Headmistress

Remembering Jayne Triffitt

Sacred Heart Review

The Year We Turned 175

Art Round Up

Drama Round Up

Music Round Up

Sport Round Up

Trips

House News

Gatwick Business Partnership

Rachel Oyawale - Head Girl

Academic Review

Examination Results

University Destinations

Development at Woldingham

How To Give

WSHA Chair’s Report

Dates For Your Diary 2018-2019

Alumnae Around The World

Business Networking Events

Christmas Carol Service 2017

Old Girls’ Day 2018

Reunions

Society Of The Sacred Heart

AMASC Report

WSHA Leavers’ Scholarship

Announcements

In Memoriam

FROM THE HEADMISTRESS In a year that has been ablaze with headlines for women, how apt it is that we have celebrated our 175th anniversary: an anniversary that has not only marked the long-standing success of the school, but the unfailing commitment and achievements of the women who founded it. Those six nuns from the Society of the Sacred Heart were pioneers in their field; they were trailblazers with a vision of world-class education for girls.

That vision resonates now more so than ever, in a year where gender stereotypes are challenged, where we have seen the gender pay gap exposed, and in a year where all the headlines shout that the glass ceiling is there to be smashed. The momentum is gathering behind the young women of this generation, and I am confident that our departing Upper Sixth will draw on all their experiences at Woldingham in order to take advantage of the new era of opportunity that awaits them. Indeed, this message was reinforced on Prize Day by our outgoing Chair of Governors, Ian Tyler, and our guest speaker, Amol Rajan, both of whom were under no illusions as to what these Woldingham girls will go on to achieve.

Prize Day gave me the opportunity to discuss the myriad ways that value can be measured, the ways in which a Woldingham education adds value, and how the individuals in our community add value. You will see in this publication that our girls benefit hugely from this multi-dimensional approach to education. Their commitment is key; and commitment is a skill that needs to be learnt and practised because without real commitment our girls will never know what they are really capable of.

Aside from the wealth of activities and experiences that characterise Woldingham, let us not forget some of those less tangible skills and attributes. Teenagers of today need to be broad-minded and broad-shouldered. Broad-minded because the path to travel is so much less clear cut than it was for past generations; broad-shouldered to enable

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them to have the confidence to shine with their own individual light. Woldingham’s diverse and inclusive community and our commitment to empowering our young leaders to use their voices is key to progress in this area. The ISI Inspectors who visited in January concluded that ‘throughout the school pupils appreciate that family spirit and unity, rather than difference, are the key to tolerance.’ Woldingham is awash with opportunities to live this ethos and it was a delight to hear Amol Rajan concur through his comment that, ‘there is simply no substitute for being kind, generous and open-hearted.’

It is certainly a different world out there from the one into which I graduated and taught my first Chemistry lesson at the age of 23. This is an era of squiggly careers (apparently now a recognised term... ) where our girls will try many different avenues as they rise through the ranks. Our flourishing HE & Careers Department ensures girls are exposed to the widest possible range of ideas about their futures, and I certainly enjoyed my conversation with a submarine designer at a recent Careers Fair. The true excitement around this is that in a girls’ school, nothing holds a girl back.

It is absolutely my belief that all girls should be given the opportunity to grow and flourish into confident, compassionate, courageous young women, without limits to what they can achieve. Perhaps I have been lucky in my career – I have worked with some of the most talented and visionary women and men, none of whom has ever questioned my ambition or my choices, and that has led me to this extraordinarily privileged position as Headmistress. Every day I see 550 young women: positive, curious, and confident - just like our founders. It is my responsibility to help pave the way for them to aim high and be afforded the opportunities they deserve.

In a girls’ school nothing holds a girl back

Mrs Alex Hutchinson MA (Oxon) 2

REMEMBERING JAYNE TRIFFITT Jayne was appointed Headmistress of Woldingham in 2007, providing inspirational leadership of the school for nine years until her retirement in 2016. During her time at Woldingham she was a member of the GSA Council, the Catholic Independent Schools’ Conference Committee and the ASCL Council. As Head of Woldingham, Jayne worked with her team to ensure that Woldingham was recognised as a leading Catholic girls’ school; Jayne instilled a widespread respect for learning, clearly building the academic profile of the school. In her time as Head, Jayne invested in pastoral care for girls, families and staff alike. She also insisted on good behaviour and continued a significant programme of building and refurbishment.

Family is very important to us at Woldingham and on 3 July 2018, our community was rocked by the news that Jayne Triffitt, Headmistress of our school from 2007 to 2016, had died peacefully having bravely battled leukaemia for the past year.

From that devastating day in July, what followed was the most uplifting and constant outpouring of love for Jayne not just within school, alumnae and their families but, more importantly, it was shown in the hundreds of messages sent to her children Tom and Susie. Susie said to me at the time that those messages had lifted them up in a ‘protective bubble’ and helped them to cope in the surreal days and weeks following Jayne’s death.

Jayne’s Funeral Mass in Truro, celebrated by Fr Gerry, was also such a beautiful and uplifting way for us all to say goodbye to our dear friend and colleague. We are looking forward to celebrating her life at the Memorial Mass here at Woldingham on 7 October.

Jayne was born in Cornwall in 1957 and attended Truro High School for nine years before going up to St Hilda’s College, Oxford to study Chemistry. She also took her PGCE at Oxford and spent the first seventeen years of her teaching career in the maintained sector, before moving on to be Head of Sixth Form at St Mary’s Ascot. Her first headship was at St Mary’s Cambridge.

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Jayne took on the challenge of being a headmistress because she thought she could ‘make a difference’ and, by her own admission, because she was just bossy! She admits that she found it daunting at times but recognised it is important to do things that frighten you sometimes.

As a student herself at school, she was often a bit cheeky and naughty. That never left her and I loved seeing that ‘sparkle’ in her eye! She could always manage a laugh at the best, and worst, of times. Jayne was straight-talking and we still laugh at some of the very blunt things she would say to you, but it was always with kindness. She also loved living on site with her children and Teddy, the dog, and became the figurehead of the Woldingham ‘family’.

However, as a student she also knew that she needed to study hard and used her Cornish steel in order to achieve her ambitions. She expected that of us all too, students and staff alike. She knew how to do the ‘tough stuff’ and was always prepared to put her foot down and be firm.

She was dedicated to her work, utterly professional and, apart from her children, always put school first.

Jayne was a fantastic headmistress to work with and achieved so much to secure the future of our wonderful school. I learned from her every day about effective leadership but she will be remembered most for her kindness and care. Everything with Jayne was about family and friends. There was deep compassion within her, and love – for her school, her friends and her beautiful

children. She also treasured the friendship, love and support shown to her by the Sacred Heart Sisters and did her utmost to live out their mission in our school.

In one of her final assemblies to the school, Jayne gave us the wisdom of ‘Triff’s Top Tips’. Tom reminded us of these in his eulogy at her funeral and we print them here again for you. Reading them now, some are strikingly poignant – she could not have known what she was about to face just a year into her retirement. She lives on in us all in her legacy of kindness, love and compassion. She lives on in the Jayne Triffitt Bursary Award, ensuring other girls can have the same opportunities that she did.

She lives on in her two beautiful children, Tom and Susie; seeing their remarkable courage, both during her illness and after her death, you can see her inestimable qualities in them.

Jayne loved Woldingham and life in this ‘glorious valley’. She loved being our Headmistress and was enormously proud of what was achieved by the girls and the staff in the nine years of her headship. But, in her own words to us when she left “my legacy will lie in the hearts and minds of the girls I leave behind today and in the adults you will become. If I could leave you to love those around you, wherever you find yourself, and expect the best from them, that would be my chosen legacy.”

Jayne had one good year of retirement before she fell ill, enjoying her beloved Cornwall, walking on the beach, spending time with old friends, but also getting stuck in to life in Truro – as an advocate for disadvantaged children, helping at Church, preparing to become a qualified counsellor and she had just applied to become a magistrate. Jayne was not one to sit down and do nothing and was always finding ways to give back to the community. I think we all feel the sense of injustice that she did not have longer to enjoy her retirement. So, rather than saying “rest in peace Jayne”, I prefer to say (as Father Stephen Ortiger said at Sister Mimi’s funeral), “may you live in exhilaration with the Lord in heaven”.

Mrs Judith Brown

Triff’s top tips 1. Learn to say sorry, quickly and easily - it just makes life work better. Say it even when you are not sure if you are in the wrong so that arguments and upsets can be mended quickly.

2. Use every precious moment of your life - don’t waste life by living through your phone. Live, love, play and work with people beside you, not on a screen.

3. Find your passions and pursue them – it might be sport or drama or music. It might be maths or theology. It might be writing, or climbing or volunteering or even being a Head, but be passionate.

The saddest people are those with little interest in life.

4. Find a career that you enjoy and that you think is worthwhile - if you work full time you will spend more time at work than with your family. It will give you your identity and purpose - take it seriously and love it!

5. Enjoy looking as good as you can - enjoy clothes and make up. It took me a very long time to learn this. The way you present yourself matters both to you and to those you are with. Enjoy colourful clothes, feel good about yourself. Don’t follow fashion relentlessly, develop your own style.

6. Treasure your friends, make time for them as often as you can and relax with them - don’t rule out anyone as a friend. The most surprising people have been my dearest friends. The more different they are from you – the more you learn from them.

7. Use affection whenever you can - hugs make a difference, especially to children and older people like grandparents who live on their own. A simple, loving touch can make a difference to someone’s day.

8. Give lots of compliments - tell people when they have done something well, tell them they look good, thank them for their kindness. It just makes everyone happier. Also remember to say ‘thank you’.

9. Try not to be afraid of people who are very sad or ill - don’t avoid them, spend time with them, don’t worry about trying to say the right thing, just being there is what matters. The fact that you have made an effort to phone, to visit or to write helps so much.

10. Love your family as much as you can and tell them that you love them - it won’t always be easy. Respect them and don’t rubbish their efforts. For most of us, they are the ones that stick by us no matter what happens and mostly they are trying their best.

11. Forget about getting things perfect - it causes too much worry.

Do what you can as well as you can and then move on to the next thing.

12. Do things that frighten you sometimes - step out of your comfort zone and become a bigger person.

13. Appreciate the small things – the smell of your favourite food, the sound and sight of the sea, the spring flowers, the autumn colours, the puppy, the new baby and be mindful of how much these things enrich your life.

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SACRED HEART REVIEW Beyond the Valley: Fostering Outreach Activity At the beginning of the new academic year students and Community Service are encouraged to use their gifts and talents in the “For the sake of one child I would have founded the society”, these were the words spoken by St Madeleine Sophie Barat when she established the order of the Sacred Heart Sisters with the mandate of providing a world-class education for young female students and I am sure that she would not be disappointed with the inspirational work which goes on in 140 Sacred Heart Schools in 41 countries all over the world.

This year we have celebrated our 175th anniversary and it has been very moving for the school community to look back at what the Sisters contributed to building up this wonderful school and how we can be faithful to their legacy in the future. In our anniversary year we have chosen to support the education of children in the Laini Saba School located in the largest slum in Kibera, just outside Nairobi. Each year the school takes in up to 500 children, many of whom are orphans, and our fundraising will help with the development of a much needed library and learning resources building; our generous giving will make a huge difference to educating young people who are much less well off than we are.

service of others. In developing outreach programmes, we create opportunities which allow our students to serve. The students often return with positive stories of their experiences and they are providing others with reason to hope as well. Outreach activity is rooted in Sacred Heart tradition and the words of St Madeleine Sophie challenge us when she said; “Your actions, even more than your words, will be an eloquent lesson to the world”.

