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WOLDINGHAM News and reviews from Woldingham School and Alumnae . November 2021

‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers – That perches in the soul – And sings the tune without the words – And never stops – at all – And sweetest – in the Gale – is heard – And sore must be the storm – That could abash the little Bird That kept so many warm – I’ve heard it in the chillest land – And on the strangest Sea – Yet – never – in Extremity, It asked a crumb – of me. Emily Dickinson

With ‘hope’ as the theme of this year’s Woldingham magazine, we’re starting this year’s issue with a poem. Written in 1862, ‘Hope’ Is The Thing With Feathers is one of the best known of Emily Dickinson’s poems. An extended metaphor, it likens the concept of hope to a feathered bird that is permanently perched in the soul of every human. There it sings, never stopping in its quest to inspire.

CONTENTS 3

HEAD’S WELCOME

22 WILLIAM WILBERFORCE

KEEPING THE COMMUNITY CONNECTED

24 SPORTING CHALLENGES

THE HOPES OF OUR STUDENT LEADERS FOR THE LOVE OF BOARDING

WHAT’S ON THE FRONT COVER OF YOUR BOOK?

10 OUTSTANDING PASTORAL CARE 13

WELLBEING

14 THE GROUND BENEATH OUR FEET 17

26 KARATE KID

44 A VALLEY THAT NEVER SLEEPS 46 DEVELOPMENT 54 COMMUNITY HUB

27 POETRY COMPETITION

56 DATES FOR THE DIARY

30 LOCKDOWN LEARNING

57 WSHA CHAIR’S WELCOME

32 SIGNING OUT

58 WSHA LEAVERS’ SCHOLARSHIPS

34 PERFORMING ARTS 36 FASHION FOCUS 37 ART EXHIBITION 38 LEADERSHIP AND COACHING

HOPE IN THE VALLEY

18 STUDENTS SHINE

40 DESTINATIONS OF LEAVERS

20 OUT OF THE CLASSROOM

42 CAREERS ADVICE

60 ALUMNAE EVENTS 62 NEWS FROM THE PROVINCES 63 FROM STUDENT TO STAFF 64 SACRED HEART UPDATE 65 HARRIET DOWNING 66 ANNOUNCEMENTS 67 IN MEMORIAM

2 Head’s welcome

HEAD’S

WELCOME Welcome to this new-look copy of the school magazine. I hope you will find much within these pages of interest, as we combine the news of the school and of our alumnae community in what we hope is a vibrant publication, full of joy and celebration. Unquestionably, the last eighteen months have been challenging for everyone due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It has been a period when people have been forced to spend more time on a computer screen, sometimes alone or with their immediate family in a domestic setting, at a time when other global events have seemed challenging and the ongoing global environmental situation seems ominous. Nevertheless, as the pandemic is gradually being curtailed in its impact and as society reflects on the way in which selflessness has been at the heart of our social recovery, we can see tangible signs of hope. Hope is there if we look for it; we do not always have all the answers as individuals but collectively we can find solutions, especially if we look forward positively. Pope Francis has spoken of the fact that “one of the most important tasks of families is to provide an education in hope”. By extension, it is the job of schools such as Woldingham to provide a sense of joy and hope within a community, as well as an outstanding academic and extra-curricular education, even when life in the wider world can seem challenging. Our founder, St Madeleine Sophie Barat, pioneered girls’ education during the era of the French revolution. It is important that we remain undaunted by contemporary challenges. Evidence of this at Woldingham – a determination to look forward positively and plan for the future – is everywhere, as we bid farewell to 2020-21 and start the new academic year. New initiatives such as our leadership and coaching schemes are underway and a range of new facilities are planned, starting with an Outdoor Adventure & Education facility, followed by a Library and Sixth Form Centre. Over the coming months, a range of new facilities will spring up to cater for our students’ academic, sporting and wider interests, as the governors seek to invest in the school’s future. While the academic year 2020-21 may have held challenges such as remote/blended learning and social distancing, nevertheless our students achieved spectacular A Level results and we start the new academic year with a record roll of 610 students. I am very grateful for the warm welcome extended to me and my family by everyone at Woldingham. While ideally you don’t start a new job in the middle of a pandemic, it has made the experience of genuine welcome and the kindness of the school community all the more meaningful to us. As the school celebrates its success, we will not forget that at the heart of its culture is the humility that requires effort and the achievement that in Janet Stuart’s phrase, “is stirred by enthusiasm and love”. The future is bright for girls’ education at Woldingham. Dr James Whitehead, Head

Head’s welcome

#PHOTOGRAPERSWOLD

KEEPING THE COMMUNITY

CONNECTED

4 Keeping the community connected

Lockdown learning provided as many opportunities as challenges and the Woldingham community rose to the challenge magnificently in spring 2021 with our #PhotographersWold competition as a way to keep everyone connected and offering hope that we would be together again soon. While Woldingham students, parents, alumnae and staff were unable to see each other, #PhotographersWold kept us connected by sharing photographs from around the world. It was a wonderful way to keep our strong Woldingham community in touch even when

we couldn’t be together. Submissions across four different categories were made by our small band of international boarders who remained at school as they couldn’t travel, students and staff in the UK and at home around the world, as well as alumnae from as far away as New Zealand and the USA. The photos were simply stunning. The dining room in Marden has a lasting legacy of #PhotographersWold, with a display of submissions from everyone who took part. Not only does it look fantastic, it’s a great example of how our worldwide community thrives even when we’re not in the same place.

Keeping the community connected

THE HOPES OF OUR STUDENT

LEADERS

A top honour for any Woldingham student is to be selected for the Head Girl team. The Head Girl team for 2021-22 are Desiree, Head Girl, and Deputy Head Girls Molly, Sophie, Abi and Agnes. Here they share their hopes for the school during their year in office.

DESIREE I joined the school in Year 7 and Woldingham has always made me feel really involved and supported, like being in a warm, fuzzy bubble. I am currently studying maths, physics and religious studies, my favourite being religious studies, and I am hoping to go on to university to read Philosophy, Politics and Economics with a view to a possible career in the Civil Service. The extra-curricular programme at Woldingham is second to none and it is so important to try different activities outside the classroom. I feel my life has been ‘extra-curricular’, having taken full advantage of the huge range of activities on offer. I am known as Miss Participation! As Head Girl my goal for the next year is for everyone to feel involved, while feeling valued as an individual within our community. I want to encourage students to try something new that gives them confidence and makes them feel that they have a place here.

6 The hopes of our student leaders

MOLLY I want to be a force of positive and lasting change as Deputy Head Girl by introducing new initiatives and giving back to Woldingham, which has gifted me numerous opportunities throughout my time here.

SOPHIE I have many new and exciting ideas to rejuvenate the school after all we’ve had to put on hold due to COVID, so I want to bring everyone back together again and look towards the future. I plan to throw lots of energy and passion into all the projects we undertake and I really hope that everyone will feel the benefit of this.

ABI This year I would like to help deepen connections in the community between year groups, students, staff and the Ribbons team with the rest of the school community. I want to create more opportunities for students to come together and learn, inspiring each other to grow as students and people.

AGNES I believe it is our team’s responsibility to bring positivity and unity to the school. I hope to convey a message of cultural diversity and inclusion to the school, as this will equip students to excel both academically and in their lives beyond Woldingham.

Head Girl team

FOR THE LOVE OF

BOARDING

As the school approaches its 180th anniversary and we reflect on almost two centuries of school life, and many changes – including two world wars and relocating from Roehampton to Surrey – one of the constants has been our love of boarding. The last two years have offered a new set of challenges for boarding, but as we look to a post-COVID world, the safety and serenity of boarding in our amazing 700 acres looks to take on a new appeal to future generations of Woldingham students. During the second UK lockdown in the winter of 2021, a hardy group of international boarders must have felt like they were in splendid isolation at times. A small, close-knit community of overseas students unable to travel home joined online lessons from Shanley, where they all stayed together, enjoying the benefits of en-suite study bedrooms. Lockdown meant weekend activities also had to be taken close to home with students taking advantage of the beautiful grounds and enjoying sole use of the school’s

8 Boarding

sports facilities. The highlight for many was the arrival of snow in February, relishing the perfect sledging slopes for hours on end. Housemistress Sue Jones, who has been at Woldingham for four years and is also the school’s international co-ordinator, admitted that COVID-19 was a challenge. ‘COVID meant we had to separate students into bubbles and allocate rooms according to friendship groups rather than be more integrated, which goes against everything the residential team does to encourage girls to get to know each other. I kept a journal during this momentous time recording how it affected Year 10 boarding. I am hoping it will provide a good reminder of what we faced and how we lived and learned together during this difficult time.’

WHAT’S ON THE COVER OF YOUR BOOK? Our love of boarding and our love of literature are at the heart of our new ‘Write Your Own Story’ campaign. Taking inspiration from classics such as A Room with a View (Woldingham has many beautiful views) to newer works like Abi Daré’s The Girl with the Louding Voice, where a Nigerian girl

strives to find her voice and be heard, our new campaign shows how Woldingham helps students start to ‘Write Your Own Story’. What would you choose for your front cover? Contact the school and we’ll send you your own copy of our new ‘Write Your Own Story’ book to get inspired.

WRITE YOUR O N STORY WITH INSPIRATIONAL

BOARDING AT

WOLDINGHAM

Boarding

OUTSTANDING

PASTORAL CARE FRONT AND CENTRE What does it take to run boarding at Woldingham? Taryn Bennett shares her insight and experience, tells why she loves being Head of Boarding and explains the importance of pastoral care. How did you become Head of Boarding? I’ve been at Woldingham for 11 years, and became Head of Boarding in 2018. I was previously a Housemistress and Deputy Head of Boarding here alongside teaching geography. What does your job involve? It is my job to ensure our full, weekly and flexiboarders are happy and well cared for at school. I manage the weekend programme of trips and activities, the residential team, and work closely with a range of key staff to ensure the boarding experience at Woldingham is the best it can be. During the day I also teach geography and in the evenings and at weekends I get to spend time in the boarding houses with boarders. Over the past 18 months I’ve also become an expert in quarantining, ever-changing government advice, red and green lists and COVID testing! What do you enjoy most about your role? I particularly enjoy seeing our girls grow and develop as they pass through Woldingham and head off for life outside the valley. Having been here for more than 10 years I have been fortunate enough to see some year groups go all the way through Woldingham. In my first year here I had a Year 7 tutor group and now one of my students from that group is back working at Woldingham! It is wonderful to keep in touch with alumnae and hear about their university courses and careers. I am someone who loves to be fully immersed in what I am doing so working in a boarding school is the perfect career for me. Good pastoral care is vital and my role as Head of Boarding allows me to undertake this important job every day, which is really rewarding.

