The Boltonian 2024

Boltonian 2024 THE

Editor: Miss K.S. Wrathmell

School Notes

Review of the Year 2023-24

It would be impossible to look back on the 202324 academic year without referencing the visit of a team of ISI inspectors in February. The team arrived at the School during one of the coldest, wettest weeks of the year, where the Bolton climate gave them all a true taste of the North West including rain, sleet and snow. Despite the inclement weather, the Inspection team found a culture of high expectations, mutual support, inclusivity and tolerance throughout the school community. The Inspection team were impressed by the students’ academic progress and their ability to think critically as well as the Schools’ excellent pastoral care. The one-word judgments no longer exist, but the inspectors found a ‘significant strength’, an accolade reserved for only the very best of practice, in the development of pupils’ character and resilience, especially through our Outdoor Learning and Extra-curricular programmes. I know this recognition will resonate with many of you as you look back on your own school days with fond memories of the various treks and camps.

awards in the various science Olympiads and the UKMT Maths Challenges. We have had two winners in the Anthea Bell Translation Competition that was organised by Queen’s College, Oxford and our first ever Gold Award in the UK Linguistics Olympiad. And, whilst on the subject of firsts, our Senior Quiz team won the National Plate competition, making us National quiz champions for the very first time.

The Class of ‘24 have once again secured excellent results and they head off to university, degree apprenticeship courses and into employment as our most recent alumni. It has been another good year for students moving onto their desired destinations including more enrolments in overseas universities including the United States and even one student who was successful in securing their place to study animation in Paris. Nationally, the number of top grades awarded at GCSE fell, but our students once again bucked the national trend, and we saw a significant increase in the number of boys achieving top grades in all their subjects. The excellent results are a testament to the hard work of all the staff in school, who give so much to help the students realise their full potential, as well as the resilience and self-discipline of the students themselves. The students always embrace the opportunities for academic enrichment, and it was pleasing to see so many achieve Gold, Silver or Bronze

Outside of the classroom, it has once again been a fantastic year of activity out on the Levels, in the pool and across a wide variety of sporting arenas. Our cricketers played in two Lancashire Schools Cricket finals, losing one to MGS, but sharing the other, making us joint champions. Keshana Fonseka made his England Under 19 Cricket debut and has opened the batting for Lancashire, making him the deserved winner of the Hindley Trophy for the most outstanding sportsman. Our footballers once again made it to three Town Cup finals, but, this year, they ended their run of bad luck and secured two trophies, with the Under 12s scoring over 30 goals en route to the trophy. The Under 13s and Under 14s had a successful tour to Portugal, where they won all their matches against local teams. Rugby continues to grow in popularity, with 222 boys representing the School, playing over 70 fixtures and competition matches. The Under 13 and Under 14 boys enjoyed a good tour to Bath and the Under 13 and Under 15 teams both won their respective 7s tournaments. The 1st XV got to the Semi-final of the National Bowl, losing with the last kick of the game to Nottingham High School. In Water polo, the Under 15s were once again the National Plate winners and the Under 18s finished fourth in their national competition.

School Hockey continues to thrive, with our Under 16s representing Lancashire in the North West regional competition. The growth and success of School Hockey is down to Mr. Robson who, after spending 28 years leading the sport in school, has decided the time is right to hand over the reins to Mr. Foy. I know many of you will enjoy the feature on Mr. Robson and Hockey in this edition of The Boltonian

In December, our Senior production of ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ skilfully interwove the classic Jules Verne story with the reallife exploits of Nellie Bly, the woman who pioneered investigative journalism, who re-enacted the trip in 72 days. The production was excellent, featuring clever set design and film sequences, and the cast were superb in their roles. The musical production of ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ was equally as impressive as it captured perfectly the humour and dark undertones of the original. At Easter, our Senior Concert Band performed at the ‘nationals’ at the Royal Northern College of Music as part of the National Concert Band Festival in their prestigious concert hall. The band once again received a Gold Award, a fantastic achievement in a competition that features many professional bands.

The vast range of activity within the school is captured in this edition of The Boltonian and every page demonstrates the enduring ethos of the Boys’ Division. This ethos ensures boys are able to find their passions, to develop lifelong friendships and achieve their academic potential. At a time when there is much discussion on the future of independent schools, I remain focused on continuing the longestablished traditions and maintaining this ethos so that Bolton School continues to nurture future leaders and young men that will give back to their communities.

School Notes

At Prizegiving, I reflected on the challenges facing the School in 1976 with the removal of Direct Grants and the decision at the time to become an independent school. The leaders at the time said that the School would have to consider carefully what it did and how it did it to ensure it was valued by the public. School leaders were aware of the need to keep the school affordable for the broadest range of parents and they began a fundraising campaign to ensure the School remained socially inclusive. These principles remain true today, and we are committed to remaining affordable and socially inclusive so that the broadest range of students can benefit from all the opportunities showcased within these pages.

Mr. N.L. Ford Head of Boys’ Division

Foundation Head – Review of the Year

It is a pleasure in my current role to watch from a little more distance as Boys’ Division develops, building on our enduring ethos and adapting to reflect the changing world.

This year, we had set out to reiterate some of the basics of school life in terms of good working habits, courteous and decent behaviour as part of a large community and engagement with all aspects of what it is to be at Bolton School: in the classroom, clubs and societies, trips and visits and community engagement. This was essentially our last step towards ‘normal’ life following Covid times, and I am pleased to report it has been terrifically successful. The sense of purpose from my colleagues and the boys has been evident as you can see in the pages here in The Boltonian.

School Notes

It is important that the School is well connected with Bolton and also seen to be a leading independent school. This is especially important during this moment when the purpose and status of independent education is once again under question. Bolton School is widely seen nationally to be an example of an independent school doing what it should do: supporting its community, being as inclusive as possible through careful fee control and through a bursary programme and engaged in purposeful partnership work impacting all the young people in Bolton. This matters to the independent sector, but it also matters to current pupils. They can be proud to be part of school that itself seeks to make a difference for good, just as they will when they move on from here to adult life.

The great strength of our school is that we have a very clear sense of our place in the local landscape of education, we know what we stand for and that permeates all that we do. There can be no better place than The Boltonian to see first-hand how the talents and enthusiasm of boys and staff alike align in such a range of activity and endeavour, both in and out of the classroom.

Mr. P.J. Britton

Valete – Mr. Chris Walker

Chris Walker joined Bolton School in 1987 as a teacher in the Physics Department, after graduating from Manchester University with a degree in Physics. It was not long before he threw himself wholeheartedly into the life of the school and he soon appeared on stage in the staff production of Shakespeare’s ‘Twelfth Night’, though his true creative passion was the music for many of the other shows and musicals, including ‘Miss Saigon’ and ‘We Will Rock You’. He had so much fun with the Music staff during these productions that he would be asked to play the organ for full assemblies, where he could showcase his keyboard skills, perhaps channelling his inner Rick Wakeman.

Most pupils, in the last few years, will have listened to the Christmas lunch band. What they probably don’t know is this tradition was started by Chris along with another colleague, Chris Pownall – it was originally played as an accordion duet, and it has now developed into a full band playing Christmas songs with enthusiastic vocal support from the boys!

When Chris first arrived at Bolton School, Mike Whitmarsh, the then Head of Technology, had just started running the A Level Technology course and needed someone to teach the electronics content for just two periods per week. He willingly jumped at this opportunity and, over the years, he taught more and more Technology, and less and less Physics.

As the electronics content of the courses grew, it was clear it could be taught as a discrete subject and so Chris was made Co-ordinator of Electronics, and Electronics as an A Level subject became a thing; later, the GCSE was introduced and has continued to be a popular option ever since. In addition to running the Electronics courses, he was also heavily into the pastoral life of the school, being appointed Third Year Blockmaster (Head of Year 9 as it is known today), continuing to help boys through this tricky stage for many years.

When Mike Whitmarsh retired, Chris was appointed Head of Technology and set about rebranding the department as Design, Technology and Engineering to promote its importance in supporting students setting their sights on an engineering career.

Over his 37-year career at Bolton School, he has been involved in many activities, some in the department and others clearly not. He ran the Boys’ Swimming team for ten years as Co-ordinator of Swimming, and instigated the Bolton School Fastwater Meet, where the swimmers raced to disco music and lights. In addition, he got

lots of enjoyment from supporting the Outdoor Pursuits provision, accompanied the Trans-Scotland canoe expedition three times and helped lead a group of students to the Himalayan summit of Stok Kangri. Of course, there were regular visits to the School’s Lake District bases in Cautley, Robin Cottage and, latterly, Patterdale Hall; he has also helped to lead the Year 8 Saundersfoot Camp for 35 years! He even trained as a coach driver along with Peter Humphrey in order to keep the trip running, when transport became an issue.

School Notes

ICT activities in their lessons. She trained a generation of staff to use email, spreadsheets and word processors, and was part of the team that developed the School’s intranet and its presence on the internet.

Back in the department, he had lots of fun with robotics, appearing with students on two seasons of BBC Technogames, Northwest tonight and the Richard and Judy Show, where “Daisy” famously crunched the end of Richard Madeley’s finger; that’s what you get when you stick your fingers in a set of gears. He was also heavily involved in the launch of a capsule via a high-altitude balloon. This reached an impressive height of almost 33,000 metres or 20.5 miles. This is considered to be ‘near space’, bringing back stunning photos with the Bolton School in Space project. We don’t mention the fact that he had to ask the RAF for his balloon back as it had returned to earth inside RAF Barnham – a chemical and nuclear weapons facility back in the Cold War! Luckily, the guard on duty that day was from Bury so didn’t think this request was particularly unusual.

Chris’ final achievement is to pull off the near perfect ‘Bolton School Retirement’ by retiring from Boys’ Division one day and reappearing the next ready for work in Park Road. He is working there for the next couple of years before finally putting away the chalk for good. He is missed by staff and pupils in the Senior School; our loss is Park Road’s gain. We wish him well as he ventures into the future.

Mr. G.J. Butchart

Valete – Mrs. Elisa Fielding

Elisa joined Boys’ Division in 1999, when Information Technology was in its infancy at Bolton School. Originally appointed in a non-teaching role, Elisa played a key part in the implementation of ICT throughout the School. She helped departments to incorporate ICT into their schemes of work and supported staff in the delivery of

Old Boys around the age of 40 will recall that ICT lessons were at the time, delivered by staff from various departments: David Watson (Chemistry), Eric Dawber (Physics) and Hugo Schenk (German) amongst others. Soon, Elisa was delivering lessons too and she was encouraged by the School to study for her teaching qualification, which she did (whilst raising her two young daughters) and by 2008, she was a full time teacher of ICT. By now, there was an academic ICT department led by Peter Humphrey. Elisa taught ICT and became the department’s KS3 Coordinator.

In her youth, Elisa was a competitive ballroom dancer and got involved in amateur theatre (a hobby she still enjoys today) and she shared her skills and experience with students when she worked with the Music and Drama departments to put on the School’s joint musical productions. Many Old Boys and Girls will share fond memories of ‘Grease’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘Les Misérables’, ‘The Sound of Music’, ‘Little Shop of Horrors’, ‘West Side Story’ and ‘Miss Saigon’, to name but a few of our shows which benefitted from her talent as a choreographer. Unphased by the difficulties presented by the pandemic, students were still able to display their talents when Elisa co-ordinated and produced an online musical review of songs from the shows.

Elisa also ran the Strictly Dance Club every Friday lunchtime, and many parents will remember seeing the pupils showing off what they had learned at the tea dance in the Arts Centre that was often a feature of Open Morning in October. She even persuaded several staff to compete in a Strictly Come Dancing evening at Bolton School in front of a paying audience!

An individual with boundless energy and determination, Elisa has also taught Sport lessons and managed to qualify as a yoga instructor whilst working full time in Boys’ Division. Once again, she shared these skills with the boys at the lunchtime Yoga Club, and staff have enjoyed yoga workshops as part of staff wellbeing sessions.

For 25 years at Bolton School, Elisa has been a very popular and well-respected member of the Common Room, and she will be missed dearly by Boys’ Division staff. However, we are glad to know we will see her regularly, as her new post is only minutes away in the Girls’ Division where she will be teaching GCSE and A Level Computing.

Good luck!

Mr. P. Costello

School Notes

Valete – Mr. Hamish Brown

HOpen Day, it was found that his culinary efforts can be inconsistent, with notable fluctuations between under-baking and over-baking. Also, his desk looks like a battlefield…

amish Brown joined the History Department at Bolton School as a newly qualified teacher in September 2014. He spent the first few weeks of his time here on crutches, not as the result of any kind of mishap or initiation rite, but because he had undergone serious knee surgery over the summer. Things are tough enough when beginning a new profession in a new environment, but it was an early indication of Hamish’s personality that he battled through with stoicism and good humour, quickly establishing himself amongst the boys and in the Common Room.

Hamish has been excellent company over the last decade. He is a History teacher out of the classic mould – well read, argumentative, a spinner of yarns, mildly suspicious of data and technology, cynical with a tinge of romanticism, approachable but stands for no nonsense. His interests constitute a very broad church indeed – at any given moment you might find him caught up with contemporary British party politics, debating the best scene in Top Gun, swapping book recommendations, discussing lesser-known episodes of Scottish or African history or predicting the outcome of the latest season of RuPaul’s Drag Race. Socially, whether amongst friends or with people that he’s only just met, Hamish has the ability to get the conversation flowing and put people at their ease. This is a real gift, and this combination of being both interesting and interested lies at the heart of the excellent relationships that he has built with the boys as well.

Hamish has been an effective and popular teacher, inspiring many pupils to achieve excellent results and to take the subject on to higher levels. He brilliantly organised the biennial visit to the First World War battlefields and has led numerous other field trips to castles and museums. Beyond the History Department, his talents were soon recognised. He was appointed Head of Chorley House in September 2016. In 2017, he became HPQ Co-ordinator and since 2018 has held Head of Year posts in Years 8-11.

Having quickly recovered from the knee surgery, he went on to play an active role in School Sport for many years, leading teams in both Rugby and Cricket, where his ability to guide and improve players was noted. In Rugby, he would often take teams new to the sport and develop and inspire them. As Head of Chorley House, he led the boys to a Lyde Cup Victory in 2018, the only time since 2015 that Blackburn have not been the winners.

In the interests of balance, however, it is important to make note of Hamish’s foibles. Given the task of providing the Anzac biscuits for the History Department’s annual ‘Historical Cake Challenge’ for

In spite of this, we are really sorry to lose Hamish to the other side of the Pennines; it has been lovely to witness the joy that he clearly derives from his young daughters, but it was clear that the commute was becoming intolerable. We wish him and his family all the very best for the future.

Miss S.V. Burgess

Valete – Mrs. Jacinta Johnson

As Mrs. Johnson concludes her distinguished career as an exceptional English teacher at Bolton School

Boys’ Division, her profound impact on students and colleagues is clear. With an unmatched passion for literature and language, she had a unique ability to bring texts to life. Through dramatic readings and creative use of props, she ignited imaginations and inspired a love for learning that resonated for years to come. Her Literary favourites, including Orwell’s Animal Farm and Shakespeare’s ‘The Merchant of Venice’, served as touchstones for lively discussions and critical thinking in the classroom.

Beyond the classroom, she fostered a vibrant community through her Scrabble Club, transforming a simple game into a spirited celebration of words and creativity. Her expertise in A Level English Language, particularly in the intriguing realm of Language Change, shaped students’ understanding and appreciation of the evolution of communication. A devoted admirer of linguistics, she held a special esteem for the “Linguist God”, David Crystal, whose insights further enriched her teaching.

Throughout her long and distinguished career across various schools, Mrs. Johnson has led with grace, guiding countless students and colleagues alike in previous roles, including her leadership of other English departments. Her commitment to excellence set a standard that will undoubtedly be felt for years to come.

As she embarks on a well-deserved retirement, Mrs. Johnson will look forward to spending time gardening and supporting her local amateur dramatics society. Her time will also be filled with time with her family, including her three talented and beautiful children. The indelible mark she leaves on the hearts and minds of her students is a testament to her dedication and passion for teaching. Though she will be dearly missed, her legacy will continue to inspire many.

Ms. J.Z. Sigrist

School Notes

Valete – Dr. Indi Tranter

IValete – Miss Katharine Roddy

ndi joined us in the autumn of 2016, initially to cover a period of long-term sick leave. She had previously taught at a number of independent and grammar schools in Greater Manchester including Bury Grammar School, where she worked with the other Dr. Yates! How lucky we were to gain such an experienced and committed teacher at a time of uncertainty. Indi quickly slotted into the team and so when a position became vacant, she was the natural fit to take up a permanent position with us. In her eight years in the Chemistry Department, she has taught all year groups from settling Year 7 boys into the routines of practical lessons through to preparing our highest achieving A Level students for competitive applications to Oxbridge. Indi is to her very core, a committed subject specialist. Her lessons are formed on a solid foundation of excellent subject knowledge and a deep understanding of the needs of the boys in her classes. She has held her students to extremely high standards, which they haven’t always initially appreciated! Despite this, when they look back with a mature eye, they very much value her relentless focus on getting the best from them. On hearing about Indi’s imminent retirement, a number of Sixth Form boys were overheard trying to hatch a plan to persuade her to stay because they wanted her to be their Year 13 teacher – there can be no better testimonial than that!

Beyond the classroom, Indi made many contributions to the ECA programme over the years, most recently co-chairing the popular Medicine, Science and Media Society, which has helped many boys to prepare for future careers in the medical sciences. She also ran CREST Club for a number of years, where she guided many boys through their extended investigations. Indi has enjoyed her visits to Patterdale and made firm friends with the team there. Together with her husband, she has volunteered on maintenance weekends as friends of Patterdale Hall and they are looking forward to continuing this in an active retirement. Indi will be missed by all of us, the staff and the boys. She has been a solid, supportive and knowledgeable colleague. We wish her well in her retirement and would like to remind her that nobody ever really leaves the BSBD Chemistry Department so we hope to see her again very soon!

Dr. K.L. Turner

Katharine joined Bolton School in 2019, and since then has made a huge impact not only as a dedicated languages teacher and Head of German, but also through sharing her passions for climbing and inclusion, equity and diversity.

Katharine is an inspirational teacher. Her dedication to her students and languages has been exceptional. Beyond teaching German and French, she has also led the Year 7 French Spelling Bee, Key Stage 4 French Cinema Club, assisted with the Year 7 Paris trip and, in her role as Head of the German Department, she has increased the popularity of the subject with a highly successful and oversubscribed Junior German Club, German film nights, and a football workshop, which was very well received by the boys. She also actively promoted the language via social media and created insightful and eye-catching displays. Further to this, she organised a highly successful trip to the Rhineland in 2023, which was enjoyed by pupils and staff alike.

Beyond languages, her passion for bouldering and climbing has been equally influential. Katharine has generously shared her expertise through climbing clubs and achieved her climbing instructor qualification in June 2021. As a result, more students have been able to experience climbing and develop their physical and social skills outside of the classroom.

Inclusion, equity and diversity have also been at the heart of Katharine’s work at Bolton School and she has really driven it forward with the pupils and staff. She has created pastoral resources highlighting forgotten female figures in history and has led whole staff CPD on how to positively engage boys in discussions about gender equality. She has also delivered numerous whole school assemblies on diversity and inclusion, which have been very powerful in driving the message of equality forward. Her contributions in the field have been widely recognised. She has published numerous articles, including in the TES and it is no wonder that she was commended for the New Teacher of the Year Award in 2021 from Bolton News. She continues to actively spread her insights at conferences such as at the University of Manchester and other educational establishments beyond our school.

We thank her for everything that she has done for the pupils, the MFL Department and the School as a whole and we wish her all the best on her travels.

Mrs. M.A. Lapinskas

School Notes

New appointments to the staff

September 2024 saw a number of changes to the Staff Common Room. Mr. P.J. Newbold has been appointed as Assistant Head (co-curricular and professional development). Miss H. Tunstall has been appointed Foundation Special Project Leader leading careers and character education. Mr. C. Coffey has been appointed Head of Design, Technology and Engineering, Mr. P.D. Jackson has been appointed Head of Geography, Mr. M. Boyd has become Head of German, Mr. T. Benbow is Head of Biology and Mrs. L.R. Acton is now Head of Chemistry. Mr. D.C. O’Toole has taken the role as GCSE and A Level French co-ordinator.

In the pastoral life of school. Mr. N.C. Holmes has become Head of Year 8, Mrs. M.A. Lapinskas has become Year 12 Year Tutor and Miss. B.C. Marsh has taken on the role of SPACE Co-ordinator (maternity leave).

We also have a number of new appointments to the school.

Mrs. R. Rees has been appointed as teacher of Geography, and Mr. T.A. Featherstone and Mrs. E. Jackson have joined the Design Technology and Engineering Department. We also welcome Miss. E. Rayers into the French and German Departments, Mr. T. Dunstan joins the History Department, Mr. T. Springthorpe joins the Chemistry Department and Mrs. T. Youssouf is covering a maternity leave in Chemistry. Miss. S. Berry is also covering a maternity leave in the Psychology Department.

Mr. B. Yates joins as a graduate sports assistant and Miss. H. Bird joins us a graduate music assistant.

We also welcome three new language assistants. Mr. M. Alonso joins as a Spanish assistant, and Miss. E. Busson and Miss. A. Ludwig join the French and German Departments respectively.

Mr. N.L. Ford

Life Lessons from Lord Leverhulme

Bolton School’s Head of Foundation Philip Britton addressed both Senior Schools ahead of Lord Leverhulme’s date of birth, 19th September. Lord Leverhulme, who was born in 1851 in Bolton, gave a generous endowment to Bolton’s High School for Girls and Grammar School for Boys, enabling them to become Bolton School (Boys’ Division and Girls’ Division) in 1915. Each year, the Foundation Head reflects upon a period of Leverhulme’s life and considers how his life lessons can inform our own.

Mr. Britton told how, in 1911, Mr. William Hesketh Lever became Sir William and chose to link his baronetcy to Port Sunlight. In 1917, he was made a Baron and he associated that with Bolton. In 1922, he became a Viscount and went on to link that with the Western Isles in Scotland. Mr. Britton focused his talk on Leverhulme’s exploits in the Isles of Lewis and Harris and told how they could be regarded as one of Leverhulme’s failures. The Head told how Leverhulme bought them as a retirement project with the ambition of improving the lives of crofters and other locals. However, during the 1920s, the islands suffered from a number of issues, not least the dearth of young men after the First World War – over 1,000 had perished and then, in the early hours of New Year’s Day 1919, two hundred returning men tragically lost their lives as the naval yacht HMY lolaire foundered in rough seas, near Stornoway. The lack of men contributed to young people emigrating, one such example being the mother of Donald Trump!

Mr. Britton expounded on how Leverhulme liked to vertically integrate industries and spoke of how he saw a big potential in harvesting a new type of seaweed, something which did not come to fruition. The ambitions in Leverhulme’s head, Mr. Britton explained, did not always tally with those of the local community. In Lewis and Harris, most locals did not take kindly to his interference and were happy to continue with their herring fishing. While he was effectively driven out of the islands, the Head told how there are still reminders of him today – through the naming of schools, roads and places. To this day, pupils at Bolton School Junior Boys’ Schools remain pen pals with their Western Isles counterparts at Leverhulme Memorial Primary School.

Considering Leverhulme’s experience in the Western Isles, the Head concluded that you cannot do good to people, you must do it with them. He linked it to today’s delivery of international aid and stressed how the need to respect people is very important.

Reflecting on his assembly last year, shortly after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Mr. Britton told how we had since witnessed King Charles’ coronation. He reminded the audience that in 1911, a flagpole was erected at the School when George V came to the throne and that for Elizabeth II, School has the coronation lanterns. For Charles III, he announced, the School will link a newly installed flagpole at the outdoor adventure learning centre Patterdale Hall with the Coronation and also, in keeping with Charles’ general wishes, will plant trees in a sustained and systematic manner. There will, he explained, be two principal projects: one to replace the Patterdale larch plantation with a planting of indigenous species and another to increase the use of the Tudor Avenue woodlands on the School campus, including some further planting there.

Lord Lieutenant and High Sheriff of Cumbria’s Patterdale Hall visit

ARemembrance Day Assembly

lexander Scott, King Charles III’s Lord Lieutenant of Cumbria, has visited Bolton School’s Patterdale Hall on the shores of Lake Ullswater, along with his wife Samantha Scott, who is the High Sheriff of Cumbria. Somewhat unusually, both took up their positions earlier in the year, meaning that the couple simultaneously hold two of the most important positions representing the Crown in Cumbria. The pair visited Patterdale Hall to meet with current attendee Hannah Larn of the Rose Castle Foundation, Hall manager Timothy Taylor and Bolton School governor Tim Taylor, who is also Chair of the Scott Bolton Trust Management Committee.

Alexander is a trustee of the Scott Bolton Trust, which each year offers travel grants to Bolton School students and alumni aged 1622 years. He is also a trustee of a grant-giving body established by his father Peter Scott, the Francis C. Scott Charitable Trust, which targets youth disadvantage in Cumbria and North Lancashire. Alexander’s great-grandfather, Sir James Scott, who founded The Provincial Insurance Company, lived at Beech House in Bolton, which became the Infant School of Bolton School before it was knocked down and a Junior Girls’ School, Hesketh House, was erected on the site. Francis Scott, Alexander’s grandfather, went on to buy Patterdale Hall in 1934, before donating large areas of land to the National Trust and selling it in the 1960s – his motivation being to protect the landscape from large scale development.

Timothy Taylor, Patterdale Hall’s Manager, commented: ‘It was a pleasure to welcome guests with so many connections to Bolton School to Patterdale. We had a lovely afternoon tea, reminiscing on the close links between the Scott family and Bolton School and discussing the work of the Rose Castle Foundation and the experience of the current residential party at Patterdale Hall. Members of their group had travelled from New York, Birmingham, Leicester and Cumbria to interact in a multi-faith environment. The Rose Castle Foundation works with emerging leaders, who are motivated by their faith and who are moving into positions of influence across societal divides. Their Emerging Peacemakers Programme has been running at Patterdale Hall for two years.

As we gather today for the annual commemoration of those members of this school who lost their lives during the First and the Second World War, we all recognise, in ways that we have probably not done hitherto, that we are living in a most dangerous and frighteningly menacing time. Since 1945, there have certainly been occasions that have demonstrated the painful vicissitudes of conflict and uncertain peace in the lives of several nations, just as we are all aware of the vicissitudes of other sharply contrasting and changing features of national and individual personal experience: growth and stagnation, success and failure, joy and sorrow, love and hatred. At this time, so painful to so many, when news bulletins are dominated by the most dreadful detail of atrocity, outrage, division and fear, it is not perhaps an easy task to turn our thoughts back to events that were unfolding eighty years ago. It is true that when we do, we shall catch a glimpse, as we do each year, of examples of the same sharp, painfully bitter human experience. The faces we see in old film and photographs are etched with the same dark lines of agony and grief that we see in the news now. But it is a solemn and necessary duty that we undertake today: a duty of remembrance. Solemn because we commemorate the young men from this school who lost their lives in worldwide conflict. Necessary because we must never forget those who gave so much; never forget the scale of that conflict which engulfed them; never forget the causes, some aspects still debated, of those two wars which claimed so many lives: an estimated 15 to 22 million deaths in World War One and in World War Two an estimated loss of between 70 and 85 million people.

In 1943, there were recorded eleven members of this school who died that year in active service, most of them were killed in conflict, some died due to sickness, some whilst engaged in training. As in other years, we are indebted to the work of local historian Dr. Eric McPherson, from whose book ‘Remembered with honour: the old boys and staff of Bolton School who died in two world wars’, members of Year 9 will now read.

School Notes

Gunner Reginald Brooke Ashford, 291 Battery 94 HAA Regiment, Royal Artillery, died 13th January 1943, aged 25

Reginald Ashford was the son of the Town Clerk of Bolton. He entered the School in 1927 and left in December 1934, to train as a clothing production designer. He volunteered for the Royal Artillery at the very start of the war and was wounded whilst serving in the Middle East with the Eighth Army. He died from his wounds and is buried in the Tripoli War Cemetery.

Sergeant William James Howard, 5th Battalion The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire), Reconnaissance Corps, died 29th January 1943, aged 22

William Howard was the son of the Chief Constable of Bolton and joined the School in 1931. He was a member of the Scout Troop and was involved in House sports. He left in October 1938 to become articled to a local firm of solicitors, joining the Territorial Battalion of the Loyal Regiment the following year. In October 1941, a member of the newly established Reconnaissance Corps, he went to the Far East, just at the time of the Japanese invasion of the colony. Wounded in the throat and taken prisoner, Sergeant Howard was set to work on the railway being built along the Burma-Thailand border. He contracted dysentery and died in January 1943. He is buried in the Thanbyuzayat Cemetery.

Private Charles Alexander Hopwood, Royal Army Medical Corps, died 1st March 1943, aged 31

Charles Hopwood was a pupil at Bolton School until March 1928. He had been a Scout Patrol Leader, played football for his House and acted in many school plays. He joined the Royal Army Medical Corps in 1940, and in March 1941, he had been serving as an orderly in a Dressing Station with the Eighth Army in the Far East. He died in hospital and is buried in the Benghazi War Cemetery.

Squadron Leader Michael Edward Thwaites DFC, 7 Squadron

Royal Air Force, killed in action 12th March 1943, aged 27

Michael Thwaites joined Bolton School in 1930. A keen sportsman, he played in both the Football and Cricket first teams and took leading roles in a number of school plays. He left in 1934 to begin work at the Rose Hill Tannery. In 1938, he joined the RAF Volunteer Reserve and was called to serve in 1940. Initially taking the rank as Sergeant, he later received his commission. 1943 saw the start of the ‘Battle of the Ruhr’ when Bomber Command was heavily engaged in action over industrial targets and the cities of Cologne,

Berlin, Frankfurt and Stuttgart. Squadron Leader Thwaites was the pilot of a Sterling I en route to Stuttgart, but was shot down near Suippes in France. He had completed over thirty sorties by that time.

Sergeant (Pilot) Wilbert Hart, 1435 Squadron Royal Air Force, killed in action 18th March 1943, aged 32

Wilbert Hart was a pupil at the School from 1923 to 1926, a talented musician, who was a chorister at Christ Church, Heaton and All Saints, Bolton. For six years, he had taken part in concerts all around the British Isles which had been broadcast, and he had become resident Musical Director at the Empire Theatre, Middlesborough. Initially a Spitfire pilot, he transferred in 1943 to a bomber squadron operating from Malta, flying sweeps over Sicily. He failed to return from such a flight and was lost without trace. His name is commemorated on the Malta Memorial.

Sergeant (Navigator) Clive Ford Taylor, 404 (RCAF) Squadron

Royal Air Force, died 28th March, aged 28

Clive Taylor joined the School in 1924, and in 1931 he left to take a post in his family’s rope manufacturing business. Intending to join the Royal Navy, he had begun a wireless course, but he decided instead to join the Royal Air Force in 1941. Attached to Coastal Command, his squadron was based at St. Eval as an escort to submarine aircraft patrolling the Bay of Biscay. He was killed, as the report states, “due to war operations”. He is buried in the Bolton (Heaton) Cemetery.

Sergeant (Navigator) Joshua Alan Sykes, 44 Squadron Royal Air Force, killed in action 29th June 1943

Joshua Sykes was a member of Bolton School from 1921 until 1930. He became King’s Scout and Troop Leader. A talented actor, he played lead roles in school productions of Shakespeare’s plays as Macbeth, Mark Antony, Coriolanus and Prince Hal, also taking roles with the Manchester-based ‘Unnamed Society’ and Bolton Little Theatre. It is no surprise that in 1937, he won a Leverhulme Scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art where he won the Silver Medal and Birmingham Repertory Prize. In 1940, he had embarked on a successful stage career in the West End, but that year he had joined the Army and was shortly transferred to the Royal Air Force. Most sadly, on his first flight over Germany his Lancaster bomber was shot down on its mission to Cologne; it crashed near Eindhoven, all seven members of the crew being killed. On that one night, twenty-eight British bombers were lost: a total of 158 crew members were killed; 18 were held as prisoners of war.

Sub-Lieutenant Peter Douglas Hartshorn, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve HMS Egret, killed in action 27th August 1943, aged 23

Peter Hartshorn was a pupil at Bolton School from 1931 to 1939 when he became an undergraduate at Manchester University, reading Engineering. He joined the Royal Navy in 1942 as a member of the crew of HMS Egret, which was patrolling the Bay of Biscay in 1943. It was attacked by enemy aircraft, bombed and capsized. Sub-Lieutenant Hartshorn’s body was not recovered, but his name is recorded on the Portsmouth Naval Memorial.

Lieutenant Kenneth Anson Lomax, 2nd Battalion South Lancashire Regiment, drowned on active service 15th October 1943, aged 27

Kenneth Lomax was a pupil at Bolton School from 1924 to 1932, an enthusiastic member of the School Orchestra. He joined the Army in 1940 and received his commission in 1943, being posted with his battalion to the Far East. It is believed that he drowned on active service during an amphibious operation. His body was not recovered. He is commemorated on the Rangoon War Memorial.

Pilot Officer Donald Wilson Hanham, No. 34 Flying Training School, killed in a flying accident 19th October 1943, aged 22

Donald Hanham was a boy at Bolton School between 1932 and 1937 when he began employment at Threlfall’s Brewery in Salford. In 1938, he enlisted in the Territorial Army, but on being mobilised he was transferred to the Royal Air Force. After training, he became a sergeant and instructor in 1943. On a training flight with a student, he was killed when his plane crashed in Alberta, Canada, where he is buried.

Flight Sergeant Richard Kenneth Chapman, 219 Squadron Royal Air Force, killed in action 24th December 1943

Richard Chapman was an avid footballer and member of the Scout Troop whilst a boy at the School between 1921 and 1930. He worked in a bank and in 1939 enlisted in the Royal Artillery, but in due course he transferred to the Royal Air Force. While on an operation in a Hurricane fighter aircraft, he was lost without trace. His name is to be found on the Runnymede Memorial, which commemorates members of the Air Forces of the British Commonwealth and British Empire who lost their lives serving from bases in the United Kingdom and Europe, but who have no known grave.

The year 1943 illustrates very well the vicissitudes of war. In some respects, it was a turning point for Great Britain and her allies with significant progress made in several theatres of conflict; in others, it provides further evidence of the scale of the conflict around the world, acts of allied heroism and endurance, as well as the strength, determination and resources of the enemy and, at times, sheer brutality. This can be shown by citing just a few examples.

In January 1943, Friedrich Paulus, Commander of the 265,000 strong German 6th Army, surrendered during the Battle of Stalingrad, ironically on the very day he had been appointed Field Marshall. An important victory for the Russian troops and the allied cause. However, in Germany, new conscription laws were introduced to

School Notes

increase the strength of their force, mobilising men aged between 16 to 65 and women aged between 17 years and 50.

On 8th February 1943, Operation Longcloth commenced, led by General Orde Wingate, and his patrols of 3,000 Chindits (a slight corruption of the Burmese word for ‘lion’) began their march into Burma. Half of the Chindits were British: the 13th Battalion, the King’s Liverpool Regiment (nominally a second-line battalion, which comprised a large number of older men); the other half consisted of the 3rd Battalion, the 2nd Gurkha Rifles (a battalion that had only just been raised) and the 2nd Battalion, the Burma Rifles. The plan was to use the force to conduct long-range penetration operations behind Japanese lines: a very dangerous and physically and mentally exhausting undertaking, involving long marches through extremely difficult terrain, each man carrying more than 72 pounds (33 kg) of equipment. Eventually weakened by diseases such as malaria and dysentery, after a three-month mission, the majority of the surviving Chindits had marched almost 1,000 miles. Of the 3,000 men who had begun the operation, a third had been killed, taken prisoner or died of disease; and of the 2,182 men who returned, about 600 were too debilitated from their wounds or disease to return to active service.

At this time in Tunisia, Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel, the much lauded and indeed greatly respected, ‘Desert Fox’, began his retreat. Later, in May, the Axis forces in North Africa surrendered, having sustained 40,000 casualties in Tunisia alone. 267,000 German and Italian soldiers became prisoners of war.

In March, the Greek National Liberation Front, its numbers swelled with civilian support, overcame Italian forces and paved the way to the eventual liberation of their country from the Axis powers.

Increased U-Boat activity in the Atlantic continued to have a devastating impact on allied convoys. However, later in the year, the allies’ changing anti-submarine tactics forced Admiral Dönitz to withdraw the U-Boats from the Atlantic.

Two very well-known operations that took place that year were conceived in order, in their very different ways, to hasten the end of the war and to save lives. Operation Mincemeat was a remarkable and now celebrated British intelligence operation aimed at convincing the German High Command that they did not intend to invade Sicily, but to attack Greece and Sardinia instead. The planning was carried out by Lt. Commander the Honourable Ewen Montagu, who had presented his idea of having a dead body dressed as a British officer carrying faked papers to be found on a beach in southern Spain where his attaché case could be taken by German officials and examined for their contents of correspondence and plans for invasion. The meticulous preparation of the operation, extraordinary in the extent of the detailed crafting of the identity of the invented British officer, succeeded in convincing the High Command and Hitler himself, and the movement of German troops from Sicily certainly saved lives and facilitated the allied invasion.

School Notes

The second, Operation Chastise, is usually known as the ‘Dambusters Raid’, an attack on the heartland of German heavy industry in the Ruhr valley using the remarkable ‘bouncing’ bomb, the invention of Barnes Wallis, who had realized how destructive it could be against the massive walls of the three huge dams that powered German hydro-electric installations. An ingenious plan, but fraught with difficulty for the 19 Lancaster bomber crews, led by 24 year-old Wing Commander Guy Gibson. The Operation did have an impact on German production, but at a terrible cost: 8 aircraft lost, 53 aircrew killed (three taken prisoner) and 1,600 civilians killed in the flooding waters from the two breached dams.