This is the second year that the Lower Sixth form students have been timetabled to go out on a voluntary placement each week for one academic term and other students give their time freely each week to enhance community projects: helping pupils with their reading and writing in local schools; working with young people who have learning disabilities at The Orpheus Centre; visiting and carol singing in local nursing homes; working in local charity shops; organising a lunch in school for elderly parishioners and residents from local nursing homes; working in the Cardinal Hume Centre for the homeless; working with the Mizen Foundation; providing food and toiletries for local food banks; fundraising for local, national and international charities. There have been so many encouraging signs of students and staff working together in collaboration with the Chaplaincy to develop and foster all that builds up and sustains a community which is positive in its outlook, where people take time to look out and care for one another. In the words of St Rose Philippine Duchesne: “Preach by example of your lives rather than your words. Example is the very best sermon”. That is the challenge for all of us today.

Fr Gerry Devlin

THE YEAR WE TURNED 175 175 Gala Ball In November 2017 The Woldingham School Foundation hosted a gathering of Woldingham staff, parents and alumnae at our 175 Gala Ball at The Hurlingham Club.

The event was truly spectacular, both in the quality of entertainment and in the generosity displayed by all those who were present. Attendees enjoyed the delights of an aerial acrobatic performance from one of our alumnae before moving through to the beautifully decorated dining hall, with stunning flowers arranged

by Woldingham School’s very own Kerry-Jane Chandler.

Soon, bidding on the silent auction began with eager anticipation as top items such as holidays, elite tennis coaching and Ed Sheeran’s guitar attracted much interest and closely fought competition! The live auction also provided a great deal of entertainment, with a last minute item – dinner cooked by Mrs Hutchinson – being snapped up by a spontaneous parent!

Impassioned speeches highlighted the excellent causes the money raised would be supporting: the Laini Saba School in Kenya which was the year’s dedicated 175 charity, and The Woldingham School Bursary Programme, which enables more students to access the world-class education the school provides.

All in all, the evening was filled with a great deal of laughter, a strong sense of united purpose and an atmosphere of giving that stands as a testament to the school’s community. Thanks must go to Camilla Mair and Katie Hogben for their hard work in creating such a successful event.

Miss Ashley Whitworth

THE YEAR WE TURNED 175 Foundation Day 175 On Friday 8 December 2017, the valley came alive with a wonderful whole school community celebration of our 175th anniversary. The morning began with a Mass of thanksgiving and the blessing of our four House banners: Digby, Duchesne, Barat and Stuart, named after pioneering Sisters from the Sacred Heart order.

The celebrations continued with a carousel of activities referencing the community of Sacred Heart schools that has grown extensively since six nuns and two children set up the first school in England on 8 December 1842. Each of Woldingham’s Houses chose a country from the Sacred Heart network – India, Colombia, Kenya and Australia – and learnt one of its songs and dances which they then performed to the whole school. Students and staff also creatively expressed their connection to the school by decorating tiles that will collectively form a permanent 175 display. How wonderful it will be for those girls to return in later years and see that personal memento on display! The afternoon saw all girls in the school put their headphones on and dance their socks off in the Sports Hall at the silent disco. There is something quite unusual about a silent room with lots of different rhythms being danced to and the occasional singalong occurring. It was a wonderful afternoon and staff and students thoroughly embraced the festive atmosphere. The day culminated in the cutting of a gigantic 175 birthday cake. ‘Foundation Day 175’ certainly proved that Woldingham knows how to come together as a whole community and celebrate in style!

Mrs Margaret Giblin

175 Concert - Cadogan Hall On Tuesday 20 March 2018 we brought together the whole family of Woldingham School to celebrate 175 years of this incredible community. The concert at Cadogan Hall was performed by over 150 students along with a 50-strong adult choir of alumnae, siblings, parents and staff.

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The first half was a showcase of the variety of music-making and talent within the Music Department. Amaris started the concert with a cappella: Gloria, by Robert Latham. The Symphony Orchestra played majestically through John Williams’ ET – the Flying Theme and Waltz of the Flowers from Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker. The stage was then reset for the smaller forces of the Scholars’ Ensemble.

The scholars are at the heart of our department, and they performed the subtle and beautiful Clair de Lune by Debussy.

Sophia Wan, our youngest scholar, charmed and astonished us with the second movement of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major, K.488. She was followed

by Sophie Donohoe and Nia Griffiths in the Cat Duet by Rossini, accompanied at the piano by self-confessed cat lover Mr Hargreaves! Our Head Girl, Rachel Oyawale, sang Cherubino’s Non So Piu Cosa Son from The Marriage of Figaro (Mozart) in an effortless performance. The same cannot be said of the last piece in the first half: Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37.

There is nothing ‘effortless’ about performing Beethoven; this is music of such power, strong emotion, and sheer physicality. Maya Suen (ATCL, LTCL, FTCL) was outstanding and overwhelming as our soloist. It was one of the most thrilling experiences I’ve had on the concert platform.

It was one of the most thrilling experiences I’ve had on the concert platform

The next part of the first half highlighted individual musical talent within the school. Three songs from the world of musical theatre allowed us to showcase the voices of Claudia Buszman (Memory), Sophie Donohoe (Nothing), and Katie Palmer (As Long as He Needs Me), all singing with the accompaniment of our Chamber Orchestra.

The second half was all about celebrating who we are as a school and community. The combined forces of all the Woldingham choirs, plus the adult choir, all Year 7 and the Chamber Orchestra performed Vivaldi’s Gloria, filling the hall with a glorious and triumphant sound. Of course it seemed fitting that Beethoven should have the final word – well, sort of: Joyful, Joyful from Sister Act, based on the Ode to Joy theme from his 9th Symphony.

Thanks to all who performed in this brilliant concert.

Mr John Hargreaves 9

THE YEAR WE TURNED 175 175 Giving Day What does 175 mean to you?

According to mathematicians it’s a composite number, a deficient number and a centered 29-gonal number! In astronomy the 175 Andromache is a primitive main belt asteroid and for musicians it’s a Japanese punk band.

Moreover, according to the Bible, Abraham lived to be 175 years old. Thanks Wikipedia!

Despite all these fascinating aspects to the number 175, for the students of Woldingham on a hot and sunny afternoon in June, almost at the end of a very long term, the number simply meant fun! As a culmination to the fantastic work that had gone on across the academic year to raise money for school bursaries and the Laini Saba School in Nairobi all students took part in a 175-related sponsored activity that resulted in excess of £20,000 being raised.

From shooting 175 netball goals to decorating 175 cupcakes, from writing a celebratory poem to creating a 175 line short play, from serving 175 tennis balls to zumba dancing for 1.75 hours, between them students covered the whole gamut of creativity, exercise and academic endeavour!

With absolute focus and seemingly unlimited energy, students on the tennis courts took part in a mixture of skills and match play which included an accumulated rally of 100 groundstrokes, 50 volleys and 25 ‘in’ serves.

Swimmers paired up to swim 175 lengths and netballers warmed up with 175 passes and then individually aimed to reach 175 successful shots with a massive group target of 1075 goals! Alongside the flamenco, salsa, hip-hop and belly dance in the 175 Zumba challenge both students and staff really challenged themselves, all in the name of charity.

Slightly more sedate but equally effective were the poets, playwrights and artistic types. Aiming to achieve something Shakespeare had never done, teams of girls worked together to create a dramatic masterpiece of 175 lines based on an acrostic of 175 letters. As part of their aim to produce a poetry collection to be published in the Autumn Term and sold to raise even more money for the pot, Sixth Formers led on the joint creation of a fantastic poem celebrating all that is 175. And getting sweet and sticky were the 75 students who designed, decorated and delivered more than 175 cupcakes for sale at the evening’s WoldFest.

The day culminated in the whole school lining the upper drive outside Marden Lodge to welcome back intrepid runners, cyclists and rally drivers who had taken part in exciting offsite activities. The afternoon was rounded off with a well-deserved ice cream and, surrounded by balloons and bunting, staff and students cheered home the spirited bunch, celebrating a fantastic and fun-filled afternoon all in the name of charity.

Ms Josephine Lane

WPSA WPSA were delighted with the participation in the events run throughout the year – all of which have become firm favourites in the school calendar. Bonfire and Fireworks evening was a spectacular display of pyrotechnics and the cheering from Stuart on hearing they had won the House Guy Making competition will live long in our memories.

The Dineen Lecture, an annual lecture organised by WPSA to inspire the pupils, was given by Pedal the Pond. Pedal the Pond are a group of friends who crossed the Atlantic in a pedalo to raise awareness and funds for mental health issues, particularly in young adults. The girls were transfixed as they learnt about the reasons underpinning their quest, the huge amount of planning involved and the trials and tribulations of being faced with 40ft waves.

Their lessons will be long remembered – believe in yourself, anything is possible, don’t be afraid to fail, learn to network, and enjoy life.

A highlight of the year was WoldFest 175 – the annual WPSA party transformed into a summer festival as a final tribute to the 175th anniversary celebrations. Over 550 parents, children and staff partied in the Kitchen Garden on a wonderful summer evening. Live bands, Caffeine and Best of Enemies, and DJ Seb had everyone moving.

The bucking bronco and running bungee were extremely popular and as much fun to watch as to participate in.

Great food, great company and great weather – a fantastic way to bring the 175 celebrations to a close. WoldFest raised £1,000 which WPSA have donated to the Jayne Triffitt Bursary Fund.

Mrs Francesca O’Keeffe, WPSA Chair

ART ROUND UP The Art Department has had a buzzing, exciting year. Students have explored, experimented, taken creative risks and improved their skills. Year 7’s animal sculptures and stop-motion films were a fantastic highlight. Year 8 considered their animal alter egos in paint and in sculpture; some bizarre and fantastic creatures were born. Year 9’s theme of Wonderland gave rise to exciting and original paintings, ceramics and collages.

Year 10 pushed their skills to the limit through their natural forms project, making refined, beautiful work.

The wonderful St Ives trip kick-started the Year 11 Growth project. We had such a fantastic time drawing on the beach, responding to Hepworth’s stunning garden and house, creating sand sculptures and expressive charcoal landscape drawings. The students then developed their own ideas in a variety of ways and the GCSE exhibition was a wonderful testament to their hard work and personal interpretations. The A Level exhibition at the end of the year was the most varied and ambitious I have seen in my 11 years at Woldingham, a testimony to the power and voice that art can have. Students explored such broad concepts to produce sensitive, skilful and punchy work on a whole range of ideas from corruption, female serial killers, cursing, sleep, to the love of play (to name just a few).

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The A Level exhibition... was the most varied and ambitious I have seen

Years 7 and 8 enjoyed workshops with Greg Humphries, a Cornish artist, to make beautiful large scale sculptures from oak structures and ship sails, painted in response to Patrick Heron and the colours of the flowers on the pergola lawn.

The sculptures are a striking feature in the Marden garden.

Year 9 had a fashion and theatre design workshop with Ken Walker from Chelsea, Camberwell, Wimbledon School of Art. They were taught how to illustrate figures for fashion and personalise them, leading to some outrageous ideas. It was such a fun day, full of imagination and potential. The Sixth Form also enjoyed a workshop with Ken looking at placing small figures within different spaces, exploring scale and storytelling. The work featured highly in their shows and art school portfolios.