10 Boarding

What are the best things about being a boarder at Woldingham? I think the girls would say getting to live side-byside with their friends. Being a boarder is full of opportunities: access to all our wonderful facilities at the evenings and weekends, playing tennis, enjoying the fitness room and playground, or focusing on their creative skills in the art studios. Boarding really fosters independence and confidence, which are wonderful assets for a student’s future. How do you see the boarding experience evolving in the future? I am excited for the future of boarding. Modern boarding is all about taking a more flexible approach to living away from home and we have evolved to meet this demand in recent years. Some of our students want to stay just a few nights a week and opt to flexi-board, which can also be a gentle introduction to boarding. This year we introduced weekly boarding where students live at school during the week and concentrate on their studies and extra-curricular activities, but then spend the weekend with their families. For our full boarders we have busy weekends and we’re planning to expand what we do on Saturdays and Sundays to make the most of being close to London and so many interesting places. This year I am thrilled that we have our first Boarding Ribbon, Anthea, who was elected to represent the boarding community and help develop boarding at Woldingham so future generations get to love it too.

12 Wellbeing

WELLBEING

AT THE HEART OF LIFE AT WOLDINGHAM Wellbeing has always been a top priority at Woldingham. This year, with remote learning and fewer opportunities to be with friends and family in person, it’s taken an even more central role. The importance of pastoral care, learning new ways to maintain physical and mental health, and providing additional support when needed have been key. A new Wellbeing Hub was introduced for parents and students last year, providing information and guidance. Students benefited from a wide range of online and in-person sessions covering subjects from body image

to the importance of kindness and from relationships to respect, for yourself and others. Our new Wheel of Wellbeing provides a great reminder of the range of things we can all do to help us stay well, from being active to eating well and from having faith to having hope in the future. Woldingham’s new Senior Deputy Head Ms Kerri Fox, who joined in spring 2021, has taken on leadership for wellbeing across the school and is committed to making sure wellbeing is at the centre of everything we do.

Mud proves good for head and heart The importance of mud in promoting wellbeing was given an extreme test on a Wellbeing Wednesday in March. Students and staff walked the paths around Woldingham in support of our own physical and mental wellbeing, as well as raising vital funds for the important work of the Cardinal Hume Centre in London. After days of rain the paths were extremely muddy but it did offer evidence that mud is good for our wellbeing after all!

Wellbeing

THE GROUND

BENEATH OUR FEET

Roy Peachey, teacher of English and keen historian, explores Marden Park to discover fascinating evidence of activity in the area during the two World Wars.

Parts of Godstone Caves, an extensive system of tunnels and mines, extend under school grounds.

Woldingham is not the first school to have been built on the Marden Park estate. That honour belongs to the Godstone School of Bombing, which was based here during the First World War. Michael Lugton, our Head Groundsman, first alerted me to its existence, along with Marden Castle, Godstone Caves, and the Second World War air-raid shelters behind the Sports Hall and South Lodge. Intrigued by what he told me, I did some sleuthing and uncovered story after untold story about the place I thought I knew so well.

14 The ground beneath our feet

Beginning with the Godstone Bombing School, deep in the archive of the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds, is a loose-leaf notebook that belonged to Lieutenant J M J Trotter. This immaculately handwritten notebook contains descriptions of every type of hand grenade you could possibly imagine, including the wonderfully named “Hairbrush” grenade. More pertinently, it contains Trotter’s hand drawn map of the school, featuring an elaborate trench system that cut across what is now largely woodland beyond Shanley.

Just the names are evocative of another age – Goalkeeper Trench, Bombwell Corner, and Diehard Lane – although other names – including Trafalgar Square, Tattenham Corner, and Warsaw – may be more familiar to you. It goes without saying that Trotter’s school was very different to ours, although he did keep an accident log as we do today:

23/4/17 - A fatal accident has recently occurred owing to a grenade which had failed to explode, and was buried in the mud, being lifted by the bursting of another grenade in its vicinity... [which] hurled it back into the throwing trench.

The ground beneath our feet

That was the Bombing School, but what about Marden Castle? Armed with Michael’s directions and an old watercolour painting that I found in Caterham’s East Surrey Museum, I went for a long walk to the area west of South Lodge to see what I could find. Sadly, all that remains are a few fallen stones. The view is impressive but the castle is no more. What happened to it? The answer is provided by Herbert Starmer who moved into Marden Castle in 1916 and whose memories were recorded in 1977. Starmer described the castle as “a sort of shootingbox” and the reason he lived there was because his father was gamekeeper for Sir Walpole Greenwell, who lived in Marden Park at the time. So forget the Normans, our very own castle was more of a hunting lodge, internally decorated “with portraits of Stock Exchange celebrities”, 50 or 60 of them according to Herbert Starmer. And why is it no longer there? Because the Canadian troops who were stationed at Marden Park during World War II blew it up.

Marden Castle

16 The ground beneath our feet

My search for the Second World War air-raid shelters was even less successful than my search for Marden Castle. The entrances have been closed over and there is now virtually nothing to see in the woodland behind the Sports Hall and Exam Centre. The landscape is a palimpsest, the top layer of which has all but obliterated what was there before. However, some fascinating written records have survived, not least of which is an article on the Godstone Caves, some of which sit beneath the school grounds, by a former president of the Speleological Society. These caves are really the remains of old mines and quarries, which were principally worked for hearthstone. Stones from our mines were used in buildings such as Westminster Abbey, Hampton Court and Windsor Castle. So far, so interesting, but what really intrigued me about James Geary Gardner’s account were the stories. The abortive hunt for a German spy in one of the caves early in World War II. The

raid by Canadian troops on the bonded store of alcohol that was kept in the mines during the war. The barbecue of a cow pilfered from a local farmer to accompany the £1000 worth of brandy they uncovered. Gardner tells us that he was lowered 90 feet into the cave to see if he could find out how the troops had got in, only to get stuck when the rope got snagged “round the chimney and also a fat sergeant of police, who was nearly cut in half.” What all these stories and physical remains suggest is that the ground beneath our feet is not solid as we sometimes like to imagine. Our maps of the school tell only a fraction of what the site has to tell. What we need instead is a deep map, a map with a vertical as well as a horizontal axis. A map that takes in geology as well as surface features. A map that features memories and stories as well as grid references. In short, a deep map that shows us all that has gone into the making of this space. There is a great deal more to be explored.

HOPE IN

THE VALLEY When Chaplaincy answered the call

Fr Gerard Devlin explains how he coped with lockdown and virtual Masses in 2020-21. When the first lockdown started, as Chaplain I had to adapt to a different pattern of work and be creative in ministering to our community. As well as keeping in regular contact with staff, students, parents and governors, I also helped families who suffered bereavement and illness. I communicated with those who had feelings of isolation, anxiety and helplessness and was greatly impressed by the members of our community who were reaching out to the elderly and marginalised to spread a message of hope. I am grateful to the theatre technicians who helped live stream our Masses from the school chapel. As one parent kindly remarked, “Having the opportunity to share in the Mass as a family has been a very positive result in these very strange times; despite the distance we have all felt very much part of the Woldingham Community.”

During the second lockdown in spring 2021, our weekly Sacred Heart Year Reps meetings continued online. Ching, our Sacred Heart Ribbon, at home in Hong Kong, organised the students participating in the virtual Sunday, Year and House Masses. With the help of other Sixth Form students, she also helped organise a quiz based on the Sunday readings and the homily which encouraged everyone to engage with the theme for the week. Students wrote prayers which were incorporated into my weekly reflection and the bidding prayers at Mass and, as a Sacred Heart group, we still shared in Lectio Divina and praying the rosary. I organised a parent and staff group to meet in prayer and continued to join with our small boarding community who remained at school during the spring term lockdown for night prayers, providing time for personal reflection and prayers for the whole school. In response to Pope Francis’s invitation, the month of May was dedicated to a ‘Marathon’ of prayer for an end to the pandemic and to ask for the resumption of social and work activities. We may have been surrounded by pain and uncertainty over the past year, but we can be sure that we continue to inspire and motivate one another with a new imagination of what will be possible at Woldingham now and in the months ahead. There is great hope for the future, in the words of St Madeline Sophie Barat,

Don’t be nervous about your interior storms, they are necessary, and the sea is calmer and more beautiful after the storm.

Hope in the valley

STUDENTS SHINE IN COMPETITION

Woldingham students relish opportunities to pursue their passions by taking part in prestigious external competitions. Sixth Formers Katie and Cecily chose art history and architecture in which to shine. History of Art student Katie did a fantastic job of representing Woldingham at the London final of ARTiculation, a national arts public speaking competition, with her talk about controversial performance artist Marina Abramović. Adjudicator Dr Gus Casely-Hayford, Director of V&A East, applauded Katie for her ‘diligence, commitment, imagination and rigour’ and congratulated her on delivering a presentation which managed to say something new about an artist about whom so much has already been written. Aspiring architect Cecily triumphed in the Architectural Foundation of San Francisco’s High School Design Competition 2021. The competition tests students’ design skills, creativity, spatial and analytical thinking and craftsmanship and this year’s challenge was to design a public waterfront urban ‘playground’ at South Beach Piers, San Francisco. Students from five countries submitted entries in three different categories – Individual, Group and Design Process - and Cecily’s fantastic design, called ‘Leisure and Treasure’, won in the latter category. The judges said of Cecily’s design, ‘This was a clever and intimate presentation of design-thinking. Each sketch was supportive of thoughts and ideas and kept the judges intrigued throughout. Cecily should treasure her gift of sketching and annotating and compiling ideas into one pretty unique space.’