Two examples of atrocity from that year can be quoted: two of so many throughout the entire war. Firstly, in April, there occurred the very brave but hopeless act of resistance in the Warsaw ghetto in German-occupied Poland when the Jewish people held there refused to surrender to SS-Brigadeführer Jürgen Stroop, leading him to destroy the entire ghetto, its inhabitants being either burned alive or suffocated. Secondly, four days in May are now known simply as the Changjiao massacre in which 30,000 Chinese civilians in Changjiao, Hunan Province, were killed at the hands of the Japanese China Expeditionary Army under the command of General Shunroku Hata. Further detail is too dreadful to be quoted today.

In his first speech as Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill had made reference to the enemy as “a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime”. Therefore the event in 1943 of perhaps greatest significance was the meeting on October 20th of the sixteen Allied countries called by the British government, at which the United Nations War Crimes Commission was established. One of its first tasks was to gather evidence and to arrange for the arrest and fair trial of alleged war criminals, reporting to the governments of member nations so that tribunals such as the Nuremberg International Military Tribunal and the International Military Tribunal for the Far East could be set up.

On April 7th of this year, I saw the news of the death of an American citizen called Ben Ferencz. His name today is probably not widely known outside the United States or beyond specialists in law or history. He was the last surviving of the prosecuting counsel at Nuremberg. Indefatigable in his investigations, he served most notably as chief prosecutor for the United States Army at the ninth of the twelve trials held by the Military Tribunal. This was the trial of the leaders of the Nazi SS Einsatzgruppen, the death squads who were accused of crimes committed in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, specifically the deliberate murder of around two million people: 1.3 million Jews; 250,000 Romani; 500,000 socalled ‘partisans’, disabled, Slavs and homosexuals. Before sentence was passed, the summary of the defendants’ intent and guilt made reference to “a crime of such unprecedented brutality and of such inconceivable savagery that the mind rebels against its own thought and the imagination staggers in the contemplation of a human degradation beyond the power of language adequately to portray”. Ben Ferencz became a strong advocate of a future international

criminal court. This concept was finally realized in 2002 when the International Criminal Court was established at The Hague.

We shall soon stand in silence for two minutes, and then these three wreaths, representing the Lower, Middle and Upper School, will be carried to the Memorial Window to be placed there as testimony to the courage and steadfastness of those who served the cause of freedom in two world wars. As you pass by today, please pause to look at the names recorded there and to recall the tragedy of the eleven boys who died in 1943, caught between the inescapable vicissitudes of war, success and failure, victory and defeat, survival and death, and let us all quietly give thanks for their selfless service and for the continuing dedication of all who put at risk their own lives as they strive to keep us safe from those who would do us harm.

Tell ye your children, Our brothers died to win a better World. Our part must be to strive for truth, goodwill and peace that their sacrifice be not in vain.

Lest we forget.

Dr. S.W. Holland

Tillotson Lecture

Bolton School Boys’ Division former pupil Adam Crook, now a Partner at Goldman Sachs, returned to his alma mater to deliver the 51st public Tillotson Lecture.

Adam opened by saying: ‘It’s great to be back at Bolton School. Thank you to all those

We conclude this part of the assembly with words inscribed upon the War Memorial of Bolton.

who have hosted me during the day – in Economics, Business Studies and History lessons and all around the School. It really brought home to me the extremely high quality of young men and women that this school educates and sends out into the wider world.’ He also praised the important work of the School’s Development Office in bringing in former pupils to inspire the next generation.

Success, Adam said, is not a straight line. He argued that if you have the right mindset, there is no limit to how high you can climb. Addressing the students in the Great Hall audience, Adam predicted that there will be some fantastic opportunities for their generation. He explained how there has been phenomenal change in the world since he left school 31 years ago. However, he said, the world is now changing at a level unknown in human history and there will be even more transformational and disruptive change during the audience’s working careers.

Reflecting this positive outlook, Adam played several short film clips from colleagues and friends. George Lee, Head of Applied Innovation at Goldman Sachs, advised the audience to get engaged with technology, particularly AI, and that although the pace will be terrifying, it will create a world of opportunities. Jan Hatzius, Chief Economist at Goldman, also predicted exciting times ahead and revealed how the state of the economy when you enter the job market plays a significant part in determining your career trajectory. Ben Wallace, the former Secretary of State for Defence, advised students to never let anyone tell them that they are not good enough and that there’s always more than one way to achieve your goals. John Waldron, President of Goldman Sachs, was equally upbeat about the future and reminded the audience that we are living in the best time in human history.

Telling his own story, Adam shared how he attended Bolton School from 1985-1992 before reading Political and Economic History at the University of Edinburgh. Reflecting on his 30-year career since leaving the Boys’ Division, he spoke of navigating a world of continuous, disruptive change. He undertook Officer Training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst before joining the Queen’s Lancashire Regiment as an infantry officer. His years in the Regiment – as a Platoon Commander and then Company Secondin-Command – were spent in Northern Ireland, during the final years of The Troubles, including dealing with the Omagh bombing and inter-community riots around Drumcree. After leaving the army as a Captain, Adam self-financed an MBA at London Business School before moving into Banking. After four years at Barclays Capital, he moved to Goldman Sachs in 2008, where he has remained to date. He is a Partner in the Global Banking & Markets Division at Goldman Sachs and is involved primarily with the trading floor business, especially around currencies and emerging markets.

Reflecting on his career, he said it had taught him five key lessons. Lesson one – and possibly the most important – was to have the courage to back yourself, to believe in your abilities and to not let imposter syndrome hold you back. Bolton School, he thought, had

School Notes

taught him resilience and perseverance, and that there is no hack in life to hard work, especially when the going gets tough.

‘Lead from the front and by example’ was Adam’s second lesson. He referenced Northern Ireland and the defining day of his time there in August 1998 when he witnessed the Omagh bomb attack, the worst atrocity in over 30 years of terrorism in the Province, which killed 29 people and injured 300 more. After this, he said, he became less intimidated by people, big decisions and by stressful situations. He knew, after this, that he could lead from the front.

Adam’s third lesson was that it is never too late to alter the course you are on. He cited the example of him swapping his army uniform for that of the City of London. He recalled how he undertook an MBA at London Business School, having always been fascinated by economics, finance and current affairs. He reminded the audience that you own the narrative of your life.

His fourth lesson was to find a mentor. Adam recalled how, when he joined Barclays Capital straight out of Business School, the Head of his Business Unit, who was himself a former Army Officer, had hired him without any experience, pushed him out of his comfort zone when he was ready and mentored him. Always be intellectually curious, Adam said, and be sure to self-correct when needs be and to make yourself coachable.

Adam’s final lesson was that you cannot have success without failure. It is, he argued, an inevitable part of your climb to the peak. If you fail, learn from this, was his advice. He recalled his own failures in promotion processes through his career at Goldman Sachs and how by being coachable, analysing what from his performance had led to those setbacks and coming back a better version of himself, he had ultimately been successful.

Adam concluded by telling the audience that “The learning is in the climb… Enjoy your climb!”

School Captain Alexander McKie closed the evening by offering a Vote of Thanks to the speaker. Established in 1971, the prestigious Tillotson Lecture series was begun at the behest of the late Marcus Tillotson, a former Chairman of The Bolton News. The series has attracted eminent speakers over the years, including Michael Portillo, Sir Ian McKellen, Ralf Little, Lord Coe and Sir Philip Craven, who have delivered thought-provoking lectures to the School and local community.

School Notes

International Women’s Day

Head of Boys’ Division Mr. Nic Ford and Head of German Ms. Roddy led a whole school assembly marking International Women’s Day at Bolton School Boys’ Division.

Pupils learnt that the annual celebration – always on 8th March – began in 1911 after female textile workers in New York had protested a few years earlier demanding better pay, shorter hours and voting rights. Ms. Roddy explained that the day inspires us to aim for a world free of bias and where there is gender equity. Pupils learnt how countries around the world celebrate the day in different ways with some declaring a national holiday.

Inspection

The pupils and staff of Bolton School’s Boys’ Division and Junior School, Park Road, are celebrating after they received a glowing report from the Independent Schools Inspectorate’s (ISI) inspection visit to the two schools in February 2024.

In their report, the inspectors assessed both schools as having met all five of the standards upon which they were judged and identified their programmes of extra-curricular and outdoor learning activities as being a ‘significant strength’, a plaudit which recognises the School’s national leadership in this area of education.

Mr. Ford relayed two infamous stories of mansplaining, the habit some men have of explaining something in a condescending and overconfident way to a woman. He cited the short viral film clip of Georgia Ball, a professional golfer who was adapting her swing, being told she was doing it wrong by a man and another incident of a doctor at a conference being advised to read a paper by Dr. Stanton et al. when she was in fact Dr. Stanton!

Ms. Roddy spoke about acts of microaggression. She cited an example of this being when people from ethnic minorities are continuously asked where they are really from. She told how some of her female teaching friends had experienced mansplaining and microaggressions: Ms. Jagger, a Maths teacher, was asked if she knew the difference between mean and median and Miss Marsh had the payment plan for her new car laboriously explained to her. Ms. Roddy told how she herself, an experienced climber, was given unsolicited advice when climbing by a number of army recruits who were abseiling nearby. Microaggressions, she said, are exhausting. She concluded by telling the audience that while we still have a long way to go to achieve gender equality, men and boys can help to speed up the process and improve society. It is important, she said, that we all listen and learn and that we check our unconscious biases – the simple advice was if in doubt, don’t say it!

The inspection was the first undertaken at the Foundation since the introduction in September 2023 of the ISI’s new inspection framework. This framework replaced the inspectorate’s previous methodology, of providing a one-word judgement of a school, with an evaluation of how successfully a school meets five specific standards, relating to leadership, management and governance; the quality of education, training and recreation; pupils’ physical and mental health and emotional wellbeing; pupils’ social and economic education and their contribution to society; and safeguarding. The new framework also now allows for a school to be designated as having a ‘significant strength’, to recognise those schools deemed to be demonstrating significant excellence within those five standards, in comparison with other schools nationally.

During their three-day visit, the team of eight inspectors observed lessons, assemblies and extra-curricular activities; met with pupils, teachers, the Schools’ leadership teams and the Chair and other Governors; scrutinised samples of pupils’ work; reviewed a range of policies and other documentation; and considered the views of pupils, staff and parents who had responded to their pre-inspection survey, in order to reach the conclusions which form the report.

Key findings from the report included:

• The Schools’ academic curricula and extra-curricular programmes instil a culture of high expectations, mutual support, inclusivity and tolerance within the school community

• The schools offer an extensive programme of extra-curricular and outdoor learning activities in which pupils of all ages participate enthusiastically and gain new interests and skills

• Pupils of all ages make good academic progress, develop creative and critical thinking skills and demonstrate determination and self-discipline

• Pupils’ behaviour and attitudes to learning are respectful, focused and constructive, and there is a tangible culture of mutual support

• All school premises and accommodation are suitably maintained, well-resourced and secure

• There are effective arrangements for safeguarding, which promote the safety and welfare of pupils

Reflecting upon the inspection report, Head of Foundation Philip Britton, MBE, commented: “The ISI’s new inspection framework aims ‘to capture what is distinctive about a school’s culture and ethos’, and I am delighted with how successfully the inspectors have recognised all that makes both the Boys’ Division and Park Road so special in this report.

“The inspectors’ description of the ‘positive and supportive environment’ provided by both schools, ‘which allows pupils to grow in confidence and self-esteem’, is a point of particular pride, as it reflects the significant impact our post-pandemic focus upon pupil wellbeing and behaviour has had on the lives and experiences of our pupils. Equally pleasing is the inspectors’ description of pupils’ understanding that ‘the school is an inclusive community [where] differences are accepted and diversity is celebrated’, and the acknowledgement that provides the warm and welcoming community we work hard to foster across the Bolton School Foundation. I am delighted to offer my congratulations and thanks to the leadership teams and colleagues of both schools, as they celebrate such a hugely successful outcome to the inspection.”

Head of Boys’ Division, Nic Ford, noted: “The inspectors’ report is testament to the tremendous commitment of my colleagues and leadership team, and I am overjoyed that their efforts have been recognised with such fulsome praise. Their designation of our extra-curricular programme as being a ‘significant strength’ is of particular note, placing us in a highly select group of schools nationally who have achieved such a commendation, and more importantly, recognising the value this programme adds in our work to develop pupils’ ‘character and resilience’, providing ‘leadership and teamwork opportunities’, which impact positively upon their ‘attitudes and behaviour’.

“I am equally as delighted by the inspectors’ recognition of my ‘enthusiastic and knowledgeable’ colleagues, whose ‘effective teaching’ promotes a ‘positive attitude to learning amongst pupils, and a desire to succeed in their academic studies’. As the report so rightly identifies, it is my colleagues’ efforts which ‘enable good progress for pupils’ throughout their Boys’ Division careers, and which ultimately leads to our pupils achieving GCSE and A Level results that are above the national average on an annual basis.”

Alumni of the Year Awards

Pupils from across the Junior and Senior Schools in both Divisions were invited to choose the nominee they felt was the most deserving winner of each of the two Awards in a vote conducted at the end of the Summer Term.

Adam Crook was chosen to be Old Boy of the Year 2023 as he exemplifies the Bolton School ethos of working hard and helping others, through both his voluntary service and philanthropy. Adam is a partner in the Global Markets division at Goldman Sachs, having previously served as a Captain in the British Army. Adam is a dedicated supporter of fellow veterans and serves as regional head of the Goldman Sachs Veterans Network. Adam is a passionate believer in the power of education to enable social mobility and a committed and generous supporter of the Bolton School bursary scheme.

Lauren Mee was chosen to be Old Girl of the Year 2023 because of her professional and voluntary activities, which exemplify the Bolton School ethos of giving back and going out into the world to make a difference for good. Lauren’s work as Co-Founder and CEO of Animal Advocacy Careers, an internationally recognised notfor-profit organisation, addresses the career and talent bottlenecks in the animal advocacy movement. She works at the forefront of educating charities on equitable hiring practices and is a member of Giving What We Can, pledging 10% of her income for life to causes focused on making the world a better place.

Founders’ Day

TSchool Notes

he School’s founders were recently celebrated in a Full Assembly, led by Head of Foundation Mr. Britton. Each year, as near as possible to the date of the death of Lord Leverhulme, 7th May 1925, the school flag flies and Founders’ Day celebrates those that, since its inception in 1516, have contributed to the history of the School.

Pupils were taken back to 1982 and there was a focus on the contribution of Philip Lever, the 3rd Viscount Leverhulme. Born in 1915, the Viscount was born in the same year that the Foundation came into existence and he went on to become Chairman of Governors from 1949 to 1990. 1982 was the year of his benefaction of the new Leverhulme Pavilion to the school; it had been 60 years earlier that his father had bought the land there and erected the first building.

Sixth Form students reflected on how the world was, how Bolton was and how life in school was in 1982. It was noted that the Falklands War took place, in which a dozen Bolton School alumni fought, but none were lost in action. It was also the year in which CDs, emoticons, the first computer virus, the film ET and Michael Jackson’s Thriller were introduced, and Prince William was born.

Bolton itself was an industrial town in decline. Most of the cotton mills had shut down and Fred Dibnah was making a name for himself as the steeplejack who knocked chimneys down. Forty-five manufacturing companies had recently closed and there was high unemployment in the town. In the coalfields to the south, pits were beginning to close ahead of the miners’ strikes.

The School Song Forty Years On was sung before consideration was given to how the School was faring in 1982. It was Mr. Baggley’s final year as Headmaster in the Boys’ Division after 16 years in charge. He had a significant national reputation, leading HMC. He held a passion for an inclusive school and helped shape the assisted places scheme that had begun in 1979. The 3rd Viscount Leverhulme opened the Leverhulme Pavilion on 11th May.

Mr. Britton then spoke about the 3rd Viscount, Philip Lever, and his contribution to Bolton School in more detail. He told how Lever did not have to take on the project of his grandfather nor did he have to show the commitment that he did over the 40 years that he spent as Chairman of Governors. Besides the Pavilion, he informed school life financially and through his energy and leadership.

Born in 1915, soap was not for Philip Lever and he had no great interest in the family firm. His was a life of civic engagement. He was made a Knight of the Garter in 1988 for his contributions to national life, which saw him become Chancellor of Liverpool University and Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire. He served in the Middle East during the Second World War and then worked on the Sandringham estate for the King before taking over his father’s viscountcy. He liked to spring surprises, particularly on Presentation Evenings in the Girls’ Division, where he had three daughters. On one such occasion, he chose to announce that he had bought a horse and named it Girls’ Division; it went on to win its first race 18 months later. Two other horses, named Boys’ Division and Bolton School, never won any of their races! Mr. Britton said the 3rd Viscount shaped what our school is today, explaining how as Direct Grant funding died out, he led the Governing Body in deciding we would be an independent school not a state school. Lever pushed Assisted Places in the late 1970s and took the maximum number of places that the school could. He was vindicated in his decision as the scheme lasted 21 years and led into the School’s present day bursary scheme.

Pupils then sang Jerusalem before closing reflections from the Captain of School and from the Head, Mr. Ford. Tribute was paid to John Barton, Robert Lever and William Hesketh Lever. The Head spoke about the board outside his office that details the headteachers that have served across the Boys’ Division since 1516. He told too how the School has always sought to employ first-rate scholars and teachers with a passion for intellectual curiosity and has strived to send out young adults equipped to make a difference in the world.

Foundation Head to Chair HMC

Philip Britton, Head of Foundation at Bolton School, has been announced as the 2025-26 Chair of the HMC. The HMC is a professional association of Heads of the world’s leading independent schools. Philip will step down from his role as Chair of the Communications Committee and join the HMC Board as Chair Elect in September 2024.

School Notes

Looking ahead to his appointment, Philip said: ‘I am delighted to be nominated as Chair of HMC for the 2025-26 academic year.

‘I look forward to working with the Board and Council, as well as all the colleagues who work for HMC, on all that they do for us to support our work as members in schools. One of the great strengths of HMC is the variety of schools in membership, each with a distinctive history and purpose, but collectively just focused on doing our best to give our pupils a great start in life.

‘I am conscious the next few years will bring challenges to HMC in representing us all in some very significant national discussions as well as the very important role we will all have collectively in supporting one another in what may be difficult times in leading our schools. I am very happy to be able to do what I can to help that endeavour, as we share our wisdom and also share the empathy we can have for one another. We must always take what we do very seriously, but we must never take ourselves too seriously, and the camaraderie of the HMC is our great strength.’

Philip Britton was educated at Blaydon Comprehensive School, took a First in Physics at Oxford and did teacher training at Cambridge, winning the Charles Fox prize. He worked as Physics Teacher, Head of Physics and Deputy Head at Leeds Grammar School. Philip has been very much involved in the Institute of Physics over the years and in 2010 was awarded an MBE for services to Physics. He has been a governor at Stockport Grammar School and is currently one at the Grammar School at Leeds. He took on the new overarching role as Bolton School Head of Foundation in 2021, having been Head of the Boys’ Division at Bolton since 2008.

As a large and successful school, Bolton School has often played a part in national leadership of the Heads’ Associations. In 1985, Dr. Spurr was President of the Girls’ School Association and in 2019, Miss Hincks followed in her footsteps. Mr. Baggley, the Head of Boys’ Division at the time, was Chair of the HMC in 1978.

Senior Prizegiving

Former pupil Barry Nightingale (Class of 1979) gave the keynote address at this year’s Prizegiving Evening at Bolton School Boys’ Division, telling pupils that they are the network generation. Barry, who has worked with many successful entrepreneurs and businesses including BetFred, EasyGroup, We Buy Any Car, Airtours and The Restaurant Group, reflected on how Bolton School had imbued him with confidence and belief. Speaking at the 109th Prizegiving event, he advised pupils in the audience to build their networks. He said it had taken him 43 years to develop his own, but that they are growing up where everyone and everything is accessible. He urged boys to join LinkedIn but not to overshare on other social media platforms. You are the network generation, he told them, and recommended that they take advantage of any mentoring opportunities that come along in life. Over his illustrious career, Barry has personally mentored various founders and CEOs and, since his recent retirement, is advising a number of growth businesses, three of which are run by former Bolton School pupils.

Barry spoke about how his three sisters and brother had all passed through the school and, like him, had all benefited from the experience. Subsequently, he had sent his own three daughters and son to his alma mater. He went on to offer further words of wisdom, including how you react to and manage failure is more important than how you manage success and that if you fail, then fail fast and move on and go again. He said it is a case of turning your mistakes into learning and if you have any fears and threats then you need to turn these into opportunities. Telling the young audience that they are the future, Barry said he had always carried three philosophies with him in life and work and they have served him well: be prepared, be bold and be happy. After his talk, he awarded students with their prizes and he was given a Vote of Thanks by Amrit Mishra, the School Captain.

School Notes

Earlier in the evening, Head of Boys’ Division Nic Ford had given an overview of a very successful year, which helped give context to the awards. He told how the Independent Schools’ Inspectorate had reported on excellence in all areas of school life and how they had found the Boys’ Division to be particularly strong in developing the overall character of pupils, equipping them with the lifelong skills needed to make a positive impact on their own future lives, but also on that of their communities. This good work, he said, was exemplified by the School’s outdoor learning programme and at Patterdale Hall, alongside the extra-curricular opportunities that boys enjoy in School. Mr. Ford said it was an accolade that places Bolton School into a very small handful of schools that receive such recognition. He recalled how last summer’s strong A Level results had bucked the national trend and picked out a number of academic highlights in the sciences, Maths, DTE, languages and English. He told how it had been another highly successful year in School sport, where 60% of boys in Years 7-13 had represented the School and offered thanks to Mr. Robson, who was retiring from overseeing School Hockey after 28 years.

Referencing the pastoral side of the school, he said much good work had been done in supporting the health and wellbeing of the boys and that this was something that the ISI Inspection team had highlighted. He praised ‘Whisper’, the service which allows pupils to report concerns and incidents in private, the House system and the Lyde Cup. As a Platinum Artsmark School, he commended the outstanding work that takes place in art, drama and music – every week there are over 500 individual music lessons.

Thanks were offered to Old Boys for their generous contribution to school life – for all their career talks and involvement with entrepreneurship and mentoring schemes. Thanks were also proffered to the Governing Body, who give their time and expertise to support the School, with the Head offering his gratitude to Tim Taylor, the Boys’ Division Governor, who shared the stage and, like the guest speaker, also left in 1979. He finished by thanking parents and teaching staff, reflecting that behind every successful pupil there is a team providing guidance, inspiration and support.

Mr. Ford offered a Valete for those members of staff finishing in the summer, including Chris Walker who has been at the school for 37 years and also to Elisa Fielding who, after 25 years, will join the

Girls’ Division and Heather Tunstall who, after 27 years, will take up a part-time Foundation role leading careers and character education.

The awards and talks were punctuated with a number of musical interludes, including the Great Hall singing the School Song Forty Years On, James Bland playing an oboe solo, Legacy by Oscar Navarro and Harry Adams, a Year 13 student, delivering an accomplished violin solo, Winter by Vivaldi.

Head of Foundation, Philip Britton, closed out the evening with his thoughts and by awarding the final scholarships. He said the School is a centre of community – for pupils, parents and alumni – and also plays an important part in the community of Bolton. It is now, he said, firmly on the national stage and it plays a significant role in the strength of independent schools and of the nation. He offered his thanks to parents and to teaching colleagues, to governors and to Mr. Ford who, he said, demonstrates a strong vision and sense of purpose as well as empathy and kindness.

The evening ended with a rousing version of Jerusalem

Senior Prizewinners

POPPLEWELL SCHOLARSHIP: Ewan Davies 13b Ben Rimmer 13a

LEVERHULME SCHOLARSHIP: Peter Craig 13e Dylan Lincoln 13i

EMMA SAXELBY (French): Ben Rimmer 13a

METCALFE (Modern Languages): Ben Rimmer 13a

CLIVE WILLIS (Spanish): Fletcher Mellor-Brook 13g

WATERHOUSE (Russian): George Houghton 13f

GEOFFREY ROSSETTI (English): Alex McKie 13f

LIPSCOMB (Speech & Drama) Senior: Billy Burrows 13c

LIPSCOMB (Speech & Drama) Junior: Theo Michaelas 9a

THE RALPH LITTLE PRIZE: Fletcher Mellor-Brook 13g

ARTS CENTRE AWARD: Tom Griffiths 13g

BARONESS MORRIS: Ben Rimmer 13a

MIDDLE SCHOOL RESEARCH PRIZE: Nathan Watts 11f

LEVERHULME SALVER: Jake Partington 13h

THE RILEY PRIZE: Freddie Audley 13i

ROBERT AINSWORTH (Classics): Cameron Weatherley 13h

H.T. LANE (Biology): Veer Patel 13c

VICTOR LAMBERT (Medical Studies): Harry Adams 13g

KIRKMAN (Biology): Matthew Chae 13d

SCIENCE INVESTIGATION: James Bland 13c

WARBURTON (Geography): Ethan Herring 11d

LEIGH-BRAMWELL

GEOGRAPHY PROJECT: Jonathon Brennan 13f

JUNIOR GEOGRAPHY: Aryan Agrawal 9g

BRAMALL (Economics): Ewan Davies 13b

WILLIAM BROWN (History): Ewan Davies 13b

BOOTH (Economics & Social History): Elliot Davies

PENSTON MEMORIAL (History): Avi Patel 9b

ETHEL WIGGLESWORTH (Organ): William Martin 12f

BRIERLEY (Violin): Harry Adams 13g

METCALFE (Music): James Bland 13c

EASTHAM (Choral): Alex McKie 13f

PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION (Chemistry): Akshat Kamath 13e

MELMOTH 1803 (Chemistry): Ramez Alio 12i

Jonathan Frank 12a

Kushal Gola 12b

Jamie Logan 12e

MICHAEL DILLON (Chemistry): Ewan McCairn 8e

Tejas Neelam 8e

PHYSICS: Akshat Kamath 13e

Jayden Luhar 13a

School Notes

STONER (Physics): Kieran Holt 10d

Matthew Yeung 10c

RELIGIOUS STUDIES: Zain Burrill 10b

HIGGINSON (Art): Charlie Silvester 13e

TILLOTSON (Typography): Nathan Watts 11f

BRABBIN (Art & Technology): Liv Hextall 13c

DEREK DeMAINE (Art History): Liv Hextall 13c

MELLOWDEW (Design & Technology): Jayden Luhar 13a

DOBSON (Engineering): Jacob Simmonite 13i

BAGGLEY (ICT): Freddie Audley 13i

AINSWORTH (Mathematics): Peter Craig 13e

TOM WATSON (Statistics): Danny Heywood 13a

JOHN BLAKEY: Zak McAlister 11b

GARDNER-TAYLOR: Peter Craig 13e

ALDERMAN STEELE: Dylan Lincoln 13i

STEELE: Alex Metcalfe 7c

RYLEY (Community Service): Arun Patel 12h

FRANK BROWN: Keshana Fonseka 13h

Adam Faulkner 12c

Dev Hasija 11d

Peter McCreedy 10b

Remi Molajo 9b

Cameron Kerfoot 8b Isa Mohamed 7f

BERNARD CROSSLEY AWARD: Jacob Simmonite 13i

SPECIAL ENDEAVOUR AWARD: Archie Stocks 13c

GRANT KINNIE AWARD: Saul Farrell 13e

RON BOOTH: Joshua Dickens 13c

NORMAN DAVIES (All Rounder): Noah Nethercott 13f

SIMMONDS (Swimming): Jamie Logan 12e

DONNY DAVIES

OLD INTERNATIONAL: Max Goodwin 13h

WAINWRIGHT (Blackburn): Fin Wyatt 10a (Chorley): Jayden Luhar 13a (Manchester): Joshua Dickens 13c (Wigan): Muhammad-Mustafa Patel 13d

BROOKER PRIZE: James Bland 13c Priyesh Fernando 13b Jayden Luhar 13a

FRANK GREENE: Harry Adams 13g

FRANK GREENE: Veer Patel 13c

BOLTON GRAMMAR OLD BOYS: Alex McKie 13f

School Notes

Lower School Prizewinners

FORM TUTOR’S AWARD IN Diyan Challa (7a)

RECOGNITION OF ACADEMIC

ACHIEVEMENT

Dawar Hassan (7b)

Joseph Grundy (7c)

Huzaifah Adam (7d)

Mael Jodeau (7e)

Oliver Hill (7f)

Archie Warren (8a)

Sumedh Joshi (8b)

Nicky Ling (8c)

Abbas Khambalia (8d)

Tejas Neelam (8e)

Rayyan Mahomed (8f)

Alex Pierson (9a)

Avi Patel (9b)

Benjamin Sheard (9c)

Charlie Simpson (9d)

Neeraj Patel (9e)

Oscar McVerry (9f)

Aryan Agrawal (9g)

FORM TUTOR’S AWARD IN Zain Azam (7a) RECOGNITION OF DEVELOPMENT

Max Nulty (7b) AND IMPROVEMENT

Alex Metcalfe (7c)

Austin Fox (7d)

Jake Clarke (7e)

Dawud Seedat (7f)

Hashim Masood (8a)

Lucas Feakins (8b)

Sam Ducker (8c)

Harry Roach (8d)

Thomas Davies (8e)

Ahmed Baree (8f)

Louie Healey (9a)

Jacob Royle (9b)

Isa Bux (9c)

Louis Ferguson (9d)

William Richardson (9e)

Wesley Else (9f)

Benjamin Quilliam (9g)

COMMENDATIONS

Year 7

Year 8

Year 9

Dawar Hassan 7b

Hussain Al Hakim 8a

Lucas Bishop 9e

CONTRIBUTION TO THE HOUSE BLACKBURN

Noah Adams (7f)

Abbas Khambalia (8d)

Krishnan Velayutham (9e)

CHORLEY

Dawar Hassan (7b)

Rayyan Munshi (8c)

Lucas Bishop (9e)

MANCHESTER

Austin Fox (7d)

Justin Li (8b)

Vince Parkinson (9b)

WIGAN

Jason Anderson (7c)

Faaz Sajid (8b)

Jacob Little (9c)

AWARD FOR CONTRIBUTION TO James Williams (7f) THE LOWER SCHOOL COUNCIL

Derek Leong (8f)

Bryn Edwards (9f)

LOWER SCHOOL COUNCIL CHAIR Louis Ferguson (9d)

PARTICIPATION AND ACHIEVEMENT Luke Cotton (7d) AT PATTERDALE HALL

Jacob Harris (8b)

ACHIEVEMENT AND PARTICIPATION Taran Guduru (7d) IN MUSIC Justin Li (8b)

Charlie Simpson (9d)

ACHIEVEMENT AND PARTICIPATION William Maher (7f) IN THE CREATIVE ARTS

PARTICIPATION IN SPORT

ELOQUENCE

EXTRA-CURRICULAR

Archie Warren (8a)

Theo Michaelas (9a)

George Melling (7d)

Aryan Nunkoo (8e)

Daniel Watts (9a)

Joseph Grundy (7c)

Max Nicholson (8e)

Theo Michaelas (9a)

Aaryan Patel (7b) COMMITMENT

PERSONAL PROGRESSION

Ayron Dhokia (8c)

Ian So (9e)

Ray Adewale (7e) AWARD

Josh Millhouse (8a)

Jensen Gregoire-Parker (9d)

ECO AWARD

Charlie Butler (9e)

School Notes

Prom for our Year 11 boys and girls arrived swiftly after the conclusion of months of hard work preparing and taking their GCSE exams. At the end of the final week of exams for many, the Prom was a perfect event for everyone to look forward to. With an action-packed theme of James Bond with a casino style, everyone was raring to enter the Great Hall and indulge in the night ahead. Tuxedos, suits, dresses and fancy cars set the atmosphere for a resplendent event.

by the Leverhulme Suite. Mocktails, snacks, music and lots of chatting conveyed the excitement and anticipation. With another chance for photos at the Riley Centre, we made sure that no suit or dress went uncaptured (for the parents).

Upon entering the Great Hall, everyone was in disbelief, awed by the cinematic display! The casino dance floor and DJ paired together to provide endless entertainment throughout the night.

The casino setting persuaded the boys and girls to all interact with the occasion, taking part in the photo booths and most importantly the dance floors. Memories were taken in all night as the smiles of everyone lit up the hall. With photographs being available for groups and individuals all night, everyone took full advantage, and the cameras were always in action.

A classic red carpet welcomed our fervent guests and provided opportunity for classy photography; guiding us down the lit up corridor, the red carpet led through to the buzzing social area hosted

School Notes

Nearing the end of the night, the ambience flourished as everybody became more and more involved, taking in one of the last memories to be made at Bolton School for some! As the night came to a close and everyone was full of emotions reminiscing on all of the memories made at the School, people slowly made their way out of the hall.

Having Prom at school only made the night more memorable and exciting as it provided a chance for Year 11 to reminiscence and make some final memories.

On behalf of all of Year 11, I would like to thank the Parents’ Association for its donations, the boys and girls who helped the Prom Committee, the catering and housekeeping staff for enabling such a fabulous night and, most importantly, the teachers who spent countless hours planning the whole event! Everybody couldn’t be more appreciative of what was provided for our Prom.

Just before Bolton School broke up for the summer holidays, 1200 Senior School pupils undertook a whole-day charity walk to Rivington Pike and back to their Chorley New Road campus to raise funds to help build a school in Malawi. Students at Bolton School undertake the challenge every few years, the Pike being significant to them as Lord Leverhulme, who created the modern-day version of Bolton School in 1915, owned a bungalow on the moor. Boys and girls progressed in small groups with teachers and nearly all made it to the Pike in what was, weather-wise, a good day for walking. Sixth Form students helped out with the administration on the day.

Several days earlier, Nursery, Infant and Junior School children also did their fundraising bit, walking around the 32-acre campus and dancing to ‘This is Africa’.

Monies collected will be put with over £20,000 of funds already raised by Mrs. Marsden in the Junior Girls’ School, who has been fundraising for some time to build a school in Malawi for orphaned street children. Mrs. Marsden has been inspired by several visits out to the African country. The target is, working alongside local charity Great Minds Bright Futures, to raise £50,000 in order to build a school that older children can attend.

During a week in October, Senior Boys and Girls at Bolton School ran a footwear charity collection for the Malawi fundraising campaign. Pupils in Years 7-13 brought in pairs of shoes, trainers and flip-flops for the charity Great Minds, Bright Futures, which helps orphans in Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world. The Boys’ and Girls’ Divisions signed up to this cause, along with other settings within the Bolton School Foundation, after hearing an assembly presentation by Dave Armstrong and Catherine Foxon during the Autumn Term.

Boys’ Division raised the fantastic amount of £1,291 on House Day in October, which was also distributed to the Malawi Fund.

Nathan Pierson 11f

Foundation Charity Walk

Mock Election

Following much speculation, the UK General Election was announced on 22nd May. Politics teachers across the two Divisions immediately set to work, preparing to hold a mock election on the penultimate day of the Summer Term.

An event that typically occurs once every five years, General Elections are an excellent chance for pupils across all year groups to take a greater look at the world of government and politics. This is of particular relevance for A Level Politics students, putting the theory of their studies into practice. Each General Election, it falls to this group of pupils to hit the campaign trail across school to demonstrate to their peers across all year groups what each party stands for. The aim: to have the party they represent win the Bolton School Mock Election.

Very quickly after Rishi Sunak’s announcement, the A Level Politics students were assigned to a group that would be representing the five most dominant political parties within the United Kingdom.

The Conservative Party was represented by William Malley, Ryan Coombes, Harriett Atherton, and Shabaan Akram. The Labour Party was represented by James Parfrey, Caitlin Smith, Sophie Cutler, and Karishma Ladha. The Green Party was represented by Suliman Sadiq, Zara Kadva, Caitlin Hurt, and Faaizah Afinwala. Reform UK was represented by Molly Grimshaw, Zahara Muhammad, Shreya Tol, and Ella Chandra. The Liberal Democrats were represented by Aisling McCabe, Maaria Patel, Harry Brown, Olivia Walker, as well as a keen volunteer, Tom Hatchett. Maria Jones-Brosed stood as an officially endorsed representative of the Monster Raving Loony Party.

Once their summer exams were out of the way, the hopeful candidates hit the campaign trail. Posters started popping up around school, and the leaders of each of the parties took part in two hustings events. The party leaders were grilled by audiences in both Divisions, as well as the moderator, Mr. Britton. Some candidates

School Notes

went for a populist approach with lots of catchy slogans, others went for a more reasoned approach, based on statistics. Whichever method was used, the opinion polls swayed across the four-week period of campaigning. Labour took an early lead, closely followed by the Liberal Democrats. Over time, both the Greens and Reform UK started to creep up in the polls.

On 4th July, each form across both Senior Schools was assigned to a local constituency. Their vote would go towards electing a candidate for their chosen party in that given constituency.

The Bolton School Mock Election saw a turnout of 58%, largely in line with the 60% turnout of the real election. For Bolton North East, Zara Kadva was elected mock MP for the Green Party. For Bolton South and Walkden, Caitlin Hurt was elected mock MP for the Green Party. For Bolton West, Faaizah Afinwala was elected mock MP for the Green Party.

As such, the Green Party was the overall winner of the Bolton School Mock Election. Congratulations to those who campaigned for the Greens, and well done to all those who took part. Further thanks go to the great number of boys across a range of year groups that took the time to approach me or the candidates to ask some very interesting questions about politics and the election, as well as those boys that attended one of the hustings events.

Looking forward to May 2029, it may well be the current Year 7 that go on to run the next mock election, save for any unexpected snap elections. As former Prime Minister Harold Wilson once commented, a week is a long time in politics. Five years then may see a very different political landscape in which the next Bolton School Mock Election is fought.