We enjoyed a small exhibition of Alice McVicker’s work from her time as artist-in-residence. It was a great opportunity for students to ask her about her practice and the experience of art school. Alice has now completed her PGCE in Secondary Art and Design and I know that she will be an absolutely brilliant teacher. It has been a pleasure supporting her through her journey from A Level at Woldingham to now.

We are delighted that Sophie Langton, Jess Ottewill, Sassie Dacre and Momo Caxton-Martins are off to study Art Foundation at prestigious art schools including Central St Martins and the Royal Drawing School.

Thank you to the Art Department staff for their energy, enthusiasm, hard work and dedication and to the wonderful students who make each day different, exciting and creatively fulfilling.

Miss Lottie Reay

DRAMA ROUND UP On 1 December the auditorium stage became the setting for a music festival inspired performance of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night performed by members of the Sixth Form and directed by Emma Love. The stage became an incredible Glastonbury-type event complete with DJs, street sellers and even a rather revolting Portaloo! The joyous music festival atmosphere really got to the audience and soon had them dancing along with Sir Toby Belch and his drunken companions.

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This was an amazingly exciting and show stopping collaboration

January 2018 saw the eagerly awaited Face the Music 4, a brilliantly performed musical theatre review in the packed out auditorium, featuring some of the greatest moments of musical theatre from West Side Story, Cats, A Chorus Line, Gypsy, Sweet Charity, Guys and Dolls and Oliver! The cast was made up of 26 students from Year 8 to Upper Sixth plus six highly amusing cameos from members of staff together with a 28-piece band. Directed by Lyn Mann, musical direction by John Hargreaves and choreography by Lucinda Banton, this was a showstopping collaboration between a huge range of talent within the school.

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Immediately after the success of Face the Music 4 the Drama Department were once again in full swing rehearsing The Tails of Hamelin, the Junior production for Years 8 and 9. Lyn Mann directed and musical direction was by Catherine Usher. It was an extremely happy and toe-tapping event before a hugely appreciative audience. Evil rats, crooked mayors, comic market traders and lively villagers were all soon under the spell of a mysterious stranger to the town.

The moral was truly ‘pay the piper - or else’.

The final major production of the year was the enchanting musical The Peace Child performed by the entire Year 7 under the direction of Catherine Nasskau and the musical direction of Margaret Andrews. Set in the far off, fictional land of Mambica it was the story of two opposing tribes with very different lifestyles and traditions. Separated by the river and by generations of animosity, only the gift of a new born son could bring hope and life to the land and its people. The production brought a message of peace and goodwill to the final weeks of another busy but wonderful year.

Mrs Lyn Mann 15

MUSIC ROUND UP

The busy Autumn Term was quite typical for the Music Department, with the usual array of informal lunchtime concerts, formal evening recitals, and the Scholars’ Concert. It was lovely having Katie Wong, our former Music Ribbon and Scholar, back with us to accompany our musicians on these occasions. We also hosted the second Prep School Choir Festival, involving young choirs from seven schools and more than 200 performers in total. They enjoyed an afternoon of vocal workshops and learned a joint song which was the climax of another exciting evening of music.

The heats for the Young Musician of the Year final in January were presented as a series of mini concerts in the second half of the term, recorded and adjudicated.

The Autumn Concert had the theme of repetition running through many of the pieces performed rhythmic, melodic, harmonic – and the music included dance forms, variation forms, minimalism and Baroque canon. The Scholars’ Ensemble played their version of Terry Riley’s In C. This is different every single time it is performed: each player follows the same set of short repeated ideas, but can start when they like, and move onto the next idea (or motif ) at will. The piece evolves and finishes when everyone gets to the final cell; about 20 minutes in our case.

The Carol Service was again at our spiritual home of Westminster Cathedral. The joint choirs of Woldingham sang the premiere of Mr Dyer’s intimate setting of the Woldingham School Prayer, along with the carols and songs of Christmas.

The Cathedral was full of students, staff, parents and alumnae; a truly whole school event of celebration and worship.

The Spring Term started with the Young Musician of the Year finals, with Maya Suen shining brightly, followed two weeks later with Face the Music 4: A Tale of Two Cities. It is always astonishing how brilliantly our students perform this show, put together in a matter of two to three weeks, with intense rehearsals, and having to learn so much. Face the Music brings together girls from Year 8 through to Upper Sixth, in the cast and the band. Our music this time was drawn from musicals dramatically associated with London and New York, the two great cities that have been the home to musical theatre for the past 100 years: West Side Story, Cats, A Chorus Line, Gypsy, Guys and Dolls, Oliver! The culmination of the Spring Term was the concert at Cadogan Hall to celebrate ‘175’.

The Summer Term, like most departments, focuses on examinations, both public and internal. However, we were still able to enjoy the Upper Sixth Leavers’ Mass and Concert.

We also collaborated with the Drama Department for Tales of Hamelin (ably led by Catherine Usher and her band, and directed by Lyn Mann), and the Year 7 production of The Peace Child (directed by Catherine Nasskau and Margaret Andrews).

Anything Goes was our Summer Concert and we enjoyed individual performances from Year 10 GCSE girls, and also a number of duets and trios from our students in Years 7-10, along with department ensembles.

My thanks to all involved in the Music Department concerts and events for their time, dedication, commitment and enthusiasm.

Mr John Hargreaves 17

SPORT ROUND UP The Sports Department had some fabulous successes in the winter sports of hockey, netball, swimming and cross country this year. All age groups and teams had plenty of home and away fixtures and we saw a great progression and improvement in all the players involved.

Successful hockey/ netball tours took place - to Edinburgh for the Seniors in September and to Reading for the U13s in early February.

Notable team achievements were the 1st XI hockey team which won the Surrey Hockey Trophy Tournament hosted at Charterhouse and the U12A netball team who rose to become District Champions.

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Athletics, tennis, rounders and cricket were all played in the summer term with plenty of training during lessons and after school and fortunately much fine weather to play fixtures against other schools. With the introduction of cricket to Years 7-9, we were fortunate to have an external coach come in and lead the Tuesday training sessions. He provided the girls with plenty of innovative games and useful tips regarding the correct technique. The U12 and U13 cricket teams played in a tournament called ‘Smash It’ and both progressed through to the Surrey finals where they finished runners-up. We also had success in athletics with the Year 9 team finishing second and the Year 10s third overall in the East Surrey Schools championship in May. Some athletes progressed through to the County competition held at Kingsmeadow on 9 June due to their performance in individual events. Notable team achievements in the summer were the U15A rounders team who became District Champions and the U13 athletics team who finished second in the district.

The weather managed to stay fine for us to complete another successful Sports Day at the end of the summer term and all students represented their houses with great pride and spirit. The Victrix Ludorum was hotly contested across all year groups with Nicole Williams in Year 8 taking overall first place.

The winning House was Duchesne followed by Stuart and Digby tied in second place. Parental support was fantastic and they were very impressed with the students’ encouragement to one another throughout the day.

We are very much looking forward to the hockey and netball tour to South Africa in October and many more exciting tournaments and fixtures next year.

The Sports Dinner held on the 15 June was a highlight of the year and took place at Woldingham Golf Club with guest speaker Lydia Greenway, a double World Cup cricket player.

Supreme prize winners were: Sportswoman of the Year Charlotte Alexander Team of the Year 1st XI Hockey Sacred Heart Cup Imogen McNamara Contribution to School Sport Georgie Sykes and Grace Flanagan Sports Personality of the Year Holly Castle Miss Bridget Blackwood

19

TRIPS Alan Bennett famously said, “The bits I most remember about my school days are those that took place outside the classroom, as we were taken on countless visits and trips to places of interest.”

This year our calendar contained many exciting trips, ranging from day trips to the theatre and the zoo to residential trips including the ski trip to France, Classics trip to Greece, the Art trip to St Ives and the Camps International trip to Ecuador. The students who attended these trips had a really enriching experience and we are grateful to the staff for giving their time to offer them. I’m sure, like Alan Bennett, the memories will remain.

Mrs Margaret Giblin

San Fransico

rs of staff d four membe 29 students an gical lo no re the tech set off to explo has to y lle Va n ico Sil diversity that e Computer as visits to th offer. As well m, m, Intel Museu ters History Museu ple Headquar Ap le, og Go , desk preciate the Bechtel, Auto ap to e tim so e was al lden and TiVo; ther cisco – the Go cts of San Fran scape nd la e cultural aspe th and Alamo Square w. Yosemite Gate Bridge, vie s ak Pe in from our Tw s the of the island ghlight, as wa was a real hi of r ou National Park am and gl and Canyon e! spectacular Gr erful experienc nd wo ly tru A Las Vegas.

Ecuador

20

34 excited fundraising, After a year of rls wer Sixth gi Year 11 and Lo mps uador with Ca Ec to d lle ve tra weeks e re th e l. Over th Internationa mps, from the ca nt re ffe di they visited e bright, cold Amazon to th humid, muggy work including ct oje pr mpleted Andes. They co d community pe lo work and deve hike conservation ted a five-day ey also comple iting three provisions. Th m m su d de which inclu d at in the Andes, was challenge 00m. Everyone 40 er ov s ak pe astic memories nt fa th wi ed return er. times but they th them forev ich will live wi and stories wh

Berlin It is amazing how much you can see in four days! Berlin is a city with a wealth of history and, with the excellent knowledge of our guides, our group of Yr10 and 11 students returned with a greater appr eciation of the history of Berlin from und er the Nazis through to the fall of the Berlin Wal l. Sights such as the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Check Point Charlie, the Reichsta g and the East Side Gallery were particularly memorable and a trip to Sachsenhausen Concent ration Camp proved a sobering, thought provokin g experience.

Greece The ruins of the Temple of Poseidon offered little shelter from the rain for students on the Classics trip to Greece in February who got very wet when they went there! However, the sun shone for visits to The Sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi, the iconic Parthenon and that engineering marvel that is The Corinth Canal.

A re-creation of Agamemnon at The Theatre of Epidaurus provided an entertaining interlude before exploring the bronze age citadel of Mycaenae. The trip was a fascinating insight into the Ancient Greek civilization.

Salamanca

ents Year 9 and 10 Spanish stud host with ing stay week a t spen improve families in Salamanca to half the their language skills. With ns lesso ish Span to ed icat day ded to sample the the rest of the time was free including Spanish culture and lifestyle, ing lesson cook as Tap a , cing flamenco dan e was also Ther f. itsel ca and a tour of Salaman of Segovia to see the city the to visit a for time via which was the beautiful El Alcåzar de Sego Disneyland Castle. inspiration for Walt Disney’s

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HOUSE NEWS Festival Barat began the year with a House ing, dancing themed around the 1960s, with sing ggy and Neil and a catwalk show including Twi was a great Armstrong. In October, Guy Making out of cardboard success, with Barat creating Big Bird derful firework and tissue paper, and painting a won themed banner. se Feast with In November, we celebrated our Hou and then ry, Ger er Fath by a wonderful Mass led room became ng dini the t; Feas travelled to Oz for our w brick roads for a sea of rainbows, poppies and yello the evening. we represented December saw Foundation Day, and display ably led by ce dan Kenya, with a rousing song and mittee.

Com Form the House Captains and Sixth the House Drama, The highlight of the year for Barat was directed by the which we won. Written, produced and ents from every Sixth Form and performed by two stud Book’ and Barat year group, this year’s theme was ‘The g two decades and created a captivating story spannin e was inspired and a terrible secret. The car crash scen ners of the day. the girls were the well-deserved win the House Trip The year came to a fantastic end with and spent tre Cen vity Acti Day. Barat visited Downe wing, and thro wk aha tom the day learning archery, Jacob’s bing clim by hts’ testing their ‘head for heig wonderful was ther wea The .