18 Students shine

Woldingham students excel in STEM competitions Superb results in the testing UKMT (United Kingdom Mathematics Trust) Challenges saw 13 students awarded gold certificates at the Intermediate level and seven at Junior level last year. Four were also invited to compete in the later Olympiad round. Year 8 student Fleur achieved a certificate of merit in the Junior Olympiad and Year 11s Wendy and Anna won medals in the Maclaurin Olympiad. In the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Olympiad, Sixth Formers Alice and Imogen were among the 9% of entrants who achieved a gold certificate.

Students shine

OUT OF THE

CLASSROOM

The talents of our teachers are not confined to the classroom. Here, Maths teacher Edward Amponsah and English teacher Roy Peachey tell us what they do out of school.

The Secret Scribbler English teacher Roy Peachey has recently had his sixth book and first children’s fiction book published. The Race is a dual narrative about a young athlete in the modern day and Eric “Chariots of Fire” Liddell, hero of the 1924 Olympics. So, how does Roy find time to hold down a challenging full-time job as a teacher and be a successful published author at the same time? Author Hanif Kureishi once said that many people want to write but don’t always have the selfdiscipline for it. Well, Roy is not one of them. He gets up very early and writes for an hour before school and, during holidays and weekends, often writes in snatches of time during the day rather than wait for that rare moment when he has a long stretch of time available to him.

20 Out of the classroom

Even as a child Roy was a secret scribbler, writing stories at primary school before taking writing more seriously once he began his teaching career. Early on, Roy wanted a book to support a particular history topic he was teaching but couldn’t find a suitable one, so he wrote his own! ‘Popes, Emperors and Elephants’ was soon joined by other non-fiction titles ’50 Books for Life’, ‘Out of the Classroom and into the World’ and ‘Did Jesus go to School?’ before his first foray into adult fiction with ‘Between Darkness and Light’ in 2019. Future projects currently being considered include an eco-adventure book, a fairy tale turned upside down and a family Second World War adventure, all fiction books for children as Roy particularly likes the genre and they don’t take so long to produce.

Singing for God Gospel singing maths teacher Edward Amponsah has already made his mark on the Woldingham community as a teacher and singer. He started singing at the age of 15 in Ghana when he joined the school gospel choir. Singing solo in front of an audience for the first time as a very nervous 17 year old Edward realised he could sing. He has never had singing lessons, doesn’t come from a musical family and he can’t read music but the tunes ‘just come’ he says, ‘a gift from God’. After coming to England to continue his education, he began a career as a maths teacher, first at Harris Academy, London, then Cheam High School and arrived at Woldingham in 2020.

Today, Edward has his own music brand, EA Music, with a band and backing singers, and sings mostly in concerts in churches during term time, but during the summer holiday he usually finds time to write and produce songs with a view to eventually producing an album. Fortunately, his wife is a talented lyricist so she writes the lyrics for the tunes Edward produces. Edward has produced five singles, which include a Christmas song (It’s Christmas Time Again). All these songs are available on YouTube and music streaming platforms such as iTunes and Spotify. He took part in West End Wold in June and hopes to start a school gospel choir.

Out of the classroom

WILLIAM

WILBERFORCE at Marden Park

Former Head of History Hugh Patterson has researched the life of Wilberforce at Woldingham and shares what he discovered. William Wilberforce, evangelical, politician, and anti-slavery campaigner, is undoubtedly the most famous person to live at Marden Park. The two years he spent at the house also marked his last major contribution to the anti-slavery movement. In July 1821 Wilberforce was 62 years old, increasingly in ill health and with deteriorating eyesight. He sold his home of 40 years in Kensington and moved to Marden Park.

My wife and daughter wish it, and I hope I shall secure more time for my family and myself when further from London; it will give my children country tastes and occupations and they are virtuous pleasures.

Marden Park had been built as a ‘beautiful landscaped deer park’ by the Clayton family, but in 1799 the estate and title ‘Baronet of Marden Park’ was inherited by a cousin who lived in Buckinghamshire, and the estate was let out to tenants. The first was John Hatsell, a noted Clerk to the House of Commons who spent his retirement there, dying in 1820. The house thus became available.

We have taken for a year on trial a house about eighteen miles from Westminster Bridge, ... It was once a fine place and is one of the prettiest spots that I ever saw - without water - the form of the ground most beautifully varied, and the wood still fine...

22 William Wilberforce

Wilberforce, who was used to spending summers travelling, saw Marden Park as somewhere to stay all year.

It is comfortable to me to have a house of my own and my books about me, instead of being in a watering-place as has been my summer habit for many years...

According to his biographers, Wilberforce adjusted well to his new home “his step was less elastic than of old...[but] he took his part in out of door occupations …climbing the neighbouring downs with walking parties”. In July 1821 Wilberforce’s diary records “Gave ale and cricket to the servants, and all the family in honour of [George IV’s] coronation…” Following his daughter’s death in December 1821, Wilberforce returned to Marden Park on 4 January where his “recent loss as well as decreasing powers of the body tended to detain him” and he spent most of that year there “with family and friends gathered round him”. As his health and spirits returned he maintained to a correspondent that the “regular use of opium had been the main instrument of my recovery”. (William Hague’s biography suggests that 30 years of opium use was behind his physical decline in these years.) In December 1822 friends assembled round “the Christmas Hearth at Marden Park” to discuss “how best to shape measures which were to change the structure of society in the western World”. Following slave trade abolition in 1807 Wilberforce had held back from demanding the abolition of slavery in Britain. Partly because he thought that without the Atlantic Slave trade it would wither and die, and partly because he thought gradual abolition would allow slaves to receive religious instruction and education as free farmers. The discussions in the winter of 1822-3 changed Wilberforce’s approach as he moved towards

immediate abolition. In March he published “An appeal to the religion, justice and humanity of the inhabitants of the British Empire, on behalf of the Negro slaves in the West Indies” and at the same time Wilberforce and his friends established the Anti-Slavery Society. Wilberforce’s health did not permit him to take a leading role in it, but the discussions around his ‘Christmas Hearth’ in Marden Park led to the final abolition of slavery in July 1833, four days before Wilberforce’s death. Wilberforce left in July 1823. He wrote “Marden Park is one of the most beautiful countries eye ever beheld, but we were near three miles from a church and we had no shelter walking near the house”. Because of ill health “comfort had become a necessity” and his stay ended. Unfortunately, today’s Main House is not the house rented by Wilberforce as the original burned down in 1879. However, the clock tower and the stable block, which now form the school’s quad, are from Wilberforce’s time and his comments about the landscape are just as valid now as then.

The life of William Wilberforce at Marden Park is commemorated with a new blue plaque at the front of Main House

William Wilberforce

SPORTING CHALLENGES

Sport is always fantastic at Woldingham and students continued to excel over the last year, finding new ways to train, keeping skills up-to-date and trying something new, despite COVID-19 restrictions. Our Lockdown Landmark Challenge was a great hit and helped keep students and staff focused on their fitness during the winter lockdown. Back at school in the summer term we introduced open water swimming at nearby Divers Cove in Godstone, which was very popular with younger students. Lockdown Landmark

3 Challenge kept us moving 2020-21 Sport Ribbon, Sophie, challenged students and staff to ‘virtually’ run, walk or cycle to a destination of their choice in her Lockdown Landmark Challenge, not only motivating them to keep moving last winter, but also raising much needed money for charities. Sophie, a GB skier, led from the front setting her sights on Durham University. Isobel in Year 7 made it to the ExCel centre in London, while Livvy in Year 8 surpassed her target of Dover and ended up moving her landmark across the Channel and into France. Drama Ribbon Grace headed to Southampton, raising £175 for the Alzheimer’s Society along the way. Not only did Sophie make it to Durham virtually, she also secured a place at its university, where she will read accounting and management.

24 Sporting challenges

SET, MET AND EXCEEDED

Looking ahead, there are exciting plans to continue to develop sport in the coming years with improved facilities, including a new swimming pool, as well as introducing additional sports such as fencing, and further developing cricket in the summer. The whole school community is hopeful that the 2021-22 sports season will be back to normal, with a busy fixtures schedule planned. Find out more on page 47.

Excellence celebrated at

3 Sports Dinner

Although we had to change the format of our annual Sports Dinner in June and could only host it with Upper Sixth students, it was a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the contribution of the Upper Sixth to school sport during their time at Woldingham. We were delighted to share the evening with our guest speaker, physiotherapist and Woldingham alumna Charlotte Davies. Charlotte was a sport scholar at Woldingham and won the Sacred Heart Cup for outstanding contribution to school sport at our inaugural Sports Dinner in 2016. Upper Sixth award winners were: Sophie Foster - The Sacred Heart Cup for outstanding contribution to school sport. Lara Anderson and Eliza Warfield - Highly commended for excellent contribution to school sport. Emily Cons - The Castle Cup for unwavering commitment and enthusiasm. Charlotte Baxter - Sports Personality of the Year for dedication, sportsmanship and being an outstanding role model for sport.

Open water swimming given

3 a big thumbs up

Not to miss out on a sporting trend, students tried open water swimming in the summer term and it turned out that they loved it. The popularity of open water swimming grew hugely over the last year, especially during lockdown with indoor pools being closed.

Following the trend, minibuses of students drove the short distance to Divers Cove in Godstone for their first experience of open water swimming taking advantage of the nearby seven-acre lake. It’s a trend that’s sure to continue.