Miss B.C. Marsh

School Notes

Monitors 2023-24

Back Row (left-right): Zain Mehraj, Patrice Rostami, Jake Dickinson, William Littlefair, Jonathon Brennan, Kiran Sastry, Daud Khan, Akshat Kamath, Archie Stocks, Evan Dare, Jack Stevens, Dylan Lincoln, Elliot Davies, Freddie Audley, Peter Craig, Cameron Weatherley, Omar Al-Falahi, Tom Griffiths, Ben Rimmer, George Gkikas, Ketan Dhokia, Adi Ranganath

Middle Row (left-right):: Ewan Davies, Harry Taylor, Darragh Livesey, Keshana Fonseka, Jake Partington, Joshua Dickens, Noah Nethercott, Muhammad-Mustafa Patel, Yash Panasa, Billy Burrows, Liv Hextall, Fletcher Mellor-Brook, Sam Paton

Front Row (left-right):: Harvey Dhokia, Lewis Pierson, Finn Flanagan, James Bland (Senior Monitor), Harry Adams (Vice-captain), Alex McKie (Captain), Veer Patel (Vice-captain), Priyesh Fernando (Senior Monitor), Jayden Luhar (Senior Monitor), Kiran Adiyodi, Luis McPherson, Marcus Fung

Class of 2024

School Notes

A Level and GCSE Results Day

Grey skies could not dampen spirits at Bolton School this A Level Results Day! There were celebrations in both the Boys’ and Girls’ Division Great Halls as Year 13 returned to collect their A Level grades. One quarter came away with all A* or A grades, and two thirds of students received the grades of A*, A or B needed for the best universities. The pass rate was 99%.

Philip Britton, Bolton School’s Head of Foundation, said: ‘As always, today is a really proud moment for pupils, parents and the School as the next generation of pupils leaves ready to make a difference to the world. Part of that is the wonderful grades they have today, which represent their hard work and the guidance and nurturing of my colleagues. Whether top A* grades or a well-earned C grade, they are all an achievement today. Students take away much more than that from their time at school and it is this that makes the real difference. We say farewell to a really decent group of young adults: they are kind and thoughtful, they have shown resilience through the Covid years; there are tremendous actors and activists, great athletes in a whole range of sports, volunteers, musicians and much more. I wish them all well.

‘We measure ourselves by value added in results and that will be the story in January after the Department for Education publishes that analysis. Our results are and should be the best in Bolton, but I am far more focused on us adding value and in past years we have done that extraordinarily well across all grades.

‘We don’t ever stand still. Our Foundation objective next year is around teaching and learning, consolidating the best of what we know works, adding innovation and variety, embracing AI where

it is useful and respecting educational research. Our Centre of Educational Research and Innovation, now three years old, will drive that in school and hopefully beyond in partnership with other schools in the borough.’

In the summer, Kesh Fonseka debuted for Lancashire, and was in fact playing for the county the day before he received his A Level results, which include one A grade. Speaking about his plans for the future, he said, ‘I want to continue playing for Lancashire and go as far as I can. My goal is one day to play for England. I want to have as long a career in cricket as possible, though having a backup is important and that’s why I worked hard for my A Levels.’

David Chow, who received one A* and two A grades, is excited to start a four-year course in Animation at Gobelins, Paris: the world’s leading school for animation. He said, ‘It’s my dream school. The stuff other students have gone on to do is amazing. I’m really thankful to my teachers: I was quite worried, but I’m very happy with my results today.’

Billy Burrows was delighted with his results: three A* grades and one B grade. He is looking forward to studying English Literature at the University of Manchester, particularly joining societies and getting involved with student drama. Billy spoke about balancing his passion for theatre, including playing Nick Carraway in the Joint Production of ‘The Great Gatsby’, with his A Levels: ‘It was stressful at times, but it was so good to have that opportunity to do something you love. It was really useful as well, because we studied ‘The Great Gatsby’ for

School Notes

A Level and I was learning quotes from the book for the production!’

Ben Rimmer is heading off to study French and Russian at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge after receiving three A* grades. He said, ‘I’m very excited about everything, really: being in that environment, meeting new people, getting involved in all of the societies. I really love French and Russian, ever since I started learning these languages in Years 7 and 8, and I wanted to do something I like at university.’

Dylan Lincoln was very pleased with his set of results: three A*s and one B grade. He is going on to study Law at the University of Manchester: something he has wanted to do since he was in Year 9. He said that he is glad he’s not going far from home and is looking forward to gigs in the city. Music is one of Dylan’s hobbies, which he described as an outlet that he plans to continue with during his time at university. He was named Most Promising Performer at the Boys’ Division’s Young Musician of the Year Competition 2024.

Later in August, Bolton School’s Great Halls were buzzing with excitement as Year 11 gathered to collect their GCSE Results. There were smiles on many faces in the Great Halls and Riley Centre Café as the year group celebrated their combined successes together on Results Day.

Philip Britton, Bolton School’s Head of Foundation, said: ‘We are delighted with the GCSE results pupils are receiving today, which are even better than last year. It gives us real confidence that these pupils have shown resilience and determination to put the Covid years behind them and measure up so well to 2019 standards. This will provide an excellent platform for their Sixth Form studies.

‘A results day has to be about the pupils and all they have achieved – it is not about facts and figures and curriculum experts discussing different methods of assessment, as is so often sadly true. This year group went into Lockdown in March of Year 7, had Year 8 in bubbles and began Year 9 in masks. Since then, they have blossomed wonderfully: there are national level athletes, top musicians, awardwinning debaters, terrific actors and a year group of really decent young people. They have now added some excellent GCSE results to their achievements.

‘Almost all of our pupils stay to the Sixth Form and it will be a real pleasure to watch their progress over the next two years as they enjoy a more adult way of working, with longstanding friends, in familiar places surrounded by familiar faces. We also look forward to welcoming a good number of pupils joining us for the Sixth Form years.

‘This success is also about teachers, who really care about young people and who care about their subjects. I hope teachers are celebrated across the Bolton Learning Partnership today for their part in this success.’

There were a great many stories to celebrate in both Divisions as pupils collected their results. Among them were eleven Boys’ Division pupils and eight Girls’ Division pupils who achieved ten or more grade 8/9s or A*s.

In the Boys’ Division, Nathan Watts was a high achiever who picked up eleven grade 9s and one A*. Luke Burns, who beat his own

national record for 2x2 speedcubing last year, was one of those who received a suite of 8s and 9s. He plans to study Maths, Further Maths, Computer Science and German. He said: ‘It’s nice to see that the hard work has paid off! Now the hope is to continue to get the same sort of grades at A Level.’

Among the cohort were two pupils who won a category in the Boys’ Division Young Musician of the Year competition. Senior Brass winner Will Earnshaw was ‘very happy’ to pick up a great set of results this morning: he plans to study Maths, Further Maths, Economics and Classical Greek at A Level. Senior Vocal winner Nathan Pierson was also pleased with his results, and will take Maths, Chemistry, History and Politics with a view to studying Law at university.

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

SPACE is the curriculum enrichment programme for all students in the school designed to expand the boys’ development in the following areas:

S Social, Spiritual

P Physical, Personal, Practical A Active, Aesthetic, Academic C Community, Cultural E Enterprise, Entrepreneurship

Taking part in activities in these areas is an important part of boys’ character development and helps to prepare them to succeed in all aspects of their lives. In this way, SPACE contributes to the School’s aim of helping to shape students into confident young men with the skills and attributes required to lead happy and fulfilled lives.

SPACE takes place every Monday for boys in Years 7-9. Students in Years 10 and 11 have ‘SPACE days’ – days off timetable throughout the year to participate in enrichment activities.

Here are some of the highlights of this year’s programme.

Academic Enrichment

Year 7 were once again involved in a carousel of activities, offering opportunity to broaden their horizons in entirely new subjects, or subjects that are studies further up the school. Sessions on offer included Architecture, History of the USA, Cryptography, Astronomy, Mythology in Art, Ukrainian, and Engineering. These activities are firm favourites with the boys, owed to the efforts and passions of the specialist members of staff that deliver them. My thanks again to these colleagues.

Years 8 and 9 have developed their financial literacy this year, each taking part in sessions focused on how to manage budgets, run a business, and understand loans and debt. This is a key skill that is developed in both SPACE and the pastoral curriculum throughout a boy’s time at Bolton School.

All year groups have also been introduced to the careers platform Unifrog in SPACE this year. Pupils are able to take psychometric tests on Unifrog, the results of which are used to suggest relevant career paths tailored to each boy’s particular skills and interests. The CV locker has proven particularly useful to document skills and

experiences developed across a pupil’s time at school, to assist with job applications later in their teenage years.

Sport

A staple of the Year 7-9 SPACE curriculum is the annual interform football competition. Though the June weather this year left something to be desired, things were certainly heating up on the pitch! A final opportunity to compete with their form is always a valued experience for many boys before moving into their new form groups. Thanks again to the Sport Department for organising.

Boys in Year 9 also enjoyed a sporting carousel this year, with activities such as fencing, rock wall climbing, and footgolf. Year 8 participated in a mindful movement workshop, learning how to use physical exercise and breathing to relax.

Pastoral Curriculum

SPACE is of great importance in the delivery of parts of the pastoral curriculum, including Character Education, PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic), SMSC (Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural) and RSE (Relationships and Sex education). Topics are addressed in a safe environment through a combination of lectures and workshops using appropriately qualified and experienced external speakers alongside expertise found within the school. Some of the most impactful sessions in Years 7-9 have included healthy relationships, contraception and conception, active consent, as well as covering ideas and beliefs about masculinity.

Creative Arts

Art and culture continue to flourish in the Boys’ Division, thanks to the work of the Art, Music, and Drama Departments, as well as Foundation Director of Creative Learning, Miss Lord. Throughout the year, pupils engaged in several creative projects. Year 7 were guided through a session encouraging them to tap into their imagination, fostering their curiosity and creativity. In Year 8, pupils were shown how to use art and music as a form of mindfulness. Culture week was also celebrated through SPACE, with all year groups learning about identity expression through differing cultures.

My thanks to all the members of staff that make the delivery of SPACE possible. Their passion, expertise, and care for the character development of pupils are essential to shaping well rounded young men.

Miss B.C. Marsh

Careers

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

This year has been another busy year for the Careers Department. There continues to be close involvement with the Development Office to put together an inspiring programme of careers talks. This year’s highlights include the Perspectives Lectures on Law, Computer Science, Politics, Science and Entrepreneurship, where a range of speakers spent an evening informing our students about a range of job roles, over Zoom. The A-Z programme continues through the alphabet, from Fashion through to Pharmacy, and the World of Work talks to Years 10-13 during form time are enjoyed by all. Thank you to all of our alumni for supporting this aspect of our careers programme.

Within the curriculum, SPACE sessions have discussed careers and motivation to future trends in the labour market. The new SCOPE programme, which replaced SPACE for Sixth Form students, has allowed a more in-depth discussion of new routes into careers, as well as practical advice on CVs and applications. Towards the end of the Summer Term, students in Year 12 attended the yearly SKILT morning when they practised interview skills ready for their interview skills evening; this is one of the flagship events of the Careers Department and allows all of our Year 12 students an opportunity for a 30-minute virtual interview with an employer. Years 10 and 12 were involved in some further careers events in the final week of term to ensure that those final days set the scene for a summer thinking about their future options; this included virtual work experience, networking scenarios and assessment centre activity practice.

As ever, we look to provide a personalised approach to our students by providing individual conversations, particularly in Year 11, bespoke support with the increasing trend of degree apprenticeships and opportunities to find out about different post-18 options. A talk by the Army was enjoyed by many of our Year 10s, opening up the idea of the military after Sixth Form.

Outside of our student activities, this year we hosted Heads of Careers from other schools, and our students and alumni participated in that CPD event.

I am pleased to report that our partnership with the Unifrog platform continues to develop with students logging into the site on a much more regular basis and participating in the range of opportunities that they provide, which include courses and daily webinars; this will be an ongoing feature of our careers programme.

Mrs. E.A. Jepson

Duke of Edinburgh’s Award

Bronze Award

It is easy to say that Bronze DofE was the most challenging yet the most enjoyable and rewarding experience of Year 9.

The practice expedition began – we arrived at the Scout hut and were introduced to our instructors. Our rucksacks were packed, filled with our sleeping bags, tents, Trangias and various other equipment. We travelled by minibus then were dropped off in the middle of nowhere and handed a map that was marked with various checkpoints. We first had to work out where we were in relation to the things around us. Once we had figured this out, we then used the map to help us get to the first checkpoint and then further checkpoints, taking regular breaks for a drink and something to eat to boost our energy for the walk ahead. We found our rucksacks getting heavier, however we powered through and eventually arrived at Bibby’s Farm, where we pitched our tents and prepared our meals on the Trangias. Games of football and rugby were played, which

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

provided some entertainment before we went to bed early to rest and prepare for the next day; sleeping was easy as many of us were worn out after the long walk that day.

After having a quick breakfast, we set off again on our journey back to the Scout hut. We crossed a field, which was home to a herd of cows, and the ground was muddy and wet. The terrain proved a difficult challenge for us to cross and resulted in a member of our group losing his footwear in a cow pat! We continued the journey after stopping to obtain another pair of walking boots for our team member. We walked through Rivington Pike, where we had a lovely view of the reservoir whilst shaded by the trees above before arriving back at the Scout hut. The practice expedition was complete.

Armed with our new skills, we were eager to embark on the qualifying expedition. We arrived at Patterdale Hall on the Monday afternoon, where we ate lunch and as a team prepared our route cards and planned out our route, marking it on the map. We had to come up with an aim for our expedition. This proved quite difficult to begin with; however, we decided to investigate the biodiversity along the Ullswater route including the wildlife, trees and plant life. Once all the paperwork had been filled in, we enjoyed a nice Patterdale tea and packed our rucksacks ready for the following morning. Checks were done by the Patterdale staff to ensure that we had all the equipment that we required.

The following morning, we ate a filling breakfast, ensuring that we all had lots of energy and fuel ready for the day ahead. We were then handed our final equipment items, which included an emergency phone and a tracking device, allowing the Patterdale instructors to see our location at all times. We travelled by minibus and were dropped off at a location; however, this time, we were all alone –just the six of us without an instructor. The plan was simple, just to keep the water to our right and we knew that we would be on the right track. At first, it seemed fairly easy; however, as we continued, our heavy rucksacks seemed to be slowing us down. The terrain became more difficult, jagged, and rough with large sections going uphill; however, the walk was filled with breathtaking views. Again, regular breaks were taken, with each one used as a chance to recharge. Our team continued, and we learned that by engaging in conversations with each other, morale improved and almost made our bags feel lighter and feet less sore! The walk became easier again and the group sped up. Talking to each other certainly helped to take our minds off the difficulty of the task. We met many teachers and instructors along the route at various checkpoints, who warmly greeted us and checked on our welfare. However, there was one very

unexpected guest along our journey, a beautiful talking parrot named Rocket, who followed our group to the next checkpoint – he was a welcome distraction! We then crossed over Pooley Bridge before arriving at the campsite. We pitched our tents, cooked our food on the Trangias and enjoyed a bit of free time before it was lights out.

The next morning, after a quick breakfast, we took down our tents, packed our rucksacks and headed off on the return journey to Patterdale Hall. Despite this journey being more downhill, we found it to be just as difficult as going uphill. At one of the checkpoints, we went slightly off track due to our map being incorrectly marked with the wrong route; however, this problem was easily resolved, and we continued along our route. Finally, we arrived back at Patterdale Hall feeling a huge sense of achievement, with Bronze Duke of Edinburgh completed!

Theo Michaelas 9a

I have thoroughly enjoyed participating in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Bronze Award. All Year 9 and Year 10 pupils across the Bolton School Foundation have completed a four section programme; this consisted of volunteering, a skill, a physical section and culminated in an expedition hosted by Patterdale Hall.

On behalf of Year 9 and Year 10, I would like to thank Mr. Jones (Organiser of the DofE award) for his organisation and consistent reminders of deadlines! As well as this, I would like to thank the Patterdale Hall staff and instructors, who went above and beyond to make us get the best out of the experience. Looking back, I feel very grateful that we are able to use the amazing facilities at the Hall.

Thomas Sibley 9a

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After a late start, at around 11:30 we set off into Rivington. The first fifth of the journey went very smoothly, only taking an hour and a half – this sold us dreams for the rest of it. After losing half an hour from a wrong turn and eventually convincing one of my teammates not to attempt to climb under the electric fence to ‘save time’, we were back on track! We encountered our first major problem when we became lost halfway through the walk. At the time, it was infuriating as we knew we were within 500 metres of wherever we were supposed to be, but we just couldn’t pinpoint it. Thanks to some out-of-the-box thinking and teamwork, we persevered, created a new route for ourselves and got back on the trail albeit one and a half hours behind schedule. The rest of the journey was easy, but long, as the only team that didn’t decide our own route, we were already guaranteed to be doing three to five kilometres more than every other team, so this was just about saving time. We did that to the best of our ability and made it there two hours after the first team. It was a difficult night, what with being woken up, forgetting cutlery and flying tents, but these are all things that we can improve on while doing the Silver to increase our resolve to get home. The way back was much easier as it was 4km shorter and knowing our destination and the area made it easy for us to make the last big push. Despite encountering some obstacles and difficult fishermen, we made it and arrived third out of nine groups, showing our incredible perseverance and resolve.

Thomas Melpignano 10f

Silver Award

forward thinking and planning skills, while persevering in the face of adversity. Involving myself in the DofE programme has been a key factor in my growth as a person and I urge all to take part.

Joseph Williams 11c

Gold Award

Engaging in the DofE Silver programme has benefitted me greatly over the last year by providing opportunities to develop new skills for life. My personal favourite part was the Physical section, for which I chose to do mountain biking, helping both my fitness and technical ability. I found trying to beat my times down fast trails (and not so much climbing back to the top) to be particularly exhilarating. I spent the Skills section further learning the guitar, which allowed me to not only relax but enjoy playing music I like. The Volunteering section took the longest – I went to a Cub Scout group as a leader. Over the course of a year, this experience, thanks to DofE, developed my communication and leadership skills significantly.

My expedition was extremely memorable. Embarking on a cycling journey along Welsh canals, my group faced unique challenges we had to respond to. As well as a whole host of mechanical issues to deal with during the route, we had to think critically; minimising risks from riding on the narrow and slippery canal paths while carrying heavy kit. Over the three-day expedition, we all improved both our

Over the summer, my group and I set out on our kayaking expedition with the aim of kayaking the Great Glen – a canoe trail from Fort William to Inverness, passing through several canals and lochs. Whilst we had initially planned to circumnavigate the Isle of Bute as preparation, weather conditions at the time were not favourable, and so we had to make the unfortunate decision to alter our plans, deciding to paddle Windermere instead. We also decided to alter our plan for the summer to paddling the Great Glen instead of circumnavigating the Isle of Arran as we felt that we did not have the experience necessary to undertake a safe sea kayaking expedition independently. That is not to say, however, that our expedition was not challenging – the Great Glen canoe trail is 60 miles long, so whilst the technical skill may have reduced slightly, the physical toll increased significantly.

Our expeditions would be both self-planned and self-navigated, allowing us to develop our independence and skills in organisation and planning. The expeditions would also be self-supported, requiring us to carry all the equipment and food needed for the length of the expedition. The expedition also allowed development on a more personal level, and whilst exciting and allowing us to witness some magnificent scenery, there would also be challenges to overcome; our abilities of resilience and perseverance would undoubtedly be tested and improved. Our group’s aim was to investigate and follow the seven ‘Leave No Trace’ principles, which are there to help reduce damage caused to the environment by outdoor activities.

At the end of April, to help us prepare for the trip so that we had a taste of what was to come, we did a two-day practice expedition on

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Windermere. It was relatively uneventful, though strong headwinds throughout the first day were quite inconvenient. We paddled up the full length of Windermere on Day One before paddling back down on Day Two, ending with some rescue practices – quite a chilly experience even at the end of April! This practice trip was, however, quite helpful. For some, it brought home the limited amount of space we would have in our sea kayaks whilst also highlighting the physical toll that long paddling distances had; I think that we were all aching for a few days afterwards.

evening was wild camping on a very short section of pebble beach around forestry just past Fort Augustus.

Following on from revision and internal exams in the Summer Term, we looked towards finalising plans for our expedition in August. This meant researching the Great Glen canoe trail, looking at guides and maps to find suitable places to camp and collect potable water. Information gathered during the research would also help whilst on expedition in case we had to make any on-the-spot decisions. We decided to paddle from south to north, from Fort William to Inverness in order to be paddling in the direction of the prevailing wind, and it was not long before the expedition was upon us.

It started with a long drive up to Glencoe, where we planned to stay the night, and it was with heavy rain that we put up our tents that evening. After dinner, we had an early night to prepare ourselves for the next day. The rain continued, but it was with high spirits that we set off on the water with 23km to paddle. It was a long first day, though we had considerable winds which sped up the journey, but it was just as we were reaching our camping spot for the evening – a designated wild camping location – that we saw construction and a sign informing us that the camping spot had been moved 5km back the way we came, or that we could continue on for another 10km to the end of Loch Lochy. After a short discussion, we decided to keep on going, for the wind would make it incredibly difficult to paddle back the way we came, and, at any rate, there were toilets and a clean water tap at the end of the Loch. It was, therefore, just as the sun began its descent that we made it to camp that evening. Boil-in-the-bag meals were the favourite for every day – a quick and straightforward way to ensure we had enough energy.

Day 2 began very differently to the first, as the rain from the previous day had now stopped. It also started with the portage of a lock. It was predominately canals that day with a short section on Loch Oich, and camp for that

Day 3, however, was to be the longest. As we woke that morning, a thick layer of fog completely covered Loch Ness, delaying our planned early morning start. When we eventually got onto the water, we also decided that instead of camping part way up Loch Ness as planned, we would paddle the full 40km to the end, so that we would have less distance to cover on the final day. The day required a lot of determination, made even more difficult by an unforeseen headwind from around midday, though it was with much relief that we found a spot with a lovely view to set up camp for the last time. Standing around the Trangias that heated our boilin-the-bag meals, we discussed the long journey we had had since a few days earlier when we began. Day 4 passed without incident and, before long, we were on our way back home to Bolton with a sense of relief, but also a tinge of disappointment – for our expedition experience was now at an end.

Our expedition, at times, really tested us, and our paddling abilities for 40km of nearcontinuous paddling was quite arduous. We did, however, see some incredible scenery; not much can beat being on the water and paddling alongside mountains. Our planning turned out to be essential, for we were able to use it to continue with our route without much delay.

I would like to thank the Scott Bolton Trust for its generous funding and for the help of Mr. Bradley and Mr. Perry, without whom the trip would not have been possible. We all had a fantastic time and look forward to many more kayaking experiences in the future.

William Martin 12f

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Duke of Edinburgh’s Award

The following boys were awarded during the academic year 2023-24:

Bronze

Rocky Beaumont 9d

Abdullah Bux 9c

Haaris Malik 9c

Shay Patel 9g

Zayd Adam 10b

Hanaan Ahmed 10c

Zaid Ahmed 10b

Harris Akram 10f

Hassan Ali 10f

Laith AL-Shatri 10b

Hameedullah Amjad 10a

Ali Asghar 10c

Joe Baxter 10c

Charlie Beckett 10d

James Beirne 10e

Harry Bent 10d

Thomas Bent 10f

Nathaniel Bradley 10e

Alex Chadwick 10b

Samuel Cottrell 10f

Jordy Dare 10f

Ethan Dixon 10b

Logan Dodd 10a

Venkishen Duddukuri 10d

Christopher Ejeh 10c

Ryan Faridfar 10a

Elliot Foster 10b

James Gallagher 10e

Advaith Govindu 10f

Noah Haseldine 10f

Finlay Hazelton 10e

Jax Ho 10a

Jacob Honey 10b

Oliver Icely 10f

Harry Iddon 10b

Dhilan Jacobs 10b

William James 10a

Adam Jenkins 10d

Antoine Jodeau 10f

Xavier Jones 10f

Shayan Kanji 10b

Daniel Keene 10b

Temka Khadkhuu 10c

Sid Kumar 10a

Ned Laha 10d

Jenson Lomas 10a

William Lucas 10d

Ammar Maljee 10d

Jakub Maron 10a

Peter McCreedy 10b

Kayden Meadows 10d

Thomas Melpignano 10f

George Meredith-Alexander 10f

Thomas Morrison 10b

Umar Muhammad 10a

Rith Narla 10f

Kenzie Naylor 10f

Lucas Ng 10f

Rayyan Patel 10d

Milan Pitalia 10f

Lohith Ramesh 10c

Hanzalah Sarwar 10e

Sulaiman Seedat 10e

Shaurya Shaktawat 10a

Nishan Sharma 10d

Leo Simpson 10c

Jack Singh 10f

Kyri Stivaros 10d

Ahmed Tahir 10c

Sochi Umeadi 10e

Zac Walsh 10d

Freddie Wardle 10e

Cyrus Wong 10b

Fin Wyatt 10a

Rayhaan Yaqoob 10f

Matthew Yeung 10c

Abdullah Zaeem 10f

Haider Abbas 11b

Junaid Ahmed 11e

Saood Ahmed 11c

Zain Ahsan Ali 11e

Alan Al-Talabani 11e

Jaison Arhin 11b

Abdulrhman Elkadi 11d

Adam Farrukh 11c

Oliver Grimshaw 11a

Ajay Guhathakurta 11f

Yousef Haq 11f

George Holt 11b

Alistair Hughes 11d

Thomas Humphreys 11b

Johan Joshy 11f

Adnan Kola 11c

Nanda Lukalapu 11e

Yelysei Lytvyn (2023 Leaver)

Billy Minshull 11b

Talha Pandor 11d

Davian Patel 11f

Muhammad-Mikaeel Patel 11b

Ben Pursey 11d

Hamzah Qamruddin 11a

Joseph Robertson 11e

Zain Sabir 11a

Silver

Thomas Brennan (2023 Leaver)

Laurence Britton (2023 Leaver)

Muhammad Choudhary (2023 Leaver)

Neeraj Singh (2023 Leaver)

Ben Male (2023 Leaver)

Alistair Harris (2022 Leaver)

Matthew Settle (2022 Leaver)

Samuel Schofield (2022 Leaver)

Ben Flood (2021 Leaver)

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Community Action Celebration Evening

‘Volunteering improves your mental and physical well-being,’ were the wise words issued by former pupil Angela Rowley (Class of 1969) when she returned as guest speaker at the annual Community Action Celebration Evening at Bolton School. The awards ceremony celebrates the community service undertaken by Year 12 students during the academic year.

Addressing a large audience of parents, teachers and students in the Arts Centre, Angela said she was thrilled to hear about the wide range of volunteering at Bolton School and offered her congratulations to all. She said she was thrilled to be an Old Girl of the school, having loved her time in the Girls’ Division, where she first developed a passion for helping others. She recalled trips abroad with her German class and taking her duties as a Queen’s Guide very seriously. She also remembered working in Israel for two months, a trip partially funded by the Scott Bolton Trust.

Angela recounted a number of her own volunteering endeavours and in response to one of the student speeches about his work at Barnardo’s, espoused the importance of using charity shops. She told how she made use of her local Barnardo’s shop just after Covid when she had to source a crockery set for her daughter’s wedding! She told of creating a community choir in Eccles and helping start a youth centre in Bramhall. The year 2000 was, Angela said, a pivotal year – her husband took a sabbatical as they visited a student in Kenya. Where they were staying, they quickly came to realise that there was no school or healthcare for the local community. She learnt how clean water is essential and realised the nearest thing they had to an ambulance in the village was a wheelbarrow! Through perseverance and hard work, Angela was integral in opening a clinic, raising money and employing a health worker. She provided funds to pay for vaccinations and the rebuilding of the local primary school. But this was not enough. Angela came to realise that, after primary school, girls tended to get married and boys became farmers. Again, through her fundraising and volunteering endeavours, there is now a high school for children up to the age of 18. The next thing she tackled was the lack of sanitary products for girls and she helped find and fund a long-lasting reusable solution. Since that day, she said, the top student each year has often been a girl, and more often than not, they go off to university. Even then her work was not done. Angela told how she used to visit three times a year before Covid and how she still visits twice a year. In recent years, she has been involved with setting up an afternoon meeting for older people.

Angela finished her talk by saying that volunteering is vital. Its virtues, she reminded the students, were highlighted in the Dr.

Michael Mosley Just One Thing series. Once you do it, she advised, it becomes part of your mindset. Her parting words were: ‘It improves your mental and physical well-being, it boosts your mood, reduces cholesterol and so much more! Remember, it is more blessed to give than to receive. Good luck with your futures!’

Mrs. Sophie Entwistle, Assistant Head in the Girls’ Division and Head of Community Action, said the School’s volunteering scheme had begun with students being asked to do 20 hours of volunteering. This, she said, had quickly escalated and students now regularly undertake over 100 hours of volunteering. She described there often being a ‘penny-drop’ moment when students recognise that volunteering builds self-esteem and offers rewards in and of itself. Through it, students usually grow in self-confidence, while developing their team working skills and their ability to work alone. The commitment, this year, by students in Year 12 across both Divisions was, she said, worth a social value of over £50,000. They had delivered 10,100 hours of volunteering – equivalent to over six years of full-time work. The Head of Girls’ Division Mrs. Kyle, Mrs. Entwistle and the guest speaker then handed out certificates to the high achievers – dozens of Silver certificates for students volunteering more than 50 hours of their time and 32 Gold certificates to those having volunteered over 100 hours.

Earlier in the evening several Sixth Form students gave insights into their own volunteering experiences over the course of the 202324 academic year. Sophie recollected her experiences helping out at Devonshire Road Primary School for seven months; Harry spoke about his time at Bolton Hospice and Barnardo’s charity shop in Horwich. Tilly recapped how she helped out at Open Morning and Sixth Form Open Evenings, at Tea at the Riley and with Bolton Lions; William talked about his work at Withins School, working in a paired readers’ scheme and as a librarian, at a local tennis club and at his local Scout troop; Zahara remembered her time as a swim coach, Maths mentor and as a water polo coach; and Ramez spoke about volunteering at Bolton Hospice charity shop.

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Football Festival

Anew match day dedicated to girls’ football meant that Bolton School’s annual Football Festival for local primary schools ran over three nights this year rather than the usual two. 1,200 young people took part in small-sided football games over the course of the event: 57 teams comprising of Year 3 and 4 pupils on night one; 62 girls’ teams, 16 female referees and one WSL Everton Women’s player on night two; and over 60 teams on the final evening of action, made up of 40 Year 5 and 6 teams in the ‘A’ competition and 20 Year 5 and 6 teams in the ‘B’ competition.

The hugely popular event, which was attended by hundreds of families, provided much fun and also some serious competition.

The Girls’ Final saw St. Andrew’s Over Hulton draw 1-1 with Eatock and the teams deciding to share the trophy rather than go to sudden-death penalties. On the final match day, Red Lane beat St. Brendan’s 2-1 in the ‘A’ Competition Final, whilst Egerton and Mytham competed in the ‘B’ Competition Final with Egerton running out 1-0 winners.

The Festival is organised by Keith Branagan, former Bolton Wanderers’ goalkeeper and football coach at Bolton, along with the Bolton Sports Alliance. This year, the games were refereed by players from Bolton School’s Year 8, 9 and 10 football squads as well as volunteer girls from Ladybridge High School, Thornleigh and Bolton School Girls’ Division. The event also runs courtesy of the Estates and Grounds teams at Bolton School and teaching staff.

Bolton Children’s Fiction Award

Bolton School is delighted to announce that the winner of the Bolton Children’s Fiction Award 2024 is ‘When I See Blue’ by Lily Bailey. Bolton School’s Library staff thought this description of ‘When I See Blue’, written by Bolton School Girls’ Division student Isla, was an excellent summary as to why the book was chosen as

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this year’s winner: ‘Not only did this book really show me what it’s like to have OCD and completely change my understanding of it, it was also a well-written story with fun twists and excitement. This book was one of the most realistic step-inside-your-mind type books I have ever read. At one point, I think I might have convinced myself I was Ben! It really showed me his life and experiences and made me understand OCD far better. But it wasn’t just about that, it also had some great plot points and a very exciting ending!’

Winner Lily Bailey said in her virtual acceptance speech: ‘This has been such a wonderful awards to be a part of, and when I came to speak to you, you all just made me feel so welcome and just asked the most brilliant questions and were so open with sharing your experiences. I just want to say a big thank you again for all of the love you’ve shown for ‘Blue’ and for being so engaged and brilliant. Thank you to both your fantastic librarians, Mrs. Caller and Mrs. Howarth, and Ebb & Flo Bookshop, and all the members of staff who came together to just foster a love of reading and make this event the wonderful event that it has been. Also, just being shortlisted with Phil Earle and S.F. Said is a big deal for me, because they’re authors I really look up to. So congratulations to them again for being on your wonderful list! A big, big thank you from the bottom of my heart, thank you’.

Following consultation with local participating schools, the Bolton Children’s Fiction Award (BCFA) had a different format this year with a shortlist of three books and a celebration day held in March, where students met and engaged with the authors both virtually and in person.

The books shortlisted for 2024 were: ‘When I See Blue’ by Lily Bailey, ‘While the Storm Rages’ by Phil Earle and ‘Tyger’ by S.F. Said. The shortlist was selected by Bolton School Library staff to stretch pupils’ reading experiences and to introduce them to new authors and genres. While all quite distinct titles, they also have common themes running through them: developing a sense of identity, of friendship and overcoming adversity. They were picked as being some of the best contemporary Middle Grade novels.

Oxford Schools’ Debating Competition

After hours of practice and development through debates being held during school hours, the time had come to enter the competitive arena against other sharp, incisive and articulate minds.

Bolton School Boys’ Division was represented by James Wilson, Tony Mottram, Thomas Melpignano, and Ben Rimmer in the prestigious Oxford Schools’ competition. Having developed confident voices and honed their skills, they went to the hosting school, Manchester Grammar, in high spirits.

All four boys must be commended firstly on their ability to adapt to a new debating format. Far from being overwhelmed, they showcased their readiness, developing strategies and focusing on their strengths.

They split into two teams and headed into oratorical battle against both veterans and rookies. They represented their school and themselves with dignity and an assuredness beyond their years. From topics covering the NHS to the representation of Black British voices in media, all four boys performed extremely well as the government and the opposition.

As the dust settled, however, we learnt that we did not progress to the next round. Far from being a failure, the boys immediately reflected on their feedback and began mentally preparing for the next challenge ahead.

Ms. J.Z. Sigrist

Public Speaking and Debating Colours

Public Speaking and Debating Colours are a public recognition of talent and ongoing dedication to work within Public Speaking and Debating. Colours were awarded to the following boys:

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English Enrichment

In preparation for the Gothic unit, the Year 8 cohort were introduced to all things dark, eerie and mysterious! This introduction to the Gothic genre saw our students watch two different tales taken from the golden age of gothic horror, namely, ‘The Red Room’ and ‘The Tell-Tale Heart’. The former follows a sceptical young man who spends a night in an abandoned castle with the intention of disproving the myths surrounding the ‘red room,’ an allegedly haunted room in Lorraine Castle. Meanwhile, the latter explores the story of an unnamed narrator, who murders an old man and is eventually driven to insanity due to his all-consuming guilt.

Set in the backdrop of the Great Hall, Rupert Mason was able to bring these two spooky tales to life, performing the pieces in full period costume on a Victorian set furnished with candelabras, decanters and scotch glasses. The performances were further enhanced with the use of atmospheric lighting and various creepy sound effects. Students watched intently as Mason switched characters by change of voice, accent and physicality. His portrayal of the unnamed narrator saw him transform into a madman plagued by paranoia and terror as a result of his violent crime. Mason’s performance of ‘The Red Room’ on the other hand made ingenious use of lighting, sudden bumps and creaking doors.

Accordingly, this immersive experience made for the perfect entry into the genre and left our students intrigued to know more about all things dark, eerie and gothic!

Miss J.M. Choudhury

Students in Year 10 watched a performance of ‘Mr. Owen’s Pocket Book’ written and directed by award-winning writer Justin Butcher, an original play performed by Redheart theatre:

Wilfred Owen lived his last summer in Ripon. He spent his last birthday in the Cathedral which now provides a fitting backdrop for Rupert Mason’s one-man performance. An officer travels from Allied HQ to the Western Front one week before the Armistice and discovers the pocket book of a young lieutenant killed that day. The show movingly explores Wilfred Owen’s experience of war through his own and the poetry of his contemporaries.

Students used this performance to inspire their creative writing coursework based on the theme of war.

Ms. J.Z. Sigrist

Chris Martin, author of the Inky Stevens book series, visited Bolton School Boys’ Division for a day of workshops with keen readers in Years 7 and 8.

The morning was dedicated to talking about Inky Stevens, the Great School Detective. Chris spoke to the boys about ‘The Case of the Caretaker’s Keys’ and ‘The Case of the Abominable Snowball’, explaining the setup to both mysteries and how main character Inky becomes involved in solving them. This included recruiting members of his audience to act out key scenes, bringing them to life for everyone. He also used this portion of the day to share his own writing journey and talk to boys about being an author.

In the afternoon, Chris and a group of five boys acted out a mystery play about a poisoning at the football final between two rival schools. As well as being packed full of footballing puns, the play contained all the information needed to answer the question of who poisoned the star football player. Boys in the audience were asked to share their own deductions before the big reveal at the end!

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As well as learning lots about the writing process and the key components of writing a mystery story, the boys thoroughly enjoyed their day with Chris.

The Bebras Computing Challenge is organised by the University of Oxford. It introduces computational thinking to students. Over 60 countries take part, and it is designed to get students all over the world excited about computing. Last November, over 400,000 students took part in the UK, and over 3 million worldwide.

Each participant answers questions that focus on computational and logical thinking. This year, all of the Girls’ Division pupils plus our A Level Computing students, and all of our Year 7 pupils completed their challenge online during their ICT lessons.

The highest awards are ‘Best in School’ and ‘Gold Awards’. Further awards for Distinction, Merits and Participation were handed out during ICT lessons.

Best in School

Junior Category Joseph Grundy 7c

Elite age group Evan Weston 13h

Gold Award

Elite age group Danny Heywood 13a, Freddie Audley 13i

Elite age group Dominic Farrell 12a

Junior age group 7a – Ethan Cao, Arham Mohamed Akram, Rehan Farooq

7b – Isaac Earnshaw, Daksh Anand, Tyler Humphreys, Hari Whitehead

7c – Joseph Stoddart, Ajay Peart, Daniel Watch

7d – Aayush Patel, Ibrahim Iqbal, Huzaifah Adam

7e – Jake Clarke

7f – Glen Twyford, Oliver Elliott, William Maher

Mrs E.J. Fielding

Historical Association Great Debate

On 4th December, the History Department once again took a short trip through the Riley Centre to the Girls’ Division to compete in the Historical Association Great Debate. History students from across the region gathered to deliver their personal response to the question “Which historical place or person from your local area deserves greater recognition?” Each entrant is required to deliver a persuasive five-minute speech, drawing a well-reasoned, well researched, and well articulated conclusion.