Ladder and crate stacking learning skills and and all the girls had a fantastic day year groups. rent diffe getting to know others in Mrs Abi Manktelow

22

2017-18 started with success in the House Festival. Our House Captains Ellie Coppock and Nia Griffiths masterminded a superb interpretation of the 1940s with lively music and a storyline that included the true fact that during the war the school had been used as a hospital.

With India as our allocated country for the 175 celebrations in December, again the House Captains worked wonders and the House learnt a Punjabi song and danced a most impressive Indian style dance to a bhangra hit.

The Christmas dinner was a lovely occasion where the House got together in the dining room with all the staff and year groups mixing together and attempting the annual Digby Christmas quiz and making a variety of Christmas crafts.

For our House Feast Day we were treated to musical performances by many of the Digby girls in the Mass followed by a jungle-themed meal with masks, things to make and of course a jungle themed quiz.

Our new House Captains Lottie Blane and Emily Sargent already seem well established and have been working hard on the design of the Digby sports day banner and the teams for all the inter-house sports events.

Our end of year trip to Thorpe Park was a fabulous day out.

Miss Margaret Andrews

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HOUSE NEWS Duchesne House has enjoyed a range of events this year. The first event of the year was initiating our new Year 7s into the House with a 1980s themed showcase for House Festival, with fabulous costumes and dance routines. We then had Guy and Banner Making for Bonfire Night, where the Year 7 and 8s came together to create a gigantic ‘Elmo’ effigy.

For Foundation Day celebrations we chose to represent Colombia in the form of song and dance, and the whole House had fun learning to dance Salsa and sing in Spanish!

We continued the Fiesta theme when we celebrated our House Mass Feast in March, with sombreros, themed music and dress up as part of the entertainment.

The girls have participated well in many sports events over the year, such as House Swimming, Hockey and Netball and were extremely proud and happy with their victory at Sports Day. Finally, Years 7 to 10 had a good time at Guildford Spectrum on our House Trips Day, having a go at bowling, skating and swimming as well as enjoying a picnic lunch outside.

Well done to the girls for all their hard work, and special thanks to our fabulous House Captains for all that they do!

Miss Lucinda Banton

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Stuart House had another successful and enjoyable year.

It all began with great excitement early in September, when we gathered together for our annual House Festival celebrating the 1920s. There were some wonderful pieces of creativity shown, none more so than with our exceptional fashion designs. This event was followed by a great deal of fun with our Guy Making celebration at Bonfire Night: showing off our incredible ‘Cookie Monster’ creation and winning the night with our Guy, banner and song.

During the Autumn term we also celebrated our House Feast with a fun-filled theme of ‘Under the Sea’, the highlight of the evening being when our House Captains, Elise and Sophie, showed all their dedication coming dressed as a couple of sharks. It was a truly lovely evening, enjoyed by all, celebrating Mother Janet Stuart.

Before we knew it, December and Foundation Day was on our doorstep. We celebrated ‘Australia’ in our Sacred Heart school country dedications – coupled with a traditional Aboriginal dance and song ably led by our House Captains and their Sixth Form team. House drama delivered yet another incredible performance with our stunning version of ‘The Book’ play written and directed by the House Captains. Although we came second, it was a gripping and thrilling story with some breathtaking acting. The story had everyone guessing in the end about the terrible secrets that lay within ‘The Book’ and what might happen next. A really enjoyable evening.

On the sporting front, Stuart House has enjoyed much success, winning the inter-house hockey and netball, the annual Pancake Race and, although we only managed a very impressive second place at Sports Day, the effort and dedication by all the girls this year has been greatly appreciated. We ended our year with a magical trip to Warner Bros Studios to spend the day experiencing Harry Potter World.

It was so much fun and the girls had an absolute blast.

A very special thank you to our House Captains, old and new (Penny and Talitha) for their incredible efforts throughout.

Can’t wait for next year Stewies!

Mr Terence Nunes

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GATWICK BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP Building on a successful partnership with the charity For Jimmy, we were delighted to launch a new venture in 2017-18, a business partnership with Gatwick Airport.

After a backstage tour of the airport, which gave a fascinating insight into aspects of the business that are usually hidden from view, 18 of our Lower Sixth students were given the first of two business challenges: to review Gatwick’s community engagement and investment programme and benchmark it against other similar organisations. Choosing three other businesses, including another airport, the students considered the following questions: • How is the local community defined?

• How does the organisation engage with the local community?

• How does the organisation measure community perception?

• Do they support local causes? If so, how do they do this?

• Do they have staff volunteering programmes? If so, how do they measure success?

• Do they have an education programme? If so, what do they offer and how do they measure success?

A few weeks later the students presented their reports to a panel of senior staff at Gatwick in the boardroom overlooking the airport. It was a nerve-wracking but hugely informative experience.

For the second business challenge, the students reviewed Gatwick’s use of digital in their retail environment to better understand how they could engage young travellers to create memorable experiences and, ultimately, drive retail sales. Again the students were given a tour of Gatwick’s retail environment – which really doesn’t mean a shopping trip in school time! – before working intensively on their research and reports. This time they created a presentation focusing on four key areas: • An overview of Gatwick’s current digital experience, with a focus on retail • A case study of another airport or retailer’s digital experience • A cost/benefit matrix of opportunities available to Gatwick to improve the digital experience and drive sales • From the matrix of opportunities, a recommended initiative that Gatwick could implement to drive retail sales and create a better passenger experience In preparation for the second challenge, our students were given a wonderful presentation on how to deliver effective presentations by Beatriz Day of English4Startups. Buoyed up by this additional training, the students presented their final ideas to senior managers at Gatwick, thereby gaining invaluable experience of the world of work and the current business environment. As before, they also fielded some challenging questions from the expert panel. By the end of the partnership the students had learned a great deal about the real-world business environment, whilst also picking up some very practical advice about how to present and deliver information. We are extremely grateful to the team at Gatwick for giving us this wonderful opportunity and to Mrs Day for helping us prepare.

Mr Roy Peachey

RACHEL OYAWALE - HEAD GIRL A year in the life...

Most enjoyable aspect about being Head Girl: Being able to talk to more of the staff and students in order to try to instigate positive change within the school. Also, the sense of community among the Ribbons team.

Stand-out moment of the year: The 175 concert at Cadogan Hall. Each performer worked really hard, practising tirelessly in the lead-up to the big day and the result was sensational, particularly the mass choir made up of current pupils, parents and alumnae.

Most embarrassing moment: Giving the termly report on charity fundraising at the first Awards assembly of the year. I was running late and arrived at the auditorium at the worst possible moment - everyone was waiting for a prizewinner to come down and instead they got a dramatic entrance from me! However, I did get a lovely round of applause which slightly eased my desperate feeling of embarrassment.

Your one piece of advice for the next Head Girl: I would encourage her to enjoy the role! It is a big responsibility with a fair amount of pressure but it is a wonderful, once in a lifetime experience to be able to lead with a sense of pride for your school.

Life philosophy in a few words: One always has a choice between being kind and being unkind. Always choose to be kind.

Final words of wisdom for all the students: Woldingham is a special place where some of the best friendships are made. The staff are so passionate about teaching and make learning so enjoyable. You only get to be a student here once so make sure you do everything you can to take it all in and enjoy it.

33 27

ACADEMIC REVIEW We were delighted that in 2018 Woldingham students delivered the school’s best ever A Level results: 61% of exams were graded A*/A and the school was ranked 25th in the independent girls’ school league.

In a time of enormous educational reform, two-thirds of our GCSE grades were at 9-7/A*-A. Across A Level and GCSE, our outstanding results in STEM subjects - over 80% of A Level grades were at A*-A in Chemistry and Further Maths - show that gender stereotypes hold no weight for us. Freya Connor and Claudia Connolly both achieved four A*s and will read Physics and Maths respectively at university. A total of 21 of our Upper Sixth students will be pursuing STEM courses alongside three who will be reading Medicine.

‘‘

The teaching at Woldingham is exceptional and it was wonderful to read the ISI report that described our students as ‘enthusiastic and determined learners, willing to take risks’. That really is the essence of the classroom experience here at Woldingham. The collaborative approach to learning that is adopted ensures that we see significant improvement from baseline entry data at Year 7 or Year 9, which places us in the top 10% of schools nationally for added-value metrics.

Whilst this year’s results are a real cause for celebration, it is the individual stories that matter so much and for those girls whose Woldingham journeys came to an end this summer, it is so exhilarating to see them heading to such an exciting range of universities, including Cambridge, Durham, Warwick and Princeton, to study courses as diverse as Architecture, Classics, Engineering and Medicine.

This year saw our first cohort of Sixth Form students undertake an industry approved qualification in Financial Studies as part of their Additional Curriculum. All the grades were awarded at A* - B, a superb achievement, and five girls were awarded a scholarship from The London Institute of Banking and Finance in recognition of their high achievement in the Certificate in Financial Studies course. Congratulations to Hannah Boehm, Julia Cliff, Inky Sham, Maria Efremova and especially to Phatsakarn (Pammy) Vasprasertsuk who finished in the top 1% of students in the UK.

Life at Woldingham offers a huge array of opportunites

The Sixth Form have also been involved in numerous events outside the classroom aiming to develop the softer skills that are so important in building confidence and the capacity to lead. There have been Upper Sixth networking events, including Women in the Workplace, and 2017-18 saw the launch of The Gatwick Partnership which gave the girls an insight into the world of business at first hand.

In Marden, three Year 8 students rose to the challenge of the AQA Level 1 Project Qualification. After independent research and the completion of a one-thousandword essay on these topics, the girls delivered their presentations to a small group of staff with poise, confidence and clear knowledge of their subject matter.

They were able to respond eloquently and thoughtfully to questions put to them at the end. Congratulations to them all for achieving the highest possible grade A*.

Their topics were varied and really interesting to listen to.

Katy’s subject was ‘As first female Prime Minister, what did Margaret Thatcher do for her country and how successful was she?’ Olivia chose ‘How has Chinese communism affected religion in China?’ and Bella posed the question ‘Is social media good for teenagers or not?’

Grace Flanagan’s essay entitled ‘Why did early modern people accuse their neighbours of being witches?’ was one of the winning entries in the Peterhouse Vellacott History Prize essay competition and she is now studying History at Cambridge.

Estelle Alexandre, Angel Mulenga and Trinity RamsdenBoard took part in the French Drama Festival at King Alfred School, the first time Woldingham have been involved with this event, and congratulations go to Ana Casanueva who won Le Prix de la Paix competition organised by the Rotary Club in Caterham.

Sarah Adegbite has seen much success in the field of poetry. Following on from achieving a Highly Commended in the Betjeman Poetry Prize in 2015, Sarah’s collection of poetry Creation Ex Nihilo was published in February. Sarah was also Highly Commended in the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award and gained first prize in the Junior Creative Category HART Prize for Human Rights in 2016.

Life at Woldingham offers a huge array of opportunities and we firmly believe that this holistic approach to learning - a busy curriculum that makes space for character education, the development of softer skills and a breadth of experience - is integral to building resilience and mental wellbeing in our pupils. This educational ethos, coupled with first-class pastoral care, is integral to our pupils’ academic success.