Sports Dinner award winners

Sporting challenges

WOLDINGHAM’S

KARATE KID

Year 8 sport scholar Lea did not let the challenge of a global pandemic get in her way turning to online karate training, hard work and dedication to rise up the rankings to become second in the world in her age category. At the end of April 2020, the karate world started to get itself organised to be able to operate during the pandemic. I started to train online with my club (Seikatsu Kai UK), Sensei and teammates and, soon after this, online seminars started, led by some of the best karate athletes in the world. I trained with several world champions and the Pan-American number one, Ariel Torres, which improved my general strength and technique. I have been training online with Ariel weekly and this and the training with my club helped me gain confidence. My club started to compete in the worldwide online competitions at the end of August. I started really low in the rankings but I took part in lots

26 Karate Kid

of online competitions, progressing each time. In November I reached the top 10 in my age group and my continued training and more competitions saw me reach the ranking of second in the world in my age category in mid-December. Since I started to compete online I have also been competing in the U15 and U16 age groups and have won one gold and three bronze medals. I am ranked sixth in the world in both categories. I am also the first British female athlete in all these categories. I hope to come back to the mats for live competitions as soon as possible, but I will not stop competing online against athletes everywhere in the world.

POETRY

COMPETITION

National Poetry Day was celebrated in October 2020 with the launch of a competition for students to write a poem of any length and in any form on the theme of Vision. Dr Whitehead judged the 60 excellent entries received from students in all year groups. He was very impressed with the high standard of entries and after much consideration announced the winners:

Vision Seasons, First is Spring, For everyday brings something new, The feeling of being enveloped by the vivid, sparkling treasures, The quivering, fresh, green finery, And the vibrant sights and sounds of spring’s symphony of songbirds. Second is Summer, The fresh morning sun, shimmering dazzling blue, poured in through the windows And the blazing carpet of bluebells, Flowers like piles of jewels, flooded warmth into the land Summer cloaked with purple heather, stifling hot and the air still, Among the clicking of the crickets and the lazy humming of bees, The aroma of barbecued food lingering in the air. Third is Autumn, The leaves on the trees were dressed in their suits of red and gold, The branches were painted with autumn’s crisp. The trees danced and the leaves rushed along the ground, Above me, clouds fluffy like cotton balls drifted across the sky Autumn’s crisp leaves crackle and crunch as we step on them. Last, but not least, Winter, Waking up on the first of December in a fairytale world cloaked in snow, Our breath in clouds around us like a white ocean blending into the sky around, The trees stock still like ice sculptures, with long icicles which fell like daggers, Trapped in a white whirling wall of snow burying my feet and the blanketing the fields all around, The ice above me fell from the branches in a delicate shower. Lily-Mae, Year 8

‘POETRY is the music of being human’ Carol Anne Duffy Poetry competition

What I see is what I think What I see is what I think but what I think is not what I see. And day, by day by day your scent fades slowly from my sleeves. My mind is empty. I, am empty. Like aching roars of passing trains and rain under the stars, like endless eyes of hurricanes and worlds devoid of art, are you, art? Because I think you are. You are the silence in a sound. An arabesque of the breeze. The peace between a heartbeat; a reason not to leave. The very fabric of the night, the silk of seamless sleep. The depth of beauty in a dream; a reason, to feel. But I am empty. I am so, so empty to know what could’ve been. To know that what I see is what I think But what I think is not what I see. Olivia, Year 11

Perfect Perfect, Engulfing every essence of my being, like a shroud, That removes all senses that are freeing. An illusion, Distorting the reflection I see before me. Reflection Mirroring a mind that cannot agree. Perfect. Blinding is the faultless form Which haunts. Rationality cannot break this storm, This tempest. A bottomless pit to spiral in To lose, A war that almost none can win. Perfect, A vision nearly all desire. Sparking, The most gigantic fire. But ahead, Surging, crystal water falls To end All the internal brawls. Léonie, Year 11

28 Poetry competition

Visions of Kalopsia Hand in mine, floating in a mist of darkness, never quite touching, together we cast one shadow on the wall, lunae lumen illuminating, with torped quickness we drift along empty hallways, ethereal fingers press ivory softly, spindly toes scrape cracked stone, flaccid chrysanths and barren leaves, Alexander watches from his marble throne. This castle never scared me, paint crumbling walls join rotting floorboards, carvings scratched by broken nails. You hid from Azrael and now we dance our first, transcending beyond centuries, I feel the tender strings pull. You led me up the staircase, frozen breath caught on soft lips, placed a necklace of hope and together we flew suspended in time. Inspired by a scene in the television show ‘The Haunting of Hill House’ in which the character dances with the ghost of her dead husband and ultimately hangs herself.

Madeleine, Year 12

Poetry competition

Paul Rickard

DNA, BLACKBERRIES &

LOCKDOWN

LEARNING

Science has always been a popular subject at Woldingham and this year more than one third of Upper Sixth leavers have gone on to study STEM subjects at university. Lockdown inevitably provided challenges for the department, but innovative staff ensured students were inspired to keep experimenting. This year we said ‘goodbye’ to long-serving Head of Science and Biology, Sian Baldwin, who leaves Woldingham after 10 years. She says ‘imbuing the girls when they join the school with a sense of belief and the confidence that they can ‘do’ biology before eventually going on to study the subject at A Level is the best thing ever’. We welcome returning member of staff Paul Rickard as Head of Science from 2021.

30 Lockdown learning

3 Junior Science Club Science clubs continued throughout the year, both during lockdown and in the classroom. A number of students from the junior school took part in Junior Science Club, participating in activities such as the Great British Birdwatch, making a model cell and Skittles chromatography. They worked extremely hard on each activity, producing some great results.

3 Kitchen science

3 Practically perfect

Biology lockdown experiments focused very much on the kitchen with Year 8 students studying a variety of topics including inheritance, extracting DNA from strawberries and kiwi fruit, which unfortunately weren’t edible by the time they had finished! Year 8 later moved on to plant reproduction, dissecting flowers and learning their structure before creating an artistic arrangement of them and their fruit. They also looked at asexual reproduction and took cuttings of geraniums, which they potted and pinched out before planting in the garden. Not to be outdone, Year 11s conducted fun, edible experiments studying yeast and fermentation resulting in some excellent and enticing loaves of bread.

Head of Physics Nick Hillier explained how his team turned to everyday objects to support learning during lockdown. We tried to keep our students experimenting as much as they could at home. Fortunately a number of simple practicals were possible with equipment from around the home. Some students made simple paper spinners, which allowed them to change a number of variables and see how this altered the time taken to reach the ground. Year 9 used a weighted string to determine the centre of mass of an irregularly shaped piece of card and Year 11 investigated the conducting properties of different materials, melting ice cubes on various spoons and seeing the very different effects.

Lockdown learning

SIGNING OUT AFTER 100 YEARS

Three long-serving members of staff with an amazing 100 years’ combined service retired from Woldingham in summer 2021. Here they look back at their time in the valley. Thank you to all of them from the Woldingham community worldwide.

Barbara Batchelor I came to Woldingham to teach biology in 1981, straight from university. I travelled from Exeter for my interview and was given such confusing directions that I was 45 minutes late, but I was told that everyone arrived late and not to worry about it! I remember being disappointed when I started that the ‘Staff Bar’ was the name given to the staffroom serving coffee in the Nicholson Room and not the alcoholic bar I was expecting. The school was a convent then and about half the size it is now. About 15 nuns were still here who were housemistresses as well as teachers. They wore their own clothes rather than habits, and I remember one particular nun who always wore clothes by Chanel, donations from her wealthy sister. I loved the monthly trips to the National Theatre organised by a former Head of English and probably saw every production put on there in the 1980s. I also especially remember a school trip to the South of France with Annie O’Neill. It was a great trip once we arrived but sitting on a coach for 24 hours caused my ankles to swell so much they were bigger than my calves and I was so vain I wouldn’t leave the coach to use the facilities when we stopped, and we were only halfway there…

32 Signing out

Jane de Groot

Annie O’Neill

I started as Sister-in-Charge of the Health Centre at Woldingham in 1993, having previously worked as a Paediatric Ward Sister at a hospital in Southend. Not long after starting I was rushed off my feet with the 1994 measles epidemic. This resulted in a mass vaccination campaign at Woldingham and across the UK. I have loved working in such a beautiful environment. The best part of my job has been getting to know the girls, watching them grow and develop, particularly those with health issues who I would see on a regular basis. I also used to help put Marden boarders to bed and got to know them in this way too. It has been a hugely rewarding job. I especially used to enjoy the school sports days that were for the whole day on a Saturday in June. Families would come for the day; there would be a parent/child tennis tournament in the morning followed by sports day in the afternoon. Coupled with an assortment of charity stalls, it was always a fun day out. I am only semi-retiring as I have been administering COVID vaccinations during the pandemic as a bank nurse. I enjoy the flexibility and will continue with this work in the immediate future.

In 1986 I came to Woldingham from an inner London school in Neasden with no green space, at the time of teacher strikes and riots, to the rolling fields of Marden Park. I thought I was in paradise. When students actually thanked me at the end of each lesson and were super polite, I knew I was. As a teacher of PE and biology, I have been fortunate to work alongside some amazing people here, many of whom are still friends. Some legends have sadly passed away, but I still remember what seemed like free times (maybe rose-coloured spectacles on here!) before league tables and over-assessment became a thing. The winter of 1987, when the school was cut off by snow for a week; the variety show when staff performed their riotous version of the Levi’s ad; the 24-hour swims for charity; and a particular DofE trip to the north of England when our brandnew Mercedes minibus broke down near Rugby with smoke pouring out the back, are some of the times I will never forget.

Signing out

Performing arts set the stage for wonder despite lockdown. Our talented performers didn’t let a pandemic curb their displays of talent. Challenging performance conditions merely strengthened resolve and brought out the best in both students and staff.

THE WEST END

COMES TO WOLDINGHAM

Creating a show during lockdown which could be rehearsed in isolation, but which would also be a celebration of the range of talent in and across the whole school community was a challenge faced by the Drama Department earlier this year, which it rose to in spectacular fashion. The result was West End Wold, a two-hour virtual revue production featuring performers from all year

34 Performing Arts

groups, plus members of staff. Embracing a range of disciplines from acting, singing and dancing to film-making, set and prop design, and stagemanagement, the show comprised pieces from 28 shows with a cast and crew of 68 people. It was an excellent showcase of the talent within the school and a great celebration of our return to the stage.