The popularity of the competition has grown immensely over the last few years. Our first entrant back in 2020, Ewan Davies, had only four other competitors. This year, Year 12 student William Malley, was one of fifteen budding historians to take part in the Bolton heat of the Great Debate. William gave a highly personal speech about his great-grandfather, John Thomas Malley, who served as an air navigator during the Second World War. Born in Salford, his two years in the RAF during the War saw him work as a navigator for eleven different units from Canada to Cumbria. The speech was an audience favourite; the perfect balance of informative and impassioned, with some laugh-out-loud moments to boot.

Ultimately, the winner of the heat did come from Bolton School, though it was Girls’ Division student Molly Grimshaw who won over the judges with a dynamic speech on the 1896 trespass on Winter Hill. She went on to compete at Windsor Castle in March with the winners of other regional heats across the country.

In the 2024/25 competition, the Historical Association would like students to consider “How can your local history tell a global story?” Could this be the year that the Boys’ Division reaches the Final?

Miss B.C. Marsh

Congratulations to Zain Ahsan Ali, Billy Minshull, Tony Mottram and James Wilson in Year 11 on their success in achieving their Intermediate Certificate in Classical Greek. This is a national qualification which was offered for the first time this year to those pupils studying for their GCSE in

Classics Enrichment

Bebras Computing Challenge

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Ancient Greek. Particular congratulations go to Zain who secured a distinction in this exam.

Mrs. C.A. Brace

At the end of the Summer Term the Classics Department held a competition for Years 7-9, inviting them to get creative with the ancient Olympic Games, in celebration of the modern competition held in Paris over the summer. There were many fantastic entries in a variety of media, from iMovies and scale models to poetry and works of art. The Classics Department had an enjoyable time sifting through the entries and noting the level of creative skills on display.

Highly Commended are: Janek Zarobkiewicz (7d), Rohan O’Riordan (7e), Harry Dunne (8d), Mateo Sprott (8d) and Saif Karim (8d).

The winners from the various year groups are: Louis Ball (7c), Bradan Boyd (7c), Jake Clarke (7e), Austin Fox (7d), Will Maher (7f), George Glover (8a), Jensen Heath (8f), Sumedh Joshi (8b), Derek Leong (8f), Egan Moore (8d), Daniel Titiloye (8f), Archie Warren (8a) and Harry Wright (8d).

Mr. D.V.B. Lamb

A visiting spoken word performer engaged us all in her ‘Wild Vision, Untamed Myth’ presentation, with her own enthralling portrayal of the terrific and tragic story of Cassandra, opening our eyes to the under-told tale of the underappreciated princess of Troy.

Then, we as Sixth Formers carried on through the next period, learning the art of spoken word storytelling, a convenient Odyssey

revision device too! As we told the story of Odysseus returning home from his travels, we were reminded of the power a well-told story can hold. It was a thoroughly brilliant experience throughout, both as a listener and a speaker.

Creative Writing Competitions

It has been a fruitful and inspiring year for creative writing at Bolton School: students have described the adventures of youth; galvanised ferocious and sympathetic monsters; birthed new worlds and imagined them on the precipice. Reuben Wardle’s (8e) winning entry for last year’s in-house novel opening competition Sentences Are Alive exemplified the unique sophistication the judging panel were looking for: a splinter of mystery echoing through a polyptotonic body of darkness:

“It was as dark as dark matter; some may call it the witching hour, but the man at the end of the street wasn’t thinking of the time, only what he was going to do with the darkness.”

The Portico Sadie Massey Awards celebrate reading and writing excellence in young people between the ages of 7-18 years old. From among over 800 entries in this external competition, Rith Narla’s (10f) short story Conversation of Home was Highly Commended, elegantly weaving, as it does, the industrial isolation of a postwar northern town with nostalgic experiences of the diaspora:

“This conversation changed the way I felt since I moved to the UK; I had been scared to try and talk to people and to fit in, and I had been carrying a certain sadness with me all the time, but I felt a sense of relief, and even a bit of hope. Maybe I’ll be okay.”

You can read Conversation of Home in the Creative Writing section of the magazine.

Mr. J. Harrison-Twist

Charlie Lowe 13G

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

Arkwright Engineering Scholarships

Two Sixth Form students at Bolton School Boys’ Division, Alfred Norse and Jake Mayor, have been awarded Arkwright Engineering Scholarships.

During the half term break, both young men and their families travelled to London to receive their awards at Savoy Place, the home of the Institution of Engineering and Technology. The Year 12 students, who will be sponsored by the RAF, also met their respective mentors.

Katja Norse, Alfred’s mother, said: ‘It was a very rigorous application process and we are really proud of Alfred’s achievement. I’d also like to thank Mr. Coffey and Mr. Walker for their support, guidance and encouragement, which has enabled Alfred to pursue his dream towards career in engineering.

Father of Jake, Steve Mayor, felt similar: ‘We are very proud parents. We were not aware Jake had applied for the award until he told us we had to go to London for him to collect it! We were very inspired by the talent in the room and the opportunities that lie ahead for all the scholars. Jake, being sponsored by the RAF, gets to go and stay with them for a week on a residential to see all the things on offer. The organisers stated that having this on their CVs will, without doubt, boost their careers.’

The Arkwright Engineering Scholarship Programme identifies and inspires young people to pursue their dreams of changing the world through engineering.

UK Linguistic Olympiad

Anumber of committed students from Year 12 competed in the annual UK Linguistics Olympiad and spent a challenging afternoon putting their finest problemsolving skills to the test by investigating a selection of new and unfamiliar languages, including Georgian, Zio and the Adinkra symbols of the Bobo people. The School maintained its previous success in securing medals with Ryan Coombes and Arun Patel being awarded a Bronze award and Tom Williamson a Gold medal with all participants demonstrating commitment to pursuing academic

interests beyond their A Level studies. This year’s participants were Thomas Atkinson, Harry Brown, Ryan Coombes, Toby Greenwood, Maria Jones-Brosed, William Martin, Amrit Mishra, Arun Patel, Fraser Sackfield, Tom Williamson and Ethan Wong.

Mrs. C.A. Brace

Mock Law Trial

On Saturday 25th November, a number of our Sixth Formers took part in the annual Mock Law Trial Competition at Manchester Crown Court. They played the parts of barristers and witnesses, including characters such as Mary Poppins, Bertie Chim Cher-ee and Joan of Arc. Our team won each of its trials against Altrincham Girls, Altrincham Boys and Bury Grammar, but was sadly knocked out at the league stage. The team should be very proud of its achievements.

The team consisted of Maria Jones-Brosed, William Martin, Tom Debreczeni, William Malley and a special mention goes to Alex Cook for stepping in with five minutes’ notice when a team member didn’t arrive on time.

Every member of the team who participated has now been offered work experience with our barrister helper from Cobden Chambers. Well done.

Mrs. H.M. Brandon

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

National Languages Competition

FBen Turner 13i Bronze I

Evan Weston 13h Bronze I

Daniel Elding-Parry 13h Bronze II

ollowing its inaugural success last year, GCHQ, the UK’s intelligence, security and cyber agency, organised its second National Languages Competition, the aim of which was to encourage students to discover their aptitude for learning languages. Pupils from Years 9 and 10 engaged enthusiastically with a week-long wide range of problem-solving challenges using an online platform whose success relied on effective teamwork, excellent time management and, above all, astute problem-solving skills in manipulating a range of new and complex languages.

Particular congratulations go to Ali Asghar, Jax Ho, Kenzie Naylor and Jack Singh in Year 10, who were the School’s top-performing team and secured a place just outside of the Top 50 on the national leaderboard from an entry of over 2000 teams from 500 schools. This year’s participants were Ali Asghar, Jax Ho, Louie Healey, Dhilan Jacobs, Jacob Jones, Marton Lange, Will Lucas, Yehia Mohamed, Jakub Maron, Kenzie Naylor, Vince Parkinson, Avi Patel, Nishan Sharma, Yasir Shobowale, Jack Singh, Ian So and Abdullah Zaeem.

Mrs. C.A. Brace

Twelve students from Years 12 and 13 entered the first round of the British Physics Olympiad. This is a very difficult paper, which involves questions which require students to apply problem-solving skills to very challenging questions. Over 3000 students from the UK and 3500 from China entered the competition. The results were as follows:

Name Form Award

Peter Craig 13e

Sam Paton 13c

Andy Shen 13g

Bronze I

Bronze I

Bronze I

Jamie Logan 12e Bronze II

Freddie Audley 13i Commendation

Alex Cook 12a Commendation

Khushal Gola 12b Commendation

Jake Mayor 12e Commendation

Ethan Wong 12e Commendation

World Book Day

The English Department had the pleasure of celebrating World Book Day with students in the Boys’ Division on Thursday 7th March 2024. World Book Day was created by UNESCO in 1995 as a worldwide celebration of books and reading. It is celebrated in over 100 countries around the globe.

During Thursday’s form period, Lower School students participated in a ‘Book Bonanza Quiz’, which generated considerable excitement, while the Upper School engaged in a ‘From Page to Screen’ quiz that was equally successful.

During the lunch break, a ‘Reading Bag’ stall was set up at the base of the staircase by the Music/English area. This stall proved to be more popular than anticipated, necessitating additional helpers to manage the distribution. The reading bags, personalised to each year group, contained a gripping short story, bookmark, an in-house raffle ticket, and a chocolate treat (which likely contributed to the stall’s popularity).

The celebrations continued, with a bustling book swap during morning break and lunchtime, ably supported by Mrs. Talbot.

Following on from the celebrations, Ms. Sigrist delivered an assembly highlighting the significance of World Book Day and the broader importance of reading, emphasising the myriad benefits our students can gain by fostering a love of reading.

Miss J.L.A. Petrie

British Physics Olympiad

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

Chemistry Enrichment

In Chemistry the Year 12s all had the challenge of participating in the Cambridge Olympiad; this was a fantastic opportunity for our Chemists to be stretched and challenged outside of the classroom and is a great experience for the boys to think about science in the way they would at university. Owan Ahmad, Ramez Alio, Adam Faulkner, Jonathan Frank, Khushal Gola, James Logan, Anish Patel and Arun Patel all received Bronze Awards.

Four boys were chosen to represent our school at the Annual Chemquiz event at MMU. The boys took part in many activities from practical investigations to working as part of a team in a quiz. Zain Burrill (Year 10), Harry Roberts (Year 9) Ben Booth and Faaz Sajid (both Year 8) did fantastically well, but unfortunately this year we didn’t win.

Mrs. L.R. Acton

Psychology Research

Psychology students embarked on an intellectually stimulating journey, conducting their own psychological research. These budding psychologists have delved into human behaviour, learning essential skills in data collection, ethical issues and drawing meaningful conclusions. Their investigations reflected their curiosity about human behaviour and some of the research questions included:

Does owning a pet make you happier?

Do people find you more attractive if your teeth are whiter?

Do leading questions affect eyewitness testimony?

Does the weather have an effect on happiness? Does colour influence emotions?

Once their questions were established, students designed surveys, conducted experiments, and engaged in observational studies. For instance, in the pet ownership study, students distributed questionnaires to pet and non-pet owners to rate their happiness. In the teeth whiteness study, participants rated the attractiveness of images showing varying teeth shades. Students gained a deeper appreciation for the scientific method and the rigour required in psychological research. They learned to think critically, question assumptions, and appreciate the complexity of human behaviour.

Mrs. J. Sanders

Eco Week

World Earth Day on Monday 22nd April, and the whole of Eco Week, has seen pupils and staff from across the Bolton School Foundation join together to reflect, make changes and understand more about sustainability and the impact of climate change.

In the Boys’ Division, Climate Club members enjoyed a fascinating documentary about the members of the Citizens Assembly representing the UK population to influence climate policy. Students also learnt about environmental awareness through a special Eco assembly, which focused on how attitudes and actions have changed over the past 40 years. There were further film screenings, litter picks, Form time quizzes, a virtual reality event and Year 7 forms were involved in activities around the school grounds during form times. An Eco flag flew in the Centre Quad of the School and batteries were also brought into school for recycling. The Boys’ Division continues to support the planet through meat-free meals, green energy, recycling and rewilding.

Each day during Eco Week, the winners and runners-up of the biennial Bolton School Earthshot competition were announced. The

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

competition, which was open to all, had some very high-quality entries from Lower School students in particular. The winning posters and those which were Highly Commended are displayed on A Corridor and in Bolton Town Centre. They provide innovative solutions for improving biodiversity on a small budget.

Year 7 Winner: Louis Ball

Year 8 Winner: George Glover

Year 9 Winning Entry: Ibraheem Almoukaed, Usman Ahsan & Faheem Akram

Highly Commended Entries: Yohaan Bhalme & Ambrose Zheng

Mrs. E.A. Jepson

Reading Awards

Very well done to all those boys who have achieved their Bronze and Silver reading awards this year, Also a special mention to the readers who achieved Millionaire status:

Year 7 – Ray Adewale, Arham Mohamed Akram, Ethan Cao, Diyan Challa, Jake Clarke, Mohammed Owais Jiva, Junaid Jusab, Tadi Mambongo and James Williams

Year 8 – Yusuf Ali, Adam Atcha, Ziyad Bagasi, Ahmed Baree, Amaar Butt, Tanishq Das, George Glover, Shoaib Ismail, Saif Karim, Aleks Neklesa-Ford, Hashim Masood, Faaz Sajid, Haris Tareen and Daniel Titiloye

The following boys read over two million words this year: Year 7 – Joseph Grundy and Dawar Hassan Year 8 – Adam Atcha, Luke Cotton Ethan Singh and Archie Warren

Year 7 pupils Sebastian Chen and Daniel Watch have read over four million words this year.

Modern Foreign Languages Enrichment

Neeraj Patel and Akshay Kallat (both in 9e) competed in the Northern Final of the Routes into Languages German Translation Bee at Lancaster University. Both boys did extremely well and Akshay qualified for the National Final in Cambridge in June. Akshay performed brilliantly in his allotted minute of the National Final and we are really proud of him.

Congratulations to Hassan Chaudhry in Year 8 who has been Highly Commended in Oxford University’s French Flash Fiction Competition (Years 7-9 category). This annual competition invites Secondary pupils to write a short story of no more than 100 words.

Well done to Ben Rimmer and Amrit Mishra, who made it through to the French Final of the North Schools’ MFL Debating Competition at Cheadle Hulme, narrowly losing to Withington Girls – a great experience for all our Bolton teams.

During the Spring Term, a number of pupils took part in the Anthea Bell Prize for Young Translators, a prestigious language translation competition organised by Queen’s College, Oxford. Pupils in both Boys’ Division and Girls’ Division had a go at translating language extracts at varying levels in French, German, Italian, Mandarin and Spanish.

Year 7 pupil Alistair Ashworth was awarded North West Winner in the Italian Beginners’ category. Year 8 pupil Derek Leong was awarded North West Winner in the Mandarin Beginners category as

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

well as National Runner-up. Year 10 pupil Lily Coupe was awarded North West Winner in the Mandarin GCSE level category.

Over 16,000 students participated in the prize in the academic year and representatives from the Queen’s College Translation Exchange said: ‘The standard of the translations submitted to the prize was very high and our team of judges was impressed by the creativity and fluency on display.’

UKMT Maths Challenge

In the first round of the UKMT Senior Maths Challenge the boys achieved the following results:

Peter Craig 13e Gold

Danny Heywood 13a Gold

Ben Turner 13i Gold

Marlon Wen 12f Gold

Yash Anand 12f Silver

Freddie Audley 13i Silver

Toby Greenwood 12d Silver

Jayden Luhar 13a Silver

Muhammad Thagia 12h Silver

Evan Weston 13h Silver

Tom Williamson 12e Silver

Arin Wong 12d Silver

Ethan Wong 12e Silver

Ahmad Aleid 12e Bronze

Thomas Atkinson 12i Bronze

Emmanuel Eze 12f Bronze

Samarth Misra 12c Bronze

Zainulabidin Mohmed 12d Bronze

Jacob Simmonite 13i Bronze

Shravy Velmurugan 12e Bronze

Amu Vijaya Kumar 12g Bronze

The following four boys also took part in the next, more challenging, Andrew Jobbings round achieving:

Ben Turner 13i Merit and Best in School

Danny Heywood 13a Merit

Peter Craig 13e Qualification

Marlon Wen 12f Qualification

The following boys progressed to the UKMT Kangaroo round: Ethan Herring, Marcus Law, Kenzie Naylor, Nathaniel Waghorn, Joseph Williams, Jamie Chen, Louis Ferguson, Akshay Kallat, Oscar McVerry, Shay Patel and Ian So.

The following boys recently took part in the UKMT Maths Challenge, achieving Junior Gold awards and scoring high enough to be invited to take part in the follow on, Junior Kangaroo challenge:

Year 7: Ibrahim Iqbal, Huzaifah Adam, Abu Huraira Ali and Taran Guduru

Year 8: Derek Leong, Jack Richardson, Calvin King, Tanishq Das, Justin Li and Nicky Ling

Congratulations to Derek Leong (UKMT Junior Kangaroo) and Louis Ferguson (UKMT Intermediate Kangaroo) for gaining Merit Qualifications, placing them in the top 2% nationally.

Canoeing Awards

After completing the Paddle Start Award in Year 7, boys who selected paddle sports for their sport lessons have completed their British Canoeing Discover Award. The Discover Award allows you to develop your decision making and practical skills for a fun and safe time on the water as you become a more skilled and independent paddler. Through this award, you will learn how to choose and effectively use equipment, whilst developing an understanding of the factors which affect your paddling. Congratulations to Ben Sheard, Ibraheem Sowunmi, Seth Thompson and Ambrose Zheng.

Congratulations to Freddie Bovill, Tristan Hughes, Warren Parody, Andy Shen and Joseph Williams for completing the British Canoeing Paddle Sport Safety and Rescue course.

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

The Big Bang in Bolton School Competition

In the heart of Bolton, a competition erupted, not with explosions, but with the brilliance of young minds. The Big Bang in Bolton, an in-school competition, witnessed the convergence of innovation, teamwork, and a commitment to environmental betterment. Year 9 boys showcased their ingenuity, each team presenting projects aimed at improving our surroundings through imaginative designs. From fuel efficiency to waste management, their ideas illuminated a path towards a greener future.

The competition was fierce, but camaraderie prevailed as teams collaborated, brainstormed and brought their visions to life. Fuelling their aspirations were not just dreams of victory, but a genuine desire to make a tangible difference in their community. As they worked tirelessly, it became evident that these young minds were not just participants, but stewards of change.

Let’s delve into the realm of innovation and explore the projects that graced the Big Bang in Bolton:

Philip Tsang, Rory Freestone, and Ian So – VTCE-DOME: With sustainability at the forefront of their minds, this trio embarked on a mission to revolutionize transportation. Their fuel-efficient car, VTCE-DOME, stood as a testament to their commitment to reducing carbon emissions and conserving energy.

Ibrahim Gul, Neeraj Patel, Akshay Kallat, Krishnan Velayutham, and Will Richardson –Car Exhaust Filter: Recognizing the detrimental impact of vehicular emissions on air quality, this team devised a solution. Their car exhaust filter aimed to mitigate pollution, offering a breath of fresh air in the fight against environmental degradation.

Marton Lange, Yasir Shobowale, and Tony Chen –Project Pegasus: Embracing the power of electric mobility, this team unveiled Project Pegasus, an electric go-kart designed to zoom into the future. Their innovation not only promoted eco-friendly transportation, but also embodied the spirit of technological advancement.

Jacob Jones, Louis Ferguson, Roman Doherty, and Ambrose Zheng –Sewerage System Enhancement: Amidst the complexities of urban infrastructure, this team sought to streamline waste management. Their design aimed to enhance the efficiency of the sewerage system, ensuring a cleaner and healthier environment for all.

While each project shone brightly, one duo emerged as the epitome of innovation and excellence. Jamie Chen and Charlie Butler captivated the audience with their groundbreaking design aimed at enhancing the efficiency of the traditional turbofan engine.

Beyond the realm of competition, the Big Bang in Bolton served as a platform for nurturing curiosity, fostering collaboration, and igniting a passion for environmental stewardship. It was a celebration of not just the projects presented, but the journey of exploration and discovery undertaken by these young innovators.

As the curtains drew to a close on this extraordinary event, one thing became abundantly clear – the future is indeed in capable hands. The Big Bang in Bolton illuminated the path forward, where innovation converges with sustainability, and where young minds dare to dream and defy the status quo.

In the hallowed halls of Bolton School, a legacy of creativity and environmental consciousness was born, echoing the sentiments of the renowned physicist Albert Einstein who famously said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.” The Big Bang in Bolton was a testament to the boundless power of imagination, sparking a revolution that transcends generations and paves the way for a brighter tomorrow.

Mrs. K.L. Mills

Artist workshops

We believe that education is not confined to the classroom and this academic year has been enhanced by our visiting artists and designers. Faith Bebbington and Year 8 produced a stunning year group sculpture on the theme, ubuntu ‘I am because you are’.

Academic Enrichment & Community Projects

Year 10 spent a full day with Joel Penkman working on the theme of ‘food’ and exploring egg tempura and acrylic painting techniques. Sam Bratby spoke to our GCSE and A Level student on her use of Procreate in her architectural work. This resulted in a competition where students produced a detailed digital piece on a place with a personal connection.

In the Summer Term, Luke James, an Old Boy who designs rugby and football kits, gave an inspiring talk and workshop to Years 9, 10 and 12 on understanding the industry, how to follow a creative path and designing for themselves. We would like to thank the creatives that spend so much time with our students – your inspiration is so important.

The main aims of the link were:

• To develop and deepen children and young people’s knowledge and understanding of identity, diversity, equality and community

• To develop skills of enquiry, critical thinking, reflection and communication

• To develop trust, empathy, awareness and respect

• To provide opportunities for children and young people to meet, build relationships, work together and contribute to the wider community

The first workshop was filled with activities based around the key questions: ‘Who am I?’ and ‘Who are we?’ which enabled students to work with a number of pupils from a variety of schools to explore further. Noticing the differences between each other, but, most importantly, the similarities between each, we ended our first workshop with the idea that there is much more that unites us than divides us. Students were also introduced to the task they had been set, to create a piece of art responding to the title ‘Who am I?’

After a series of visits to and from the link school, Bolton School hosted the celebration event, where all students involved were able to display their creative responses and discuss their artwork. The work was also set to be displayed in an online digital exhibition. The students worked brilliantly, representing themselves and the School in a great manner.

Who am I? Project

This year, fifteen Year 9 students were given the opportunity to participate in a school link with other schools in Bolton with the aim of supporting young people to explore identity, diversity and promote community. The link ran a number of sessions and workshops at the start of the academic year with a focus on Holocaust Memorial Arts as a theme through which questions around identity and diversity were explored.

Miss K.M.

Seedat

Mrs. M.A. Ryder

Clubs & Societies

Senior Literary and Debating Society

Senior Lit and Deb is one of the many excellent extracurricular activities offered at Bolton School. It is run every week in the Great Hall. There are lots of benefits from going such as improving your public speaking and meeting people with similar interests. It is a simple 3 vs. 3 format with two main point speakers then someone to make a summary and closing remarks.

Topics have ranged from ‘should Of Mice and Men be removed from the GCSE specification?’ to ‘should drugs be legalised?’ Although you may not know much about a subject in a certain week, there are many more opportunities to make your voice heard in future sessions. It is a nice space to improve your public speaking in a place where you won’t be judged.

Jack

Singh 10f

Russian Club

Attendance at Russian Club is occasionally terrifyingly high. Yet again, Thursday at 13:35 in B16 is proving particularly popular with our current Year 7 cohort, who are very excited to begin in earnest their study of the language come September.

As ever, we have been led this year by an all-knowing (and allseeing) Politburo. Peter Craig is always incredibly well prepared when delivering his detailed, informative, sobering updates on the war in Ukraine, George Houghton often lightens the mood with obscure historical, cultural and linguistic anecdotes, whilst Ben Rimmer has brought energy and enthusiasm to our Re-education Department, providing compulsory Russian phrases for the masses to learn each week. Sam Entwistle, in his role as Eternal President, has continued to deliver countless rousing speeches to take us to the end (almost) of the working week. Four teachers in the making, perhaps? Joke of the Week remains a crowd pleaser, whilst Sevi Brayshaw has introduced his Riddle of the Week, frequently leaving all but Education Minister Rimmer stumped. As in previous years, those in leadership positions have been ably supported by valuable contributions from other year groups, notably the Lower School.

Looking forward, in a seismic shift in the political landscape not seen since Gorbachev came in for Chernenko, Russian Club’s all-6th Form 2023/2024 Politburo is being replaced by one containing members of Years 8 and 9!

Working under the faultless guidance of Eternal President Sam, of course. Our congratulations go to Sevi Brayshaw, Adam Faradi, Moses Kopicki and Hashim Masood, whose oratorical prowess was highlighted during our hustings, and whose vision greatly impressed the proletariat, propelling them to great victories in our unrigged elections.

Всего доброго!

Mr. N.R.W. Wyatt

Advanced Chemistry Club

Autumn 2023 saw the revival of a chemistry club for Sixth Form students. With the aim to provide enrichment beyond the exam syllabus, we began the year hoping to do some experiments and some preparation for the challenging enrichment papers like the Olympiad and C3L6 competitions.

When clearing out a cupboard in CL5, we came across an old refractometer and our retired colleague Dr. Rogers suggested an experiment to analyse beer. This line of enquiry has occupied much of our practical work this year. We have refined our experiment to analyse beer by distillation and refractive index and compared it with volumetric analysis.

Just before the summer break, we enjoyed a fabulous meeting with Ben Sweeney, head brewer at Bank Top Brewery, who showed us how % abv is determined in industry as well as enlightening us as to what HMRC’s tolerance levels are. We discovered that while in A Level Chemistry we strive for accuracy and precision, this is not quite so important in the brewing industry! We look forward to an autumn visit to the brewery.

The commitment of the founding members of the club were honoured at the Summer Prizegiving, when Jamie Logan, Jonathan Frank, Khushal Gola and Ramez Alio received the 1803 Melmoth Prize for extra-curricular chemistry.

Dominoes Club

SClubs & Societies

When Justin approached me, asking me if I wanted to help run dominoes, I thought ‘Why not?’ I thought that at least it would be an ECA, even if it wasn’t popular. What I didn’t realise was that dominoes would bloom into such a brilliant community. We’ve had highs and lows but, in the end, I have had an incredible time. It just goes to show how great things can become if you put enough time into them.

Sumedh Joshi 8b

tarting an extracurricular activity (ECA) has been such a good experience for me. I felt that I was able to teach a lot of people and give a new view to building dominoes. Since I started the ECA, I have learnt a lot of things: I have developed my leadership skills, made some friends and even inspired others.

Dominoes Club is all about being creative. It is always very fascinating to see what other people have created. Have they experimented with the newly-taught trick? Have they tried their hand at other tricks? Have they created a new trick? Since every domino run is unique in its own way, there are different combination of tricks and gimmicks for each one. Even a standard domino line can be interesting if built creatively.

I was inspired to start this club by a professional domino artist called Hevish5. She is a very good domino artist, who taught me all the tricks I know now. She has a large domino community and constantly inspires others to do great things with dominoes, so I thought ‘why can’t I start a Domino community?’ And here we are now. I am so proud of my humble lunchtime club that gains new members each session and I would recommend starting an ECA to other people because it is worth it.

Justin Li 8b

I’ve really enjoyed watching the club develop this year and have learnt a lot myself. I never knew the level of intricacy involved in creating different runs! I’m really looking forward to seeing what direction the club takes next year.

Mrs. D. Stevens

Craft Club

Lower School Craft Club has continued to be popular this year. We have lots to celebrate. Our motto ‘good enough to sell’ has seen us open a shop on lunchtimes selling handmade crafts to staff and students.

Initially in the Autumn Term, we created winter themed crafts, hand printed cards and decorations using templates cut out by students that were sold individually and in bundles.

This was followed in the Spring Term by Mother’s Day knitted letters and shapes. These were so successful, we sold out before Mother’s Day arrived! A couple of bespoke requests from teachers were also accommodated.

Clubs & Societies

Finally, in the Summer Term, we created ceramic Father’s Day themed gifts such as coasters and key rings. Despite less footfall, as most boys were now on the Levels at lunchtimes, we managed to sell most of what we had made.

Creative Writing Clubs

IThis has left the club members feeling buoyant about next year, with plans made to donate some of the money earned to charity and invest in new materials to further the scope of our selling opportunities and improve quality of outcomes. Be sure to look out for our posters next year!

Mrs. J. White

n Senior Creative Writing Club, students in Year 11 have written ingenious story-length sentences, have written from the perspective of animals and inanimate objects, and illuminated the everyday with ekphrastic descriptions. While learning the value of drafting, reflecting, and editing, these completed pieces will be published alongside submissions from Lower School in the School’s literary publication The Fifth Quarter – edited by students in Year 12, Fraser Sackfield and Seb Gregson.

The Lower School, too, has exemplified Bolton School’s commitment to the development of curiosity, creative thinking, and originality in Junior Creative Writing Club. Here, students have sampled and experimented with various poetic and prose forms, trusting their instincts, and applying their broad knowledge of narrative and descriptive conventions, while being encouraged to subvert them.

2023/24 was another fine year for Club Animalia. As usual, we had a solid band of Lower School pupils who found a bit of solace from the normal hustle and bustle of school life, caring for the exotic animals in the Biology Department.

Our collection includes locusts, a leopard gecko, Madagascan hissing cockroaches, a corn snake and mice. With so many animals in the labs, the teachers and technicians need help looking after them. We have, therefore,

Mr. J. Harrison-Twist

Club Animalia

been most grateful to the Year 11 and Sixth Form pupils, who have taken responsibility of the daily care of the animals.

Every Friday at Club Animalia, under their supervision, Lower School pupils help to feed the animals, clean the tanks, and ensure they are in good health. The boys get the chance to handle the animals, learn about their biology and behaviour and appreciate the time needed to care for animals correctly.

A final word of thanks to Mrs. Hartley and Mrs. Hamer, who make this club possible.

Mr. T. Benbow and Dr. N. Morgan

Quiz Clubs

2024 proved to be a stellar year for School quizzing with the weekly Junior and Senior Quiz Clubs continuing to thrive and the weeks of practice culminating in the Senior Team securing the School’s first ever trophy in the National Schools Challenge Quiz Competition. In winning the Senior Plate competition, the Senior Team of George Houghton and Ben Rimmer in Year 13 and Adam Berisford and Will Martin in Year 12 brought their years of experience and enthusiasm to a fitting climax.

A return to the full competition format saw the School enter a strong cohort of six teams at Junior, Intermediate and Senior levels, who between them played over 25 games over the course of six months in a series of online matches with a variety of schools across the country. The general knowledge competition started over 50 years ago and follows the format of the popular television quiz programme University Challenge. Pupils demonstrate rapid-thinking and individual knowledge by buzzing in on starter questions, which are then followed up with a series of bonus questions which showcase their teamwork. The competition is divided into matches for Juniors, Intermediates and Seniors and although the School has regularly competed at all levels, this was the first time a team had made a National Final.

Clubs & Societies

On a sunny May bank holiday weekend, the Senior Team met at school to compete in their final two online matches after beginning their contest back in December when over 130 teams entered the first round of the competition. A confident victory over KES Birmingham in the Semi-final saw them sail into the Final, where they met Hampton School. Their well-honed speedy buzzing, first-rate teamwork and individual areas of expertise proved the perfect combination. After showcasing their knowledge on a host of subjects, including politics, history, sport and culture, they took the final question on the buzzer with a 100-point lead and secured the School’s first ever trophy in this competition.

This victory is a particularly well-deserved reward for a team who have shown great dedication to quizzing over their school careers. From their regular attendance in Lower School to enjoying the weekly Zoom quizzes during the national lockdowns of Middle School and then providing excellent support and guidance to the Lower School boys in their Sixth Form duties, they have helped the activity flourish and thrive and have been excellent ambassadors for this area of academic enrichment. They have done themselves proud in securing this terrific achievement for themselves and for the School and providing the blueprint for their successors.

The Senior ‘B’ team of Ryan Coombes, Mark Lintott, Anish Patel and Fraser Sackfield successfully fought through their matches to reach the third round and now take on the baton from their Team ‘A’ colleagues for next year’s competition.

The younger pupils also made some excellent debut performances with the junior teams of Aleks Neklesa-Ford, Derek Leong, Seth Mullen and Ethan Singh, and Harry Dunne, Saif Karim, Hashim Masood and Haris Tareen also reaching the third round of their competitions. For the first time in its history, the competition included an Intermediate round for Years 10 and 11 and the School was represented by George Burrows, Marton Lange, Kenzie Naylor and Yasir Shobowale, and Xavier Jones, Rith Narla, Milan Pitalia and Jack Singh who reached the second round.

This busy schedule of fixtures gave the School a very strong profile at all levels of the competition and hopefully this year’s success will inspire the next generation of Bolton School quizzers and ensure this area of school life will continue to thrive.

Plenty of extra-curricular opportunities...

Junior Geography Club

Dance Club

MedSoc

Gardening Club

Beekeeping Club

Year 7 Science Club

Lyde Cup

TThe Houses

Quiz Trophy Wigan

Simpson Cup (Swimming, Water Polo) Chorley

Ingham Cup (Outdoor Pursuits) Manchester

he House System in the Boys’ Division has been in place for more than 120 years. The Lyde Cup, named after our former Head and presented to the victorious House each academic year, was first awarded in 1903. Since then, the House System has evolved to support and develop the pupils’ moral, social and cultural understanding of the world, with each House forming a distinct identity. It continues to evolve to this day, with pupil feedback shaping House events, and democracy driving leadership and charitable endeavours.

Through its activities, the House System provides myriad opportunities for members of Wigan, Chorley, Manchester and Blackburn to learn from other year groups, with sports teams comprised of pupils across the Lower, Middle and Senior Schools, and new events such as Dungeons and Dragons requiring those in Year 7 to work alongside Sixth Formers. Our older pupils relish these opportunities to act as role models for younger ones, and at the same time develop invaluable leadership skills. A number of ECA House activities also took place this year, such as Table tennis, Football, Chess and Spanish translation, allowing members of all year groups to make contributions to the final Lyde Cup standings.

Our three House Days this year were incredibly successful, with pupils enjoying them greatly, and the weather barely getting involved. The following cups and trophies were awarded this year for participation in House Day competitions:

Wilson Cup (Tennis) Wigan

Indoor Racquets Trophy Manchester Chess Trophy Blackburn

Indoor Pursuits Trophy Wigan

Green Shield (Golf) Manchester Eagle Trophy (Art, Technology) Chorley

Words and Music Trophy Chorley

Dixon Cup (Cricket) Wigan

Junior Football Chorley

Inters Football Blackburn

Senior Football Blackburn

Jack Stables Trophy (Junior Rugby) Wigan

Waterhouse Cup (Senior Rugby) Manchester

Handball Trophy Blackburn

Hockey Cup Manchester

Haselden Trophy (Cross Country) Manchester

From the three House Days, the results are as follows:

4th place Manchester with 10598 points

3rd place Wigan with 11052 points

2nd place Chorley with 11249 points

1st place Blackburn with 11379 points

At Bolton School, Commendations are awarded for a wide variety of reasons. From excellent effort in class, to displaying admirable character on a trip, to being a good friend and perhaps for picking up some litter in the corridor. Whatever the reason, Commendations are a huge part of school life and help our pupils understand the positive traits we hope to engender. Commendation totals for each House are as follows:

4th place Manchester with 11861

3rd place Chorley with 12148

2nd place Wigan with 12321

1st place Blackburn with 12775

Congratulations to the following pupils who gained the top number of commendations in their year group:

Year 7

Year 8

Year 9

Dawar Hassan

Hussain Al Hakim

Lucas Bishop

Year 10 Fin Wyatt

Year 11

Year 12

Year 13

Muhammad-Mikaeel Patel

William Martin

Ben Rimmer

The Houses

The overall standings for the Lyde Cup, therefore, are:

4th place Manchester with 22459 points

3rd place Wigan with 23373 points

2nd place Chorley with 23397 points

The winners of the Lyde Cup and overall House Champions for 2023-24 are, once again, Blackburn with 24154 points. Well done and thanks everyone for another excellent year!

House Colours

House Colours are a public recognition of service and commitment shown within the House System and Charities Committee. House Colours were awarded to the following boys:

Name Form Colour House

Billy Burrows 13c Full Blackburn

Jayden Luhar 13a Full Chorley

Josh Dickens 13c Full Manchester

Elliot Davies 13f Full Wigan

Jonathon Brennan 13f Half Blackburn

Harvey Dhokia 13c Half Blackburn

William Littlefair 13g Half Blackburn

Priyesh Fernando 13b Half Chorley

Finn Flanagan 13c Half Chorley

Lewis Pierson 13c Half Chorley

Oliver Morrow 13h Half Manchester

Archie Stocks 13c Half Manchester

Matthew Cooney 13f Half Wigan

Muhammad-Mustafa Patel 13d Half Wigan

Charities Committee

The four Houses nominated and raised funds for their chosen charities: Blackburn – Blackburn Food Bank; Chorley – Cardiac Risk in the Young; Manchester – Manchester Children’s Hospital and Wigan – Bolton Green Umbrella.

The Non-uniform days during the year raised funds for a variety of charities. The Autumn and Summer Term House Days raised over £2000 for the Malawi School Fund, in addition to the monies collected on the Charity Walk to Rivington Pike. Money raised on House Day in the Spring Term went to Bolton Cancer Voices, Dementia UK, Refuge and the Greater Manchester Youth Network.

The Poppy appeal in School raised the fantastic amount of £1,345, with all monies donated to the Royal British Legion. Our Culture Day raised £1,423 and donations have been presented to the following charities: Bolton Breakdown, Unicef and Bolton Wanderers. The proceeds of the Sixth Form Christmas Jumper Day were donated to Barnardos and Samaritans. Christmas tree decorations sold by the Charities Committee raised money for Urban Outreach and the YMCA.