Ms Nicole Weatherston

EXAMINATION RESULTS GCSE Subject 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 Art 5 10 5 10 6 Computer Science 4 2 4 3 2 Drama 1 3 7 12 6 English Language 7 15 21 34 11 2 1 English Literature 40 18 20 9 4 French 12 11 5 3 8 2 Geography 9 9 6 6 5 2 1 German 1 1 1 1 1 Greek 1 1 History 22 12 10 2 4 Latin 14 2 1 Mathematics 8 18 23 27 16 8 1 Music 3 2 5 3 1 1 PE 2 3 Spanish 14 12 9 1 3 Theology 35 19 16 22 5 2 2 Totals 175 137 132 133 76 17 6

Total %9-7 %9-4 36 56 100 15 67 100 29 38 100 91 47 99 91 86 100 41 68 100 39 62 95 5 60 100 2 50 50 50 88 100 17 94 100 101 49 99 15 67 100 5 40 100 39 90 100 101 69 98 677 66 99

Subject A* A B C D E Biology 27 8 5 1 1 Chemistry 29 9 3 1 Chinese 1 Design & Technology 3 8 7 2 1 1 English as a 2nd Language 1 4 5 ICT 4 4 2 1 2 Physics 28 9 4 1 Polish 1 Science (Double Award) 40 36 23 12 3 2 Totals 130 78 51 19 6 5

Total 42 42 1 22 10 13 42 1 118 291

%A*-A %A*-C 83 98 90 100 100 100 50 91 50 100 31 77 88 100 100 100 64 94 71 96

Over half the year achieved seven or more A*-A/9-7 grades

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16 67% pupils achieved nine or more A* / 9-8 grades

of the GCSE Sciences were A*

46% at A*/9/8

22% at A/7

27% at B/6/5

40% 67% of Language grades were 9

of grades were A*-A/9-7

A Level Subject

A* A B C D E

Total %A*-A %A*-B %A*-C

Art

2 3 3 2

10

50

80

100

Art Textiles 1 2 3 0

33

100

Art History 1 4 5 20

100 100

Biology

73

4 9 3 4 1 1 22 59

Business Studies 2 2 0 Chemistry

91

15 9 3 0 1

28

86

96

96

10

60

90

100

Classical Civilisation 2 1 3 67

67

100

Economics

3 8 5 3 1 20

55

80

95

English

5 8 4 4 1

22 59

77

95

French 3 1 4 75

100 100

Geography

83

12

75

100

German 1 1 0

100 100

Govt. & Politics

86

100

16 44

81

94

ICT 1 1 0

0

0

History

5

1

1

7

2 5 6 2 1

71

Latin 2 1 3 67

100 100

Maths

8 12 6 4 2

32

63

81

94

Maths - Further

4

6

83

100

100

1

1

Media Studies 3 1 4 75

100 100

Physics

1 3 3 2

9

44

78

100

45

91

100

100

100

Psychology

1 4 5 1

11

Religious Studies

3 4 3

10 70

Russian

3 3

100 100 100

Spanish

3 5 1

89

89

100

Theatre Studies 1 3 4 25

100 100

Total

85

58 101 62 30 6 3

A*-A

260 61

22% at A*

39% at A

24% at B

100 100

Music 2 1 3 67

9

of grades were A*-A

100 100

Chinese 6 3 1

4 5 1 2

61%

97

31 pupils more than a third of the year, achieved all A* and A grades

Woldingham’s best ever A Level results

85% of grades were A*-B

70% of Science grades were A*-A

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UNIVERSITY DESTINATIONS 2018 leavers Name University Xena-Halla Agyemang Essex Tobi Ajayi Princeton, USA Tola Ajayi LSE Caroline Alexander Bristol Phoebe Avbulimen Leicester Roisin Bell Birmingham Kate Bensberg Employment Natasha Benson Newcastle Milly Bhuridej New York, USA Emma Boomaars Bristol Yara Burvin Imperial Ana Casanueva Post-qualification application Holly Castle Birmingham Morenike Caxton-Martins Central St Martins Claudia Connolly Post-qualification application Freya Connor Durham Eleanor Coppock Bristol Jemima Cornish King’s College London Ilse Curry UEA Sassie Dacre Reigate School of Art Emma Davies Post-qualification application Ella Davison Exeter Felicity Deacon Edinburgh Charlotte Devine Cambridge Phoebe Donnelly Durham Sophie Donohoe Cardiff Nneoma Enekwa Aston Maria Efremova King’s College London Kitty Fantl Cardiff Victoria Farage Post-qualification application Natasha Finch LSE Grace Flanagan Cambridge Kristy Fok UCL Mieke Ford Post-qualification application Grace Gardner Bristol Nia Griffiths Exeter Tazmin Hackman Warwick Emily Hardy York Anqi Huang Imperial Deborah Ikomi Loughborough Justine Ip Queen Mary, London Isabelle Johnson Haverford, USA Kofoworola Kasunmu Exeter Eden Kersse University of British Columbia, Vancouver Caroline Klingen Leeds Sophie Langton Royal Drawing School Christie Lee Exeter

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Course Biomedical Science Liberal Arts and Sciences International Relations and History Geography Medicine Biochemistry Mathematics Liberal Arts and Sciences Civil Engineering Chemistry Psychology Art Foundation Physics English Physics and Philosophy Nursing Art Foundation Business and Management Classical Studies Modern and Medieval Languages Geography Psychology Medicine Psychology Ancient History and Archaeology Government and Economics History Engineering Anthropology Modern Languages Sociology Criminology Biological Sciences International Economics Design, Innovation and Creative Engineering Liberal Arts and Sciences Sociology and Criminology Liberal Arts and Sciences Communication and Media Art Foundation Flexible Combined Honours

Vienna Leung Sherry Li Funmi Lijadu Mysha Mallia Amina Mamilova Imogen McNamara Suzanne Mulenga Emariamhe Obemeata Elise O’Connor Isioma Oramah Jessica Ottewill Rachel Oyawale Elina Pampapathi Allison Pan Sophia Pitts Jane Poon Vanessa Poon Fahsai Punyashthiti Anya Raju-Devaja Grace Rose Helen Ryan Diana Rykova Joanna Sinnos Nina Song Maya Suen Georgina Sykes Florence Taee Liberty Tyler Annabelle Whittard Katie Wild Maddie Wingate Megan Wise Chiara Zhu

Essex Bath Edinburgh Sheffield King’s College London Post-qualification application Birmingham UCL Durham Queen Mary, London City and Guilds Birmingham St George’s, London Exeter Durham Chinese University of Hong Kong Birmingham Cornell, USA Cardiff UEA Post-qualification application UCL Cardiff Edinburgh Imperial Manchester Post-qualification application LAMDA Edinburgh Post-qualification application Leeds Leicester Manchester

Law with Business Architecture English Language and Literature Chemical Engineering Classical Studies with English Psychology Modern Languages Theology and Religion Film Studies Fine Art English and Creative Writing Paramedic Science Business and Management Classics Biomedical Science Biomedical Science Liberal Arts and Sciences Law Education Urban Planning, Design and Management Medicine History of Art Chemistry with Medicinal Chemistry Biomedical Sciences Drama Foundation French and Russian Studies Management Business Economics Economics

77% Russell Group

2016-2017 post-qualification applicants Name University Olivia Day Edinburgh Francesca Hall Bristol Josefina Keijer-Palau UCL Ella Mallozzi Durham Ciara Payne Oxford Brookes Mia Rooke-Ley Leeds Holly Roselene Wanliss-Orlebar Bristol

Course Sociology and Politics Ancient History Spanish and Latin American Studies Theology and Religion Criminology and Anthropology Neuroscience Theology and Religion

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‘‘

DEVELOPMENT AT WOLDINGHAM As we look to the future, the primary focus of the Woldingham 175 development programme supports our founding ethos: educational investment in people. Through our bursary programme we are able to transform lives; through investment in our facilities we create dynamic learning spaces where our students thrive.

Woldingham is a happy and successful school developing confident, compassionate and courageous young women who achieve academic success and become positive influences in the world.

Mrs Alex Hutchinson, Headmistress

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DEVELOPMENT

Developing Inspirational Women Our founder, St Madeleine Sophie Barat, placed young women at the centre of her vision for learning.

The same is true of Woldingham today, 175 years on.

Woldingham 175, our 10 year development programme, will see multi-million pound investment in our People, our Facilities and our pupils’ Futures: developing inspirational women who achieve academic success and become positive influences in the world.

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People

Facilities

Futures

Bursaries and Scholarships

21st Century learning spaces

Experience Leadership

Bursaries We invest around £1 million in bursaries and scholarships every year at Woldingham. We are committed to nurturing our diverse and dynamic community, increasing academic opportunities and motivating all our students, through the chance of a Woldingham education for more young women.

‘‘

Support for our bursary programme will transform lives. Alongside the Jayne Triffitt Bursary Award, our aim is to increase the number of transformational bursaries we offer in the future, but we can only do this with your support.

For details of how you can offer your support please see pages 42-43.

Our daughter greatly enjoyed studying at Woldingham School with the Bursary Fund she obtained. She received a very high level of education and enjoyed amazing levels of support and encouragement.

This gave her the opportunity to fulfil her dream of going to Oxford University. As a family, we remain utterly grateful for the good fortune.

The Bursary Fund is without doubt a testimony to your commitment to inclusion, diversity and excellence. Parent of a Bursary Fund recipient

2016-2017

2026-2027

5.4% 10% % of Woldingham students supported by our bursary programme

DEVELOPMENT Facilities At Woldingham, we are blessed with the most beautiful surroundings where our girls thrive. They enjoy space to think, to achieve and to grow. We are continually looking at ways to develop our educational environment and facilities and Woldingham 175 will allow this to happen.

Futures Woldingham boasts a stand-out Futures programme for our girls: a comprehensive co-curricular schedule offering diverse opportunities and ‘skills for life’ training supported by external expertise.

• Dynamic career development programme • ‘Thinking Big’ lecture series • Sixth Form societies • THRIVE personal development programme • Woldingham Business Partnership - Gatwick Airport / BlueCrest Capital • Business Networking and Mentoring • The Oxford University Student Consultancy

We are always looking for guest speakers and mentors to add value to our Futures programme.

You can offer your support by giving your time, your expertise and your experience. We are very grateful to all who contribute.

Futures Events 2018/2019 Upper Sixth Networking Breakfasts Tuesday 16 October, 8.00-9.30am Tuesday 13 November, 8.00-9.30am Women in the Workplace Panel Discussion Tuesday 12 March, 8.00-9.30am

Careers Our ‘Thinking Big’ lecture series features inspirational talks from business leaders, innovators, entrepreneurs, philanthropists and many more...

If you would be willing to represent your career at our Careers Fair, host a workshop or give an inspirational talk on a subject you are passionate about, then we would love to hear from you. Please contact development@woldinghamschool.co.uk

Networking We host Networking Breakfasts for our Upper Sixth students where different career areas are represented

by Old Girls and parents. The students learn how to network in a ‘friendly environment’. We also create Business Partnerships with companies who can offer the students real life business experiences in the working environment. If you would be willing to represent your business area at one of our networking breakfasts or work with us to create a Business Partnership opportunity for our students, please contact development@woldinghamschool.co.uk You’re invited : Tuesday 16 October 2018 - Networking Breakfast Tuesday 13 November 2018 - Networking Breakfast Tuesday 12 March 2019 - Women in the Workplace For more information about Woldingham 175 Development Plan, or to arrange a meeting to offer your input, please contact Mrs Camilla Mair at development@woldinghamschool.co.uk or call 01883 654308.