MAKING MUSIC A space where any student can pick up a guitar, microphone or pair of drumsticks and collaborate with others, the Live Lounge in the Millennium Centre is invaluable during class music lessons and as a base where students are encouraged to experiment together in their free time by making impromptu music. Through this platform, as the students’ curiosity has developed into confidence and determination, we have seen the formation of several exciting new bands, most notably in Year 8. The Live Lounge also functions as a venue for student-organised concerts, where students can share their own musical creations with others.

A highlight of the year was Clemmie and Keira’s lunchtime recital comprising entirely of their own compositions. Allowing students to also explore some of their more unique musical interests via themed concerts, Jemima and Leila’s performance of Elton John’s songs, complete with outrageous outfits and elaborate dance routines was a stand-out moment! In the summer term we held our first in person concerts in the auditorium for over a year featuring fantastic performances from musicians across the school including Music Ribbon Leila, pictured here.

Performing Arts

FASHION FOCUS

IN THE ART DEPARTMENT

During lockdown Year 9 students were set a fashion project where they were asked to research fashion in a decade of their choice. Pattern designs were created, fashion figures drafted, and the students created a collection of outfits in response to their research. Collections of clothes included bold 1970s patterns and flares, to neon-coloured outfits inspired by the 1980s. The task was then to present these designs in a creative and interesting way and some amazing outcomes appeared in bedroom studios.

Year 9 1st Prize - Lauren

Year 9 2nd Prize - Phoebe

36 Fashion focus

Lower Sixth students also really embraced fashion in response to their project task, creating fabulous wearable art. From crinolines and corsets that brought Victorian costume into the present, to the upcycling of a man’s pinstripe suit with beautiful embroidered details that fused elements of masculine, formal attire with the feminine. Corsets created with plaster contrasted with soft knitwear and structured futuristic shapes fused with scuba material. Boundaries were pushed as students enjoyed exploring with new materials and techniques, which were all displayed in the art exhibition this autumn.

ART

EXHIBITION

Woldingham’s 2021 art exhibition took place in September rather than its normal time in the summer term but it was worth the wait. Parallel Adaptations was a superb display of paintings, drawings, textiles, ceramics, digital artwork, and mixed media created by GCSE and A Level students in Woldingham’s art studio and across three continents and five time zones. Here are just some of the highlights.

Art exhibition

LEADERSHIP

AND COACHING

Programme introduced to foster leadership culture This is an exciting time as a Woldingham School leadership programme for both staff and students is being introduced. The programme will embrace and embody a culture of openness about personal development and enquiry, rolemodelling a spirit of engagement with others. The aim of the staff and student programmes is to foster the development of leadership skills and promote a positive leadership culture.

The student programme will run in the Lower Sixth when students will be encouraged to develop an understanding of servant leadership and live out the Goals of the Sacred Heart. The staff programme is an 18-month programme that will enable staff to better facilitate the development of leadership within our students. The Leadership Programmes that are being developed and put into place aim to ensure that we can continue our long tradition of providing an outstanding education at Woldingham that empowers our young women to change the world. Adrian Ross, Director of Leadership Programme

38 Leadership and coaching

Staff trained to coach students to ‘Write Your Own Story’ To help empower students to ’Write Your Own Story’, coaching is being introduced at Woldingham. Coaching is about using powerful questions to help an individual understand what they want and how to achieve it. The aim is for all our students to be the best version of themselves. Four members of staff were trained in coaching during the summer by the educational specialists Graydin.

The aim is to have 50 staff trained by the end of the year initially focused on those who have the most contact with students in the upper school who need guidance in taking the next steps. Students will then have coaching sessions with trained staff, take part in coaching style activities and benefit from staff being more ‘coach-like’ in their interactions. The aim is for Woldingham to have a coaching culture, where all staff and students ‘Write Your Own Story’ rather than the story they think they should be writing. Chris Kellaway, Director of Coaching

Leadership and coaching

OVERSEAS DESTINATIONS

Destinations of Woldingham leavers 2019-2021

1 4 1

1 15

3 1

3 1 5 3 2 4

10 6 2

6 4

1 1

13 1 4 1

40 Destinations of leavers

EXCITING FUTURES BECKON FOR 2021

LEAVERS

Upper Sixth leavers continue to ‘Write Your Own Story’ at top universities The fantastic A Level results achieved by our 2021 Upper Sixth leavers have opened the doors to an impressive range of top universities in the UK and overseas, including the University of Cambridge, RADA and Central Saint Martins in the UK and MIT and Cornell in the USA. Subjects chosen range from art to veterinary science, from computer science to drama and from medicine to theology. The range of destinations and subjects shows how Woldingham provides choice and opportunity enabling students to start to ‘Write Your Own Story’, leading to fulfilling lives and exciting careers. We look forward to welcoming our 2021 leavers back to Woldingham and hope they have a fantastic time as they start their next adventure beyond the valley.

Woldingham Head Girl for 2020-21 Charlotte Baxter, who is taking a four-year Joint Honours degree in Modern European Languages and History at Durham University, said: I am so excited to start at Durham this autumn. I have loved my time at Woldingham and am hugely appreciative of the opportunities and support I have received in both an extra-curricular and an academic sense. I’ve made friends for life here, and I am so looking forward to seeing the amazing things they get up to in the future - our 10-year reunion will be a good one! Thank you to our incredible teachers for all their support in what has been a stressful year, we couldn’t have done it without them and I hope to see them all soon.

Destinations of leavers

GOOD

CAREERS ADVICE CENTRAL TO LIFELONG WELLBEING Good higher education and careers advice is so important as students learn about themselves, what they are good at and their interests and motivation. It’s an integral part of what we do to help our students to ‘Write Your Own Story’. Mrs Bodil Chambers, Head of Higher Education and Careers 2018-21

You may be surprised that the ambition of Bodil Chambers, Head of Higher Education and Careers 2018-21, is for Woldingham students to ‘gain self-awareness to boost self-esteem’ but it makes complete sense when she explains that when she gets this right, students go on to exciting careers and successful lives because they have made the right choices at school.

42 Careers advice

Helping young people to think about their future beyond school cannot start too early according to Mrs Chambers. She has a clear vision of how to provide progressive age-appropriate careers support and advice so that by the time students leave Woldingham, they have chosen the subjects at GCSE and A Level which they have excelled at, opening up places at top universities in the UK and overseas. Careers advice at Woldingham is centred around three key pillars: self, opportunity and skills. These are vital, as successful careers are rooted in an individual knowing themself well, having the right skills to secure roles and be successful at their chosen career, as well as having the opportunity to access their route. A student who faints at the sight of blood, doesn’t do chemistry A Level and finds academic study hard might not find medicine the ideal career.

On the other hand, a student who has enjoyed work experience at a hospice, thrives in an academic environment, is taking biology, chemistry and maths at A Level and is expecting good grades might find medicine a good match. ‘We start working with Woldingham students from Year 8, asking them to think of their dream jobs and introducing them to some of the career options available to them,’ said Mrs Chambers. ‘Moving into Year 9 we start using the Morrisby platform, allowing students to create their own career platforms as they make GCSE choices. In Year 10 we use Morrisby in greater depth to explore different career options culminating in an offtimetable careers day. We provide dedicated one-to-one sessions for students in Year 11, which play an important role in making A Level decisions.’ The support we receive from our alumnae, parents and wider Woldingham community in the wide range of events we host for our Sixth Formers, as well as some of our younger students, is a huge advantage. In the last year we’ve run networking breakfasts, career panels, working lunches and ‘In Conversation With’ events. The COVID pandemic has meant these have been online but the advantage is that we have been able to reach out to our

Woldingham community around the world more easily, including alumnae overseas and in different time zones. ‘In many ways our role in careers and HE is central to the wellbeing of our students at school and throughout their lives. A student who chooses the career that is right for them is likely to be better at it as well as happier. It’s so fulfilling to spend time with a student, getting to know them well and helping to articulate their career ambitions because it has a lifelong impact. It’s quite a responsibility but very enjoyable too.’ Mrs Chambers has followed her own advice to be ambitious and was recently promoted to become Director of Futures at a top independent boys’ school in London. The fantastic foundation she has laid down over the last three years will be taken forward by our new Director of HE and Careers Miss Jamie Gallagher (pictured above).

I am very excited to carry on the excellent work set by Mrs Chambers and I have some great new ideas for our Futures Programme at Woldingham. Thank you to Mrs Chambers for all her hard work and contribution over the last three years. It’s an excellent foundation for us to build on. Miss Jamie Gallagher, Director of HE and Careers 2021

Careers advice

AVALLEY THAT NEVER SLEEPS What goes on at Woldingham during the school holidays? Once each term draws to a close and teachers and students are looking forward to their holiday, the school’s Head of Events, Faye Scantlebury, who is responsible for the commercial and community lettings of the school’s facilities, swings into action arranging residential camps, team building activities, academic and music schools, conferences and private celebrations, the income from which gives a welcome contribution to school funds. “Woldingham’s 700 acres of open land and woodlands with stunning views in all directions are an ideal location for outdoor events and this year we had nine outdoor cinema performances and a car show. The 380 beds in our boarding houses host international summer schools with students attending from countries such as Russia, China and Kazakhstan,” said Faye. “As well as bookings in holidays,

44 A valley that never sleeps

the school’s sport facilities are hired by local clubs and groups year round in the evenings and at weekends, meaning we’re also supporting the local community to stay fit.” Unfortunately, COVID caused some of this year’s summer programme to be cancelled so Faye’s time was spent creating a new website and hosting many photoshoots providing us with editorial in magazines such as Lovemydress, Savethedate and Magpie Wedding. From brides to photoshoots, location managers looking for a place to film a forthcoming blockbuster, community groups wanting to host an event for 100 guide dogs, local businesses as well as large corporate clients from the City, Faye is always busy. “I work with them all. The variety makes it very enjoyable,” added Faye. A discount on venue bookings is offered to Woldingham alumnae so contact Faye if you are looking to arrange an event.