Bolton School has once again hit its ‘Hamper Challenge’ target with a whopping 1,700 Christmas Puddings donated! Bolton School was tasked with collecting 1,700 400g Christmas Puddings in just two and a half weeks, with the countdown beginning in mid-November. The Primary Division (Infants, Junior Boys and Junior Girls), Girls’ Division and Boys’ Division all chipped in to help, and donations also came from Bolton School Alumni, Foundation Services staff and guests attending Tea at the Riley, an afternoon tea hosted by the School for older people in the local area.

The Boys’ Division made the most of donations in the form of puddings and cash. In the final week before collection, students from the Boys’ Division Charity Committee were sent to Morrisons daily to spend donations and collect more puds for a final total of 300! The Christmas puddings were packed into Christmas hampers by Urban Outreach and delivered to those in need across the whole of Bolton, providing Christmas dinner with all the trimmings to those families and individuals who would otherwise not be able to enjoy a festive feast.

The Charities Committee has also supported an orphanage project in Uganda, Wishing Upon a Star, Lagan’s Foundation, LifeBridge ASEND and Bolton Together.

Mr. N.R.W. Wyatt

Blackburn House Report

As we reflect on the remarkable achievements of Blackburn House over the past year, it’s truly heartening to see the dedication that our House has demonstrated towards supporting our wider community. One of the most significant accomplishments we’ve achieved is the donation of 191 kilograms of essential supplies to Blackburn Foodbank. This generous contribution highlights our House’s commitment to helping those in need and the values of compassion and generosity that define our ethos. Furthermore, it is amazing to see the high level of Commendations received throughout the year, reflecting the continued hard work of everyone within the House.

I would like to express my gratitude to Mr. Jones for his guidance throughout the year. His help has been crucial in the success of our collective efforts, and we are truly appreciative of his support. I would also like to thank Vice-captains Harvey, Jonathon, and Will for their commitment and contributions to the House.

Finally, I would like to thank everyone in Blackburn House for their efforts throughout the year. From donating, to getting stuck into House Day activities, to volunteering, or trying your best in class, thank you so much. You have made it an absolute pleasure to be House Captain this year.

Billy Burrows 13c

Senior Leadership Team

Captain Billy Burrows Vice-captains Jonathon Brennan

Harvey Dhokia

William Littlefair

The Houses

Chorley House Report

This year, Chorley House has been raising money for Cardiac Risk in the Young, who are preventing young sudden cardiac deaths through awareness, screening and research, and supporting affected families.

Over the past few years, we have held fundraisers such as the Chorley Three Peaks Challenge and last year’s 12 for 12 challenge. This year, we are doing the Chorley 50, which is our main charitable event of the year. We are encouraging all House members to either walk, jog or run 50km, and all money raised from this will go to Cardiac Risk in the Young, supporting their research, screening and awareness.

House Days this year have been competitive for all of us –they provide an opportunity for friendly competition, team building, and showcasing our talents across various activities. It’s a chance for us to come together as a House, support one another, and collect points going towards the Lyde Cup. Another big contribution to points is Sports Day, which we all look forward to this year, as it will be the final push for points and to see who wins the Lyde Cup this year.

I’d like to give my thanks to our Housemaster, Mr. Watkinson, the Vice-captains, Priyesh, Finn and Lewis, and also to all the boys for their donations this year.

Jayden Luhar 13a

Senior Leadership Team

Captain Jayden Luhar Vice-captains Priyesh Fernando

Finn Flanagan

Lewis Pierson

Manchester House Report

This year, Manchester House has raised money for Manchester Children’s Hospital, who are working hard every day to help many young people in Manchester and giving support to them and their families.

This year, we have raised £500 for the Children’s Hospital, through raising money in the donation boxes at Christmas. We have also recently raised £300, with our plan to run 1 kilometre for every pound raised. We started the running in the Boys’ Gym at lunchtime in April and encouraged any boys from Manchester who wanted to get involved.

Thanks to all the boys from Manchester for giving their all in House Days and lessons, getting Commendations to help Manchester in its bid to win the Lyde Cup.

A special thanks to Mrs. Ebden, Archie and Ollie for helping lead Manchester House this year.

Josh Dickens 13c

Captain Joshua Dickens Vice-captains

Senior Leadership Team

Oliver Monroe

Archie Stocks

The Houses

Wigan House Report

In Wigan House this year we decided to continue raising money for Bolton Green Umbrella. Formed in 2016 and acting as an umbrella group supporting local volunteers and community groups, the charity has already been successful in making Bolton “a cleaner and greener town” through its litterbin and litterpicking projects. Every lad within the House has taken part in our Kick-up Challenge, each contributing a minimum of 20 kick ups until we reached our goal of 5000 in an attempt to raise at least £2000 and beat the amount raised last year. Thanks to everyone in Wigan House for taking part, especially Mr. Wyatt for organising and leading the way this year.

Elliot Davies 13f

2024 has once again been an amazing year for Wigan House with excellent contributions from our members in every aspect of school life, from academic success to sporting prowess to achievements in arts; this has been especially evident during the House Days throughout this school year. The effort and passion on show exemplify what it means to be part of Wigan House and, by extension, Bolton School, and is something to take great pride in.

Our chosen charity, Bolton Green Umbrella, paid us a visit earlier in the year to give an informative assembly outlining just how our donations would be put to use. The title of most kick-ups goes once again, for the second year, to our reigning champion Adam Berisford from Year 12. Adam’s behemoth effort comprised a mind-boggling 1715 kick ups – smashing the previous record by almost double. Other members of the Leadership Team and I also helped to organise the annual Staff Table Tennis fundraiser tournament in the Boys’ Gym. Points

were hard won and conceded and the cacophony of ping pong balls hitting bats rang out all morning, but, in the end, only one man could emerge victorious. A huge congratulations must therefore be extended to our winner for 2024 – Mr. Birchall.

From giving captivating assemblies to acting as bouncers for the Table Tennis tournament, every task laid before the Leadership Team of Wigan House has been undertaken with nothing but enthusiasm and, for that, I would like to extend my thanks to Captain Elliot Davies and Vice-captain Matthew Cooney and Charities Ambassador Muhammad-Mustafa Patel, William Martin of Year 12, Aariyan Chauhan, Isa Youssouf and Muhammad-Mikaeel Patel from Year 11, Abdullah Zaeem, Fionn Murphy, Jax Ho and James Davies from Year 10, Jacob Little and Bryn Edwards from Year 9, Faaz Sajid, Saad Alam, Ismaeel Patel and Dhruv Parbat from Year 8 and, last but not least, Jason Anderson, Ehaan Davda, Jesse Oloruntoba, Austin Burgess and Michael Fallon from Year 7 and of course, the one and only Mr. Wyatt – your efforts this year have been essential and have not gone unnoticed and I hope you all decide to continue the stellar work next year.

Jamie Logan 12e

Senior Leadership Team

Captain Elliot Davies

Vice-captain

Matthew Cooney

Sports Day

Congratulations to all who took part in the School Sports Day. The weather held out and all four Houses competed in a vast array of Track and Field events for the coveted trophy. The year group Tug of War was very popular, and Chorley House emerged victorious, winning the Wardle Trophy; however, it all came down to the final Relays. A strong 12f team took victory in the Year 12 inter-form Relays.

The

4th Wigan

3rd Chorley

2nd Manchester

1st Blackburn

points

points

points

points

final House standings saw Blackburn take the title to make it two wins out of two for debutant Mr. Jones!

Mr. M.G. Chilton

The Houses

Trips to Patterdale Hall

Issa Hussain (7a), Ayaan Ali (7b), George Brooks (7c), Subhan Khattak (7d) Sebastian Chen (7e) and Noah Adams (7f) have been awarded the Year 7 Patterdale Character Prize. This annual award recognises boys who have shown resilience, enthusiasm, kindness and the ability to work collaboratively.

Year 8

Camps & Journeys

The Year 11 leadership and teamwork skills programme took place in November at Patterdale Hall. Congratulations to Group 1 (James Wilson, Keeran Singh, Harry Shannon, Oliver Seddon, Tony Mottram and Nanda Lukapalu) who were the overall winners from the form ‘e’ and ‘f’ cohort with 490 points.

The instructors’ feedback said: ‘It was a pleasure to join this group on their challenge and watch them succeed. All the group members retained a positive attitude throughout the day, communicated their ideas well to each other and shared responsibilities and leadership. Inventiveness, resourcefulness and creative thinking secured their leading position in this year’s competition.’

The Amatt Challenge is a two-night, three-day adventure challenge race. After an initial briefing session, working in small pre-planned groups of eight, the students planned their race around this stunning part of the Lake District, earning points for reaching different checkpoints and undertaking various tasks. Aspects of the event took place on Ullswater by canoe or kayak. One night was spent out under canvas in the great outdoors, where our students had to cook, eat and work with their teammates. During this pinnacle Bolton School challenge, the students demonstrated all the key and core skills that they have learned over their school career so far; advanced communication, leadership, interdependence, resilience and reliability, to name just a few. Congratulations to all of the students for completing this exciting yet challenging adventure.

Congratulations to the Year 12 Amatt Challenge winners, Group 1: Ben Maher (12h), Toby Greenwood (12d), Alex Cook (12a), Fraser Sackfield (12c), Ashton Kay (12e), Ryan Coombes (12b), Tristan Hughes (12i) and Ramez Alio (12i).

Year 8 Rhineland Trip

In October half term 2023, the German Department set off on our long-awaited trip to the Rhineland, Germany. 43 Year 8 students and five staff members travelled from Bolton School to Hull, taking the overnight ferry to Rotterdam, before travelling on to the Rhineland. Over the course of five days, we visited Cologne, Koblenz, Boppard, Rüdesheim and Aachen.

Camps & Journeys

Highlights included a boat trip along the River Rhine, climbing the 533 steps up to the top of Cologne Cathedral, travelling in style via cable car, and the ever-popular ‘Sommerrodelbahn’. The boys were a credit to the school and behaved excellently. They also tested their German language skills when ordering snacks and drinks: Ms. Roddy’s group certainly impressed the owner of a kebab shop in Rüdesheim!

As well as enjoying their first taste of German food and being able to use the language in context for the first time, the boys learnt lots about German history and politics, courtesy of Mr. Brace’s talks at some of the historic sites which we visited. Their Rhineland diaries showed just how much they had learnt and how much they enjoyed the trip. Doubtless they will look back on it fondly for many years to come.

A huge thank you to Miss Ali, Miss Peters, Mr. Boyd and Mr. Brace for volunteering to accompany the trip, for their good humour and for sharing their expertise with the boys.

The German Department is already looking forward to the next trip!

Miss K.J. Roddy

Classics and History Trip to Italy

Outside Caecilius’ house, Pompeii

DCamps & Journeys

uring October Half Term, the Classics and History Departments came together to give forty students the trip of a lifetime – a five-day tour of Italy, full of iconic landmarks and sites of historical or classical significance. This was the first time the trip has run since before the COVID-19 pandemic, making it eagerly anticipated. It was absolutely worth the wait.

Where better to start our trip than Rome? The capital of Italy, with many recent events of importance recognised there, as well as being the centrepiece of the behemoth we call the Roman Empire. Being in Rome was being immersed in its culture and history, and the teachers made sure that each stop made us more impressed than the last. We got to see the famous Trevi Fountain, the impressive Trajan’s Column and then the must-see of any trip to Rome – the Colosseum. Students and teachers alike were in awe at seeing the famous monument up close, something which no picture can do justice to.

After the Colosseum, we visited another Classical site of importance: the Roman Forum. Even with all of us and other tourists around, we were a fraction of the number who would’ve been there every day a few thousand years ago. We even saw the Temple of Vesta high up on a hill, where Ancient Romans kept a fire stoked, believing its extinguishment spelled the Roman Empire’s doom. Next, we reached my favourite part of the trip. We arrived at the Pantheon with its beautiful roof, which would be awkward to construct by today’s means, and rows of history along its walls. It was a brilliant insight into Rome’s culture, beauty and longevity.

Not everything has to be Classical though, and the History students got their chance to shine as we learned about the reunification of Italy and visited the monument of Vittorio Emanuele II, the first King of Italy as a whole since the 6th century. We proceeded to another site for the History students, though everybody found something to marvel at – Saint Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. We arrived in the evening and whilst queuing, the sun set, showing off the beautiful front face of the Basilica lit up against a dark sky. Inside, everybody was in awe of the impressive sculpture and design. Classical Students even found Latin and Greek within the roof, which we quickly got engaged in translating. We arrived back to the hotel after a long day, tired but content and ready for more.

The next day did not disappoint. We travelled south, seeing sites on the way to Naples. First was Hadrian’s Villa (of ‘wall’ fame), which was absolutely stunning. Statues of gods lined the pool in the enormous garden, which the Classicists quickly identified. Back to History, our next stop was the Villa D’Este, a Renaissance period country house with the most beautiful garden, with water features everywhere. Great fountains that you could see rainbows in and a hundred fountains in a row were only some of the awe-striking views. Going even more recent, our final stop before Naples was Montecassino Abbey, where we learned about the Benedictine order and its use during extensive bombing in World War II.

After arriving in the Bay of Naples, we had three more stops on our trip: Pompeii, Herculaneum and Mount Vesuvius itself. Our first stop was Pompeii, where we walked the streets that once were covered by volcanic ash. This part of the trip was more sombre than earlier and very poignant; this did not detract from any of our experiences, but enhanced them. We learned of the eruption that completely covered the town, and even saw plaster casts of people, a stark reminder of the loss of life and the historical significance of the streets we walked through. Our final stop, Herculaneum, was a similar experience. In between these towns was a journey up the volcano itself, right to the crater, where we happened to bump into the Girls’ Division’s Classics trip!

The trip was filled with excitement, learning and time to spend seeing the beauties of Italy with friends. Thanks must go to Mr. Lamb for organising such a varied and interesting tour, as well as Mr. Fairbairn, Miss Wrathmell, Miss Marsh and Mrs. Brandon, who accompanied the trip.

Camps & Journeys

Art and Design Trips

Year 10 art students were lucky enough to visit the Yorkshire Sculpture Park near Wakefield in the Autumn Term to experience art in a variety of settings and on varying scales. Students were delighted by the playful nature of the work of contemporary artist Irwin Wurm in and around the underground gallery. They were amazed by the scale of outdoor sculptures by artists such as Damien Hirst, Barbara Hepworth and Henry Moore and were able to experience the varied and interactive nature of sculptural work while being still and grounded in the park. Definitely food for thought in how we develop ideas and present our work.

Year 10 and 12 Art and Graphic students visited the Manchester Metropolitan University Degree Shows of graduates’ work from BA and MA Art, Craft and Design degrees in the Spring Term. Many students were delighted by the range of degrees on offer and the style and scope of work produced. The Architecture displays were particularly popular with our students. There were some useful conversations had with artists and exhibitors about their path to higher education and use of technology in their work. The students are keen to explore these processes in their work for the mock exam next year.

Mrs M.A. Ryder

Kenzie Naylor 10f

Camps & Journeys

‘Macbeth’ Theatre Trip

As part of their Shakespeare study, Year 10 and Year 11 students were taken to Liverpool to watch Simon Godwin’s production of the tragedy ‘Macbeth’. Starring Ralph Fiennes and Indira Varma, the play explores the consequences of ambition and the resulting role reversal in Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s relationship.

Staged in a large industrial-style warehouse, the initial set design resembled the aftermath of a war zone or post-apocalyptic scene. As a result, we were immediately met with the scorched remains of a car - perhaps a symbol for the destruction caused by an incessant desire for power.

Beyond this area, the stage was ready, guarded by a single soldier. Moments later, enter Macbeth (Ralph Fiennes), who initially appears a valiant warrior, ready to serve king and country. However, his soliciting with the supernatural sees Fiennes transform from an idealistic soldier to a ruler who is violent, erratic and remorseless.

Indira Varma’s performance also revealed a dramatic transformation in character, with her initial strength replaced by feelings of guilt and insanity following the act of regicide.

Both actors’ performances were exceptional and highlighted how greed for power can totally ruin an individual. The students thoroughly enjoyed this production and the performance allowed students to develop their understanding of characterisation, the main themes and key message of the play.

Across two dark and snowy days at the start of December, a new batch of Year 9 recruits descended upon the Leeds Armouries Museum to discover whether they would have been cut out to join a Pals’ Battalion during the First World War.

A new curriculum trip for the Department this year, our visit to the Armouries was designed to serve as an introduction to the First World War unit studied by Year 9 in their History lessons. Boys were fortunate to take part in two workshops offered by the Museum staff.

The first part of the morning was a handling session, where pupils were given the opportunity to inspect and hold historical objects and wear some recreations of a typical uniform. The session was divided into three sections: personal items used by soldiers, defensive objects used in the trenches, and weaponry used to attack the enemy. By holding and wearing some of the items on offer, pupils quickly understood that trench life was not comfortable, and that fighting whilst wearing and carrying heavy items would have been incredibly difficult.

The boys were then taken into their second workshop, centred around the Leeds Pals. This was one of the first Pals’ Battalions formed, raised in September 1914. The session began by looking at reasons for ‘joining up’ when conscription had not yet been introduced. It was then time for Year 9 to imagine themselves as one of these groups.

Perhaps the most enjoyable part of the day for both the boys and teachers alike came with the introduction of the recruits’ new Lance Corporal. The boys were put through their paces, learning how to march correctly and how to best aim their (wooden) rifles at the teachers. Recruits that fell out of line, or were perhaps a seeming liability to their battalion, faced the Lance Corporal’s wrath. His favoured punishments included a set of push ups, and an army crawl across the hall floor. The session ended with a poignant reminder

Miss J.M. Choudhury

Leeds Armouries Museum

that whilst an effective way of encouraging young men to join the armed forces, Pals’ Battalions such as the Leeds Pals could see an entire demographic wiped from local communities.

The day ended with time to explore the galleries within the museum. Having studied the Indian Rebellion of 1857 earlier in the term, a chance to see a Pattern 1853 Enfield Rifle that contributed to sepoy discontent was of particular interest to many boys. The machine gun gallery routinely drew a large crowd, as did a recreation of a suit of armour worn by Henry VIII and his horse.

In lessons on the First World War subsequent to our visit, pupils routinely referred back to objects they had seen in the Armouries, creating a tangible link between the classroom and the battlefield. The History Department looks forward to visiting with a new batch of recruits next year.

Camps & Journeys

We set off from school at 4pm embarking on the three- anda-half-hour drive in Friday rush hour traffic (thankfully sped up by some music and sleep). Once we had arrived at the house we were staying in, had unloaded all the kit, had had a mini chess tournament, and had watched some TV, it was time for bed.

For the first frosty day of kayaking, we chose the Mawddach Estuary. It was about -3 degrees; however, that didn’t stop us – we wrapped up warm and set off for a day on the water. It was the first time for most of us paddling on an estuary, therefore we had to learn how to prepare for the worst and think ahead because it was so cold and the estuary was about 650m wide! Once we arrived at the destination, there was a great sense of achievement and we all enjoyed a warm hot chocolate once we got back to the accommodation. After some relaxing, we went out for a meal and had some delicious pizza at a local restaurant.

The second day was just as busy as the first, setting off nice and early with the plan to paddle on the Menai Strait, and that we did. It was slightly warmer than the previous day, but definitely not shorts and t-shirt weather. Overall, I believe that the trip may have ignited a passion for sea kayaking among some of us, as we are now planning our D of E in sea kayaks. Many thanks to Mr. S. Bradley for organising the trip and adapting it when the weather didn’t go to plan.

Tristan Hughes 12i

Miss B.C. Marsh

Kayaking Trip to Wales

Camps & Journeys

‘Animal Farm’ Trip

In February, Year 9 students attended a performance of ‘Animal Farm’ at The Octagon; it was a powerful re-telling of George Orwell’s chilling and timeless classic.

When the downtrodden animals of Manor Farm overthrow their master and take over, they imagine it is the beginning of a life of freedom and equality for all; however, over time, a cunning and brutal elite among them, masterminded by the pigs Napoleon and Snowball, gradually take control. Soon the other animals discover that they are not all as equal as they once thought and find themselves ensnared as one tyranny is replaced with another.

Students thoroughly enjoyed the thrilling revelation of the corruption of power from this classic tale.

Ms. J.Z. Sigrist

Classics Trip to ‘Hadestown’

Pupils recently enjoyed the opportunity to visit London to watch the highly acclaimed production of ‘Hadestown’, a musical set in the world of classical mythology.

First stop was a trip to the British Museum, which was a chance for the pupils to immerse themselves in the ancient galleries. Many admired the Rosetta Stone, the key to Egyptian Hieroglyphics and many marvelled at the spectacular ‘Elgin Marbles’ the highly controversial marble sculptures that once adorned the Parthenon in Athens. This was a fantastic opportunity for the GCSE Classical Civilisation students to view up close the ancient art that they had studied. After a wander through the Greek vase galleries, in which many admired the various drinking paraphernalia used at Greek symposia (drinking parties), it was time for lunch.

Pupils enjoyed a vast choice of street food within the Seven Dials Market before heading to the West End to enjoy the Tony Awardnominated musical. During the show, the audience was transported to the eerie setting of the Greek Underworld, or ‘Hadestown’ and taken on the journey of discovery, loss and love experienced by the Greek hero Orpheus, as he strove to retrieve Eurydice, his wife who had died far too young, from the king and queen of the Underworld Hades and Persephone. The staging was sparse but inventive and the band was scattered around the stage as the auditorium was filled with a mixture of New-Orleans-inspired jazz and modern American folk. Hermes acted as a formidable narrator and the actress struck a commanding presence as she unfurled the myth for her audience. The actor who played Orpheus, a hero known for his musical talent, adopted a chilling falsetto against a strong-willed and determined performance from Eurydice. Hades had a menacing and imposing stage presence alongside his long-suffering wife Persephone, who awaited the life and colour of Spring and her chance to escape from the murky depths until Autumn. The pupils were transported, and many talked eagerly about the various aspects of the performance that they had enjoyed. For many, it was a first trip to a musical and a first trip to London – a most enjoyable day.

Miss K.S. Wrathmell

Year 7 Brougham Castle History Trips

Brougham is, historically, a very significant place, even if relatively few people have heard of it. Near the meeting of two rivers, the Eamont and the Lowther, and at the intersection of three Roman roads, it was the location of an important Flavian border fort during the Roman occupation in the 1st Century AD/CE. A medieval castle was built on the same site in 1208, which was such an important English stronghold against the Scots that it played host to King Edward I himself. 400 years later, with a rather different dynamic at play between the two nations, King James I also paid visits to the castle. Soon after, it was transformed into the opulent residence of one of the most extraordinary women of 17th Century England, Lady Anne Clifford. Queen Victoria’s favourite Prime Minister, Henry Brougham, Lord Melbourne, had his family seat at Brougham Hall on the original castle estate, but by this time, the castle itself had become a picturesque ruin. Even in this state, however, it continued to have an impact, inspiring an

important painting by J.M.W. Turner and featuring in Book VI of William Wordsworth’s The Prelude. In 1915, Brougham Castle was officially recognised as a Monument of National Importance by the Ministry of Works and since the 1930s has been preserved for all of us to visit by English Heritage.

This is just as well, because it has become a really significant place for Bolton School Boys’ Division over the past quarter of a century. It is where, every year, members of Year 7 are able to see at first hand how places and buildings can be vivid, ‘living’ evidence of what happened in the past. During our day trips, the boys study the landscape at Brougham and understand why it is strategically such an important spot; they can spot the feint lines of the old Roman walls in the next field and the recycled Roman stones in the castle walls. They imagine themselves to be Scottish invaders and English defenders and plan the downfall and the salvation of the castle. They explore the remains of Lady Anne’s fine bedchambers, kitchens and chapels – and often speculate whether she still walks these rooms in the dead of night! To borrow some very appropriate Wordsworthian lines, over the years, Bolton School boys have become very familiar with “that river and those mouldering towers” and have climbed “…The darksome windings of a broken stair, And crept along a ridge of fractured wall, Not without trembling.”

The custodian at Brougham Castle always tells us that she knows that its time for Bolton School to visit because the clouds part around Penrith, the sun begins to beat down and the temperature soars. Not so much this year… although, miraculously, not a single drop of rain fell on us during any of our six trips this June. As ever,

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we left Brougham with a much better understanding of what castles were for, plenty of great photos, some historical souvenirs and a distinct sense that summer is on its way.

Miss S.V. Burgess

Estonia Trip

After it was cancelled multiple times due to COVID-19 and the Russo-Ukrainian war, the School’s Russian Trip finally set off again. Starting in the wee hours of Sunday, 30th June we flew to Riga. For us, apart from a mad dash in Frankfurt to make our connection, we made it to Riga okay. Unfortunately, our bags were left in Frankfurt, but we didn’t let this dampen our spirits. We quickly started to explore Riga’s old town, and its monuments to freedom and independence. With a very Russian meal of borscht and Napoleon cake at Uncle Vanya’s restaurant, we ended our first day of the trip.

The next day, we collected our bags that had been flown in overnight and headed north to Estonia. After a short stop in Parnu for a well-deserved pizza break, we continued north to Tallinn. We all wondered what this would bring, but we were not prepared for the whirlwind to come.

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From the moment we arrived on Monday until Thursday morning, we had too much to do. Our mornings consisted of Russian lessons in a local language school, preparing us for future studies. In the afternoons, we visited various museums, asking provocative questions in the KGB museums and exploring the house in which Tsar Peter the Great stayed during the summer. Our evenings were taken up by dining at local taverns and restaurants, as well as exploring the old town of Tallinn, making pelmeni or bowling. For our free time, we ate at local restaurants for lunch, and watched the Euros before bed. By the end of the day, we were too tired and tried to rest ready for the next day.

This was a great trip, allowing us to learn much about Estonia and Latvia’s culture and history. I believe that we will not forget many of the sights we have seen, nor the experiences we have had.

Peter Craig 13e

Saundersfoot Camp

Firstly, we just want to share that this trip was amazing. It was sunny, exciting and, most importantly, it was fun! More than 30 people were getting ready for one of the best school trips that they would definitely hold onto in their hearts. The teachers helped us all the way to ensure we had an amazing time (and to not get into any trouble!)

On our final day, we started as we always had with a hotel breakfast. After checking out, we explored an old seaplane harbour (including getting inside a 1930s Soviet submarine), and the Proto Invention Museum, a VR showcase of old inventions. Having eaten a small lunch, we headed out to a small Soviet monument for those who died during World War II. Finally, we headed back to the airport for our flight home, ending our trip.

On the first day, the coach was filled with loads of excitement as we were met by a field full of other campers from the public. As we drove to our spot, we spotted our Tent

Leaders, who were as excited as us, having set up all the tents we would be living in for the next few days. For the rest of the day, we gathered in the marquee, where Mr. Bradley taught us about the simple systems that would help us throughout our trip; this included washing dishes after meals, queuing for the food and where all of the facilities were.

Later that week, we went to a beach right under the campsite where we were staying, which made it even more convenient! When we got down onto the beach, we had the option to go into the water. Some went in, while some explored the land and climbed onto the rocks. Three boys managed to find a lit fire in an empty cave!

Among the many exciting and engaging activities we did at Saundersfoot were the theme parks – we went to two during our trip: Heatherton and Oakwood. Oakwood was an action-packed experience with various activities to choose from – water rides, spinning rides, rollercoasters and some unique rides too. Our personal favourite ride was called Treetops, where you were put on a rollercoaster and into a spiral – we went on it four times! We also went on Dizzy Disk, where you were put onto a disk and would spin from one side to another, elevating and dropping at the same time.

The second theme park was Heatherton, different to Oakwood because instead of rides (there was still The Battle of Somme) there were more physical activities. You were given a card with different passes to different experiences such as go-karting, bumper boats, trampolines, clay pigeon shooting and archery. This was less of a thrill-seeking place and more of a time to do activities with friends. Our favourite part was the go-karting, where we raced for first place, feeling like an F1 Driver.

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On one of the days, we went to the town of Saundersfoot where we were able to roam free around the town. To get there, we had to walk along Tenby Beach, which was a long way. We walked all the way across, jumping on rocks to get to our destination. First, we explored the town, going into shops and browsing through the various items from knitting equipment to snacks. Then, we ended up eating fish and chips near the beach, taking in the salty sea and the cool breeze. After that, we headed over to the arcade to have some fun with friends and to win prizes.

On another day, we went to Tenby, where we were mesmerised by all the colourful buildings. To get there, we had to walk from camp through the woods, which took at least an hour. I started singing “100 bottles of beer on the wall” and managed to make it all the way to 0, before starting again. When we got there, the view was beautiful. We went into our own groups and walked around freely, just as we did in the town of Saundersfoot. While there, we met a really nice coffee shop lady, who asked us why so many boys were there! She was so nice that she let me take at least four sugar packets for my tea! We went into a few shops and bought gifts for our family members.

While at camp, during break times we would play cricket, football, and tig – those were the key memories of our trip. There were also tournaments and games throughout the whole camp such as the table tennis tournament. The person who won this competition was the one and only George Pickett. We also played sports as tents.

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When we had to play football with one of the tents with great football players, we found a strategy. We became a wall, all of us, and covered the goal, which worked! They still won, but only by a bit!

During our stay at Trevayne Campsite, the Sixth Form boys that were staying with us made us amazing food. After each meal, a designated tent would be picked to clean and dry all the pots and pans. All the tents had to clean their own cutlery either way.

On the last day, we were woken up one hour earlier than usual by Mr. Bradley. We hurriedly packed all of our belongings and put down all the tents, fitting them into their own bags, which at first Table

didn’t seem like they would fit, but they did! Once on the coach, we all said our goodbyes at the end of this adventure and we endured the long coach journey back to school. Truly, a trip to remember!

Suhayb Pal 8b & Charlie Bovill 8b

Year 7 Paris Trip

The night before we were leaving to go to Paris, I was filled with so much excitement. I thought about what it would be like to be in Paris, having only seen pictures of the Eiffel Tower on the internet and the hotel, would it be like Patterdale or just a normal hotel? Waking up at 3 a.m. I got ready for the nearly 10-hour journey to Paris.

After the 6-hour coach journey to the ferry, we got to see the White Cliffs of Dover, which were beautiful to look at. We finally boarded the ferry and each of us received a free meal voucher so that we could buy pizza. We explored the ferry for a while until the journey ended in Calais. We were finally in France! Finally, it was a 3-hour drive to the hotel, Les Trois Hiboux and the views of the rollercoasters in the theme park nearby were astonishing. The hotel has many trees surrounding it, so it is like a woodland. The hotel itself has lots of wooden decking and wooden structures. We finally received our room key and looked into the hotel room. The room was an absolute surprise. We had many wardrobes, a bunk bed, two single beds, a

Inter-tent Football Champions

Inter-tent Cricket Champions

Tennis Champion

fancy bathroom and a balcony! There was also a TV on which we could watch the Euros! We settled into our room, had some dinner and finally went to bed after a long day.

Waking up at 6.15 a.m, we had some breakfast and waited until we left for the Château de Pierrefonds, a medieval castle. It used to be a fortress, a very large one. We looked around the castle for a while and took many photos. My favourite area was the crypt because it was dark and cold and many stone sculptures were there.

After the Château de Pierrefonds, we went to an Accrobranche course where we had some pizza for lunch. After lunch, we went on the high ropes course, where there were some easy parts and some hard parts. My favourite part of this was the ziplines, which were

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very long and fun. There was one zipline which was very high up that I went on! We stayed there until around 6 o’clock when we went back to the hotel for dinner. We stayed up until around 10 watching the Euros, then went to bed.

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soon as the ride was over, I felt really proud of myself for my first rollercoaster being a really scary one. After, we went on a couple more rollercoasters, we went on one that was really fun because you go on it twice and there’s not much of a queue! It was so good we went on it eight times! Another one of my favourites was the log flume because you get wet and there is a massive drop at the end! We had lunch, bought some sweets and at 6 we went back to the hotel to get ready to go home.

The next day we woke up at 6.15 again for our visit to central Paris. We had breakfast at 7 a.m. and then quickly got ready for the coach at 8. We first went to visit the Eiffel Tower, where we took many photos of it. Climbing the stairs was tiring, as there were so many steps. We finally reached the first floor, where we explored and had lunch. There was also an area that had a really scary glass floor! After the Eiffel Tower, we in a boat trip across the Seine. We got to see many buildings, like a large and high cathedral, Notre Dame. We finally went to Napoleon’s tomb and took many photos. The place in which he is buried is very large. After the visit, we went back to the hotel, had dinner, and went to bed.

The final day was very exciting! We got to go to the theme park the hotel is part of. I had never been on a roller coaster before and was hoping to face my fear and I did! But I did it by going to the scariest one in the park first! The ride I went on was called OzIris, an inverted rollercoaster like Nemesis. I went on it and the suspense in the first part where we slowly went up before the drop was scaring me so much. As soon as the first drop came, I wished I hadn’t gone on it. I felt like I was being pressured into my seat and the loops were just crazy because your legs were dangling and you’re upside down. As

Overall, this trip was unforgettable as I faced my fear of rollercoasters and saw the Eiffel Tower for the first time. This trip is one of a kind because you can also share it with your friends. I would recommend this trip to everyone as I am sure you will regret not going on it if you miss the chance.

Aberystwyth Trip

Ahighlight of the year as always is the Biology field trip to Aberystwyth. A component of the A Level course in Biology requires pupils to study ecology and use some of the techniques associated with work in this area. The most effective way to teach this is to experience, at first-hand, the ecology of contrasting seashores and a sand dune system. Fortunately, Aberystwyth is an excellent venue for this. It is close to contrasting seashores in Aberystwyth and in Borth and allows us to study the sand dune system at Ynyslas, which is a national nature reserve and site of special scientific interest (SSRI). The trip also allows the pupils to experience a taster of university life. We stay at the University of Aberystwyth in a hall of residence and use the laboratory facilities in the School of Biological Sciences.

Over two days, we studied sand dune succession, estimated winkle populations, measured the effect of environment on limpet morphology and used chromatography to observe the photosynthetic pigments of different seaweeds. Of course, the lads also enjoyed sampling a few ice-creams and a bit of beach football. The stop at Chester Zoo, on the return, was a nice end to the trip.

Diyan Challa 7a

Many thanks to Dr. Morgan and Miss Tunstall for their expertise and good company on the trip. I would also like to thank Mrs. Hamer and Mrs. Hartley for their careful preparation of the necessary equipment.

Mr. T. Benbow

Kayaking Trip to French Alps

Earlier this year, four other students and I went to the French Alps to do some whitewater kayaking, building on what we do in our sports sessions every Wednesday.

The main idea of the trip was to paddle some more interesting rivers, which are far different to those in the UK. The water levels were much higher than usual because the ice from a glacier had melted later due to a milder spring. The water levels were, in some cases, running at more than 130 cumecs, which is equivalent to ten of some UK rivers, which was pretty cool.

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We learned a lot of skills: independence – having to cook for ourselves using gas stoves and cooking for a large group of people as well as budgeting skills in terms of ordering food for the group within a certain budget. We were also able to go mountain biking one day as well, just to break up the kayaking. The scenery was fantastic!

Many thanks to Mr. Bradley and Mr. Perry for organising and accompanying the trip.

James Parfrey 12g

Music Notes

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his has been another extremely busy year for our musicians, with many performance opportunities enjoyed by appreciative audiences. Events which were live streamed or recorded can be found on the School’s website.

Autumn Term

At the start of the Autumn Term, we were delighted to welcome Peter Limb, who joined our team as the Boys’ Division’s Head of Academic Music and Katie Neal as our new Graduate Music Assistant.

On 30th September, both the Boys’ Division and Girls’ Division Great Halls resounded with uplifting performances given by three of our organ scholars, namely William Martin, Bing Yu Wang and Lucas Ng. Their performances were part of the activities organised for the ‘3 Years Class Reunion event. Several former pupils visited the Great Halls and commented on how impressive the musical renditions were, with organ sounds bringing back many happy memories of their time at our school. As a Royal College of Organists’ Accredited School, we are always happy to showcase our organists! They are taught by Foundation Organist, Marc Murray.

On 7th October, several pupils from both the Boys’ and Girls’ Divisions performed at the Open Morning to entertain our visitors to the school.

A very wide range of musical styles including classical, jazz, pop and heavy metal were presented to an enthusiastic audience made up of family, friends and staff.

Excellent solo and duet items were given by Jake Dance (vocal), Taran Guduru (piano), Oliver Hill (electric guitar), Jamie Ho (piano), Rohan O’Riordan (piano), Ike Edwards (bass guitar), Marcus Lam (clarinet), Tejas Neelam (flute), Jamie Chen (guitar), Thomas Sibley (vocal), Kingsley Sou (piano), Nishan Sharma (xylophone), William Earnshaw (tenor horn), Oliver Heath (vocal/electric guitar), Thomas Humphreys (piano), Zak McAlister (vocal), Alex Pearce (piano), Daniel Simmons (bass guitar), and Tom Williamson (piano).

On 9th October, 19 Senior boys provided a wonderful evening of musical entertainment in the Great Hall.

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At the conclusion of the concert, Head of Boys’ Division, Mr. Ford, thanked all of the performers for sharing their talents in such an impressive way, and also thanked parents for supporting their children on their musical journeys.

Our Year 13 Music students, James Bland (oboe) and Priyesh Fernando (piano), had the opportunity to perform at Bolton Parish Church on the 17th of October for one of their lunchtime concerts. Both boys played fantastically, enjoying the acoustics, the supportive audience, and hearing fellow musicians from Canon Slade School. We are looking forward to taking more students to perform in future lunchtime concerts at the church.

On 14th November, the Joint Autumn Concert brought together musicians from the Boys’ and Girls’ Divisions for an evening of entertainment across the two Great Halls. The programme featured a mix of joint music ensembles, separate Boys’ and Girls’ Division groups, and solo performances.

The evening began in the Girls’ Division Great Hall with two classical pieces performed by the Senior Orchestra: Capriccio Espagnol by Rimsky-Korsakov and Symphony No. 8 Mvt. 1 by Schubert. This joint opening was followed by a focus on Girls’ Division performers.