To offer your support for the Woldingham School bursary programme, please complete the How to Give form on page 43 or contact: Mrs Alex Hutchinson, Headmistress headmistress@woldinghamschool.co.uk or Camilla Mair, Development Manager development@woldinghamschool.co.uk or 01883 654308.

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THANK YOU

£500k We have raised almost £500,000 in the period January 2016 June 2018 through the Woldingham School Foundation for: • The Jayne Triffitt Bursary Fund • Woldingham School Bursary Fund • Unrestricted gifts Through your continued support this year, we have been able to offer The Jayne Triffitt Bursary Award for the third consecutive year to a girl in Year 7.

‘‘

Thank you for your invaluable, ongoing support.

The bursary programme provides enormous benefit to the entire school community by raising academic standards and improving the diversity of the student body. We support the bursary programme, as it allows access for girls who could not otherwise attend, so they and their families experience the privilege of the education that our daughters are lucky enough to benefit from.

Parent of Lower Sixth and Year 9 students

Our 175th anniversary year has brought together the whole school community through the various events, celebrations and activities we have hosted both at school and elsewhere. Our fundraising efforts have exceeded our £175,000 target and will support the bursary programme this academic year.

‘‘

The excitement of our 175 themed fundraiser events, the 175 Gala Ball and the 175 Giving Day, will live long in our memories. Combined, they raised over £100,000 in support of the Woldingham School Bursary Fund and our school charity, the Laini Saba School in Kenya - a fabulous result; thank you for your support.

The Foundation isn’t just about bricks and mortar. It is about giving the opportunity to young, ambitious and smart girls who might not otherwise get the opportunity to come to Woldingham to be the best that they can be. I don’t see this as a ‘charitable act’ but more as an investment - an investment in young women who will grow up to make a difference and a positive contribution to society. Mark Sawyer, former parent 41

HOW TO GIVE You can offer your support in many ways

Your time Your experience Your support

Join our Fundraising Team of volunteers - to help build awareness of our vision for the future, to put plans into actions and communicate our philanthropic appeal.

Attend our events - to show your support and help us achieve our goals.

Meet the Development Manager - to give 1:1 feedback on Woldingham 175 development plan.

Support our thriving Futures programme - exhibit or run a workshop at our Careers Fair, represent your career area at an Upper Sixth Networking breakfast; attend our Women in the Workplace event; be a mentor to a Sixth Form student, introduce an inspiring speaker; develop a business partnership or internship programme or, as an alumna, join the WSHA Business Network.

Support bursaries via our WSHA Bursary Trees Suggested monthly donations - Copper leaf: £10, Silver leaf: £25, Gold leaf: £50 £25 per month / £100 per term - join our 100 Club in support of the Jayne Triffitt Bursary Award and be entered into our cash prize draw.

Pledge a single gift - in support of the bursary programme to help us achieve our target.

Pledge a structured gift over 5 years - for example:

Total Donation Value to Bursary Fund

including Gift Aid

Donor claim Actual net cost - from HMRC - 45% taxpayer 45% taxpayer

Annual net cost over 5 years 45% taxpayer

£50,000

£62,500

£15,625.00 £34,375.00 £6,875.00

£25,000

£31,250

£7,812.50 £17,187.00 £3,437.50

£10,000 £12,500

£3,125.00 £6,875.00 £1,375.00

£5,000

£6,250

£1,562.50 £3,437.50 £687.50

£2,500

£3,125

£781.25 £1,718.75 £343.75

We would welcome the opportunity to talk to as many parents and alumnae as possible about our plans for the future, so if you are willing to spare an hour to meet with us, we’d love to hear from you.

To offer your support for our bursary programme, please complete the Giving Form (right).

As a UK taxpayer, your gift is worth 25% more to the bursary fund, so please complete the Gift Aid declaration opposite.

For more information, please contact Mrs Camilla Mair, Development Manager on 01883 654308 or development@woldinghamschool.co.uk 42

GIVING FORM

Payment methods

Thank you for making a gift to the Bursary Fund, part of the Woldingham School Foundation *

Your details

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i.e. 100 Club

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Gift Aid declaration I am a UK taxpayer and understand that if I pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax in the current tax year than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all my donations it is my responsibility to pay any difference. (See www.woldinghamschool.co.uk/supportus for more info)

I want to Gift Aid my donation of £ and any donations I make in the future or have made in the past 4 years to Woldingham School

Signature Date Recognising your gift Woldingham School would like to recognise the names of its supporters to thank them. How would you like your donation to be recorded?

Recorded as

(e.g. Mr & Mrs Smith)

Anonymous

i.e. 100 Club

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Amount details Date / amount of first payment (Please allow 10 working days for receipt)

Amount £

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Termly**

**Termly payments for the 100 Club will be made on 1st September, 1st January and 1st April respectively

I would like to make a gift of :

Frequency of payment :

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Please pay from my/our account to : Barclays Bank plc, PO Box 95, 1 North End, Croydon CR9 1RN Account Name: Woldingham School Foundation Account number: 33849120 Sort code: 20-24-87 How often are the payments to be made?

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Your gift

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* Woldingham School Foundation is part of

Woldingham School, Charity registration no. 1125376

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Please choose one of the following two options: 1. Date and amount of final payment DD/MM/YY

2. Until further notice

Amount £ (Payments will be made until you cancel this instruction)

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Cheques payable to the Woldingham School Foundation. To make a gift by Debit Card or Credit Card, please contact the Development Office on +44 (0)1883 654308. A fee is charged to the school on Credit Card transactions.

You can transfer your gift directly to our bank Electronic account via an electronic fund transfer. For this

Fund Transfer purpose you will need our bank details as follows: Barclays Bank plc, PO Box 95, 1 North End, Croydon CR9 1RN Account Name: Woldingham School Foundation Account number: 33849120 Sort code: 20-24-87 IBAN: GB70 BARC 202487 338491 20 Swift code: BARCGB22 PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO REFERENCE YOUR NAME IN THE TRANSFER

Please return this completed form to: Development Manager, Woldingham School, Marden Park, Woldingham, Surrey CR3 7YA

Thank you for your support

WSHA CHAIR’S REPORT On behalf of the WSHA committee, it is my pleasure, again, to pen a few words of welcome for the latest edition of the Woldingham magazine.

There is no better place to start than ‘175’ – which has been our theme of the year! As part of the celebrations of Woldingham’s 175th anniversary, some fabulous events have taken place; the highlight of which, I’m sure everyone will agree, was the 175 Gala Ball, held at the Hurlingham Club in London. Over 370 guests enjoyed a fabulous evening of dancing and much merriment.

Together with the auction on the night, the event raised over £70K, which will be shared between bursaries and the schools’ chosen charity.

In the Spring Term, the school and alumnae came together for a splendid concert at Cadogan Hall, featuring the combined voices of the school choirs and alumnae.

We also celebrated at Old Girls’ Day in May. We were blessed with beautiful weather that day so those attending could enjoy the school grounds whilst catching up with friends. As well as milestone reunions, there was a 175-themed treasure hunt and I led a 175-minute Zumba challenge for pupils, alumnae and a few hardcore members of staff!

As you will have seen from the regular WSHA email updates, we’ve had a busy year, with lots going on in terms of events and behind the scenes. We continue to work on engaging as many alumnae as possible and to harness the immense opportunity that this extraordinary community has at its disposal. A new alumnae website will be going live in the near future, and we are still collating material for the growing archive, which is particularly relevant as we come to the end of our 175th anniversary year.

As you know, much of the school’s fundraising work goes towards supporting bursaries so that future generations of students can benefit from a Woldingham education.

There are many ways alumnae can get involved, perhaps by volunteering their time at an event, or by sponsoring a leaf on our stunning, bronze WSHA Bursary Trees.

There are other ways the alumnae network can benefit current and former students – for example, you could share your professional insights with the girls at a careers breakfast or attend one of our business networking events in London. Also, we are always looking for new members to sit on the committee!

Should you be interested in supporting WSHA in any of our endeavours, or simply have a question, please contact the WSHA team via email alumnae@woldinghamschool.co.uk Just a small bit of housekeeping with regard to the new GDPR procedures, of which I’m sure everyone is now well aware, governing how we hold your data and contact you. We do want to stay in touch with everyone, so if you haven’t already done so, please can you respond to the email or complete the enclosed survey. This would be greatly appreciated.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the WSHA committee, both staff and volunteers, for their valued time, dedication and support.

I look forward to welcoming you to one of our many events planned for this coming year.

With my very best wishes, Ms Jenny Coote, WSHA Chair 45

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY 2018-2019 September 2018

Careers Breakfast Tuesday 16 October, Woldingham School New York Visit 17 - 20 October, NYC

October Woldingham School Bonfire & Fireworks Saturday 10 November, Woldingham School

November

December

January

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Careers Breakfast Tuesday 13 November, Woldingham School Christmas Shopping Event Friday 23 November, Woldingham School Christmas Carol Service & Drinks Reception Monday 10 December, Westminster Cathedral, London

February

Women in the Workplace Event Tuesday 12 March, Woldingham School

WSHA Networking Event Thursday 14 March, The Grosvenor Hotel, London

March

April

Old Girls’ Day Sunday 19 May, Woldingham School

May

June

WSHA AGM & Committee Meeting Friday 20 June, Woldingham School Gala Opera Event Sunday 30 June, Woldingham School

July 2019

We hope to see you at as many of these events as possible and will keep in touch with you via email, reunions, eNewsletters and Facebook. For more information on any of these events, please contact Katie Hogben at alumnae@woldinghamschool.co.uk or call 01883 654307

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ALUMNAE AROUND THE WORLD

1-10 10-100 100-250 250+

4,431 members in 93 countries We know there are a lot more of you out there.

Please do get in touch with your contact details by emailing alumnae@woldinghamschool.co.uk

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BUSINESS NETWORKING EVENTS The WSHA Business Network represents over 150 different businesses run by our Old Girls. From hedge funds to fashion labels, barristers to travel consultants and interior designers to MPs – the breadth of talent and experience among our alumnae is boundless. By joining the WSHA Business Network you are able to list your own business, job or enterprise for free. We hope that the WSHA Business Network will become the first port of call for the whole Woldingham community when looking for a business connection.

The WSHA Business Networking Event takes place in London every Spring, bringing the WSHA Business Network to life.

You’re invited : The next WSHA Business Networking Event will take place at the Grosvenor Hotel, SW1W 0SJ (right next to Victoria Station) on Thursday 14 March from 6.30pm to 9.00pm. To reserve your place, please email alumnae@woldinghamschool.co.uk

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CHRISTMAS CAROL SERVICE 2017 Despite the snowy conditions, Westminster Cathedral was once again packed with students, staff, parents, grandparents, governors, alumnae and guests as the Woldingham community came together for the annual carol service.

After a warm welcome from Headmistress, Mrs Alex Hutchinson, Amaris beautifully sang William Blake’s poem The Lamb, set to music by Sir John Tavener. The service then continued with a reading, before the first, solo, verse of Once in Royal David’s City rang through the cathedral. Choir members made their way up the nave carrying candles before the Cathedral blazed into light as the full congregation joined in with the third verse.

The Opening Prayer was read by Fr Gerry Devlin, Chaplain and Priest-in-Residence, and further readings and carols, led by Woldingham’s massed choirs and the choir of St Francis’ Catholic Primary School, made this a wonderful celebration of Christmas.

The retiring collection was for this year’s whole school 175 Charity, the Laini Saba School. Located in the largest slum in Kibera, just outside Nairobi, Kenya, each year this Sacred Heart supported school takes in up to 500 children, many of whom are orphans.