FIVE-YEAR PLAN

TO DELIVER EXCITING

FUTURE VISION

Our five-year development plan will future-proof Woldingham’s already excellent facilities and stunning grounds and enable more students to attend Woldingham with the support of a bursary. We are making a step change in our investment to build fantastic new facilities that match the best in the independent school sector and grow opportunities for a new generation through expanding the bursaries we can offer. In doing so we aim to deliver an exciting vision where our students are able to ‘Write Your Own Story’ and change the world for the better. As we seek to develop our students’ intellect, emotional values and wellbeing, through excellent teaching, world-class facilities and boundless opportunities, it’s more important than ever that Woldingham’s trail blazing role and reputation as a pioneer in women’s education is guaranteed for future generations. To support the school’s ambitious goals, we have set a target to fundraise £5 million over the next five years - the largest fundraising campaign in Woldingham’s history. We hope you will join us on this exciting journey and offer your support where you can.

46 Development

People We want many more talented, committed and ambitious young women to benefit from a Woldingham education through support of a bursary. Five of our eight most recent Head Girls are bursary students and, with £1.2m already raised, seven students are on fully fundraised bursaries. Our goal now is to substantially widen access to a Woldingham education with a target of awarding 30 bursaries by 2030.

Future To build a secure future for the Woldingham School Foundation, our aim is to grow our endowment fund to provide sustainable funding for our bursary programme, which changes the lives of so many young women. Many members of the Woldingham community have chosen to leave a gift in their will to the Foundation and we hope this will continue to add to our endowment fund.

Facilities Woldingham’s stunning location and state of the art Millennium Centre, science labs and art studios are the envy of many other leading independent schools. To ensure our facilities remain among the best and optimise our fantastic 700 acres, our plans are to build: - A state of the art Sixth Form Centre and new library - A swimming pool complex - Sports pavilion and levelled playing field - Outdoor adventure and education centre - Reinstatement of the kitchen garden, a cookery school and an educational vineyard.

I feel strongly that the opportunity we have here at Woldingham to experience the outdoors in an educational environment is pivotal to enriching what is learnt in the classroom, essential to personal development and promotes mental health. Dr James Whitehead, Head

Receiving a bursary was so important...what I am achieving now, I don’t think I could have done without Woldingham. Rachel, bursary recipient

30 bursaries by 2030 The Woldingham School bursary programme transforms the lives of gifted and hardworking young women. Seven students are currently benefitting from a fully funded place at Woldingham thanks to the generosity of our parents and alumnae. We have raised more than £1 million towards the bursary programme since 2016. Thank you. Our aim is to offer 30 fully funded bursaries by 2030 and to achieve this we ask for your help. Our Growing Opportunities campaign supports the bursary programme where each donation is represented by a personalised leaf on our WSHA bronze bursary trees. You can offer your support from as little as £12.50 per month, from £150 per year or a single gift from £750*.

The bursary fund is without doubt a testimony to your commitment to inclusion, diversity and excellence. Former parent and supporter

48 Development

How to give 1

You can set up your regular gift or make a one-off donation at woldinghamcommunity.co.uk/support-us.

You can set up a regular or single payment via BACS: Account Name: Woldingham School Foundation Sort Code: 20-24-87 Account No: 13041573

You can send a cheque made payable to ‘Woldingham School Foundation’ to: Development Office, Woldingham School, Marden Park, Woldingham Surrey CR3 7YA.

*Assumes Gift Aid will be applied. Minimum commitment for regular gifts. Completed gifts to be equivalent £1000+.

Our whole school community is at the heart of support for the bursary programme. With your support, together we can make memories and transform the lives of future generations of Woldingham students.

1842 Society You can offer your support to the Woldingham School Foundation and the bursary programme by leaving a gift in your will. Many of our alumnae have already chosen to make this pledge and we are extremely grateful for their vital support. Those pledging a gift in their will are warmly welcomed into the 1842 Society. The society celebrates our history and marks our foundation year, whilst looking ahead to our future to secure the bursary programme for the next generations. 70% of legacies to schools are left by women and legacies represent around 20% of total philanthropic income in girls’ schools. They are an effective way to leave a gift free of tax if you are a UK taxpayer, and potentially reducing Inheritance Tax, whilst leaving an enduring legacy for people and causes that are meaningful to you. For more information, please contact Clare Brazier, Development Manager at development@woldinghamschool.co.uk

Development

75TH ANNIVERSARY AT MARDEN PARK 2021 marks the 75th anniversary of the school at Marden Park. To celebrate this significant milestone in Woldingham’s history we are launching a series of exciting building projects. This year we will build an outdoor adventure and education centre and hope to plant an educational vineyard. These exciting projects, at different ends of our beautiful campus, will serve to mark this anniversary for both current and future generations of Woldingham students.

Outdoor adventure and education centre The outdoor adventure and education centre has already attracted some significant interest from students, staff, parents and alumnae, as we plan to make use of our woodland area beside the tennis dome with high and low ropes, zip wires, a climbing wall and outdoor classroom. We are delighted to announce that we have secured 50% of the funds required from one generous alumna who is keen to lead the support for this project. To start the build this winter 2021/22 we will need to raise an additional £75,000 and for this we ask for your support.

Educational vineyard Our second 75th anniversary project is to plant a small vineyard, where students will learn about viticulture and all the aspects of wine making in association with local awardwinning sparkling wine producer, Squerryes Wine Estate. Vines planted in a student’s first, second or third year at Woldingham will produce excellent sparkling wine by the time they reach the Sixth Form, so they can celebrate their results with a glass of their very own fizz. The vineyard will offset our carbon footprint to the tune of 18,500 tonnes over 40 years, the equivalent of 6,200 long haul flights, 37 million car miles or Woldingham’s total carbon emissions for 40 years. For more information about how you can support either of these projects, please contact Camilla Mair, Foundation Director at development@woldinghamschool.co.uk or visit woldinghamcommunity.co.uk

Future projects Cookery school, café & kitchen garden Featuring Leiths Diploma courses, cookery events, a café hub for the Woldingham community and re-establishment of our Victorian kitchen garden. Sixth Form centre - A dynamic transitional learning space for our senior students combined with a high tech library and learning resource centre for all. Sports pavilion and levelled sports ground - A new sports hub and event space for outdoor summer and winter sport. Swimming pool (STPP) - A new and enlarged swimming pool complex, changing facilities and gym

I believe that bringing the Sixth Form together under one roof and culture will help them to discover and unleash their talents, both academically and personally. It is a hugely exciting prospect for the next generation of Woldingham students. Phil Abbott, Head of Sixth Form

Development

PLANNED

WORKS

To offer your support or for more information, please contact Camilla Mair, Foundation Director on development@woldinghamschool.co.uk

SWIMMING POOL COMPLEX, CHANGING & GYM

WALLED GARDEN

MARDEN & SHANLEY

COOKERY SCHOOL, CAFÉ & KITCHEN GARDEN

OUTDOOR ADVENTURE & EDUCATION CENTRE

52 Development

EDUCATIONAL VINEYARD ATHLETICS FIELD

SPORTS PAVILION & LEVELLING OF PITCHES

IVE

R KD

C BA

SIXTH FORM CENTRE & LIBRARY

BERWICK

QUAD SPORT CENTRE

DR I

MILLENNIUM CENTRE

EXISTING SWIMMING POOL

MAIN HOUSE

EXAM CENTRE

COMMUNITY HUB

The Woldingham Community Hub is the new ‘go to place’ if you’re a parent, alumna, member of staff or Sixth Form student. Woldingham Community is so much more than just an online portal. It’s a great way to stay connected and be a part of the fantastic community that Woldingham is. Visit woldinghamcommunity.co.uk to register for access to all the social, informative and networking activities that our community offers. As a member

you could join one of our fun club events, including food and wine tasting, flower arranging or a Leiths bake along. We will continue to develop the services we offer through the portal over the coming months. So please help us to grow, as the more people who sign up and engage with our network, the more everyone will benefit.

Read Woldingham news

Support our careers programme

Find friends

Join a club or interest group

Book event tickets

Attend talks, lectures or watch virtually

Support the Woldingham School Foundation

View our photo gallery

54 Community Hub

Access Classlist and WPSA information, WSHA and much more…

Community Hub

DATES FOR THE DIARY Networking Breakfast - Part 1

Panel Event

Tuesday 16 November 2021, 8.00am, Woldingham School

Tuesday 18 January 2022, 7.30pm, via Zoom

Networking Breakfast - Part 2 Tuesday 23 November 2021, 8.00am, Woldingham School

WSHA Committee Meeting Thursday 3 March 2022, 6.30pm, via Zoom

Women and the Workplace

Panel Event

Tuesday 15 March 2022, Woldingham School

Tuesday 23 November 2021, 7.30pm, via Zoom

Old Girls’ Day

75th Anniversary Dinner Outdoor Education Centre Fundraiser

Sunday 15 May 2022, Woldingham School

Friday 26 November 2021, 7.00pm, Woldingham School

Thursday 9 June, 6.30pm, via Zoom/Woldingham School

Carol Service Monday 6 December 2021, 2.00pm, Westminster Cathedral

Foundation Day Mass Wednesday 8 December 2021, 2.00pm, Woldingham School

56 Dates for the diary

WSHA Committee Meeting & AGM

For more information, to access a recording of a talk or event, or if you would be interested in participating as a speaker at one of our careers events, please contact community@woldinghamschool.co.uk

CHAIR’S

WELCOME It is always such a pleasure to be invited to write this introduction to the WSHA pages of the Woldingham Magazine and send greetings to everyone in the Woldingham community. Yet again, it has been another challenging year, dominated by all things COVID. ‘Pandemic life’ has been incredibly tough. However, I think every one of us should be incredibly proud of the resilience shown in the face of such unprecedented circumstances, and how quickly we have adapted and learned new skills and developed new ways and means of studying, working, living – even my Dad can FaceTime now! And as I write this – even though there will, no doubt, be bumps in the road ahead – there is light at the end of the tunnel: ‘in person’ meetings, holidays and, most importantly, hugs are already back on the agenda. ‘Virtual hugs’ were the order of the day at this year’s Old Girls’ Day, which took place back in May, via Zoom. Despite not being able to meet together ‘in person’, a super afternoon was had by all, catching up on news and exchanging reminiscences. And even though the clinking sound of charging our glasses of prosecco together in a toast to Woldingham had to be manufactured, the virtue of this method of meeting meant that there were alumnae in attendance from all over the world – there were some of us that hadn’t seen each other since leaving school, ~ahem~ years ago!