Returning to joint fare, the String Quartet (Harry Adams, Haylie Tsang, Uma Patel and Matthew Yeung) gave a captivating performance of Nimrod from the Enigma Variations by Elgar, and the Jazz Ensemble played Children of Sanchez by C. Mangione, with many performers taking their moment in the spotlight during this piece.

The second soloist of the first half was Amy Heaton on cornet, performing The Sunshine of Your Smile by Lilian Ray. The Girls’ Division Senior Choir rounded off the first half of the evening with a performance of Spirit by T. McKenzie, I. Salmanzadeh and B. Knowles.

The audience enjoyed interval refreshments provided by the Boys’ and Girls’ Division Parents’ Associations in the Riley Centre before moving to the Boys’ Division Great Hall for the second half of the Autumn Concert.

The Senior Concert Band continued the programme with two pieces: Hyperdrive by R. Ford and To Dance Among the Stars by B. Balmages. Next, Boys’ Division performers took to the stage: pianist Priyesh Fernando played the solo piece Jingo, by C. Norton, and the Boys’ Division Lower School Choir sang A Million Dreams from The Greatest Showman by B. Pasek and J. Paul.

The Girls’ Division Lower School Choir sang Katy Perry’s Roar and piano soloist Bing Yu Wang played Rêverie by Debussy.

The piano accompanists were Ms. Lien and Mrs. Whitmore.

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The joint String Ensemble were next to play, giving a performance of ABBA’s Mamma Mia, followed by two pieces by the Joint Tuned Percussion Ensemble: Mas Que Nada by J. Ben and Moondance by Van Morrison.

The final solo of the evening was from James Bland; he performed Oboe Sonata Op. 116, 2nd Movement by Saint-Saëns. Finally, the Chamber Choir brought the Autumn Concert to a close with two songs: Autumn Leaves by J. Kosma and Take Me Home by K. Olusola, K. Maldonado and A. Mae.

The Autumn ‘Hall Crawl’ Concert was once again a very enjoyable and varied evening for all those who attended and showcased the talent and skill of musicians across the Boys’ and Girls’ Divisions.

On 20th November, we had our Year 7 Concert in which just under 150 pupils sang a variety of songs as a whole year group choir, to a packed Great Hall. We heard captivating performances from a violin trio and an African drumming ensemble. Alongside this, there were impressive solo performances on piano, violin, electric guitar, saxophone, cornet, and vocals, with pieces ranging from Oasis and Cream to Scott Joplin. The night was a fantastic demonstration of the incredible and varied musical capabilities of our Year 7 pupils.

26th November saw our Joint Senior Concert Band, directed by Miss Archer, heading off to Oldham to perform in the regionals round of the National Concert Band Festival. Everyone played fantastically, despite being a cold, early Sunday morning. They received a welldeserved Gold Award and an invitation to the National Final in

March! The adjudicator’s comments stated “A superb school band with skilful playing in all departments. A thoroughly enjoyable performance, especially the dramatic finale!”

The Ceremony of Carols in the Girls’ Division Great Hall on 14th December was a most pleasant event. Senior boys sang as members of the Chamber Choir. Proceedings began with the traditional Hodie, when the choir processes into the hall in total darkness, except for their lantern candles which lead the way. This was followed by stirring renditions of carols, quieter musical items, reflective readings and prayers.

On 18th December, hundreds gathered in the Great Hall of the Boys’ Division for the Christmas Festival. Head Mr. Ford welcomed guests and the Reverend Dave Thompson, Vicar of Christ Church Heaton, who were all quickly on their feet to give rousing vocal support to the ranks of choirs, along with a full orchestra and organ, as they sang Once in Royal David’s City. Aashrith Govindu sang the solo first verse beautifully.

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The congregation went on to join in with See Amid the Winter’s Snow, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing! Joy to the World! Mary’s Boy Child (with soloists William Martin, Priyesh Fernando and Zach Campbell-Robinson) and Shine Jesus Shine

The festive celebration’s musical items were punctuated throughout the evening with seasonal readings, reflections and prayers.

The Joint Chamber Choir delivered enchanting versions of In the Stillness and Where Riches is Everlastingly, and the Boys’ Chamber Choir was joined by oboist James Bland in delivering There is Faint Music. The Lower School Choir sang an endearing version of The Christmas Star.

A bewitching interpretation of Overture and Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy from The Nutcracker Suite was provided by a String

Quartet comprising Harry Adams, Marcus Fung, Tom Williamson and Matthew Yeung.

The evening closed with an uplifting O Come, All Ye Faithful! and there was a retiring collection, which raised just over £600 for Urban Outreach and the YMCA. Guests then moved to enjoy refreshments in the Riley Centre.

Spring Term

On 3rd February, Mr. Murray and our Bolton School Organ Scholars took to the stage for our Organ Open Day, organised by Miss Archer. Members of the community learnt all about our organs, heard brilliant performances from our students and Mr. Murray, got up close to the organs, and even had a go if they wanted. This event was also about launching our community organ scheme, where Bolton School funds lessons on the organ with Mr. Murray for budding musicians of secondary schools in the local area. We hope to have more Organ Open Days in the future to showcase this amazing instrument.

The Final of the Young Musician of the Year competition took place in the Great Hall on 5th March. It was the culmination of a superb period of music-making in the school. Two full days of Heats took place in January, followed by a Semi-finals Day in early February, which decided the fourteen Junior (Years 7-9) and Senior (Years 10-13) finalists.

I opened the evening with a welcome and by reminding everyone that each of the performers was already a winner, having topped their category in the competition. I also welcomed the evening’s adjudicator, Simon Mercer (an organist, ABRSM examiner and

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former Director of Music), who had the challenging task of deciding both the Junior and Senior Young Musician of the Year following a suite of entertaining performances in an array of vastly different styles.

The Junior musicians opened the programme with two virtual performances; as half of Year 8 were visiting Patterdale Hall on the evening of the Final, those boys on the trip were able to pre-record their pieces in order to take part. The videos were played on a large screen at the front of the Great Hall. Junior Strings winner Justin Li performed El Choclo by Ángel Villoldo on the violin, followed by Junior Guitar winner Ike Edwards playing Dune Tune by Mark King (Level 42) on the bass guitar.

Moving on to in-person performances, Junior Piano winner Nicky Ling played Fantasia in D minor K.397 by W.A. Mozart, Junior Percussion winner Charlie Simpson performed Jake To The Bone by Toto (arr. Charlie Simpson) on the drum kit, Junior Brass winner Mateo Sprott played He’s a Pirate from Pirates of the Caribbean by Klaus Badelt/Hans Zimmer on the trumpet, Junior Woodwind winner Tejas Neelam performed Fantaisie Valse (No.1 from Couleurs Caraïbe) by Valérie Rousse and Joël Littorie on the flute, and finally Junior Vocal winner Thomas Sibley sang Candle In The Wind by Elton John.

They were immediately followed by the Senior Young Musician of the Year finalists, beginning with another vocal performance: Senior Vocal winner Nathan Pierson sang Vergin, Tutto Amor by F. Durante. Senior Brass winner William Earnshaw was up next with a tenor horn rendition of Manhã de Carnaval by Antonio de Maria/ Luiz Bonfa, arr. Robert Ramskill. Senior Woodwind winner Freddie Audley played Lorito Caprice by Francisco Gomez on the clarinet and Senior Guitar winner James Bland performed Die to Live by Steve Vai on the electric guitar. Senior Piano winner Tom Williamson played Primeval Sounds (Genesis I) from Makrokosmos Volume I by George Crumb. Senior Percussion winner Finn Flanagan performed Leader of the Pack by Wunderhorse on the drum kit, and finally Senior Strings winner Harry Adams brought the Senior competition to a close with a violin performance of Winter by Vivaldi.

With the competitive performances complete, there was a short interval to give Simon Mercer time for deliberation. The audience

enjoyed refreshments in the Great Hall while they waited.

Following the interval, the Junior and Senior Young Composers of the Year were celebrated. I pointed out that the talent shown in this competition is amazing, as the high quality compositions submitted are entirely separate to supported schoolwork and are examples of the boys’ unassisted creativity. The two winners (chosen by Mr. Lovatt and me) spoke about their pieces before recordings were played for the audience.

Williamson, who won the Senior competition, said that Imminent Quartet was written for the traditional four-part string quartet and was meant to represent an approaching deadline, with a sense of rising urgency throughout.

Krishnan Velayutham, winner of the Junior competition, explained that The Last Angel was inspired by a short story he wrote, and evokes the isolation and sadness of the moment the hero’s species is wiped out.

The Most Promising Performer award is given to recognise an outstanding performance in the Semi-finals, perhaps deserving of a place in the Final, but which narrowly missed out. This year, the prize went to electric guitarist Dylan Lincoln and he too had an opportunity to perform, playing Marigold by Periphery.

Finally, it was time for the adjudication and presentation of prizes. Simon Mercer began by echoing my words from earlier in the evening: that all of the boys who performed were already winners in their own right. He explained that his criteria for judging was based on ‘communication and, as musicians, how we communicate our love of our pieces to you, a willing and supportive audience’. He went on to thank both family members and the ‘terrific’ Music Department for their support of the young musicians in school.

Simon reminded us that sometimes things happen in performance, and it doesn’t quite go how we might want it to, but advised the musicians not to be intimidated by an audience or a fantastic Great Hall environment. He encouraged them to enjoy playing, have fun and take some risks.

Tom

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He congratulated the two Young Composers of the Year, complimenting both pieces. He said of Krishnan’s: ‘as a piece of descriptive music, it was just superb.’ He called Tom’s piece ‘innovative, clever, witty’ and ‘difficult to play’.

Finally, it came to the judging. Simon said he had the ‘pleasure and difficulty’ of separating out two winners from a set of outstanding performances. Returning to his initial point, he said that his choice came down to performances involving communication and engagement with the music and with the audience.

The Senior Young Musician of the Year was Tom Williamson for ‘a brave choice of music’ playing a contemporary, avantgarde piece, which nonetheless had the audience ‘captivated’.

Thomas Sibley was named the Junior Young Musician of the Year for his ‘totally natural’ performance which ‘commanded the space’.

Mr. Ford then presented all of the Young Musician of the Year finalists with their class winner trophies and presented the two Young Musician of the Year Awards.

I thanked Simon for his adjudication and the audience for their enthusiastic support of the boys, both behind the scenes and in the Great Hall on the night. I also thanked accompanists Ms. Lien and Mrs. Whitmore, and the Music Department for their support.

This was the twentieth year of the Young Musician of the Year competition, which takes place annually thanks to the generous contribution of cash prizes (the ‘Walker-Hilton Music Prizes’) from Mr. and Mrs. Hilton, parents of Old Boy and musician Alexander Hilton.

Pupils from across Years 7-13 in the Boys’ and Girls’ Divisions showed off their accomplished musicianship at a spectacular joint Spring Concert held at Bolton Parish Church on 11th March.

The well-attended evening was opened by Church Warden John Walsh, who, welcoming everyone, referenced the long-standing links

between the church and the School – an earlier version of the boys’ school used to be situated right next door.

The Strings Group were the first to entertain with a polished rendering of Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. The full Orchestra then offered up impressive versions of R. Sheldon’s Appalachian Morning and Saint-Saëns’ Danse Macabre

The perfectly pitched voices of the Senior Choir delivered E. Whitacre’s Sing Gently before the School’s talented Jazz Ensemble played Stevie Wonder’s I Wish and the foottapping Green Onions by B.T. Jones.

The Drum Corps played a perfect Wrist Warmer by N. Ceroli before the Guitar Ensemble delivered a flawless Lagrimas de Ianthe by D.A. Fidalgo.

P. Martin’s Suite for Strings – Movement 1, March, and Movement 3, Alla Jig – was performed by the String Ensemble and this was followed by the Chamber Choir’s singing of The Rose by O. Gjeilo and C. Rosetti, with accompaniment by students on piano and strings, and Good Night, Dear Heart by D. Forrest, M. Twain and R. Richardson.

Feet were tapping again as the Intermediate Concert Band played Selections from Grease by W. Casey and J. Jacobs, and the evening was brought to a close with three numbers by the Senior Concert Band:

An Irish Party in Third Class (Trad.), O Waly Waly (Trad.) and P. Sparke’s Guardians of the Waves.

We look forward to returning to this beautiful venue again in due course.

Music & The Creative Arts

The Senior Concert Band travelled down to Warwick on 16th March to play in the National Concert Band Festival Finals, having got through the regional round back in November. They played extremely well, receiving a Gold Award and some great comments from the adjudicators. It was a brilliant day as they also got the chance to watch other bands play and heard a performance from the Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland before heading back home to Bolton. All of the students involved should be incredibly proud of themselves.

It was my privilege to lead the Full Assembly on 18th March, in which I reviewed recent musical successes in the Senior Boys’ Division. Mr. Murray opened the music-making with Handel’s Fireworks Music Junior Young Musician Thomas Sibley performed Elton John’s Candle In The Wind via a pre-recorded video as he was required at that time to rehearse for the imminent Little Shop of Horrors production. His moving performance was followed by Senior Young Musician, Tom Williamson, playing with real impact the highly unusual ‘prepared piano’ solo – Primeval Sounds by George Crumb. Dylan Lincoln, as the winner of the Young Musician competition’s Most Promising Performer Prize treated us to an invigorating rendition of Marigold by Periphery on electric guitar before Mr. Murray rounded off the musical items with an uplifting performance of Widor’s Toccata. It was great to see the packed Great Hall fully appreciating the talents of these soloists.

At the end of March, the Theatre played host to three evening performances of this year’s Joint Senior Musical ‘Little Shop of Horrors’. A dedicated and talented cast had been working tirelessly over a number of months to bring together what is a technically demanding show. Featuring plants of all sizes and a crew of puppeteers, audiences were treated to a production full of excellent performances, dark humour and memorable music. Further information can be found elsewhere in this magazine.

Summer Term

Organ Scholar Rith Narla performed on the Boys’ Division Great Hall organ to visitors to School for the ‘4 Class Reunion Event on 20th of April. Guests enjoyed reminiscing about their time as pupils as they toured the buildings, with the organ sounds bringing back many happy memories of assemblies and other occasions.

At the Arts Colours Assembly on 29th April, Freddie Audley entertained pupils and staff with a sprightly solo piano performance of Scott Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag

On 30th April, 23 pupils from Years 7-13 delighted an appreciative audience in a Musical Evening in the Great Hall. The musical items included Tuned Percussion Ensemble arrangements, the band ‘Lunaticus’, and 17 solos on guitar, electric guitar, marimba, clarinet, flute, trumpet, violin, vocal and piano.

Music & The Creative Arts

The final concert prior to the start of external and internal exams was the Girls’ Division May Serenade on 2nd May, at which a number of boys performed as members of the Senior Orchestra, Chamber Choir and Jazz Ensemble. At the end of the concert, Mrs. Kyle, Head of the Girls’ Division, said ‘Wow! I am in awe and stunned at the level of performances tonight’.

On 24th June, the inaugural Lower School Musical Evening took place. 39 pupils performed as soloists or as part of Lower School ensembles. The solo pieces ranged from Iron Maiden and My Chemical Romance on electric guitar to a beautiful rendition of Clair de Lune by Debussy on piano. The Lower School Choir, Ukulele Ensemble and a string quartet performed a variety of pieces, including a jolly rendition of Under the Sea by the Ukulele Ensemble. It was a wonderful evening with a packed house in the Arts Centre enjoyed by all.

Jazz Ensemble

The Lower School Choir

Senior Orchestra

Chamber Choir

Music & The Creative Arts

The achievements of pupils in Years 7, 8 and 9 were celebrated in the Great Hall on 26th June at the Lower School Prize Giving, attended by parents, with prizes being presented by Mr. Ford, following a review of the year by Dr. Mullins. Impressive solo performances were given by Taran Guduru on xylophone and Charlie Simpson on drum kit. Rith Narla provided the splendid organ items at the opening and closing of the event.

At the Senior Prizegiving event on 27th June, musical performances were given on the organ by Rith Narla, Lucas Ng, William Martin and Mr. Murray. James Bland performed Legacy (Concerto for oboe) by Óscar Navarro,

and Harry Adams played Winter by Vivaldi on violin. Both were accompanied by Ms. Lien. These superb musical items were very much appreciated by all in the Great Hall, including Guest Speaker Barry Nightingale. Forty Years On and Jerusalem were sung with great gusto, accompanied powerfully on the organ by Mr. Murray.

Also on 27th June, the Lower School Choir took part in the Voices in Action concert, hosted by Bolton Music Service. After many rehearsals, they joined with five other schools in the Victoria Hall in Bolton to create a massed choir, singing three pieces with four-part harmony as part of a choir of nearly 100 pupils. Alongside this, they performed Babethandaza, a traditional South African song, and Stand By Me by Ben E. King. It was a wonderful event, which the boys enjoyed partaking in, giving impressive performances.

The National Children’s Orchestras of Great Britain returned for two weekends in March and June to use our facilities to rehearse and perform in the Great Hall. Young musicians journeyed from across the UK to participate in these successful events, on one occasion being joined by saxophone soloist and broadcaster, Jess Gillam. I am delighted that the NCO will be using Bolton School for further activities next year.

As this academic year drew to a close, we said goodbye to Katie Neal, who has enjoyed participating in a variety of activities as our Graduate Music Assistant, and we wish her well.

The Music Department is extremely proud of our musicians, and I would like to thank all colleagues who, with their expertise and commitment, have supported and ensured a highly successful year of music-making. Another one lies ahead!

Mr. I.K. Forgrieve

The Ukulele Ensemble

The String Quartet

Music & The Creative Arts

Music Colours

Arts Colours (Music) are a public recognition of talent and ongoing dedication to work within Music. Music Colours were awarded to the following boys:

Name Form Colour

Harry Adams 13g Full

Freddie Audley 13i Full

James Bland 13c Full

Priyesh Fernando 13b Full

Marcus Fung 13d Full

George Houghton 13f Full

Dylan Lincoln 13i Full

William Martin 12f Full

Alexander McKie 13f Full

Ben Turner 13i Full

Harry Brown 12c Half

Jayden Cheung 11b Half

William Earnshaw 11a Half

Sam Entwistle 12g Half

Adam Faulkner 12c Half

Ashton Kay 12e Half

Jamie Logan 12e Half

Zak McAlister 11b Half

Arun Patel 12h Half

Alex Pearce 11b Half

Nathan Pierson 11f Half

Suhayb Valli 11c Half

James Wilson 11e Half

Mr. I.K. Forgrieve

Instrumental Music & Music Theory Examinations

The results of our onsite examinations in the Senior Boys’ Division from this academic year are shown below. These lists also include the results of digital exams (where candidates submit videos to the examination boards) where teachers have made me aware of the results.

Congratulations to all candidates and their teachers on these splendid results.

Mr. I.K. Forgrieve

James Bland 13c ABRSM Oboe

Grade 8 Distinction

Jamie Logan 12e Trinity Violin Grade 8 Merit

Advaith Govindu 10f

Trinity Classical Guitar

Grade 7 Distinction

Jamie Chen 9e Trinity Piano Grade 7 Distinction

Advaith Govindu 10f ABRSM Piano Grade 7 Distinction

Nathan Pierson 11f ABRSM Singing Grade 7 Distinction

Matthew Yeung 10c Trinity Rock & Pop Drum Kit Grade 7 Merit

Lucas Ng 10f ABRSM Piano Grade 7 Merit

Ben Turner 13i Trinity Clarinet Grade 6 Distinction

Nicky Ling 8c ABRSM Piano Grade 6 Distinction

Charlie Simpson 9d Trinity Piano Grade 6 Distinction

Alexander McKie 13f Trinity Singing Grade 6 Distinction

Nishan Sharma 10d LCM Piano Grade 6 Merit

Krishnan Velayutham 9e ABRSM Piano Grade 6 Merit

Nishan Sharma 10d ABRSM Music Theory Grade 5 Distinction

Jack Rothwell 9a ABRSM Singing Grade 5 Distinction

Harry Brown 12c Trinity Clarinet Grade 5 Merit

Jamie Daley 9e Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 5 Merit

Tanmay Gokul 9a Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 5 Merit

Derek Leong 8f ABRSM Music Theory Grade 5 Merit

Tyler Humphreys 7b ABRSM Piano Grade 5 Merit

Marcus Law 11f Trinity Piano Grade 5 Merit

Alex Pierson 9a ABRSM Singing Grade 5 Merit

Advaith Govindu 10f Trinity Tuned Percussion Grade 5 Merit

Jamie Ho 7e ABRSM Piano Grade 5 Pass

Nathan Pierson 11f ABRSM Violin Grade 5 Pass

Lucas Ng 10f ABRSM Organ Grade 4 Distinction

Jamie Daley 9e

Trinity Piano Grade 4 Distinction

Ambrose Zheng 9d Trinity Piano Grade 4 Distinction

Thomas Sibley 9a

Ilyas Khunda 10c

Yohaan Bhalme 9g

Alex Pierson 9a

Trinity Singing Grade 4 Distinction

Trinity Clarinet Grade 4 Merit

Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 4 Merit

Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 4 Merit

Tejas Neelam 8e ABRSM Flute Grade 4 Merit

Bryn Edwards 9f ABRSM Guitar Grade 4 Pass

Harry Farrington 8a

Trinity Piano Grade 4 Merit

Aashrith Govindu 7d ABRSM Piano Grade 4 Merit

Peter McCreedy 10b ABRSM Violin Grade 4 Merit

Rayyan Munshi 8c

Shaurya Shaktawat 10a

Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 4 Pass

Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 4 Pass

Rhys Parry 7f ABRSM Alto Saxophone Grade 3 Distinction

Aashrith Govindu 7d

Theo Michaelas 9a

Elliot Guest 10e

Joseph Griffiths 9a

Hashim Masood 8a

Zak McAlister 11b

Oliver Zhu 7a

Taran Guduru 7d

Srikar Bandaru 7f

Abbas Khambalia 8d

Ewan McCairn 8e

Sam Ducker 8c

Isaac Earnshaw 7b

Aleks Neklesa-Ford 8a

Oliver Zhu 7a

Edward Guest 7f

Joshua Kelly 7a

James Williams 7f

Trinity Singing Grade 3 Distinction

Trinity Singing Grade 3 Distinction

Trinity Alto Saxophone Grade 3 Merit

Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 3 Merit

MTB Piano Grade 3 Merit

ABRSM Singing Grade 3 Merit

Trinity Piano Grade 2 Distinction

Trinity Tuned Percussion Grade 2 Distinction

Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 2 Merit

Trinity Rock & Pop Drum Kit Grade 2 Merit

Trinity Rock & Pop Drum Kit Grade 2 Merit

Trinity Classical Guitar Grade 2 Pass

Trinity Piano Grade 1 Distinction

Trinity Piano Grade 1 Distinction

Trinity Piano Grade 1 Distinction

Trinity Acoustic Guitar Grade 1 Merit

Trinity Drum Kit Grade 1 Merit

Rockschool Drum Kit Grade 1 Merit

Music & The Creative Arts

Creative Arts & Cultural Events

The school year began with Shakespeare in Schools, a collaborative theatre initiative where local primary schools took to the stage in partnership with Bolton School. The workshops followed local schools’ attendance at Bolton School’s Arts Councilfunded outdoor theatre festival in June, in which local primary schools enjoyed performances from Bolton School and Rose Bruford College (North) undergraduate actors in productions of ‘The Tempest’ and ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. Pupils from Johnson Fold, Walmsley, St. John’s and Thomasson Memorial primaries participated in workshops and staged their own productions in their schools, bringing classic Shakespearean drama to life.

Year 9 boys performed in Trinity College London Acting examinations during September and received excellent results:

Louis Ferguson Acting Grade 2 Distinction

Jacob Little Acting Grade 5 Distinction

Theo Michaelas Acting Grade 5 Distinction

Thomas Sibley Acting Grade 6 Merit

In addition, Saturday Social Theatre sessions, hosted by School and facilitated by the Octagon Theatre, kicked off for young people in Years 6-9 across Bolton. Under the guidance of Youth Director Ruth Allison, participants worked on a youth-led adaptation of ‘Around the World in 80 Days’. This 10-week course built theatre skills through hands-on activities that concluded with a family and friends showcase. The sessions fostered creativity and collaboration, providing young people with a platform to explore and develop their performance abilities.

Bolton School Culture Festival ran from 9th-20th October, celebrating the rich diversity of the Boys’ and Girls’ Divisions. Overseen by the Foundation Director of Creative Learning and Partnerships, the festival featured a range of arts and cultural activities aimed at fostering respect and curiosity about different cultures. Students participated in workshops on sculpture, health and well-being design projects, GCSE art masterclasses led by artist Joel Penkman, film screenings with live Q&A sessions, and digital futures workshops, enhancing both personal and collective well-being through creative engagement.

Music & The Creative Arts

The festival also launched the Year 7 One Square Mile’ Creative Thinking Project, where pupils explored ‘the extraordinary within the ordinary’ across various subjects throughout the school year. The project, designed to enrich character education and creative thinking, sought to broaden students’ perspectives and deepen their understanding of community and culture.

Additionally, Boys’ and Girls’ Divisions hosted musical evenings, and community theatre and arts studio sessions ran on weekends.

To enhance the School’s commitment to fostering creativity, Professor Bill Lucas, Director of the Centre for Real-World Learning, visited Bolton School during this time. His model of creativity has informed school development in Creative Thinking to support Bolton School’s mission to cultivate lifelong learners.

In October, pupils also had the opportunity to present films at the Bolton Film Festival’s Youth Screening, a showcase sponsored by Bolton School. Young filmmakers from across Bolton had worked with Javier de Prado, Netflix visual pioneering technical director to create short films using emerging machine learning tools. Projects included a variety of themes, from sci-fi scenarios to nature reclaiming cities and historical reimagining of the pandemic, capturing the pupils’ diverse creative talents. The films were met with enthusiasm, highlighting the School’s innovative approach to engaging young people with digital media and storytelling. Boys’ Division pupils Ali Asghar, Tanmay Gokul, Cameron Kerfoot and Hassan Choudhury presented films alongside peers from other schools.

In November, the Foundation Director of Creative Learning, represented Bolton School at the OECD Global Institute of Creative Learning Conference in Paris. Presenting on the School’s development of creative learning in the classroom, enrichment programmes, and community partnerships, she shared insights into Bolton School’s forerunning work in creativity in education. This event highlighted the Foundation’s role in pioneering educational methods that foster creativity and adaptability.

In this area, Miss Lord also contributed to Royal Opera House research to develop cultural industry support for creative development in schools, educational roundtables working on reform of the National Curriculum and provided the keynote for the RSA Pupil Design Awards in which she asked, ‘How might we place action for people and planet at the heart of education to catalyse real world learning and youth agency?’

Later in the month, pupils involved in the Senior Joint Production of ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ visited the Octagon Theatre for

Music & The Creative Arts

an inspiring adaptation of the Jules Verne classic. This trip provided valuable insight which influenced the students’ own interpretation of the play in their upcoming December show.

Bolton School’s highly anticipated production of ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ delighted audiences in December. Combining Jules Verne’s adventurous story with the real-life journey of Nellie Bly, a journalist who circumnavigated the globe in 72 days, the performance featured students from Years 8 to 13 in a unique and dynamic adaptation. The play showcased intricate costumes, innovative set design, and a diverse cast embodying an array of global characters, bringing humour, ingenuity and a degree of athleticism to the stage to relate the globetrotting tale.

In the role of Nellie Bly, Felicity Field opened the show, which included standout performances by Theo Jones, Jacob Little, Thomas Sibley and Saif Karim as members of the Reform Club. Jayden Luhar and Fletcher Mellor-Brook shone in multifaceted roles, seamlessly transitioning between various characters including butlers, guides across the Indian sub-continent, sled-drivers and ship captains. The production featured theatrical highlights like stormy sea crossings, Alpine train journeys, and daring escapades across continents, brought to life with vibrant props and backdrops, including Japanese gardens and transcontinental adventures.

Tom Griffiths, portraying Passepartout, offered a delightful performance that paired gymnastics with humour, while Billy Burrows, as Phileas Fogg, embodied the essence of the iconic character with a remarkable journey from reserved gentleman to intrepid adventurer. The entire cast worked together to create brilliant set-pieces, supported by a dynamic lighting and sound design operated by Leon Deakin, which amplified the play’s sense of urgency and adventure. The show also incorporated film to map the travellers’ antics.

Head of Foundation, Philip Britton, praised the production, calling it “absolutely terrific,” and commended the cast and crew for their energy, creativity, and collaborative spirit.

This production concluded the Autumn Term’s creative and cultural events on a high note, showcasing the students’ growth as actors, collaborators, and creative thinkers.

The Spring Term began with Lower School’s participation in the ESU Performing Shakespeare Competition. Led by the English Department and supported by Octagon Theatre associates, all Lower School pupils engaged in class heats, practising Shakespearean performance skills through coaching sessions. These sessions led to an impressive Lower School Final, showcasing pupils’ mastery of classic texts. Standout students Theo Michaelas and Theo Jones

Music & The Creative Arts

advanced to the Regional Final at Manchester High School for Girls, where they delivered Highly Commended performances, reflecting their dedication and the School’s supportive environment for the performing arts.

During February half term, pupils from Years 7 to 13 attended the annual Joint Creative Writing Retreat at Patterdale Hall. This retreat, a creative school tradition, offers students the chance to immerse themselves in nature and explore the landscapes that inspired writers like Wordsworth. Working alongside poets and novelists, participants produced original poetry, prose, and reflective pieces, drawing from their surroundings to fuel their creativity. The retreat combined writing workshops with nature walks, providing a tranquil setting for students to develop their voice as writers.

In March, Bolton School Senior School pupils delivered a three-night run of ‘Little Shop of Horrors’, a musical classic by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman. Focused preparation paid off as pupils from both the Boys’ and Girls’ Divisions brought the Faustian tale to life, immersing audiences in the darkly humorous world of Seymour, Audrey, and the menacing plant, Audrey II.

Year 12 student Tilly Watkinson shared her reflections on the performance, praising the stage design and unique puppet mechanics that made Audrey II truly lifelike. She spoke with key cast members like Sam Entwistle, the plant’s voice, and puppeteer Noah Meadows, who described the challenge and reward of operating the demanding puppet. These efforts culminated in an accomplished collaboration, with Sam voicing the plant from a hidden location and Noah using special equipment to manoeuvre inside Audrey II.

The show featured a talented cast, with standout performances from Year 13 students Elliot Rigby as Seymour, whose captivating voice filled the theatre, and Nathalie Rippingale as Audrey, whose emotional vocals evoked empathy from the audience. Tanmay Gokul shone as Mr. Mushnik, delivering comic relief, while Theo Jones played the dentist with striking vigour. A live band, located beneath the stage, added a rich layer to the performance, providing real-time instrumentals that heightened the show’s atmosphere.

The creative team, working behind the scenes, transformed the theatre into Skid Row. The show closed with a memorable interactive finale, as cast members handed green glow sticks to the audience, who joined in for the final number. ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ was a vibrant, dark, and thrilling production, marking an unforgettable start to the Easter holidays for the Bolton School community.

Music & The Creative Arts

Throughout the academic year, Creatives Now, the community arts hub supported by the School, produced inspiring projects engaging young people from across Bolton. A ‘Sharing Stories’ project sponsored by the Octagon Theatre encouraged teenagers to reimagine traditional fairy tales and legends. These workshops, led by local artists and held in community spaces like Bolton Central Library, culminated in performances for family audiences, showcasing a blend of storytelling, improvisation, and original twists on beloved tales. Young people also worked with artists to respond to the Knife Angel sculpture that visited Bolton. Funded by Bolton CVS, young people invented artistic responses to tackle anti-social behaviour in Bolton and presented the outcomes at Bolton Lads and Girls Club alongside other community groups. The art collective also produced a Great Get Together event as part of networked Jo Cox Foundation activities across the country.

In April, funded by Arts Council England, Bolton Council and the Young Gamechangers Fund with support from Curious Minds and BeeWell, Creatives Now produced a creative health neighbourhood project, ‘Town of Children’. This project took over the department store recently vacated by the temporary Central Library and employed international artists Baseclan to deliver Easter Holiday activities designed using BeeWell creative health data to respond to prevalent needs highlighted by children and young people in the town.

A variety of youth-led and intergenerational sessions took place over April, culminating in a celebration event in May. Young people enjoyed ‘Making the Place’ sessions and developed creative skills exchange networks to sustain a creative hub led by young people for the town, developing relationships with local creative enterprises Neo: Artists, Headspace, Emmaus and Breakdown Bolton as well as relationships with freelance artists, cultural consultants, Factory International and Manchester Street Poem. Artist Victor Seus created a mural on Hotel Street in the town centre, informed by young people’s designs, and the wider community enjoyed action painting days, exhibitions, live music and cultural development forums with invited cultural leaders chaired by young people.

During the Town of Children project, young people also participated in filmmaking sessions to kickstart five cultural documentaries about the potential for cultural development in their home town. Networking conversations between young Boltonians and national film festivals including the likes of TAPE Collective, London Short Film Festival and HOME Mcr also took place later in the year with a view to supporting the development of youth fringe film activities adjacent to Bolton Film Festival.

In May, Bolton School was shortlisted in the Excellence in Creative Arts category of the TES Awards, ‘the Oscars of Education’.

Music & The Creative Arts

The panel noted that School’s arts and culture impact is reflected in excellent examination results, extensive participation in optional certifications and competitions, and high engagement in cocurricular and community enrichment activities. Creatives Now as a model for schools partnerships that foster creative engagement was the central to the case study.

Head of Foundation, Philip Britton, said: “I am delighted that our work in this field has been recognised. Creative opportunities help young people understand the world around them.

“As well as the benefits these activities bring for our own pupils, we have very deliberately focused on our outreach and connections to make an impact for all local students.”

In June, Creatives Now established a new base in the Market Place Shopping Centre, Bolton. The organisation currently offers free weekend theatre workshops, art studio sessions and the opportunity for young artists to display their work alongside local, regional and national artists via open exhibition call outs. Creatives Now supports early career artists, offers artist residencies and will open Bolton Screen Academy with the National Saturday Club and begin a sustainable arts materials enterprise with Recycle-IT in Autumn 2024.

In June, Bolton School hosted a month-long Summer Outdoor Theatre Festival that provided vibrant offers for pupils of all ages, as well as visiting primary, secondary, and Sixth Form students. The festival welcomed three unique theatre companies, each bringing their own distinctive productions with the programme designed to engage audiences of all ages.

Frolicked Outdoor Theatre Company presented ‘The Conference of the Birds’, an adaptation of the ancient Sufi poem. Set as a promenade performance in the School’s woodlands, this production guided young audiences through the journey of the birds across the seven valleys, representing quest, love, understanding, independence and detachment, unity, astonishment, and ultimately poverty and nothingness. The immersive setting encouraged students to reflect on themes of self-discovery in a way that captivated their imaginations.

Goofus Theatre delighted younger audiences with ‘Carried by the Wind’, a whimsical, non-verbal performance featuring puppetry and storytelling. In this enchanting tale, children followed a floating feather that led them through a series of magical stories. After the show, young participants had the chance to interact with the puppets and explore how non-verbal theatre allows for open-ended interpretation, inviting them to imagine and engage beyond words.

For older students, the festival introduced ‘A Citizen’s Assembly’, a compelling interactive performance produced by applied arts practitioner Lynsey O’Sullivan and playwright Andy Smith. Part of the ‘Plays for the People’ project, this production transformed the audience into active participants in a discussion about climate emergency. The play, crafted through consultations with climate scientists at The Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and

Music & The Creative Arts

supported by The Dukes Theatre and the SALC social responsibility fund, unfolded in three acts. Audience members, cast as citizens in an assembly, debated critical questions about climate action and the future. This structure fostered an empowering environment for pupils to voice their thoughts and concerns about the climate crisis in a way that felt impactful and meaningful.

The festival provided students across age groups with a dynamic and inclusive space to experience theatre in new forms, encouraging both imaginative engagement and critical thinking on topics from personal growth to global challenges. The festival was well-enjoyed, underscoring Bolton School’s commitment to fostering creativity, environmental consciousness, and cultural awareness in its students.

With a packed schedule of arts, literature, and performance activities, the 2023/24 academic year at Bolton School showcased the remarkable talent, creativity, and collaboration of its students. From Shakespeare competitions to film screenings and grand theatre productions, the year’s events highlighted Bolton School’s dedication to nurturing artistic expression and cultural curiosity in every student, while also extending these opportunities to young people throughout the wider community.

Performing Arts Colours

Arts Colours (Performing Arts) are a public recognition of talent and ongoing dedication to work within Performing Arts. Performing Arts Colours were awarded to the following boys:

Name Form Colour

Billy Burrows 13c Full

David Chow 13c Full

Sam Entwistle 12g Full

Tom Griffiths 13g Full

Liv Hextall 13c Full

Jayden Luhar 13a Full

Fletcher Mellor-Brook 13g Full

All pupils receiving Full Colours in 2024 have been involved in multiple productions (participating since Lower School) and have taken lead roles.

Pupils represented on this list variously participated in ‘A Christmas Carol’, theatre for film in ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’, ‘Clockwork’, ‘The Great Gatsby’ and ‘Around the World in 80 Days’. Billy Burrows also undertook an EPQ in theatre production. Billy produced a script drawing from archive research, workshops and verbatim accounts of lived LGBTQ+ experience that actively engages the audience in matters of representation and is a blueprint for others to use, adaptive to the participating audience. Billy was awarded full marks for his Extended Project Qualification.

Art Colours

Arts Colours (Art) are a public recognition of talent and ongoing dedication to work within Art. Art Colours were awarded to the following boys:

Name Form Colour

Subhaan Aslam 12a Full

David Chow 13c Full

Ted Danson 12d Full

Liv Hextall 13c Full

Fenn Kay 13d Full

Charlie Silvester 13e Full

Charlie Smith 12d Full

Freddie Bovill 11d Half

Xavier Hawkes 11c Half

Lucas Horridge 11d Half

Zac McAllister 11b Half

Alex Rowley 12a Half

Oliver Rowley 12b Half

Noah Spielmann 11a Half

Nathan Watts 11f Half

Creative Writing & Artwork

Out of the window, Bobby stared, she stared at the claw marks engraved in the branch of a tree, she heard the water swish and swash in the crystal blue lake, she heard the flaps of bird’s wings. Pondering on her life since the early age of nine, she wondered why she was so incredibly miserable. Her siblings slept like hibernating woodland creatures, snoring obnoxiously and disturbingly.

