Head Boy’s Speech

Headmaster’s introduction

promote with our boys. There has been a greater and often more positive use of technology. And our boys have been remarkable, and learned how to be resilient, adaptable and fl exible. And I hope that boys appreciate the benefi ts of going through and learning from tough times. The pandemic also glaringly highlighted the importance of being present and together as we are today. Boys, staff and parents worked brilliantly together at remote and blended learning, but undoubtedly learning together, face-to-face and in person, is signifi cantly better, and we are enjoying it more than ever, and you can see it, hear it and feel it in the sheer energy, the will to live life to the full, and the laughter in every corridor and corner of the playground.

I hope you enjoy reading our review of the year.

WORDS BY Mr Ian Silk, Headmaster

George Knight

Head Boy

HEAD BOY’S SPEECH 2021

Headmasters, Governors, Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls welcome to Bedford Prep School today for our Speech Day. It’s an honour to be speaking to you today as Head Boy and also, as Mr Silk says, it’s such a pleasure for us all to be together again, in the Great Hall, to celebrate boys’ achievements.

I have really enjoyed the challenge of being Head Boy over the course of this year. One of my responsibilities is to set an example for the younger boys here at Bedford Prep School, which is why today I will be ensuring that I do not look at any of my friends, as I can guarantee that they will be trying to make me laugh!

This year has been packed with accomplishments, but I think it’s worth noting that this year has been so fulfi lling because we’ve had an uninterrupted year of schooling. We’ve once again been able to enjoy being together in the classroom and on the sports fi eld. It’s been wonderful to feel the sense of community and camaraderie that can only really be achieved face to face. Who would have thought that young boys, when given a choice, would actually choose to get up at the crack of dawn and come into school!!

But come into school we did, with 100 new pupils, all ready to get stuck in, not just to academic learning, but to the enormous range of activities that our School offers. The sheer breadth of opportunities is astounding. There are almost 100 clubs, societies and ensembles and all boys are encouraged to try new things and fi nd new passions. During my time in the Prep School, I have taken part in everything from Steel Pans to Fives, from Board Games Club to playing “a tree” in the musical Baba Yaga!

The Bedford School ethos is to get involved and to challenge yourself to grow by trying new things, and Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work”. We’re certainly not afraid of hard work here and that leads to the successes we’re celebrating today.

Sport Sport has always been a huge part of life in the Prep School and this year, with a full calendar of competitive fi xtures returning, we savoured it all the more. Starting with rugby, and the return of contact, the U13s in particular having grown noticeably were eager to test out our new strength with some quality tackling. It was a great season for the U13As, only being bested by Caldicott School. The U12As and the U11As were both unbeaten all season, an incredible feat, which assures us that the future of Prep School rugby is really looking bright.

In the Spring Term we moved to 7s, played by Years 7 and 8. The U12s and U13s took part in many tournaments including the major events at Warwick and Rosslyn Park, providing a great learning experience for this much faster paced game.

Our major sport in the Spring Term is of course hockey and all years were busy on the Astro, honing their skills. Bedford was lucky enough to be the host for IAPS hockey regionals in both the U11 and U13 competitions. Perhaps the home advantage helped, as both teams did very well and progressed to the National tournaments. The U11s had a tough draw on the Finals Day and despite playing with heart, they had to be content with the group stages.

The U13s travelled to Haileybury and after some exciting matches fi nished the day in the play off for third / fourth position. We were determined to come home with some silverware and had to win this match. It went to extra time, and a superb golden goal from Rory Stewart Jones clinched the Bronze Medals and a podium fi nish!

In the summer term our efforts turned towards Cricket. All years were in action and raring to go, providing another successful season. The 1st XI had a good run in the IAPS tournament, progressing to the semi-fi nal stages up in York. Sadly we had to be content with 4th place, but a fun night away in the Premier Inn was had by all!

Other standout performances this year include:

The U13 table tennis team, who are county champions.

The U13 Cross- Country team, who put in some superb runs to come 2nd overall in IAPS national competition. Well done to Charlie Gandesha, Isaac Raddan, Berkeley Barnicoat and Henry Pask on those silver medals.

Year 8 enjoyed taking part in the Athletics League alongside Bedford Girls’ School this summer, and in the recent district fi nals, the boys were victorious in a nail-biting fi nish which came down the relay races. The fi rst time in the event’s history that Bedford Prep School has won!

Badminton continues to be a real strength

Advik Mishra

Deputy Head Boy Deputy Head Boy

Deputy Head Boy

2021 2022

Head Boy’s Speech 2021

here at the Prep School. Continuing a long history of national success, the U13s had not one, but two, successful teams represented at IAPS nationals. Many congratulations to Josh George and Ben Maddaford on their Bronze Medals and to Leo Mathew and Jack Down who claimed runner up position and brought home the silver.