We were also treated to a sneak peek at some of the exciting developments planned for Woldingham’s future. See more news of these in this magazine. Please also keep an eye on your inboxes for news of forthcoming WSHA events – whether these will be virtual or ‘live’ is in limbo for now, but I am hopeful that it won’t be too long before we can meet together again. There are already plans afoot for more alumnae business networking seminars; mentoring and careers events held in conjunction with the school; and, of course, lots of social events. In closing, I’d like to take this opportunity to give my thanks to the committee for its valued time and support this year, and to the office team of Katie and Camilla for their invaluable efforts on behalf of WSHA. And on behalf of the alumnae and past staff, I extend my thanks to all at the school for continuing to allow us to remain a part of the wonderful Woldingham community. With my very best wishes to you and your families, Ms Jenny Coote WSHA Chair

WSHA Chair’s welcome

WSHA LEAVERS’ SCHOLARSHIPS

Rosie Miller A year into my university studies, a lot has changed since I left Woldingham so unexpectedly in March 2020. Initial plans for a historically-orientated trip to Amsterdam were quickly stymied by lockdown regulations; my scholarship funding was forcibly put on hold as I journeyed to St Andrews instead. However, as is so often the case with these scenarios, a silver lining quickly emerged. Early into my studies I discovered a new-found fascination with history of art, particularly that of Early Modern/Renaissance Italy. Not only did this prompt a transferral of my degree, but additional funding in the form of the university’s O E Saunders prize provided ample foundations for a reimagined itinerary.

58 WSHA leavers’ scholarships

It was in this context that I travelled to northern Italy this summer, with trips to the historic cities of Siena and Verona informing a vivid and diverse insight into Italian visual culture. The vast scale and meticulous attention to detail endemic to Italian craftsmanship was incredibly moving to witness first-hand, particularly in the wake of online teaching. Significantly, the trip also grounded my cultural understanding of the Veneto region where – all going to plan – I hope to undertake a semester abroad in my third year of study. I am indebted to WSHA for facilitating my expedition through its generosity; hopefully, my experience will inspire others to expand their cultural horizons as they, too, set foot from the valley in years to come.

Charlotte Alexander Despite the impact of COVID during the 2020-2021 academic year, I can honestly say I have been enamoured by the University of Birmingham and the quality of teaching I have received as a biochemistry student. While much of my learning took place online, I used a portion of the WSHA leaver’s scholarship money to purchase some of the key textbooks I will use across the three years of my degree. These have been and continue to be extremely useful. I have made many amazing friends, and I am loving the start of my second year. It is currently my intention to apply to graduate medicine, following my degree in biochemistry. I continue to pursue my athletics ambitions, and this summer I ran the European U20

Athletics qualifying standards for both the 5000m and 3000m in my first two races of the season. Unfortunately, I was unable to compete at the European Championships since I picked up an injury in the weeks prior to the event. Thankfully, I am now back to fitness, and I am looking to qualify for the European Cross-Country Championships in December. The remaining money from the WSHA leavers’ scholarship I am putting towards a university training weekend in the Peak District in October, in preparation for the European Cross-Country trials. I am hugely grateful for the support offered by the scholarship, and I look forward to all the opportunities that may come my way as a result.

WSHA leavers’ scholarships

WOLDINGHAM TALKS AND

ALUMNAE EVENTS

We are hugely grateful to all those involved in our fantastic I Love Woldingham Giving Week in December. What an amazing community achievement. We received hundreds of personal donations, large and small, more than 90 people took part in our virtual quiz, there were 12 separate fundraising initiatives and a Double Donations Day The total amount of donations received during Giving Week was £33,405, which equates to more than one year’s bursary.

Alumnae around the world get together for Old Girls’ Day Virtual Old Girls’ Day in May took place via Zoom with Mass streamed from the Woldingham chapel, led by Fr Gerry, followed by a welcome and update from Dr Whitehead. We then arranged breakout rooms for different year groups to catch up with each other which all culminated in one big chat room of memories shared at the end.

60 Alumnae events

It was wonderful that so many overseas alumnae could join us this time due to the day being online. Glasses of wine on Menorcan terraces, guests from the Netherlands, France and it was 1am by the end for one dedicated alumna who dialled in from New Zealand! Thank you to all our alumnae for your support of our virtual events this year. We have decided that hybrid events are the way forward, so wherever possible we will create simultaneous virtual and live opportunities for our alumnae to stay in touch with Woldingham and each other.

Woldingham Talks

Careers in Property

The Woldingham Talks series for 2020-2021 was hugely successful. Under our ‘working lunch’ title Sarah Scholefield, Global CEO of Grayling Communications, (alumna and current parent) spoke with passion and enthusiasm about careers in the communication sector and achieving success in the workplace at the first of our Woldingham Talks for the year. Sarah used recent case studies, including Marcus Rashford’s poverty campaigning and Greggs’ vegan sausage roll launch, to make her talk relevant to the audience of Sixth Formers and staff. Sarah also explained how communication has evolved throughout her career and can offer fantastic opportunities for students with a wide variety of skill bases and interest areas. ‘In conversation with’ talks, where alumnae undergraduate and postgraduate students are interviewed (remotely at the moment) by a member of staff about their chosen subject, course and university life proved very popular. The talks were a wonderful opportunity for students to get fresh advice – and the benefit of hindsight - from people who understand exactly the position they’re in. Thank you to our alumnae who each shared their individual experiences and to the staff who interviewed them live.

The enthusiasm and enjoyment of working in the field of property came through loud and clear from our guest speakers in our first career panel event of 2021, part of the Woldingham Talks series, on Tuesday 9 February. Woldingham parent Matthew Arnold and alumnae Anna Bond (1999), Natalie Orde (2009) and Emily Oliver (2011) shared plenty of insights into a sector that perhaps isn’t as well known to our students as others, but clearly has a lot to offer.

Women in STEM – panel Our expert guest speakers’ love of science and its practical application to improve life for individuals and the wider, even global, community, came through loud and clear in the second of this term’s careers panel events on Tuesday 11 May. The panels are part of a programme of events and activities for the wider Woldingham community to come together to support each other and provide insight and advice to ensure students thrive in their lives after school. We will run the varied and informative Woldingham Talks programme throughout this academic year, so if you would be willing to participate in any of the different genres of talks and events, please do get in touch at community@woldinghamschool.co.uk

Alumnae events

NEWS FROM THE PROVINCES By Sister Monica McGreal Over much of the past year, as restrictions made necessary by the COVID pandemic remained in place, various forms of technology have been indispensable in enabling communication between members of the Province and throughout the Society. It has brought us together for a variety of purposes, from meetings large and small, to celebrations and prayer. In this way we marked the Feasts of Saints Madeline Sophie and Philippine Duchesne and the Society’s 220th birthday. Two links that arrived daily, came in the form of emails sent by Sisters Margaret Wilson and Sheila McNamara. Margaret’s brought a photograph, graphically marking the passing of the Seasons, whilst Sheila’s was a quotation or reflection aptly mirroring the current experiences, we were all sharing. On 21 March we received news that Sister Marion Charley had died, peacefully, during the early hours of the morning. Marion had spent some years working for our Sisters in Venezuela and Sister Catherine Lloyd, the Provincial, phoned them asking for their prayer during Marion’s final hours.

In March, a letter from the Central Team, addressed the uncertainty around being able to hold the Special Chapter – a gathering of delegates representing each Province. They wrote: “This is a time to live in faith, trust and openness, of heart, mind and will with a deep desire that ‘something new will happen’ for the sake of our world.” Three months later, by early June, decisions had been made. The Special Chapter was to be held online due to the continued uncertainty about travelling. The Central Team wrote:- “…our goals remain the same, though life has interfered with our planning. Given the enormity of the pandemic and the impact it has had on our world and our lives, in a strange way this is an important moment to listen to The Spirit speaking in life as we journey together into our future, more aware of our suffering world and its needs…” The message is reflected in the prayer for the work of the Special Chapter: “Spirit, Creator, You make all things new. Go ahead of us on the way. Light up the way we look at things, make us able to see The way you are acting in us, in the others and in the world.”

This is a time to live in faith, trust and openness, of heart, mind and will with a deep desire that ‘something new will happen’ for the sake of our world.

62 News from the provinces

SOPHIE O’DELL FROM STUDENT

TO STAFF

I have been asked so many times what it feels like returning to Woldingham as a teacher after leaving as a student. I can truly say it has been a delight to be back. Every graduate feels nervous in their first job, but these emotions have been eased by stepping back into the friendly Woldingham environment. In addition, becoming the Spanish language assistant has enabled me to start my career using my Spanish language skills every day, and I can guide students from my own experience at Woldingham. I left Woldingham in 2017, and I remember it being a very emotional time. I had made some beautiful friendships and many memories, including being Marden Ribbon, and going on the Spanish exchange. Following Woldingham, I went to the University of Southampton, where I studied Spanish with Italian. Initially, I missed Woldingham a lot because it was very different. There was more independence, and the studying was a lot harder. However, as time went on, I continued to grow up and took the work in my stride. I studied very interesting modules looking into Latin American countries, the role of women in Spanish and Latin American cultural productions, and the science behind language learning.