Woldingham is raising funds for the development of a much needed library and learning resources building.

Many of the congregation then moved on to the reception at the nearby Grosvenor Hotel, to chat and catch up over mulled wine and mince pies. A delicious chocolate cake was also enjoyed in celebration of Woldingham’s 175 anniversary.

You’re invited : This year’s carol service will be held on Monday 10 December at 2.30pm at Westminster Cathedral.

OLD GIRLS’ DAY 2018 We were delighted to welcome back over 140 alumnae and their families to our annual Old Girls’ Day on Sunday 13 May 2018. Past staff and Sisters from the Sacred Heart also joined us.

The day started with Mass, which was held in the Chapel and was packed with standing room only. We were honoured to have the Class of 1988 Head Girl read the bidding prayers.

After a fantastic lunch in Marden Dining Room, everyone headed back to Main House for class reunions, photos, a treasure hunt, children’s entertainment and afternoon tea.

Lots of group photos were taken by the pond and on the pergola lawn. Mrs Brown then set everyone off on the 175 Anniversary Treasure Hunt. This new route enabled everyone to see all the main areas of the school and reminisce along the way. A team of Ribbons were on hand all day to help and guide the visitors.

As part of the treasure hunt, everyone went to the Sports Hall to join WSHA’s Chair, Jenny Coote, while she did her 175 Anniversary challenge of 1.75hrs of Zumba!

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The children and current students enjoyed the face painters, plate spinning, games and a bouncy castle.

They were all kept busy while the Old Girls could catch up with friends and reminisce.

The leavers of 2013, 2008, 1998, 1988 and 1978 had their milestone reunions at Old Girls’ Day which were very well attended, with some reuniting for the first time since they had left! Some had travelled from Wales, Scotland, Spain, Malta, Germany, Hong Kong and the USA. It was a fantastic day and we hope to see you at Old Girls’ Day next year.

You’re invited : Old Girls’ Day - Sunday 19 May 2019, 10.30am - 5.00pm

REUNIONS

(L-R) Anne Russell (1949), Gay Lewis (née Bidwell,1961), Barbara Ogilvy Watson (née Harby, 1961), Jenny Baldwin (née Stephens, 1959), Sister Dorothy Bell rscj, Sue Kirk (née, Gold, 1961), Mary Hargroves (née Pertwee, 1962), Katy Mackenzie-Smith (née Lyons, 1957), Fiona Wright (1959), Maja Oliver (née Jaguinska, 1954), Nikki Trethowan (née Marnau, 1961), Caroline Montagu-Pollock (née Russell ,1952), Shelagh Penny (née O’Brien, 1952), Susan Sayers (née Stokes-Rees, 1962) and Pippa Bellasis (1962).

Reunion - Classes of 1949-1964 On Thursday 9 November 2017 a group of us met at The Bridge in Barnes and, as always, we had a very pleasant time! Many of our old friends came again this year, but some were unable to attend.

We were delighted to see Sue Kirk (née, Gold, 1961) and Barbara (Barbie) Ogilvy Watson (née Harby, 1961). In fact, Barbie flew from Ireland to stay with Sue at this time specifically so they could come together!

Sister Dorothy Bell has now moved to Duchesne House and no longer travels by bus. Fortunately, Mary Hargroves was able to give her a lift both ways. We were so pleased!

Sue Kirk’s mother was Head Girl at Roehampton when Sister Dorothy was a pupil, so they had much to talk about!

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Susan Sayers (née Stokes-Rees, 1962) came for the first time. It was good to see her. As she lives in Eastbourne and I live near Brighton we travelled back part of the way on the same train a nice finish to a lovely day.

Fiona Wright (Year Rep, 1959)

You’re invited : We are planning to meet again this year on Thursday 15 November at the same place. Invitations will follow.

If you would like to come, please contact Fiona Wright on 01273 842131, or Katie Hogben, the Alumnae Development Officer, at hogbenk@woldinghamschool.co.uk; you would be most welcome.

50 year reunion - Leavers of 1968 The idea of a reunion at the momentous milestone of 50 years grew gradually. First, we gathered contact details which involved some pleasurable detective work, Cordelia being my midnight ally, and Siobhan was wonderful, until finally we found all 41 girls of our year.

Tessa had the great idea of the Sloane Club – ideal in Central London. She booked and organised everything and Cordelia was appointed Treasurer. But we had a problem. We offered two dates to choose from. The cousins, Isabel and Tessa, could not come on the same day. Then Fleur had the bright idea of having a two-day celebration! So Isabel and Woody, with Hinny as Treasurer, organised the second day at The Rose pub in Fulham, with a barbecue in the garden.

We were 24 for the Sloane Club luncheon and 26 the next day in the pub garden. Meeting up was so full of joy and pleasure after all this time, it was quite moving a wonderful atmosphere of solidarity and friendship amongst us all.

People came from everywhere – Rose from Italy, Gina from Valencia, Carol from Mallorca, Fleur from Switzerland – and from all over England, Jinty and Jo from Cornwall, Annette from Northumbria, Stevie from Norfolk, Lizzie from Somerset, Gilian, Siobhan and Alexi from Oxfordshire, to name but a few.

The Sloane Club was good as an introduction. Had we changed? Not really! Ginnie organised name tags, mostly unnecessary. The second day in the pretty pub garden was lovely – relaxed and informal. Madeleine my daughter, herself an Woldingham Old Girl, took the photographs on both days.

And so we swapped life stories and talked of children and grandchildren, a beautiful couple of days none of us will forget for a long time.

Antonia Hoogewerf (née Wheatley, 1968)

REUNIONS 40 year reunion - Leavers of 1978 Well it was 40 years since we left Woldingham, where did the time go? Some of us hadn’t set eyes on each other in that time.

We managed to get 35 to the reunion in London in May on the eve of Old Girls’ Day. The upstairs room at The Antelope off Sloane Square was a great venue.

There was a lot of catching up to do. We relived the old days with memories of teachers, nuns and absent friends.

On Sunday, 20 of us made the trip to Woldingham.

After Mass, in what we knew as the gym, there was the obligatory photo above the fishpond. Then we enjoyed lunch in the dining hall at Marden House.

Many memories and photos have been shared on our Facebook page. I have got contact details of over 50 girls from our year. If anyone wants to add/change details or just get in touch, please message Sarah Heilbron (née Godsal) at sarahheilbron@btinternet.com Sarah Heilbron (née Godsal, 1978)

30 year reunion - Leavers of 1988 2018 is the 30 year reunion of the ‘Class of 1988’. How did those years go by so quickly?!

On the evening of Friday 11 May, 41 of us arranged to meet for drinks and canapés at The Antelope pub in Sloane Square. Back in the day this was a usual haunt for lots of us! Extra special thanks to all those who came from abroad for the weekend. Our Head Girl Anne Burkley (née Donnellon), Anne Neuman (née Mascall), Ellen Cusick, Sonya Gulati Brown (née Gulati) and Stephanie Katavolos (née Boylan) came from various parts of the USA, plus Maria Pisani (née Gatt) came over from Malta. Christina Hoseason (née Levesley) and Joanna Beasley (née NelsonRoberts) were so sad to miss out, they even sent us a video of themselves from New Zealand! It was such a great night and fabulous to see so many old friends again.

The pub was sweeping us out with the rubbish at the end of the night!

Most of the ladies from Friday night, plus a few extras who hadn’t been able to make it, together with some of our families, then went to School on Sunday, in time for Mass.

This was a really important part of our Old Girls’ Day and in the Bidding Prayers, read by our Head Girl Anne Burkley, we made sure to remember the three girls from our year who have sadly died since leaving Woldingham (Victoria (Toyah) Watts, Philippa Conway and Fiona Mackenzie).

They are much missed.

The sun shone and the setting could not have been more perfect to remember our school life, reminisce with our friends and show our families where we had spent so many wonderful years. We are so grateful to the School for putting on such a lovely day for us and allowing us to come back each year.

We have also been raising money to fund a bursary for a deserving girl to attend Woldingham and our ‘Class of 1988’ leaf is now proudly on display! Thank you for your contributions everyone.

I worked really hard to try and track everyone from 1988 down, although we are still missing a few, so if you’re reading this and didn’t hear from me about the reunion but want to be included in future events, please get in touch with Clare Nicholson (née Sefi) at clare.nicholson56@gmail.com See you all in 2028 for the 40 year reunion!

Clare Nicholson (née Sefi, 1988)

REUNIONS

10 year reunion - Leavers of 2008 It was a strange mixture of feelings, like both everything and nothing had changed, as we rolled down the school drive for our 10 year milestone reunion.

Joined by about 25 others from the Class of 2008, with some travelling from as far as Hong Kong to be there, it was lovely to remember the highlights of our time at Woldingham. From the good (the Tuck Shop, The Ship, the Coffee Bar) to the bad (BCG injections, haunted rooms

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and the time the PE golf buggy got cling filmed...), it was remarkable how much came flooding back. Even more special was to leave feeling so grateful to have been at school with such a truly wonderful group of girls.

A huge thank you to WSHA for organising the day and for giving us the chance to reconnect. Here’s to the next 10 years...!

Lucy Chalky-Maber (nĂŠe Middleton, 2008)

5 year reunion - Leavers of 2013 The class of 2013 had the most wonderful five-year reunion. For some of us, friendship circles have remained close-knit and it was an opportunity to reminisce with the people we see regularly. For others, it was the first time we’d seen each other since that last Prize Day in 2013. It was incredible to see how much we’d changed, but also how much we hadn’t.

Some people have long finished university and are taking the first steps into their new careers, others have been travelling the world and are just coming to the end of their time in education. Many have fulfilled dreams they founded at school, and which we helped mould. Some have even stayed at Woldingham, with one of our cohort remaining in the Valley to teach music.

The day was filled with conversation, a fact that certainly hadn’t changed since our time as students.

It was lovely to hear about the successes of the current girls at Mass, and to be back in the beautiful chapel. Lunch was delicious, as ever, and we quickly fell back into old memories. This was exacerbated by the quiz in the afternoon, which took us round the entire school searching for clues and answers.

We saw some of our much-missed teachers and had a final play with Nelly the dog before she moves schools later this year.

The day prompted many a promise to stay in touch, especially as many of us are just moving into London.

We hope to have another reunion soon and to not leave it until the ten-year mark to get back to the Valley!

Sandy Downs, 2013

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SOCIETY OF THE SACRED HEART

The internationality of the Society has been very much to the fore this year.

Since November 2017 we, together with many friends and colleagues, have been celebrating the Bicentenary of Philippine Duchesne. Part of this celebration has taken the form of a Year of Prayer, with weekly reflections being contributed by RSCJ from many parts of the world. In one of these, Mary Galvin from USA wrote of Philippine having a ‘global heart’: ‘A global heart has an inclusive, wide tent and a porous boundary!’ A call that is relevant to us all today. Philippine’s long-held desire to work with the Potawatomi was not fulfilled until very late in her life, by which time she was too old and frail to be actively involved and became known as ‘the woman who prays always’.

In the words of Barbara Dawson: ‘May this year of prayer with Philippine strengthen our capacity to contemplate and listen to the heartbeat of God in ourselves and our world.’

In December we marked the 175th anniversary of the arrival from France of a group of six RSCJ and two students to establish the first Sacred Heart School in this country.