The claw marks in the tree were now covered by a shadow, Bobby shifted her gaze slightly to the right where she spotted a vibrantly

coloured parrot perched on the branch nonchalantly. Bobby looked out at the vine-wrapped tree. She thought of the way her mother had stripped her away from the social life Bobby had built in Massachusetts to live in an apartment in the centre of The Big Apple. She frowned heavily, her eyes drowned in tears of envy and rage. Then the parrot took off. She wanted to catch it; keep it as hers.

There were no monkeys swinging from branch to branch, no kookaburras cooing thoughtlessly, and no excitement fuelling Bobby to exist. But the parrot sat there: happily and contentedly. And she wanted it. Bobby wanted to feel joy and embrace it, she wanted to have fun and enjoy it, Bobby wanted to laugh and feel it. Bobby wanted to let go of the sadness that weighed her down day after day. Bobby knew she had to own it; Bobby knew she wanted to love it. But it chose to fly away. It chose to fly far, far away.

Abdulmateen Ogunnusi 7b

Nathan Watts 11f

Lucas Horridge 11d

David Chow 13c

Zayd Atcha 11a

The Parrot Perched on a Branch

Creative Writing & Artwork

The Classics Department launched a creative summer competition with the theme of the ancient Olympic Games. This poem references Nike, the Greek goddess of victory.

Believe in Nike

In the summer’s raging heat And the races, stamping feet, Athletes gather, strong and fleet, To the call of glory sweet.

Wrestlers grappled, mighty, bold, Stories of their strength retold, Legends carved in lines of gold, On the hearts of young and old.

Chariots raced with thundering might, Through the day and into the night, In a dance of daring flight, To the crowd’s ecstatic sight.

Javelins soared through the air, Symbols of a warrior’s care, Every throw, a silent prayer, For the victory, rare and fair.

By the altar, flames would burn, To the gods, the victors turn, Laurels earned through sweat and stern, In their hearts, the fire churns.

And whom did the victor believe in? Nike

Exhausted, excruciated and emancipated, the raucous drone of a minuscule two cylinder motor droned on and on and on along the freshly laid tolled motorway bypass that wrapped around the squirming city of Birmingham like a tight ring; slick skyscrapers (with retro 1970s brutalistic architecture) stared down at the not-quiteoval-shaped automobile (that had barely limped out of its MOT) which was rather negligently assessed by the legend bearing the name ‘Greasy Greg’, who worked in the gradually decaying Diamond Car Dealership behind the world-renowned, award-winning Big Beth’s Chippy in the thriving metropolitan area of Middlesbrough — the so-called Mysterious Creme Egg Car, which had been birthed into the world through an opportunistic sponsorship between an unconventional industrial coach building company and the heaving conglomerate of Mondelez International Inc. who happen to own the company of Cadbury’s, suddenly rushed past a forest green Ferrari SP3 Daytona (with the cream aerated leather interior option with a hint of lush Alcantara) that had been precisely handcrafted in a spotless factory located in the rolling, vineyard-filled countryside of Modena in Italy; a scarlet red-faced owner of this multi-million pound racetrack weapon flailed his manicured hands against the ultra lightweight, leather wrapped steering wheel, as the humble Creme Egg-shaped car violently bobbled in front of it; hideous, ghastly cacophonies screeched out as the automobile’s flaky rusted leaf spring suspension, which had just clawed its way over a moon crater of a pothole that plagued the innocent city of Birmingham — meanwhile a faded musty aqua blue Peugeot 207cc (with a rather impressive accumulation of algae residing in the homely rotten convertible top) had broken down likely due to a rotten head gasket or maybe even a pesky, loose rod bearing, which were particularly common issues with this exact model; frantically a man with an unshaven mess of what I refuse to call a beard popped his Heinz sugar free ketchup redhead out of the hissing engine bay, whilst making a hole in the oddly paired luscious green Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Adidas trainers, viciously Roundhouse, kicked his sighing sagging ten-year-old Goodyear tyres; meanwhile enraged and exhausted the passenger, who was adorned in a coffee stained Nike Tech fleece and brand new black Air Force 1s, reluctantly drew out her wheezing and extremely creaky Nokia 3310 that was on life support and rung up Dodgy Don Davey’s Automobile Dealership to enquire about his

Freddie Bovill 11d

A dreadful trip down the M6 Bypass

Daniel Titiloye 8a

Liv Hextall 13c

Creative Writing & Artwork

questionable repair qualities that had caused his previous business venture to be liquidated owing to health and safety — yet the 0.4 litre 4 valve miraculous machine marched out of the monotonous motorway and into the picturesque charming and idyllic area known by the name of West Bromwich, which at this moment was infected by a wave of carnivorous potholes causing the innocent Creme Egg Car’s wobbly unstable leaf spring suspension to scream out in sheer agony — then it happened the ingenious, marvellous oval shaped promotional vehicle swept by the haven serving glorious, gourmet meals named Obama Fried Chicken, which was a hive clustered with the merry, jolly, hard workers, who like to be entitled under the term Brummies, were patiently waiting for the fine, award-winning deep fried chicken, which was delicately and precisely prepared using Donald Obama’s special, secret, salivating sauce containing twenty-seven finely chosen and measured ingredients (if according to urban myth a dubious bribe of an unknown amount would be just enough for Donald to reveal 21 of these coveted ingredients)at that moment a slightly obese bald man (perhaps with a BMI of 52) with a baffling bizarre moustache the likes of which have never seen daylight was having a tantrum at the weeping, despairing, poor manager over getting 19 chicken nuggets instead of the advertised 20; a gunmetal grey cumulonimbus cloud was now looming above the vibrant, bustling metropolitan urban area; suddenly the wind yelled out like a rampaging bull, peculiarly large brown raindrops aggressively pummelled the delicate and fragile Perspex windshield of the Creme Egg Car; unfortunately the overworked single and minute windscreen wiper was unable to manage the sheer volume of water crashing down on it, as it poignantly slugged on - finally a Matt black 2014 BMW 520d SE with a depressed and dilapidated cloth interior, an obnoxiously cacophonous titanium exhaust (with a cat delete) and misaligned fake M sport badges manufactured in Northern Cambodia pulled up behind the Creme Egg advertisement with a shady figure, whose eyes were hidden by the illegally tinted windows; out of nowhere, the mysterious driver of the oval machine smashed his foot onto the pedal of the accelerator, as the sluggish automobile scurried down a hard right ninety degree turn, which led down a claustrophobically tight alleyway (paved by cobblestones)noises arose from the bellowing chassis as it shuddered along the illmade passageway; inquisitively, the concentrating unknown driver of the glorious oval automobile, whose forehead was streaming with sweat, glanced into the wire’s rear view mirror, where he glimpsed the presence of the snorting and growling black BMW tailgating behind effortlessly, almost as if it was a phantom - Smack - a nasty, hideous racket amassed from the bubbly, rusted body of the shoddily-constructed moving machine, which would be pulverised in the event of a crash; whining, the car stretched its short legs as fast as it could like a gnarly, slobbering bulldog along the constricting backstreets of the splendiferous zone of West Bromwich; at last the mechanical irregular object came to a chaotic rest round the back of Drunken Darren’s Platinum Pawn Shop, which was situated near a rather pungent mass of bursting red wheelie bins - cunningly the black wolf of a BMW began to box in the tender, irregular automobile between two of the fly-laden disposal units; with a grandeur around him typically seen by the likes of New York mafia bosses, a

mammoth of a man swiftly strode out of the ghost of a matt black sedan - everything became still - uncontrollably shaking, the Creme Egg master pulled himself out of the amiable vehicle with a soft glimmer in his green eyes and his hand stretched out…

short story was highly commended in the

Conversation of Home

Thick smog filled the sky for miles as I got out of the factory. I thought back to my war-torn home that I was forced to flee from. Before the war, my life was everything I had hoped for: I had three beautiful children, an amazing wife, and I worked on my own farm. It was perfect. After the war, I lost my wife and two of my children, then I was forced to the UK after my hometown was devastated. I ended up in Bolton, and the only job I could find was working in a dirty factory for just enough money to survive.

Ethan Herring 11d

Harry Shannon 11e

Zak McAlister 11b

This

Portico Sadie Massey Awards

Creative Writing & Artwork

I hated the UK for so many reasons: I missed my home, the food was awful, my job was monotonous and, most of all, I felt like I didn’t fit in. I always felt like an outcast. Everyone would go to the pub after work or watch football, but none of these things interested me, and because of this, I had no friends. I was lonely, and I hated it.

The next day, I began my walk to the factory. The closer I got to the factory, the stronger the smell of smoke became, and the harder it became to see as smoke filled the air, and the whirring of the machines became louder; this reminded me of the tiring day I had ahead of me.

I entered the factory to my boss yelling ‘You’re late! If this happens again, you lose a week of pay’. This felt incredibly harsh, as this was the first time I had ever been late. I went to the machine and turned it on, I was beginning to frequently get ringing in my ears, due to the dangerously loud and harsh noises I was constantly surrounded by. This job was the polar opposite of my job back home, where I would spend my time outside, breathing in the fresh air, planting vegetables, and looking after my sheep.

I got one break in my twelve-hour workday; twenty minutes to have my lunch, which always consisted of a bland piece of cheese between two slices of unbuttered bread - the other people that worked in the factory called it a ‘sandwich’. I thought that was a stretch. It was far from that. The others all sat together and spoke about politics and football, but I sat alone and thought about my old and perfect life and how it got taken away in the blink of an eye. I hated lunchtime, because it reminded me of how alone I was. How I never managed to fit in with my colleagues.

I returned to work after my lunch, and I went about the rest of my day like normal: laboriously operating machines for hours on end. After lunch, one of the kids got their arm stuck in the machine; I used to get shocked by this, but recently I had become desensitised to it. This sort of thing happened every few weeks or so. A month ago, someone got their jacket caught in the machine and got pulled into it, there was blood everywhere and the man had to stay in hospital for a week, but all the boss said was “That’s why you don’t wear jackets, follow the rules and you’ll be fine!” This horrified me, and my hatred for my boss grew even stronger. I formed this idea that he was some immoral monster with a massively built-up ego that had a complete disregard for humans’ physical health and their emotions.

Later in the day, I began my walk home, but I was stopped by one of my colleagues. ‘What’s your name?’ he asked me. I was taken aback for a second, because I’d not had a proper conversation with anyone at work since I had started. I eventually replied, ‘I am Dev. I almost forgot to ask the same, it had been so long I spoke to someone new. ‘What’s your name?’

‘I’m Matt, it’s nice to meet you.’ He extended his hand, and I grasped it, and we shook hands lightly. ‘Do you want to grab a drink?’ It was one of those voices that you would expect would make you feel on

edge, yet I felt at ease. That was not common, especially not here.

‘I don’t drink’ I politely replied. ‘Is there anything else we can do?’ I asked.

‘We can go to my house. My wife will be home, but she won’t mind,’ he offered.

‘Let’s go,’ I answered. This was the first time I had felt a sense of belonging since I had come to Bolton.

We arrived at Matt’s house, and we sat down. Again, his house put me further at ease. Each corner of every room made me feel welcome. He introduced me to his wife, and she offered to get us some drinks.

Matt asked me, ‘Where are you from?’

I looked down at the floor, then answered, ‘I am from India, I moved here after the war.’

I fidgeted with my hands, I felt nervous because I hadn’t spoken about my life before the war with anyone since I had moved here.

‘What was it like in India?’ he enquired, as his wife came back in with some drinks.

‘It was perfect.’ I sighed longingly, thinking back to how my life used to be. ‘I had a beautiful wife and three children, I worked on my own farm, and I lived with my whole family. Now I live alone and work in a dirty factory, I can barely afford food and I miss my family.’ I blinked away the tears and sipped my drink.

‘That sounds awful. I used to have a kid, but she died during the war. Life hasn’t been the same since then.’ Matt wiped a tear from his face, silence filled the vast room, until his wife eventually spoke, ‘He was an amazing kid, he was funny and smart, everyone loved him. He was our little boy.’

I looked up from my cup and said, ‘I’m sorry.’ My voice broke as I said this, it was impossible to believe that a man, who looked so happy at work, who went to the pub and watched football with his mates, felt the same sadness that I felt in every minute of every day.

‘I’m sorry for you, if you ever need someone to talk to, I’m always here.’ Matt offered.

‘Thank you, same for you,’ I replied. It felt nice to have someone to trust again.

This conversation changed the way I felt since I moved to the UK; I had been scared to try and talk to people and to fit in, and I had been carrying a certain sadness with me all the time, but I felt a sense of relief, and even a bit of hope. Maybe I’ll be okay. Just maybe.

Rith Narla 10f

Creative Writing & Artwork

Haider Abbas 11b

Mason Burke 11a

Noah Spielmann 11a

Fenn Kay 13d

Jacob Keld 11c

Alastair Mogg 11f

Charlie Silvester 13e

Snapshots

Snapshots

An unbeleafable performance!

Mauve over!

Loching good!

Toe-tally rocking those socks!

Animal Crossing

On the right track

Totally on board

If in doubt, win big

An unforgettabe reception

A sand out performance

Let the good times roll!

Easelly done!

Guitar Hero

Sports Preface

The 2023/2024 academic year was my first as Director of Sport, a role I was extremely proud to take on. Bolton School Sport has a fine tradition of being varied, inclusive and successful. We complete across numerous sports on some of the toughest county, regional and national circuits.

Old sports kit and equipment donated to SOS Kit Aid

Firstly, this cannot be possible without dedicated staff. Whether this be the PE Department, Heads of Sports, Sports Coaches or teaching staff, I would like to formally recognise the colleagues that give up literally hundreds of hours to ensure School Sport continues to thrive. In particular, it is worthy to note the contribution of Mr. Robson, who steps down as Head of Hockey after leading the sport with much passion, drive and enthusiasm over the past 28 years.

I was delighted to present this year’s Sports Colours to recognise the pupils that have committed so much to School Sport. The Colours are symbols of our school pride, our teamwork, and the hard work put in on the field, the pitch, and in the pool. When representing Bolton School, our pupils not only do so for themselves, but the legacy of all those who have worn these Colours before them. However, it’s not just about athletic ability, it’s about hard work, dedication and upholding the values and ethos of our school whilst contributing to our school community.

There have been lots of successes: in the pool, our swimmers successfully retained the famous Cutty Sark Trophy whilst also winning the Junior and Intermediate Town Championships. A young Under 18 Water Polo side finished in fourth place at the Nationals while the Under 15s won the National Plate.

In Rugby, our Under 14, Under 15 and 1st XV teams all reached the Lancashire Plate Finals; unfortunately, all just fell short, but the Under 14 side managed to lift two Sevens trophies to end their strong season. They were joined by the Under 13s on a very successful end of season tour to Bath. A number of boys have been selected for the Sale Sharks DPP and Scottish Qualified programmes.

The Under 12, Under 13 and Under 14 Football teams all reached the Town Cup Finals. Although the Under 14s narrowly lost, the Under 12 and Under 13 teams won their finals 5-0 and 3-0 respectively. The Under 15s ended the season winning the MGS Eights. The Under 13 and Under 14 Football squads enjoyed an end of season tour to Portugal, where they were unbeaten in six fixtures against some of Lisbon’s top local club sides. Various boys across the school are currently signed at professional academies, while we have had at least one boy per year group represent ISFA at Under 13, 14, 15 and 16 levels.

The major summer sports all had successes, with the Under 13 and Under 15 Tennis squads reaching the Regional LTA Semi-finals. Cricket is as popular as ever, with our latest crop of Year 7s adding more talent to our list of County players, while Kesh Fonseka in Year 13 played Lancashire Second Xl matches around his exams during the Summer Term. This followed on from his selection to England

Under 19s, where he performed impressively; he received the Hindley Trophy at school before signing professionally and provides a great role model for all our younger sportsmen to aspire to.

There were also strong performances on the Track and Field as our Intermediate Athletics team reached the North West ‘B’ Final and our Junior Year 7/8 team was placed in the top 12 schools and qualified for the North West ‘B’ Final, a fantastic achievement. We even saw a few School records broken!

Other notable performances during the year included Ashton Morrissey, who won the Year 7 Bolton Town Cross Country and Toby Hazelton in Year 9 who finished fifth all round in the Under 15 British Gymnastics Championships.

However, perhaps the most significant aspect of Bolton School Sport is not the number of medals won or lost, but the vast numbers involved in a range of sports. We actively run teams, clubs and enter sides in a whole host of sports and activities, from badminton and basketball to golf and rowing – there literally is something for everyone. Sport should be for all, and as we close the chapter on 2023/2024, we are already looking forward to seeing what 2024/2025 has in store for Bolton School Sport.

Sport Cups and Colours

Sport Cups and Colours are a public recognition of talent and ongoing dedication to work within Sport. Sport Colours were awarded to the following boys:

Name Form Colour

Chess

Marcus Fung 13d Full

Leon McGuigan Lazo 11e Half

Samarth Misra 12c Half

Marlon Wen 12f Half

Cricket

Keshana Fonseka 13h Full

Akshat Kamath 13e Full

Kiran Sastry 13f Full

Adam Berisford 12f Half

George Griffiths 12e Half

Ben Maher 12h Half

Lucas McGann 12c Half

Nikhil Patel 12f Half

Matthew Roberts 12a Half

Luke Yates 12b Half

Football

Joe Carolan 13g Full

Max Goodwin 13h Full

Kian McDonald 13g Full

Adam Berisford 12f Half

Joe Emery 13b Half (re-awarded)

Emmanuel Eze 12f Half

James Fitzsimmons 13b Half

Archie Forshaw 12b Half

Oliver Grimshaw 11a Half

Yoji Haddow 12f Half

Oliver Hatton 11c Half

Harry Haworth 11a Half

Harvey Husbands 13b Half

Isaac Lucas 12g Half

Lucas McGann 12c Half

Ben Maher 12h Half

Billy Maher 13d Half

Joe Nicholson 11b Half

Michael Stivaros 12f Half

Golf

Joe Emery 13b Full (re-awarded)

Toby Yates 13b Full (re-awarded)

Mr. M.G. Chilton

Sports

Hockey

Jayden Luhar 13a Full

Alex McKie 13f Full

Raoul Saxena 13f Full

Kyran Chitre 11d Half

Aleks Clayden 12a Half

Alex Dorsky 12h Half (re-awarded)

Greg Dorsky 12i Half (re-awarded)

Calum McAndry 12b Half

Josh Moffitt 12a Half

Nikhil Patel 12f Half (re-awarded)

Harry Shannon 11e Half

Amu Vijaya Kumar 12g Half

Nathan Watts 11f Half

Ethan Wong 12e Half

Luke Yates 12b Half

Outdoor Pursuits - Climbing

David Chow 13c Full

Ben Turner 13i Half (re-awarded)

Evan Weston 13h Half

Outdoor Pursuits – Paddle Sports

Saul Farrell 13e Full

Jacob Simmonite 13i Full

Alex Cook 12a Half

Tristan Hughes 12i Half

Ashton Kay 12e Half

William Malley 12g Half

William Martin 12f Half

James Parfrey 12g Half

Andy Shen 13g Half

Rowing

Jacob Audley 13e Half

Rugby

Josh Dickens 13c Full

Jake Dickinson 13c Full

Finn Flanagan 13c Full

Harry Laithwaite 13f Full

Luis McPherson 13f Full

Noah Nethercott 13f Full

Jack Stevens 13c Full

Archie Stocks 13c Full

Jonathon Brennan 13f Half

Hashim Choudry 12b Half

Matthew Cooney 13f Half

Evan Dare 13b Half (re-awarded)

Adam Davenport 12d Half

Jack Entwisle 12h Half

Dev Hasija 11d Half

Ammaar Ibraahim 12f Half

William Littlefair 13g Half

Kevin Longthorne 13d Half (re-awarded)

Corey Morgan 11a Half

Arran Patel 12i Half

Lewis Pierson 13c Half

Will Simpkins 11f Half

Fin Sutton 11f Half

Swimming

Jamie Logan 12e Half

Water polo

Joe Carolan 13g Full

Josh Dickens 13c Full

Sam Fitzsimons 13i Full

Ollie McCann 13a Full

Noah Nethercott 13f Full

Harry Butler 11d Half

Jamie Logan 12e Half

Sports Cups were awarded to the following boys:

Name

Form Cup

Adam Berisford 12f Bradley Trophy (School Football Captain)

Josh Dickens 13c Pearson Trophy (Water polo Captain)

Jake Dickinson 13c L.C. Jones Award (School Rugby Captain)

Joe Emery 13b Eric Dawber Award (School Golf Captain)

Finn Flanagan 13c Sharples & Harrison Award (Spirit of Rugby)

Keshana Fonseka 13h Hyde Plate (School Cricket Captain)

Jamie Logan 12e Field Cup (School Swimming Captain)

Kevin Longthorne 13d Trevor Pledger Award (Volunteer in Sport)

Jayden Luhar 13a Allison Trophy (School Hockey Captain)

Lucas McGann 12c Chris Rigby Award (Football player of the Year)

Nikhil Patel 11f Ashworth Trophy (Most improved Hockey player)

Max Roberts 11f Shaw Cup

Zack Tyrer-Hall 11f (Badminton)

The final award is the Hindley Trophy, presented for the best individual performance or the outstanding sporting performance of the year. During the year, there have been many such performances. Several were presented to the committee including:

• Joe Nicholson (11b) and Oliver Hatton (11c), who were both selected for England ISFA Under 16s. Joe has received a Scholarship at Huddersfield Town FC

• Kieran Holt (10d) and Oscar Hatton (9a), who were selected for England ISFA Under 15s & Under 14s respectively. Oscar also trained with the Welsh National side at Under 14 level

• Harry Roach (8d) and Daniel Bleakley (8d), who have also recently been selected for the National Side having represented the Under 13 North West ISFA side over Easter alongside Ben Howarth (8b) and Brig Harkness (8c)

• Benji Houghton (7d), who was selected for the Manchester United Under 12s, and has played up in the Under 13s. He played in the Easter European Cup tournament against the likes of Juventus, Real Madrid and Barcelona, where he was named in the team of the tournament

• Kesh Fonseka (13h), who represented England Under 19 Cricket in the summer of 2023. He, along with numerous other boys, is involved in the County programme at Lancashire, Cheshire and even Yorkshire

• Ashton Morrissey (7e), who won the Year 7 Bolton Town Cross Country

• Dev Hasija (11d) and Corey Morgan (11a), who were selected for the Scottish Exiles Rugby programme. Dev was also selected for the Sale Sharks DPP together with Fin Sutton (11f), Chris Frank (9b), George Burrows (9d), Max McKay (9d), Daniel Watts (9a), David Kurlovic (9d) & Will James (10a)

• Cooper Atherton (11a), who represented the GB American Football side as well as Warrington Wolves Rugby League

• Sam Fitzsimons (13i), who has again represented England Water Polo

• Toby Hazelton (9a), who finished 5th all round in the British Gymnastics Championships at Under 15 level – he won Bronze on the Floor

Team nominations included:

• The Under 12 Football Team, who are Town Champions

• The Under 13 Football Team, who are Town Champions

• The Under 14 Rugby side, who won two 7s Competitions

Some outstanding nominations, but Keshana Fonseka (13h) received the Hindley Trophy for representing England Under 19s and scoring a century with 121 in his first innings vs. Ireland. Sadly, in his second innings whilst on 76, he tore his meniscus, which would eventually require surgery; this dashed his hopes of making the Under 19 World Cup in South Africa last year, but he has shown tremendous resilience and hard work to get back to strength. As a member of the Lancashire Academy, Kesh was recently selected for the 2nd Xl and has eyes on turning professional this year. As well as the Hindley Trophy, Kesh was awarded with his match shirts, one of which proudly sits in the Dining Hall.

1st Xl Football

Another year packed with lots of football saw fifteen Bolton School teams play nearly 200 fixtures with close to 350 boys involved. From Year 7 House Football right up to the 1st Xl, the tradition of Bolton School Football cannot be matched. As ever, there was the usual rebuilding work upon our return in September with a core group of last year’s Year 13 moving on.

The Year 11 making the step up as Under 16s slotted straight in with Oliver Hatton and Joe Nicholson combining Academy Football and ISFA Under 16 representation with School Football. With Joe signing post-16 forms with Huddersfield Town, he goes with our best wishes. Oliver Grimshaw and Harry Howarth also found regular 1st team game time during their junior year, but sadly depart us early.

In the Cups, a penalty shootout win vs. Cheadle Hulme in the ESFA Cup was the standout result; we eventually lost out to a strong St. Ambrose side. There was disappointment on the road at Wolverhampton Grammar School early in the year in the ISFA Cup; however, strong performances against Bury Grammar School, Rossall and on the road at Queen Ethelburga’s meant a solid end to the first term. Canon Slade unfortunately ended our hopes in the Greater Manchester Cup.

After Christmas, there were further wins away at Merchant Taylors’ and vs. The Grange and Stockport Grammar School at home, followed by arguably our two best performances of the season: beating MGS and The Grammar School at Leeds in consecutive weeks.

With a strong Year 12 contingent, many of the end of season awards found themselves in the hands of our Lower Sixth. Captain Adam Berisford played in multiple positions over the year and is a real utility asset – he was presented with the Bradley Trophy. Top goal scorer Lucas McGann was presented with the Chris Rigby Player of the Year Award while Yoji Haddow and Emmanuel Eze provided pace and power at the back all season. Year 13 Goalkeeper Max Goodwin was awarded the Donny Davies Old International Award – he will continue his football abroad on a US Scholarship.

My thanks to Mr. Hunt and Mr. Branagan, who we are very fortunate to have passing on their considerable knowledge and expertise. I would also like to thank the parents and families of all boys who have supported us at home and away over a number of years. I will see the rest of you next season.

As quickly as one season ends, another begins as the cycle continues – boys will move up an age group and recommence their

battles on the top northern schoolboy football card. For those Senior boys moving on, some of whom will have played hundreds of times for School, I wish them good luck in their footballing careers at whatever level that may be. I encourage them all to continue to forge friendships and enjoyable experiences through sport and football; there is of course OBAFC that provides a local club for Old Bolts and other players. I am sure they will think back on the many hours spent on The Levels with fondness and a smile.

Mr. M.G. Chilton

2nd XI Football

Football, they say, is a game of two halves. For the Second XI, the 2023-24 season was very much a game of two terms. The first term saw us struggle to establish any real consistency in personnel on account of injury and absence. It meant that the impact on performance was considerable, with numerous changes in defence and in goal, resulting in a lack of cohesion at the back. While we suffered only three defeats during that period – testimony to the spirit and endeavour of those who held the fort during this difficult period – the Second XI became the draw specialists. After Christmas, though, the victories came frequently and fast, culminating in four successive and impressive wins to round off a good campaign.

The heartbeat of the team were the joint captains, Seb Gregson and James Fitzsimmons, whose contributions throughout were commendable. Their willingness to play almost anywhere on the pitch and to play for the team set the benchmark. James, too, was not averse to scoring, netting ten goals over the season, including, most notably, a magnificent free kick in a great 3-1 victory away at The Grange.

Our attacking dimension came from Sahir Jiva and Charlie Smith, who both offered creativity and pace as well as goals; Charlie, in particular, scored what might be described as a ‘beauty’ in a 4-1 win away at Merchant Taylors’. Jonny Hughes, when available, chipped in with some key strikes too and was able to offer mirth and merriment to the squad with his idiosyncratic goal celebrations. Arin Wong also made important contributions.

In so far as the backline was concerned, Tom Leach was a bedrock. Although he had some moments that were eye-catching for perhaps the wrong reasons – not least away at MGS – his reading of the

game, his physicality and his will to win were exceptional. We missed him when he was injured. Suliman Sadiq managed his time between us and the Third XI with craft and maturity, forming an excellent partnership with Subhaan Akbar as well as producing a superb cameo display in goal at one point that even saw him save a penalty. Suliman and Subhaan offered poise and presence in the centre-back positions, but injury limited the frequency with which they could perform. Lucas Ingham, another talented centre-back, deserves credit for stepping up and playing with such aplomb when required as does Amrit Mishra, who never let the side down when selected.

Harry Summers, the Players’ Player of the Year, was superb in midfield. An outstanding number ‘6’, he offered strength and assuredness at the base of the midfield, breaking up attacks and launching our own with commendable regularity. He also scored some fine goals, including a goal of the season contender in a 4-0 win against Stonyhurst. There were other important contributions from those in Year 13. Thomas Hunt showed experience and maturity in midfield, chipping in with a couple of superb goals in a fine victory away at Stockport (although some say the second was an own goal). Neo Fitzgerald grew in stature as the season progressed and his willingness to press and close down was appreciated.

The squad also benefitted from Year 11 boys making the step up to this level. Benjamin Reece demonstrated an assuredness and touch that belied his years; his combative nature and ability to spot a pass bode well for next year.

Jack Hurt was another who contributed, offering tenacity in defence that saw him extinguish many an attack. Matty Houghton was a class act in the left-back role, timing his tackles to perfection and supporting the attack with pace and purpose. Avnish Dhiraj more or less made the right-back spot his own, though his ability to play in midfield as a modern inverted full-back suggests that he will become a mainstay of the team next year. He also scored a fine goal in a 4-0 win against QEGS. Sam Fitzpatrick and Alex Fitzsimmons also played their part in the campaign.

In goal Matty Wright was excellent – calm, assured and confident each time he played. Ramez Alio played an important part too, as did Ryan Coombes; their willingness to step up and be counted even when called upon at the last moment was greatly appreciated. Max Goodwin’s campaign ended early with a serious injury, but he was able to make several crucial appearances, even playing outfield on one occasion.

There was a sprinkling of First XI stardom at times in cameo displays from Isaac Lucas, Lucas McGann, Billy Maher, Adam Berisford and

Harvey Husbands. I am very grateful to all who took the time and trouble to don the Second XI jersey this year; their efforts were greatly appreciated and I hope that the gods will be kinder to us with regard to injuries next season.

Mr. P.G. Davidson

3rd XI Football

Eight wins, one draw and two losses. No, that is not the formidable record of an elite football academy; that’s the might of the 3rd XI’s performance in the 2023/24 season. Under the expert leadership of Mr. Pilkington, the 3rd XI made its presence known from the very beginning, with a 6-0 win against Westholme closely followed by wins at King’s Chester and Essa Academy. ‘Pilko’s Army’ (the nickname adopted in homage to its revered manager) had made a very bold statement indeed. However, its journey last season wasn’t entirely smooth sailing. There were definitely a few bumps in the road. A draw at Thornleigh and losses against Rossall and Cheadle Hulme gave the team a rude awakening. The way that this adversity was met, not in discord and shaming between teammates but with dignity and camaraderie, really exemplified the team’s strength. While emotions did run high from time to time, the way that the team regained its composure and picked itself up was remarkable. Another run of wins towards the end of the season followed, re-asserting the 3rd XI’s dominance, which culminated in an 8-0 win against Hulme Grammar School. Hopefully the 2024/25 season will be able to live up to such high expectations!

Alio 12i

Under 15 Football

The Under 15s enjoyed an excellent season. We were hugely dominant on Saturday mornings, losing only once (to Altrincham Grammar School). The season began with a flourish, as the boys defeated MGS by six goals to two; this particular game was a sign of things that were to come and laid strong foundations for what was to follow. Wins against Shrewsbury, King’s Chester and Bury Grammar School soon followed, although they were interspersed with midweek absurdities when we failed to turn up for two key Cup matches. Alas, our two worst performances of the season saw us eliminated prematurely from both the Town and ISFA Cup competitions. This was a real shame for the squad as they had great potential and collective talent, but somehow contrived to come second in both games.

Not to be disheartened by these eliminations, the boys then went on a run which saw them win every single Saturday morning fixture

Ramez

until the end of the season, which is no mean feat, with notable wins away at Leeds, MGS, and Cheadle. The highlight of the season was yet to come, however. The final action of the year came via the MGS Eights tournament, which we have won at this age group in previous years. We began with a draw as we settled into the new format, before comfortably seeing off the host team. A further win and draw saw us top the group. In the Semi-final, we held our nerve in a penalty shoot-out, thanks also in no small part to a heroic save from Freddie Wardle, before a final win saw us lift the trophy for the second time – a brilliant way to end the season and nothing less than the group deserved for their commitment, positive attitude and dedication throughout the season.

It really was a season that was all about the collective, as we dealt with a number of injuries from the very first kick of a ball in the year, with key players facing long spells out of action. The fact that we were able to maintain a high standard of commitment and performance is testament to the squad depth and the positive attitude of its members.

Dr. Mullins and I have enjoyed the season with this crop of players, and we wish them well as they move on to the greater challenges of Senior Football.

My sincere thanks to all of the parents who unfailingly came along to games to support the boys, and to Dr. Mullins and Mr. Branagan, for their commitment, expertise and company across the year.

Mr. M.H.J. Prentki

Under 14 Football

Atotal of 29 boys represented the School for the Under 14 side this year in a campaign that saw plenty of positive results, a Cup final disappointment and an excellent endof-season tour to Portugal.

Victories over Manchester Grammar, Cheadle and Rossall were highlights before Christmas and teed the side up nicely for another convincing run to the Town Cup Final, where Canon Slade edged a tight affair on the Levels.

But the side, captained by goalkeeper Oscar Hatton, was able to overcome its disappointment to run out winners in all three of its fixtures against local opposition in Lisbon.

“The highlight of the season for me was beating Thornleigh in the Semi-final of the Cup,” Oscar reflected. “But it was disappointing to lose to Canon in the Final.

“I thought the Portugal trip was amazing. The hotel was brilliant and there was lots of time to explore the beautiful town. I really enjoyed it!”

Centre-back Hasan Baki, who was voted Players’ Player of the season, added of the trip: “The games were brilliant and the facilities were excellent. The highlight for me was going to Estoril and watching their victory over Porto.”

The side had gelled excellently by April’s trip abroad, which was testament to the competitive yet supportive atmosphere that the squad developed over the course of the year.

Boys who featured more prominently for the ‘B’ team in previous years fought their way into the ‘A’ team as a result of their impressive attitude in training.

Ibraheem Almoukaed, who won the Coaches’ Player of the Season award, took pride in an excellent individual campaign.

“My highlight of the season was finally being able to play in the ‘A’ team and playing in the Town Cup Final,” he said.

“My hopes for next season are to be a regular starter, to win the Town Cup and have a big run in the [national competition] ISFA.”

Oscar’s consistent displays in goal this season saw him named in the national ISFA squad, while also being named in Wales’ squads.

And he has high hopes for the next campaign with School, adding: “I want us to go unbeaten and to win both the ISFA and the Town Cup.”

Mr. D.C. O’Toole

Football Tour to Portugal

The Under 13 and Under 14 Football squads travelled to Lisbon over the Easter break. Across the six-day tour, 39 pupils were involved in training, recovery, gym and fitness sessions in between testing themselves in fixtures against some of Lisbon’s top football clubs including Belenenses and SRD Negrais.

The tour was not entirely football-related and there was plenty of time to soak up the local Portuguese culture with tours of historic Lisbon and local towns such as Cascais. There were also lots of activities for the boys to enjoy, including beach football, table tennis and bowling.

The tour was sponsored by electricals retailer AO, who provided funding for the touring team’s playing and training kits, as well as grants to enable bursary pupils to enjoy the tour too.

Mr. M.G. Chilton

All Bolton sides remained unbeaten during the week, winning an impressive six out of six matches. There was also chance to tour the professional surroundings of SL Benfica and to watch FC Porto in live Primeira Liga action at Estoril Praia.

Under 13 Football

The Under 13 ‘A’ Football team had, on many measures, a successful season. Despite this, the season began with a narrow 3-4 home defeat to arch-rivals MGS. September ended with a 2-6 defeat to Altrincham Grammar, a game which tested Mr. Ali-Scott’s refereeing skills to the full.

The highs and lows of cup competitions were tasted in October –progression to the first round proper of the Town Cup was confirmed with a 6-2 victory against ESSA Academy, but the team’s ISFA journey ended as soon as it had begun following a defeat to GSAL on penalties following a 0-0 draw. This disappointment was quickly overcome as the Under 13s beat the previous season’s winner of the Town Cup, St. Joseph’s, 3-0 in the first round, thanks to a hat-trick from Ben Howarth.

Saturdays in November and December brought victories against Bury Grammar, Rossall and away (a very, very long way away) at Queen Ethelburga’s. The last of these victories was played in appalling weather conditions, but the 4G pitch brought out the best in the Bolton School Under 13s with some delightful flowing football, culminating in a 6-2 victory.

A defeat at home to Cheadle Hulme in January was one of only two defeats the Under 13 ‘A’ team endured during block fixtures in January, February and March. Comfortable victories against Bury Grammar, The Grange School and West Hill supplemented a tighter victory away at QEGS.

The real focus post-Christmas was on the Town Cup. Having avenged the Town Cup Final defeat of the previous season to St. Joseph’s in round one of this year’s competition, hopes were high that the team would end the season with some silverware. A comfortable 8-0 away win at Ladybridge in the Quarter-final was followed with a 4-1 home victory against Turton in the Semi-final. This set up a final against St. James’ on the Levels. Two goals from Meical Thomas gave the Under 13s a two-goal advantage at the break. The second half was tense as St. James’ pushed for a goal to get back into the game, but Bolton’s back line remained resilient and when St James’

attackers did manage to break through the Bolton defence, they found goalkeeper Harry Roach in fine form. A late third goal from Charlie Highton secured victory and sparked jubilant celebrations.

Just twelve hours after the final whistle in the Town Cup Final, most of the Under 13 Football squad were back at school to commence the Football Tour to Portugal. A good time was had by all on the tour and two victories against Portuguese opposition were achieved with no goals conceded.