In my third year of university, I embarked on my year abroad to Valencia, where I was an intern at Nathalie Language Experiences, a language academy in a tiny village on the outskirts of the city. Starting this experience was very challenging, saying goodbye to family, friends and home comfort. It was time to create a new life abroad. However, following tears at Gatwick, I adapted quickly, making local friends, and adjusted to speaking Spanish every day whilst living in a new place. I even learnt how to salsa and attended weekly classes. Unfortunately, my year abroad ended sooner than I had expected, abruptly being told to get a flight home because Spain was closing its borders in fear of a new virus spreading. I didn’t have time to say goodbye to everyone, neither did I get one last walk in the city. Instead, I had two suitcases containing everything I owned and shed many tears as I flew home. Looking back, I can now say it was the best experience ever and, to this day, I still reminisce frequently. The challenges continued in my final year of university as it was announced that we would be studying from home. I had never imagined studying in a pandemic and what made this more complex was the search for a job. When I saw the advertisement for Woldingham, it was the perfect opportunity to apply and for me a chance to give back to the community which helped me grow and attend university. My role as a Spanish Language Assistant is to carry out weekly Spanish conversation classes with Year 11, Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth students and help them prepare for their public examinations. Having been in the same shoes as the students, I can help provide top tips to get them through the exams and even help them understand what it means to study for a language degree. Doing this job has also highlighted how far I have come and how time flies.

From student to staff

SACRED HEART UPDATE

During the last academic year the Sacred Heart student reps have continued to work on developing awareness of the goals of the sacred heart amongst their peers. Through weekly meetings via Teams the reps met from across the corners of the globe, with students joining from places such as Colchester, Thailand and Hong Kong. Our Sacred Heart Ribbon for last year, Ching, needs special mention as she chaired the student reps meeting from her home in Hong Kong. She also worked with Fr Gerry to ensure there were readers each week for Sunday Masses and coordinated the readers and servers for Whole School Masses. We are extremely grateful for the dedication and commitment to service that Ching gave to her role of Sacred Heart Ribbon, especially in the face of the challenges brought about by COVID. Due to the pandemic Ching can proudly hold the title of longest serving Sacred Heart Ribbon.

64 Sacred Heart update

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to carry out our usual visit to the Sisters of the Sacred Heart and Sacred Heart Primary School in Roehampton. We are very hopeful that we will be able to recommence our visits this academic year.

It has been a pleasure to be able to meet the reps in person with our new Sacred Heart Ribbon in post for this academic year. The Sacred Heart reps continue to help promote the living out of the Sacred Heart Goals within their own year groups. Adrian Ross, Sacred Heart Co-ordinator

HARRIET DOWNING 1990-2021

Harriet died at home in Woldingham surrounded by her family in August 2021, after having treatment for cancer for five years. She was diagnosed with a grade four brain tumour aged 27 and underwent endless treatments and surgeries with such fierce bravery. Harriet was a student at Woldingham from 2001-2008, along with her three sisters who attended the school between the years 1992-2010. Living on the school drive, technically the school’s neighbour, the valley was school as well as home for the Downing family. Harriet loved school, and was very close to many Woldingham friends, hosting their 10 year reunion in 2018. In Sixth Form, she could be found in the art block, biology lab or economics hut, and was House Captain of her beloved Barat.

After studying industrial economics at Nottingham University, Harriet went into a career in financial software sales. A natural saleswoman, she very quickly excelled, becoming the top UK saleswoman at the company where she worked, Investcloud. She came back to school in recent years for a careers fair, and also to talk about the Brain Tumour Charity at an assembly. Harriet was so passionate about raising funds for the Brain Tumour Charity, and together with her family, they have raised over £250,000 via the Harriet Downing fund. They will continue to raise vital funds for the charity for many years to come in Harriet’s memory. Harriet had a great impact on many lives, she had an infectious personality and determined spirit and will be hugely missed by her family and everyone who knew her. Bea Downing Harriet’s sister, Woldingham leaver 2010

Harriet Downing

ANNOUNCEMENTS Births

Engagements

Caz (née Butcher, 2004) and Nick Johnson welcomed the safe arrival of Kasey Gerry Johnson on 1 June 2021. A brother to Beauden.

Serena Baer (2010) became engaged in April to Alexander Irvine-Fortescue. She is a primary school teacher in London. Chloe Vosper (2013) has recently got engaged to Nicholas Cope and they are hoping to marry in 2022.

Kasey Gerry Johnson Nicola (née Freeman, 2005) and Alex Conway welcomed their daughter, Isabella Mary Conway, on 24 February 2021, a sister to Henry.

Chloe Vosper

Weddings Miranda Keymer (2006) married Major Charlie Turner on 19 October 2020 at St Peter’s Church, Limpsfield, Surrey Isabella Mary Conway Jonathan and Aurelia Hilsden (née Bromilow 2007) welcomed Josiah Timothy Hilsden on 6 May 2021 at 2.15am weighing 6lbs and 13oz. Josiah Timothy Hilsden

Miranda Keymer

66 Announcements

IN MEMORIAM

Margaret Magrath (née Cramer, 1945) died 28 April 2018 aged 90. She and her sister Susan Hatfield (née Cramer) went to Stanford Hall during the war while their older sister Priscilla had been at the Sacred Heart Roehampton before joining the Wrens. Their mother Agnes Cramer (née Thornton) and her seven sisters were all at Sacred Heart Roehampton. As legend relates, one day there was a postman who came to the gate with a letter for ‘Miss Thornton’. The Nun who opened the gate said “which Miss Thornton would that be? A quarter of the school is Miss Thorntons!” Margaret’s three daughters Marion (1980), Priscilla (1981) and Emma (1983) were at Woldingham School from 1973-1983. Margaret was very happily married to John Magrath for 50 years and was a fantastic mother of her two boys and three girls. She kept in touch with her many Catholic cousins including Sacred Heart Sisters April O’Leary and Mimi Goddard. Emma Maria Siese, (née Turner-Bridger, 1975) passed away in March 2020 after a long battle with breast cancer. Emma trained at St. Thomas’s London and went on to become a Theatre Sister at the Chelsea Hospital for Women, Queen Charlotte’s and latterly Nuffield Hospital Shrewsbury. She is survived by her husband Patrick and two daughters, Katie and Lizzie Siese.

Patricia Roney (née Wheatley, 1970) passed away on 27 September 2020 in a hospice in Clapham after a short and heroic battle with cancer. Sadly, due to COVID, she could not be surrounded by family when she died. She did, however, have the last rites read to her by her priest Father Stuart from St Mary’s, Cadogan St where she attended church regularly and was an active, well-liked and respected member of the parish, especially with her flower-arranging and choir that she organised. Patricia really enjoyed her years with her sisters, Antonia Hoogewerf (née Wheatley, 1968) and Nicky Wheatley (1973) at Woldingham and would tell stories of how she used to get up to all sorts of mischief! She made some fantastic lifelong friends such as Georgina Mellows (1970), Inky Gray (1970), Jane Archer (1970) and many more. Her positive outlook, energy and zest for life is already hugely missed by all who knew her including her daughter Alex Urquhart (née Burt, 1995), sons Charlie and James, and her husband Richard Roney. Amanda Inchbald (1977) died on 26 November 2020. She started at Marden House in 1969 and left in 1975. Her mother started the Inchbald School of Design and is still alive.

In memoriam

Ann Birrell (née Foll, 1948) died on 18 August 2021 only a few days before her 90th birthday. Mother to Fiona Walford (née Birrell). Her niece, Sue Adams-Cairns (née Foll, 1971) also went to Woldingham.

Rosemary Lady Johnson-Ferguson Rosemary Lady Johnson-Ferguson (née Whitehead, 1959) passed away peacefully after a short illness at the Countess of Brecknock Hospice in Andover on 10 January 2021. She started at Woldingham as a day girl aged five in 1947 and had, in her words, an idyllic girlhood. Her mother Mary (née Crane) had been at Roehampton and her sister Nell and nieces are also Old Girls. She was a mad keen sportswomen at school playing tennis, hockey and cricket. She made many life long friends and established a long term relationship with the school. While she lived in Westerham in the 80s, she was very involved with the Old Girls’ Association and in organising dinner dances at the school. She will be sadly missed by her three sons and grandchildren.

In August 2021 Harriet Downing (2008) lost her battle with brain cancer. Harriet ‘Harry’ was so passionate about raising money and awareness through the Brain Tumour Charity and the family will continue this amazing fundraising for many years to come in Harriet’s memory. Harriet and her sisters Charlotte (2006), Beatrice (2010) and Kirsty (2013) all went to Woldingham and still live close in Marden Park. Please see article on page 65. Pamela Elletson (née Brown, 1945) passed away on 20 September 2021. Family and friends attended a funeral mass in Shaftesbury at the beginning of October. Condolences to the family of Edmund Gordon Piper. He passed away on 7 July aged 77. Loving husband of Laura and father of Ed, Roselind Marwaha (née Piper, 1991) and Felicity Odell (née Piper, 1995).

Anabel Donald (née Stockwell) died suddenly 30 March 2021. Anabel was a pupil at Woldingham in the 50s and 60s and a governor in the 1970s. Sarah Hughes (1991) died in April 2021 after a battle with cancer. Sarah leaves behind husband Kris and two children, Ruby and Oisin. Sarah was at Woldingham for A Levels and went on to be a journalist.

Sarah Hughes Lady Roy Forwood (née Murphy, 1944) passed away on 15 October 2021, aged 96.

68 In memoriam

Truda Weiler Truda Weiler (née Woollen, 1942) was born on 7 November 1926 and died 17 May 2020 aged 93. She and her sister Joan were home schooled until their mother died in 1938. They then went to the Sacred Heart at Roehampton including its evacuation to Newquay and Stanford Hall. Truda (who always wanted to be called Truda rather than her actual name Gertrude) went on to study Classics at Newnham College Cambridge. Maureen Dunbar died peacefully on 31 May 2020 surrounded by family. Much loved mother of Simon, Richard, Catherine and Anna (née Dunbar, 1983), and beloved grandmother to her nine grandchildren. Rosemarie Blandy died 30 September 2020 after a long illness. Beloved mother of Andrew and Katrina (1991), grandmother to Edward, Jamie and Isabella.

This magazine is a carbon balanced publication, where the carbon impact of the production and materials has been balanced by the World Land Trust. It has been printed using vegan inks, biodegradable laminate, recyclable foil and packaged in a compostable potato starch wrapper.

Woldingham School, Marden Park, Woldingham, Surrey, CR3 7YA (for satellite navigation please use postcode CR3 7LR)

T: 01883 349431 E: info@woldinghamschool.co.uk www.woldinghamschool.co.uk