In 1850, with growing numbers in the school, they moved to Roehampton which was then a village on the fringes of London. Here, Elm Grove allowed space for the school to expand. The outbreak of war, however, in 1939, led to their evacuation, first to Newquay and then to Stanford Hall, before eventually moving to Woldingham in 1946. Sister

April O’Leary’s account of this period in ‘Living Tradition’ makes fascinating and entertaining reading - as does the rest of the chronicle! Today, Roehampton is home to Digby Stuart College, the Sacred Heart Primary School, Duchesne House and two small communities.

For ten days during March we welcomed Barbara Dawson, the Superior General, and her team for an official visit to the Province. During that time they visited communities and met with committees, teams and staff. This will all contribute to gaining an overview of the Society world-wide in preparation for a review of the roles played by RSCJ in a rapidly evolving world.

In looking back there have, too, been times of loss and we remember especially members of the Province who died during the course of the year.

This was felt particularly heavily by Duchesne Community and Staff especially as all were members of that community and they all died within two months of each other on either side of Christmas. We remember each one with affection and gratitude.

Sr Monica McGreal Joan Scott

Rachel Standish Lilian Amato

Marie Madeleine

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Norah Lester

AMASC REPORT The highlight of the year was the visit of World President of AMASC, Marisa Moreno from Mexico, who had been invited to Woldingham School in June 2017. Marisa met with Headmistress, Alex Hutchinson, some AMASC members, pupils and staff involved with Sacred Heart.

With great enthusiasm, Marisa shared plans for the 2018 World AMASC conference in Mexico, as well as her vision for the future of AMASC, especially Young AMASC. Marisa thoroughly enjoyed her tour of the school and was entertained by talented music students during a lunchtime recital.

In February 2018, AMASC held the four-yearly World conference in Merida, Mexico. AMASC England was represented by Yasko Kurahachi who was able to meet with her JASH friends from Japan as well as other Sacred Heart communities from 44 countries around the world.

There were presentations about St Philippine Rose Duchesne and her bi-centennial celebrations, as well as discussions on how to further develop Young AMASC.

AMASC England members continue to meet for their twice yearly social gatherings at the Hurlingham Club.

The committee met on 24 May 2018 and as the new Data Protection law was introduced it was agreed that all members should re-register and pay a subscription.

It was unanimously agreed to waive subscriptions for Young AMASC members (under 30s) and RSCJs. During the WSHA committee meeting in February 2018, it was agreed to reinstate the annual subscription of ÂŁ250 to AMASC. In October 2018, two AMASC England representatives will join National Presidents in Joigny, France to elect a new world president as Marisa Moreno ends her four-year term.

AMASC England looks forward to working with schools, colleges, RSCJ community to increase its membership, particularly of Young AMASC. If anyone is interested in finding out more about AMASC please go to www.amasc-sacrecoeur.org or contact plmfrisby@gmail.com Trish Frisby

WSHA LEAVERS’ SCHOLARSHIPS Tami Bolu It’s been over a year since I received the WSHA Scholarship Award and within this period I have been able to achieve a lot with my business.

I applied for this scholarship to help start up my glitter line which I had been dreaming about for a long time. I make and sell both loose glitter and handmade glitter lip gloss. The £500 awarded to me has helped me fund my website development and buy some of the materials that I needed for the business, such as the bottles, stickers, thank you cards, bags and of course the glitter itself.

The journey so far has been tough but rewarding, the biggest challenge being having to balance business and academic work. It has also not been easy packaging every product individually, but at the end of the day it has been worth it. The business is running profitably but, more importantly, I derive a lot of joy seeing people wear my product and knowing that I created it.

I am grateful for the scholarship because without it I would have struggled to start the business. Finally, please check out my website www.tbluglitter.com and do some shopping!

Lucy O’Dell I was delighted and grateful for being awarded a WSHA Leavers’ Scholarship Award last year as I had obtained a place at the Royal Veterinary College to embark on my training as a vet, which is something I have always dreamt of doing.

The Award has enabled me to purchase lab coats for my practical classes, which range from looking at parasites under a microscope to reptile handling sessions. It has allowed me to buy the appropriate textbooks required for my studying, ranging from neurology to studying the alimentary canal of all animals.

The Scholarship money has also enabled me to buy compulsory protective clothing for my outside Animal Husbandry placements. To date these include working on a dairy farm, helping out at a riding stables and lambing, where I saved an orphaned lamb (whom I named Rupert). I donated him to a local therapy farm and visit him regularly.

The Scholarship reminds me of the caring role the school played, and still does play, in my life.

Sophie O’Dell I was delighted to have been awarded a WSHA Leavers’ Scholarship Award last year.

I am currently at Southampton University studying Spanish with Italian.

The Award has given me the opportunity to visit Madrid to decide whether I would like to go there for my one year abroad next September or another city in Spain or to Latin America. While I was there, it gave me the opportunity to visit the city which I thoroughly enjoyed.

This September I am travelling to Urbino in Italy, where I will spend two weeks undergoing an intensive language course. Italian is a new language that I am learning at Southampton University as part of my degree. Having seen how much progress I had made with Spanish while at Woldingham School, I have used this as motivation to take the time to advance my understanding of the Italian language.

I have been fortunate to have secured a place in the netball team at Southampton, and the Scholarship Award has enabled me to purchase some of the netball kit. It has also allowed me to buy the textbooks required for my course.

It has been an incredible year for me, and I am very grateful to WSHA for helping me fund my studies and for the support Woldingham School has given to me since I started in 2010.

Mathilde Ramsden-Board The WSHA Leavers’ Scholarship offered me the unique opportunity to be able to work on the 2018 marketing campaign for Maserati. Whilst this wasn’t the initial plan for my WSHA scholarship, Woldingham was a school which taught me adaptability and, as the youngest on set by a decade, that was an invaluable skill which I used on a daily basis!

The Maserati campaign took me across the entirety of Italy. My office each day varied from the cultural hubs of central Turin, to the breathtakingly beautiful Alps. Over the two months I spent there, each day held unique challenges and opportunities. I’d scout locations, interact with clients, advise on lighting the cards... and definitely fetch an extraordinary amount of caffé!

I genuinely wouldn’t have been able to partake in such an amazing opportunity had it not been for the WSHA Leavers Scholarship Award. Often, it is far easier and less daunting to remain within the safety Woldingham valley offers, but this award gave me the strength and the drive to pursue further horizons. The contacts within an industry I will potentially be working in one day, and the varied experiences I had, are priceless and will undoubtedly shape the direction my future takes.

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WSHA LEAVERS’ SCHOLARSHIPS Isabella Sell Upon leaving Woldingham in the summer of 2017, I was fortunate enough to receive a WSHA Leavers’ Scholarship Award before hopping across the pond to attend Trinity College at the University of Toronto.

I used the award to purchase the materials for my first year English courses. I knew I wanted to take my studies in English Literature further, and this meant taking a range of courses initially, which would then help me in refining my interests.

This past year, my studies focused on The Literary Tradition: the process of formulation and interpretation of our own lives, and the study of the history of how human beings have represented their lives to themselves in writing. The texts I observed ranged from older works such as The Odyssey and The Aeneid to more contemporary novels like Woolf’s To The Lighthouse and Ferrante’s My Brilliant Friend. I particularly enjoyed my studies of Wordsworth, and will now focus on Pre-1800 British Literature as I begin to undertake an English specialism this coming September; I will do this alongside a minor in Philosophy.

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Marden Park Your own country mansion for a day M

arden Park’s magnificent mansion and elegant function rooms are available for weddings, christenings, parties and formal functions. As a member of the alumnae you are eligible for a 25% discount on venue hire. The chapel creates a romantic setting for Catholic ceremonies, whilst the stunning rooms are licensed for civil ceremonies and provide the perfect Surrey wedding venue.

Exclusively your own country mansion for a day, including a professional in-house catering team, fully licensed bar and no corkage charges.

For availability phone 01883 654185 or email venuehire@woldinghamschool.co.uk www.facebook.com/WoldinghamSchoolEvents www.instagram.com/mardenpark www.pinterest.com/mardenentltd

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ANNOUNCEMENTS Births Rosamund and Sam Hurst (née Hase, 1997) welcomed Tallulah Erin Hurst to their family on 30 July 2017, a sister to Savannah.

Katharine Field (née Realff, 1999) and her husband James were delighted to welcome a daughter, Emma Grace Antonia, on 5 September 2017. A sister to Alexander.

Tallulah Hurst

Engagements Pearl Fung (2002) was pleased to announce her engagement to Patrick Leung in February this year in Kyoto, Japan and their wedding will be on 24 November in Hong Kong.

Emma Field

Eleanor Clake (née Houston, 1997) and her husband were pleased to announce the arrival of their baby girl, Mary, born on 9 March 2018, a sister for Robin and John.

Rosie (née Wake-Walker, 2003) and Alistair Ennever announced the arrival of a son, Oliver James Anthony, on 9 April 2018.

Fiona (née Jameson-Till, 2000) and William Patrick announced the arrival of a daughter, Katherine Dorothy Margaret, on 4 May 2018. A sister for Arthur.

Rebecca (née Wynniatt-Husey, 1992) and Robert Shaw announced the arrival of a daughter, Clodagh Emily Alice, on 19 May 2018. A sister to Isla and Georgia.

Lucy Chalkly-Maber (née Middleton, 2008) and her husband are pleased to announce the arrival of Adalie Isla Rose Chalkly-Maber. She was born on 3 June 2018.

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Weddings Alex (née Cardona, 2006) married James Reid on 30 June 2018. All five bridesmaids were Woldingham Old Girls!

Alex and James Reid

IN MEMORIAM Mary Graham-Watson (née Woodhouse, 1946) sadly died in October 2017. Her daughter Paula Steele (née Graham-Watson, 1972) also went to Woldingham School.

Ursula Saner (née Ollason, 1945), who was a pupil at The Convent of the Sacred Heart, Roehampton from 1941-1945, died peacefully on 18 January 2018.

Daisy Boyd (2004), sadly died on 5 October 2017.

Jayne Triffitt (Headmistress of Woldingham School 2007-2016) very sadly died on 3 July 2018.

Jane Macfarlane (1971) very sadly passed away on 10 July 2018. Much loved and will be greatly missed by her family, friends and in particular sisters, Rosalie (1969) and Katherine Ashforth (Macfarlane, 1986).

Robert Vincent, ex Director of Music at Woldingham, passed away on 12 November 2017 in a Care Home in Chelsham. Condolences to Kate (1997), James and Sarah.

Sadly, their mother, Sally Vincent, passed away in 2015.

Susan Maxwell Scott (1949) sadly died on 4 May 2018, cousin to Harriet Sefi (née Davidson, 1961). Susan was born on 27 Oct 1931 and went to Stanford Hall in 1939 at the outbreak of WW1. She left school at 16 in 1947, having spent her last year at Woldingham School.

She grew up in a lively family with two brothers and three sisters but she never married. She consequently had a busy life with various jobs and many interests, including travelling, painting and caring for her many cousins.

Family members to whom we extend our condolences: Richard Roberts-Miller, sadly and suddenly passed away on 12 August 2017. Much loved and loving husband to Fiona (1966), brilliant father to Alex, Jo (1993) and Beth (1995) and wonderful Pops to Barney, Zachary and Cubby.

Tim Gudgin, sadly passed away in November 2017. Much loved father to Bridget and Annette Gudgin (1978).

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‘‘

Your example, even more than your words, will be an eloquent lesson to the world.

Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat, RSCJ

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Woldingham School, Marden Park, Woldingham, Surrey, CR3 7YA T: 01883 349431 E: info@woldinghamschool.co.uk www.woldinghamschool.co.uk