There have also been successes in swimming, with 9 boys from the U11, U12 and U13 age groups taking part in the recent IAPS Swimming Championships at the London Aquatic Centre. Ben Maddaford and Olly Meier both coming 9th in the country for 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle respectively. Berkeley Barnicoat achieved a spectacular 2nd place in the 50m breaststroke.

All relay teams and individual swimmers achieved faster times than they qualified in, an incredible achievement. Music

Turning to music and drama, this year provided a welcome return to live in-person performance. We are blessed to have amazing performance spaces here and these were once again brimming with the energy and excitement of live performance.

Music has always been a key part of the life of a Bedford School boy, supported by a fantastic team of teachers and visiting music professionals who develop each boy’s talents. 45 percent of boys at Bedford Prep School are learning to play one of 25 different instruments. They can take part in 22 varied ensembles and come together to perform as the Prep School orchestra. These skills were on display at the superb Autumn and Summer concerts, featuring Harry Brown, Charlie Gibson and Aryan Sohanpal.

Although sadly House Singing wasn’t able to go ahead this year, we were able to come together in the Chapel for our marvellous Carol Services, which definitely pleased my mum, as she says, “it makes Christmas, Christmas”!

Drama Drama this year has been equally amazing; we are lucky to be able to draw on the talents of many able young actors, with over 80 of our boys gaining a 1st, 2nd or 3rd place at the Bedfordshire Festival. We have been treated to a workshop with the Royal Shakespeare Company, to inspire Years 7 and 8 for their Shakespeare Monologue competition.

This was won by Aryan Sohanpal in Year 8 and Nathaniel Fletcher in Year 7. The younger boys also got involved with their poetry recitation. Every single boy takes part, developing their public speaking and performance skills.

The Quarry Theatre, Bedford School’s very own working theatre, was host to a superb production of “Wow, what a year”, the first musical for a few years. It was an all-singing, alldancing performance, enjoyed by audiences and performers alike.

House Drama took place a few weeks ago, in a completely new and different way, with the whole school coming off timetable, to create a play in a day. Every boy in the house was assigned a role from catering and set design to marketing and acting. It was an amazing day and the standard of the productions were top notch. The winners were Howard, but congratulations to all involved.

Another important feature of the Houses is to raise money for their chosen charities, which we did this year in very diverse ways, from Howard’s Silly Walking to Bunyan’s Ultra Challenge and Harpur’s bowl off to Whitbread’s 5k goal. Overall, a tremendous sum of over £12,000 has been raised for the 4 charities. In this Platinum Jubilee year we are reminded of the importance of service to our communities and this is at the heart of our School’s culture.

And so Year 8’s time at Prep School is all but over, and we look back fondly at our experiences here. Some of us started as tiny 7 year olds, completely over-awed by the sheer size of the Estate, and some of those Year 8 boys – surely they weren’t only 13 years old? However long or short our time here, we have all had the incredible privilege to be Bedford Prep School boys and we take the lessons that we have learned forward into the Upper School.

We have been treated to a memorable finish to our time here in the form of the post-exam programme. An amazing few weeks, filled with talks, life skill sessions, Come Dine With Me events and the fantastic Bushcraft Trip, where we discovered that Mrs Bowis is adept with archery, however as Mrs Loader pointed out she has an unfair advantage as she already has a ‘bow’ in her name! A particular thanks must go to Mrs Loader for organising all of these events and for her super negotiating skills, having rescued the Bushcraft Trip from the jaws of disaster – we should send her to the UN!

This morning is all about celebrating the many achievements of our boys, both academic and outside of the classroom, and a special congratulations to the prize winners today. However, none of this would be possible without the enormous efforts of our teachers and staff. They put in so much time and effort and are so dedicated to helping us achieve our full potential. Our successes are a reflection of their hard work, so I would ask all of Year 8 to join me in giving all of the Prep School staff a huge round of applause.

So it just remains for me to thank my fellow Year 8s, I feel very proud to be part of such an impressive group of lads. In particular I’d like to thank the prefects and deputy head boys, Josh and Advik, for all their hard work and support over the course of this year. We’ve really enjoyed being at the top of the school, so it’s about time for us to experience being at the bottom again!

Let’s approach this new chapter with energy and enthusiasm, prepared as we are from our time here in the Prep School. For as that not so well known philosopher Arnold Schwarzenegger has pointed out, “You can’t climb the ladder of success with your hands in your pockets”. So, let’s grab all the opportunities on offer next year and start climbing that ladder.

Thank you everyone for listening

Y8 Rugby

We have all had the incredible privilege to be Bedford Prep School boys and we take the lessons that we have learned forward into the Upper School