The Under 13 footballers before their first match on the Portugal tour

The squad will now be competing for places in the School’s Under 14 team – good luck to them in this endeavour. Thanks are due to Mr. Branagan, Mr. N. Hunt and Mr. Phillips for their enthusiasm, commitment and footballing knowledge in coaching the lads. A big thank you to Mr. Heald for sharing the burden of the Under 13 football fixtures and to Mr. Chilton for organising such an enjoyable tour to Portugal. Thanks also to parents for supporting the boys and making sure the lads

were always in the right place at the right time. Well done to Charlie Highton for finishing top scorer with 18 goals, Harry Roach for being voted Players’ Player of the Season and Aaron Ahmed for deservedly receiving the Coaches’ Player of the Season award. Congratulations to Harry Roach and Daniel Bleakley for being selected for the ISFA National squad. It was a season that ended with cup success, many victories achieved, some fine performances, many of the lads showing real development in their skills and understanding of the game and no fewer than thirty-two boys representing Bolton School at Under 13 level.

Mr. C.M. Hunt

The ‘B’ team had a productive season, acting as a successful conduit to the ‘A’ team and gaining some creditable results along the way. A narrow defeat to MGS marked an improvement from Year 7, while a battling 2-2 draw at King’s Chester showed grit and determination. In the new year, an agonising last-gasp defeat to Cheadle Hulme was followed by strong wins against The Grange and Rishworth. A depleted side lost away at MGS, but then finished the season with a heartening 6-0 victory over Merchant Taylors’. Credit must go to the stalwarts of the team: Aleks Neklesa-Ford and David Stringfellow sharing goalkeeping duties; Matthew Molyneux and Theo JaraboIshaque marshalling the defence; Adam Ciechowski, Rohan Briggs and Jack Fletcher providing the width; Matthew Fern, Zayd Jiva and Pheo Marsden adding midfield drive; and Tyler Siddons, Theo Harrison and Aadi Vyas getting the goals up front. A fantastic squad effort.

Mr. S.P. Heald

Under 12 Football

This year’s crop of Under 12 footballers proved to be an exceptionally talented group of individuals. In fact, in my 22 years at Bolton School, I don’t ever remember a year group that were blessed with seven boys involved with academies. The season started with a rigorous set of trials, giving all boys in Year 7 the opportunity to impress and gain a place in the Football squad. This year, however, proved harder than ever to whittle the numbers down to a manageable squad. Due to the talents on show, we selected a high number of 32 boys due to the extensive ‘A’ and ’B’ team fixtures in the calendar.

The first game of the season couldn’t have been more challenging, with an away trip to MGS. The game didn’t disappoint with lots of skill, talent and endeavour on show. Bolton edged the tie 4-2, but MGS were to get their revenge later in the season. The next four fixtures were won very comfortably, with the team scoring 33 goals. The lads were now getting to know each other, settling into life at Bolton School and playing some exceptional football.

This momentum was surprisingly halted with a tight 4-3 defeat away at BGS on a very narrow Astro pitch. Maybe the lads weren’t going to get their own way every week? The lads didn’t have to wait very long to get their revenge, as the reverse fixture soon came around with Bolton winning 5-1 at home, with goals coming from the talented Benji Houghton, Stefan Kurpas, Thomas McGinty (Captain) and a brace from the prolific top scorer Noah Dandy.

The comfortable victories continued throughout the season and it soon became apparent that the biggest challenge for this team would be to keep their feet on the ground and ensure they continued to play as a team and not individuals. Goals continued to rain in for the team with contributions also coming from Ronnie Wood and the impressively versatile Matthew Howarth.

The only competitive fixtures of the season, would come in the Town Cup. Convincing victories came against St. Catherine’s, Thornleigh and St. James’ High School, which meant that the Under 12s would play against Turton in the Cup Final. With a large audience and the VEO Camera set up, the lads produced a scintillating first half performance to lead 4-0 at half time, producing one of the goals of the season with slick passing, movement combinations and a ferocious finish. There was no way back for Turton and the trophy was lifted with an outstanding 5-0 victory.

Next year will be an important season for these boys as they move into 11-a-side with the targets of defending the Town Cup and winning the ISFA Competition. I thank the boys for their efforts this season and wish them all the best for the future.

Mr. M. Johnson

View from the Scrum

2023/24 has been another busy season of Rugby at Bolton School. It is pleasing to see the enthusiasm and commitment shown by the lads to the sport. Over 230 pupils have represented School in one of the 107 fixtures played this year. Such levels of participation and buy-in are a credit to the hard work of the dedicated rugby staff, whom we are fortunate to have here at school. I would like to thank them for their hard work.

Mr. Watkinson continues to run the Academy at Under 12 level, and has identified and developed young talent, as usual. This season, he has been ably assisted by Mr. Ali-Scott (a fine 7s player, who currently plays at Sandal RUFC) and Mr. Szafranski (a graduate of the Kirkham Grammar rugby conveyor belt) each of whom have added their expertise to training. The coaching team has worked with lads from several club sides, along with those who have never played the game and have managed to build an excellent togetherness in the squad. We look forward to seeing them progress over the years.

Mr. James continued to marshal the Under 13s. Building on their success at Under 12 level, he has developed and improved the squad, with the help of Mr. Boyd. Probably the result of the season came in terrible conditions against Tring RUFC whilst on tour – a real dogged display, that epitomised this side’s togetherness and spirit.

The Under 14s, under the watchful eye of the ever-enthusiastic Mr. Barlow, have continued to impress this season. Winning 75% of their games, they were unbeaten on tour to Bath, won both the Bury Grammar School 7s and our own Bolton School 7s tournament and reached the final of the Lancashire Plate. A talented year group, it will be interesting how they get on in next season’s National Cup competition.

One of the highlights of the Season was the joint Under 13 and Under 14 tour to the South West. Staying in Bath, we played two local schools on the Friday and club sides on the Saturday morning. Sunday started with an excellent training session delivered by Bath Rugby’s community coaching team in the shadow of the Recreation Ground. This was followed by the lads being the guard of honour at the Bath Rugby vs. Sale Sharks game. A fantastic weekend was had by all.

The Under 15s have also had an excellent season, under the stewardship of Mr. Foy. They reached the Regional Final of the National Bowl, the Final of the Lancashire Plate and won the Plate Competition at our Under 15 7s tournament. Much is expected of these young men as they move into Senior Rugby.

At the Senior level, we have consistently put out two competitive teams, although this has been difficult on some occasions. Mr. Jackson has worked tirelessly to keep the 2nd XV an enticing prospect and has overseen some excellent results.

The 1st XV have performed well, reaching the Lancashire Plate Final along with the Regional Semi-final of the National Bowl. At times, the squad depth has been tested, but hopefully the new pre-season programme will help with this.

Individually, this season has also been a successful one. Daniel Watts, George Burrows, David Kurlovic, Max McKay and Chris Frank have been selected for Sale Sharks DPP. Will James, Fin Sutton and Dev Hasija have been selected for the Sale Sharks Academy. Dev has also been involved in the Scottish Qualified programme, along with Corey Morgan. In Rugby League, Toby Porter has been taken on by St. Helens.

Mr. T. Benbow

1st XV Rugby

After the customary skills and fitness sessions to start the season, there was much optimism about the season.

Despite a difficult cup game vs. MGS, we went on a bit of a run before October half term. With wins against Crossley Heath, Liverpool College and Ermysted’s Grammar, the team displayed a growing playing style and togetherness.

A front row of Finn Flanagan, Ammaar Ibraahim and Josh Dickens set a great platform in the set piece with Luis McPherson, Hashim Choudry, Jake Mayor, Cooper Atherton and Adam Davenport carrying well. Flankers of Jack Stevens, Harry Laithwaite, Will Littlefair and Jonathon Brennan defended ferociously and were a nuisance at the breakdown.

Dev Hasija performed admirably at nine with Noah Nethercott sharing the duties at ten with an emerging Corey Morgan. Due to injuries, Jake Dickinson had moved to 12 to give us go forward alongside either William Simpkins or Lewis Pierson. A back three of a combination of Matthew Cooney, Jack Entwisle, Fin Sutton, Archie Stocks, Jacob Collinson and Nathan Pierson gave us threat out-wide.

After the October half term, we probably put on the display of the season, beating a strong Stockport Grammar side before we went to Nottingham High School in the National Cup.

It was a phenomenal game. Both sides fought hard and we were leading in the last play of the game. We defended stoically, for what seemed 15 phases, but the NLD Referee saw fit to penalise a hidden ruck infringement, in front of the sticks. The penalty was duly converted, and we lost 29-27.

Wins against RGS Clitheroe and Ripley St. Thomas in the Lancashire Plate Semi-final followed, setting up a Final at Preston Grasshoppers against St. Mary’s Crosby. Unfortunately, this was a step too far and we were well beaten by an excellent side. However, the lads, as always, put a shift in.

Many thanks to Mr. Barlow, Mr. Ali-Scott and Mr. Jackson for their help during the season. I would also like to thank Jake Dickinson, who captained the team so admirably.

Mr. T. Benbow

Year 13 playing their final match for School

2nd XV Rugby

Rugby at Bolton School continues to go from strength to strength, none more so than at 2nd team level. Numbers at training were up on previous years with many squad members honing their talent and skills on a regular basis on Monday evenings. Even when the weather turned and light faded in the winter months, the school’s floodlights shone brightly on the tenacious few.

The obvious highlight of the season was beating MGS both home and away. In September, a 42-10 win at MGS displayed some of the best rugby I had seen in a number of years with a Barbarians freeflowing approach adopted. I witnessed one of the best tries of the season. Camped on our own line, we were very much on the back foot. Some excellent rucking from the forwards, however, helped overturn the ball, which was quickly distributed to the backs, who interchanged passes as they worked their way up the field. Some excellent support play and stamina from several key players saw us score under the posts, which sent shivers through the opposition. The team continued to play like this for the rest of the match, which was a pleasure to watch.

The team went on to play well against Lancaster RGS and AKS, but due to injuries and unavailability lost both matches narrowly. The squad was a tight-knit group this year, consisting of an excellent group of lads – Corey Morgan, Ayaan Akiff, Rohit Bhikha, Jacob Collinson, Isa Khan, Kelsey Liu, Nathan Pierson, Leo Sandiford, Daniel Simmons, Keeran Singh, Fin Sutton, Taqi Taqi, Freddie Yearsley, Jack Entwisle, Jake Mayor, Matthew Roberts, Mohammed Ali Sunni, Priyesh Fernando, Harry Laithwaite, Harry Taylor, Zack Kitson. (Sorry if I have missed anyone!) Many of the boys on this list went on to represent the First team at some stage during the season, highlighting the strength in depth at Senior level.

I look forward to the 2024/25 season and seeing many of this year’s squad cementing their place in the First team.

Mr. P.D. Jackson

The 2023/24 season saw many highs and lows throughout the campaign for the Under 15 Rugby squad. The season opener saw the squad take a trip to Crossley Heath School across the border to White Rose territory. It was a great start to proceedings, with a convincing 34-10 win, and Will James scored a hat-trick of tries. A couple of tough defeats shortly followed, however, the boys bounced back in firm form, with victories over Liverpool College and Wilmslow High School.

Following on from the win vs. Wilmslow High School in the first round of the RFU National Bowl Schools Competition, the squad had its sights set on a Final of this competition. Altrincham Grammar School stood in their way first of all. An extremely windy and bleak afternoon on the Levels saw a very low scoring game, with some cold parents amongst the spectators! A narrow 12-5 win put the Under 15s through to the Semi-finals.

Birkenhead School next. Having started brightly, the forward-back asserted dominance at the scrum, and with the support of Toby Porter adding to the backs’ attacking threat, Bolton went into half time 19-0 up. Birkenhead were not finishing, however, posting two converted tries in the second half to have the game balanced on a knife-edge for the last ten minutes of the contest. A superb defensive display secured the victory over the strong competitors.

The National Bowl Area Final saw Haberdashers’ Abraham Darby travel to ‘sunny’ Bolton in mid-December. George Meredith-Alexander has made a fantastic contribution to the team this year, alongside fellow flanker Jacob Honey, ever-present at the breakdown and there was no exception within this game. Unfortunately, the Under 15s came up short on this occasion, but it was a great achievement nonetheless.

A positive Lancashire Plate cup run shortly followed, with many of the squad getting on the score sheet, with wins over Lytham HS, Birkdale HS and Cowley International College. Hutton Grammar School were a force to be reckoned with in the Final, and again the Under 15s fell short of their much-deserved silverware.

The 7s season did bring some silverware into the boys’ hands, winning the Bolton School Under 15s Plate competition. There were notable victories over MGS, Hutton Grammar and Scarisbrick Hall.

Under 15 Rugby

As a coach, the boys have been a delight to mentor on their rugby journeys and I have seen many grow, not just as players, but into young men. A credit to you all.

A big thanks to Mr. Barlow, Mr. Benbow and all parents for their continued support at both home and away fixtures, all over the North. It wouldn’t have been possible without you. Thank you.

Mr. S.R. Foy

Under 14 Rugby

The 2023/24 season had various challenges placed before us. From a squad in excess of 35 players from the previous season (Year 8), this dwindled to 22 players with some switching to other sports or concentrating on other activities. I am delighted to say that the remaining core squad of 22 displayed their resilience and pulled together to display a very mature and professional attitude both on and off the field of play.

When either during a sports lesson, training or playing a match, I can honestly say that every single player gave 100%. I can ask no more, if a player gives 100% and does his best and we are beaten, then he will and did get my full admiration and support.

As the season commenced, it did have its ups and downs - I am pleased to say more ups than downs. As a professional rugby coach and coaching a wide variety of players from under 7s through to international players, I need to adapt to each squad individually. My main aim at this age grade is not only to develop the players in front of me as players, but also to develop them as decent upstanding individuals; on both counts, this had its challenges – I hasten to add more positives than negatives.

The season, I believe, was a success in that we recorded very good results: we had fifteen wins and only six losses. Tries were scored by the following: Max Dean, David Kurlovic, Chris Frank, Hugo Gallet, Steven Wang, Toby Hazelton, George Kiely, George Burrows, Rocky Beaumont, Harrison Foster, Alex Pierson and Ollie Hill. Conversions were scored by: Max McKay, Ollie Hill, George Kiely. George scored 1, Ollie scored 22 and Max scored a total of 24 conversions. What is really interesting is who scored the most tries – there were two prolific try scorers within our squad: David Kurlovic and Chris Frank. There was a total of 76 tries scored throughout the season (not including 7’s). Both David Kurlovic and Chris Frank scored a total of 24 tries each! However, it is not about who scored or indeed who scored the most points as all tries and conversions are earned by teamwork. All points are attributed to the team as a whole.

We had success in winning games that on paper we would have expected to lose and, on the flipside, lost some games we would have expected to win; however, as the season progressed, the players developed and became a somewhat solid unit, always looking out for each other and playing as a unit. I was particularly encouraged that the more experienced players always lifted those with less experience. All the players learned from this and showed great sportsmanship, resilience and understanding. It is always nice to win, but for me it is not about winning, it is all about the players having fun, the scores are secondary. You do not have ‘winners and losers’ you have ‘winners and learners’.

We had an element of success in the Lancashire Plate, only to be beaten at the final hurdle by a truly well-organised Manchester Grammar School, who were the better team on the day. To finish runners-up in this competition is a tremendous achievement in itself.

We played in two seven-a-side competitions – at Bury Grammar School and in our own 7s competition. Sadly, the tournament at Bury Grammar School was depleted of teams on the day as they had four teams ‘cry off’, therefore only four teams competed, but we managed to come away victorious quite convincingly. Our own 7s was a very different story, with some very strong sides competing. Fortunately, with a strong squad, we competed well and came away holding the trophy.

As the players move onwards this coming season, I am sure they will develop further and their success shall continue under the direction of Mr. Foy, a very well-respected player and coach in his own right. I truly believe that the success we gained would not have been possible without the leadership and captaincy of both Max McKay and George Burrows, who both received the respect duly deserved from their peers and myself.

My heartfelt thanks must go out to all other members of the coaching staff who assisted the squad throughout the season and, of course, the parents and guardians who supported the squad, not only on the side-lines, but encouraging the players, shipping them around to training, games, etc. not only at school, but to their respective clubs.

Mr. T. Barlow

Under 13 Rugby

The squad went ‘on tour’ this season to Bath. A rugby tour is always an adventure, you never know what will come out of it, but one thing is for sure, the players all had loads of fun and firm friendships were certainly bonded. There was certainly a lot of fun, and some interesting facts were discovered –ask the players about St. Barnabas – I would probably not expect an answer, as the saying goes “what goes on tour stays on tour”. Oh, the fun and laughter were only interrupted by playing three games of rugby and we won them all!

It has been an absolute pleasure to coach and manage the Under 13s this season. They have remained committed, with strong numbers at training throughout the year. I think back to those cold wet evenings in November and reflect fondly on the squad ‘attacking’ the hills on the Levels. This says a great deal about their character and the passion they have had to develop their fitness and game play.

The season started off strong with three back-to-back wins for the ‘A’ team. We encountered our first defeat in a very close game against St. Mary’s, Crosby. Further bad news came the following Saturday when our Captain, Abbas, broke his clavicle during a tough and physical game against Liverpool College; this would keep him away from Rugby until January. Brody stepped up to become Captain and continued to do a great job as Abbas had done before him.

The season saw us play nineteen fixtures with seven losses, two draws and ten wins. Well done! This is a fantastic achievement.

Towards the latter stages of the season, the weather was against us and this led to a number of fixtures being cancelled; the Lancashire Cup tournament and two Sevens competitions could not be played. This was disappointing, as I am sure we would have secured some silverware at these events.

I have been extremely pleased with how all members of the squad have developed during the course of the season, with a number of players new to rugby and representing School for the first time to those that play for clubs outside of school – they have all made great progress on their rugby journey.

The end of season tour in March saw us travel to the South West. This was a great opportunity to showcase the learning and development of the squad. We played three fixtures against some talented rugby schools and a touring side. We secured a win, loss and a draw, with games being played in excellent spirit with boys displaying excellent sportsmanship and proving to be great ambassadors for the School.

The Under 13 squad has demonstrated they have great potential; whether playing regular ‘A’ team fixtures or in the developing ‘B’ team – they have all played a part in the success of the Under 13s’ rugby season. I look forward to seeing the squad grow and hearing about their future success.

Mr. C. James

School (45-25). After Christmas, we were all back together and stayed committed, finishing the season off excellently with wins against Bury Grammar School (45-10) and Scarisbrick Hall School (40-10). Unfortunately, both of our 7s tournaments were cancelled due to weather, but we did have a joint tour with the Under 14s to Bath. We played very well, winning one, losing one and drawing one. We met a number of the Bath and Sale team members and had the privilege of welcoming both teams onto the pitch. The weekend was a great experience, which brought the whole team closer together. Over the entire season, we played extremely well; we all had an exciting and competitive season and the team is better now than ever.

This season, the Under 13s Rugby team started strong with a number of wins; the biggest of these came against our long-standing rivals, in our first match against MGS, beating them 50-15. Our first loss was against St. Mary’s, Crosby, but we kept our heads up and tried to our full potential until the final whistle. One week later, against Liverpool College, was the match in which I broke my clavicle. Subsequently, Brody Shum stepped up to take captaincy and lead the team to some very convincing wins against Wilmslow High School (40-5) and Stockport Grammar

The Under 13 ‘B’ Rugby team played three fixtures this year against Stockport Grammar, Stonyhurst and Manchester Grammar at home, with several fixtures falling victim to the inclement weather. The boys played with enthusiasm and passion, with some rampaging running and tigerish tackling. We won the fixtures at Stonyhurst and against Manchester Grammar, but lost against a strong Stockport side; however, the boys didn’t give up and there were some standout individual performances from Alex Smethurst, Zain Rehman and Josh Pilkington, who refused to give up on a tackle despite being dragged ten metres along the ground. I’d like to say a huge well done to all boys who represented the Under 13 ‘B’ team at rugby this year and hope to see them all in the Under 14 side next year.

Mr. M. Boyd

Abbas Khambalia 8d

Under 12 Rugby

The Under 12 Rugby team at Bolton School has had an exciting and competitive season, showcasing the development and resilience of the players as they navigated through a challenging fixture list. From thrilling wins to hardfought losses, the season has been a valuable learning experience for everyone involved.

The season kicked off with an impressive win against Crossley Heath, setting a positive tone for the rest of the campaign. This was followed by a hard-fought 5-0 victory against MGS, a match in which the team’s defensive discipline and determination proved crucial. One of the standout moments came in the win over Liverpool College, where the boys demonstrated great teamwork and tactical awareness, securing another solid performance.

Despite some challenging fixtures, the team showed resilience and strong sportsmanship throughout, with a particular highlight being their victory over AKS Lytham, when the boys’ quick, reactive play made the difference. The team also achieved a crucial draw against Birkenhead, which helped build confidence going into the latter half of the season. Victories against Hutton and Scarisbrick further demonstrated the squad’s growth as they built momentum through the campaign.

The season was not without its challenges, and the team faced some difficult matches, including losses to Wilmslow, MGS, Lancaster, and Stonyhurst. In these encounters, although results were not in Bolton

School’s favour, the players continued to show strong character, learning from these setbacks and using them as opportunities for growth.

A highlight of the season came at the Under 12 Lancashire Rugby Festival held at Preston Grasshoppers, where the boys competed against some of the best teams in the region. The team displayed remarkable skill, determination, and team spirit in what was a highly competitive environment.

The Under 12s have built a solid foundation for the future, and with continued commitment to training and development, they will undoubtedly continue to improve. With a good mix of talented players and strong team spirit, the future looks bright for Bolton School Rugby at this age group.

Thank you to all the players, parents and coaches who have supported the team throughout the season. We look forward to building on this success in the seasons to come!

Mr. L. Watkinson

A View from the AstroTurf

Iam writing the overview of School Hockey for the final time after 28 years leading Bolton School Hockey. In September, Mr. Foy takes over the role of Head of Hockey and I wish him every success in the post.

I took over from Mr. Schenk back in 1996. Back in the day, we used to play our home games at Horwich Leisure Centre and put out a 1st XI and Under 15 team. Hockey goals were on Top Level and the sport was played on grass in sports lessons. The regional finals were usually a whole day event at Stanley Park, Blackpool organised by the late, great Chris Todd. We had modest successes in the mid 2000s, making the Under 16 Regional Final on one occasion, which was at Preston Hockey Club, losing to Merchant Taylors’ under the watchful eyes of Mr. Brooker and Mr. Pledger. After our defeat, a decision was taken to employ a specialist hockey coach to support the development of School Hockey further. Firstly Mr. Robertson,

who was the pro at Bowden; then Mr. Mahboob, who was a Pakistan international cricketer; then Mr. Ahmed, who was coaching at Bolton Hockey Club and Leeds Met at the time of recruitment and currently Mr. Sutcliffe. We got accustomed to receiving disappointing news that the long-planned AstroTurf development (originally planned for 1993) was, yet again, to be delayed further. In the meantime, Horwich Leisure Centre decided to convert their Astro into a 3G –great for football and therefore totally unsuitable for hockey. We had to find a new home and quickly. We continued to train outdoors on the school tennis courts and indoors in the School Gym and Sports Hall when available. Most fixtures were away. The few home fixtures involved booking out Preston Hockey Club. Eventually, after much wrangling over planning permission and false dawns, the new AstroTurf at the Leverhulme Pavilion was finally in place for September 2019 and I had the honour of being the first person, along with Ben Turner (1st XI Captain at the time) to hit a ball on the pitch for the first time. Hockey finally has its home and the numbers of pupils participating is now at an all-time high. We offer the sport to all year groups to a high standard. Everyone now wants to use the great new facility when, for many years, we were a lone voice campaigning for an AstroTurf. Hockey has expanded exponentially too in the Girls’ Division and American Flag Football under the stewardship of Mr. Williams is the latest initiative to make headlines.

It is now time to hand over the baton to the full-time members of the PE Department, who will have the responsibility to develop hockey further. I look forward to contributing to hockey next season with stewardship of the Under 15 team.

teams. Whenever Elliot “Rodri” Guest plays, the team are unbeaten. Others have really impressed too. Liam Dougall has been ice cool in defence and has real talent. The Under 15s have also gelled as a team. Their attendance at training has been impressive, meaning that we can work on positional play and tactics between games.

Mr. Foy has greatly enjoyed leading the Under 14s this season. His enthusiastic presence on matchdays and 100% commitment to training has been contagious and he leads by example. Daniel Croston in goal continues to excel.

The Under 13s have also worked well as a group with some very talented players. Sam Ducker in goal, Nish Gowda and Ayron Dhokia in the heart of the defence; George Pickett controlling the midfield with the pace of Abbas Khambalia on the wing and Tristan Jones up front.

The Under 12 training is after school on a Friday evening. Attendance has been extraordinary, with numbers approaching 30 at times and increasing. The team has played one tournament all season, but remains greatly enthused. Several players have had close to 100% attendance. We have been fortunate to have large numbers of older players giving back and offering coaching hours as part of their D of E volunteering. Some have continued to help long after the form has been signed off, which is a real testament to their dedication to their sport. As a result of good player to coach ratios, we have been able to set up skills stations and a carousel approach with the reward of a game for the remainder of the session.

In the 2023-24 season the 1st XI were led by Jayden Luhar, who was, for the most part, the only Year 13. The team was made up of many talented Year 12s and some Year 11s, who will have another season competing at the highest level. I have been greatly impressed with Greg and Alex Dorsky and Nikhil Patel, who train hard and have given up many hours volunteering their coaching to younger pupils. They have a genuine love of the sport and have deservedly represented Greater Manchester along with Kyran Chitre and Harry Shannon in Year 11.

The 2nd XI Captain Raoul Saxena enjoyed his captaincy and many fellow Year 13s contributed fully to their success. The 2nd XI is also a stepping stone to the 1st XI for many aspiring Year 11s.

The Under 15s have had a very successful season. Harry Iddon has been prolific up front and the leading goal scorer across all the

I would like to point out that none of the above would be possible without the experience and expertise of Mr. Sutcliffe. He is on every coaching session and makes it look really easy to set up a coaching session. The shift up in the last five years of hockey provision could so easily have gone wrong in the wrong hands. His pragmatism, an ability to manage expectations, to use extensive contacts on the circuit to give pupils links to clubs, his high level and imaginative coaching drills and bespoke 1-1 chats with players are the hallmarks of a top coach. We are lucky to have him.

Mr. A.C. Robson

Senior Hockey

The season started full of promise, with 53 pupils turning up to Senior Sport on the first Wednesday of the School Hockey season. As a result, the trials for team places were very competitive and whilst the Senior Hockey Squad was subsequently whittled down to 41, we still had lots of competition for the 1st and 2nd XI squads. We were ready to compete in our most challenging fixture list to date. When we look at the hard facts on paper for the 1st XI, (played 13, lost 12 and 1 draw), one may think we had a very unsuccessful season, but in many of these games – with the exception of one or two traditionally very strong schools – we were equal to and challenged the opposition in some fantastically competitive matches. Unfortunately, six games were cancelled (due to inclement weather or by the opposition) and we were left wondering whether we could have won some of those remaining matches, which would have put a very different slant on the statistics. Our target for improvement moving forwards is the number of goals we score, as our tally this season was eleven in thirteen games; we had plenty of chances, but need to convert them into goals.

We also played in two regional Under 18 tournaments in the England Hockey Championships, one indoor and one outdoor, and represented Bolton with honour and spirit – it was often noted to us by opposition members of staff as to how well our boys conducted themselves.

As the season progressed, a squad that started with five Year 13 pupils in it and three Year 11 pupils attaining 1st XI Squad places, became one solitary Year 13 player by Christmas; our valiant leader

Jayden Luhar (Senior & 1st XI Hockey Captain). Over time, seven new Year 11 players gained 1st XI experience and, along with a cohort of Year 12s, they became the backbone of the squad for the remainder of the season; this bodes well for next season and it will be hard for existing 2nd XI players and the twenty-strong Year 10 players moving up into the Senior Hockey environment next academic year to achieve the status of playing Bolton School 1st XI Hockey. That is of course exactly as it should be as we become a force to be reckoned with in the ‘North West Schools’ premier echelon of hockey. Credit for our growing competitiveness in games must go to the players already mentioned by Mr. Robson in the overview. Of course, many other players in the squad contribute to our competitiveness as a team on the pitch.

The 2nd XI’s season by contrast – with all our Year 13s bar the 1st XI Captain Jayden – has been a highly enjoyable one, although frustrating as the largest 2nd XI fixture list to date of sixteen matches saw us play eight due to opposition and weather cancellations.

The 2nd XI playing, under the guidance of Mr. Moore, Mr. Robson and I, showed considerable improvement through the season. Raoul Saxena grew in stature as Captain, leading the 2nd XI to two wins, two draws and four losses with ten goals for and eighteen goals against. Some of those games were against opposition that had strengthened their teams with players from their 1st XIs. Particularly noteworthy was the performance of our Year 13 pupils this season: James Bland, Marcus Fung, Jamie Latchford, Dylan Lincoln, Jayden Luhar, Alex McKie, Jake Partington, Veer Patel and Raoul Saxena, who played up and down as and when needed. They also enjoyed the camaraderie that developed as the season went on in the 2nd XI for their final year of hockey at Bolton School.

Mr. Sutcliffe (Hockey Coach)

Under 15 Hockey

This year, our Under 15 team has worked hard to improve its hockey skills and win lots of games. We opened up the season strong, with many attending training sessions on Monday nights and in Thursday’s sport session, making the selection of teams difficult for both the captain and the coach. Compared to last year when we struggled to get off the mark, this year, the squad showed huge progression, winning more than half of the games. Harry Iddon proved to be a wonderful player, being the team’s top scorer this year and stood out with his brilliant finishing. Ryan Faridfar also showed huge improvement, winning the Under 15 team multiple games with his phenomenal shot stopping ability. Liam Dougall joined the team this year and has already cemented himself as a top player, winning multiple Man of the Match awards. Overall, the squad has improved massively and developed its skills in hockey to become a well-rounded squad, with many players looking to jump into the 1st and 2nd XI next season.

Zain Burrill 10b

Under 14 Hockey

TOur Under 14 Hockey team also played in the North West Regional Finals and were up against very good teams, but we did not come last, which was a victory for the team. Throughout the season, our entire team progressed massively, but, in particular, our keeper, Dan Croston, saved us many times and led us to victory on many occasions. Our team has trained very hard this season and has come very far from where it started.

Alex Hilton-Jones 9d & Tony Chen 9b

The Under 14 Hockey squad has progressed extremely well this year. It is always tough coming from a 7-a-side pitch, to a full 11-a-side pitch, with positions, dimensions and tactics all differing from the previous format. The first half of the season was difficult, but the squad adjusted well to the new format of the game, picking up results against Wirral Grammar, AKS Lytham and Birkenhead School. Fixtures vs. Merchant Taylors’, St. Anselm’s and King’s Macclesfield were tough at the start of the season, but in the reverse fixture, there were obvious signs of good teamwork, and encouragement from all to improve and strive for success and results.

he Under 14 Hockey season started off with an unfortunate loss to Merchant Taylors’. Although we lost, it kick-started our season and motivated us to win our next game. Our next couple of games were very tough and we lost many games after. Mr. Foy came in during our first half of the season and greatly influenced our progression; this was obvious when we won our first game against AKS Lytham after a brilliant finish by Cipri Prasad in the dying embers of the game, which ended in a 2-1 victory to Bolton. Thereafter, we didn’t lose a single game and continued to win and draw the remaining games.

There are notable mentions to duos all over the pitch throughout the season, the first being, Ian So and Aryan Agrawal in the midfield for many fine performances connecting the defensive line with the attacking threat of Tony Chen and Noah Plenderleith. A solid defensive backline partnership came to fruition in the form of Teddy Fearnhead Duffy and Preet Howard, backed up with Daniel Croston in goal. Daniel was very busy throughout the season in goal, but progressed well and set the tone for the rest of the squad.

Mr. S.R. Foy

On the whole, the squad has gelled well together, and I am really looking forward to seeing how they progress next year under the watchful eye of Mr. Robson.

Under 13 Hockey

This season wouldn’t have been possible without our coaches, Mr. Sutcliffe and Mr. Robson, who helped everyone improve throughout the year.

We started slowly with a few losses against AKS Lytham, The Grange and St. Bede’s. In the first couple of games, we would have lost by a bigger margin if it wasn’t for our goalkeeper Sam Ducker, who pulled out some great saves. After the matches, we learnt from our mistakes and kept pushing ourselves to improve in training.

The North West Under 13 Powerplay was a highlight, even though we didn’t win. Abbas Khambalia was playing quickly and feeding balls into our striker and goalscorer Tristan Jones. We played amazing teams at the tournament and gained valuable experience.

The final stretch of the season was a rollercoaster. We came close against Kirkham, even trailing 3-0, but ultimately fell short. The last game against AKS Lytham was a thriller! We went back and forth, trading goals all game, but unfortunately conceded a late winner; this was an especially good performance from our defenders Ayron Dhokia and Nish Gowda, who kept us in the fight to win.

Despite the losses, we had a great season and learned a lot. We all enjoyed the challenge and camaraderie!

Under 12 Hockey

The Under 12s’ Hockey season has been a wonderful time for all the players and coaches. As this has been the first time playing hockey for some people, not everyone knew how to play, but we had a really good set of people with plenty of talent and determination to keep playing hockey and getting better and better. Of course, all of this was made possible by the lovely coaches and hockey team, who made sure we had all the basic skills learnt.

The Under 12 ‘A’ team had an exciting tournament away at Macclesfield, facing off The Grange School, MGS, and King’s Macclesfield. We came third in the tournament, which, for a first proper team game is a really good achievement!

At training, attendance is extremely good every single week, with some people only missing one or two sessions throughout the whole school year! This means that everyone is getting really good at hockey and continues to impress the coaches every week.

Janek Zarobkiewicz 7d

Badminton

During the Autumn Term, the Under 16 Badminton teams, which include pupils from Years 9-11, were involved in a number of fixtures against local schools in the Bolton Badminton League. The Under 16 ‘B’ team remained unbeaten, winning against Westhoughton, the Girls’ Division and Rivington & Blackrod, and drawing against Thornleigh. The Under 16 ‘A’ team won three matches and lost only to our closest neighbours, the Girls’ Division!

George Pickett 8e

On Monday 4th December, ten players from Years 7 & 8 took part in a Key Stage 3 Badminton Festival against four other schools from Bolton; this was a great opportunity for the team to play lots of timed doubles matches, as well as getting experience of playing competitively. A special well done to Dan Hinks and George Pickett, who didn’t lose a single match.

On Friday 2nd February the Under 13 team took part in the second Badminton Festival at St. Joseph’s School, where they played over twelve mini matches against five other schools. The boys showed great passion and determination to win their matches, and some doubles pairs only lost a handful of points across the twelve matches they played. Although this age group do not have a league to compete in, they are showing promising development.

Squash

On Tuesday 21st November, five boys from Years 7-9 took part in our first ever Squash National Schools’ tournament at the National Squash Centre in Manchester.

Facing more experienced opposition, the boys fought competitively and managed to win a few games against Didsbury High School, Manchester Grammar School and Tytherington, but overall didn’t manage to accumulate enough points to go through to the next stage of the championship.

Cross Country

The standout Cross Country performance of the season saw Ashton Morrissey win the Year 7 Town Championship race to become Town Champion, the second time in two years a Bolton School boy has won this race. Noah Dandy (6th), Benji Houghton (10th), Alex Metcalfe (11th), Sasha Milne (13th) and Matthew Howarth (14th) also finished inside the top twenty, qualifying for the Town team, in a strong Year 7 team outing.

In the Year 8 and 9 race, Aryan Nunkoo finished in 5th and Daniel

in 7th despite both being a year young; Ethan Blyth, Chris Frank and George Burrows all qualified inside the top twenty.

was the pick of the Year 10 and 11 runners.

Mr. M.G. Chilton

Miss E.J. Compton

Bleakley

Neel Chadha

Miss E.J. Compton

Swimming

The 2023/24 swimming season for Bolton School Boys’ has been a thrilling journey, full of hard-fought races, strong performances, and plenty of team spirit. The calendar kicked off with an exciting fixture against the Girls’ Division, where our boys secured a victory in what was a highly competitive meet. This win was a fantastic way to set the tone for the season ahead.

In our next home meet, we faced St. Ambrose, and our swimmers delivered an impressive performance. The team won across a range of events, showing great depth and skill, despite the tough competition. This win further boosted the boys’ confidence heading into the heart of the season.

Our away meet at MGS proved to be a real challenge. The boys swam exceptionally well, but were narrowly beaten, with some close races showing how much talent was on display from both teams. While the result was disappointing, the swimmers’ determination and teamwork shone through.

The Joint Gala with the Girls’ Division against Westholme, hosted at home, saw a dominant performance from Bolton School, with our boys winning comfortably. This meet was another example of the depth and talent across the squad, and the team’s performance was a testament to their hard work in training.

The Fastwater Gala was another highlight, where Bolton School emerged victorious, beating strong teams such as Hutton, Ripley, QEGS Blackburn, and Sandbach. This win was a great achievement, showcasing the versatility and strength of our swimmers across a range of events.

The Town Championships at Bolton One provided an excellent opportunity for individual and team success. The Junior and Intermediate teams both won their respective categories, while the Senior team finished second, just missing out on the top spot. The results across the different age groups showed the depth of talent within the squad and were a reflection of the swimmers’ dedication.

The home fixture against Sandbach ended with another win for our boys, continuing the strong run of form. However, the season’s final showdown against the Girls’ Division saw the series levelled at 1-1, with our boys narrowly losing in a hard-fought contest. Despite the defeat, the team demonstrated resilience and sportsmanship, ensuring a well-fought competition.

A massive thank you to all the coaches, swimmers, and supporters who have been part of this fantastic season. It has been a great year of growth, with some truly remarkable swims from everyone involved.

Mr. L. Watkinson

Last year was another highly successful season for School Water polo. It was my first in my new role as Head of Foundation Water Polo and I really enjoyed being involved to a greater degree with the boys’ teams who’ve all

Water polo

shown fantastic attitudes over the course of the season and achieved some brilliant team and individual successes.

The Under 18 team was a blend of youth and experience this year. The spine of the team was made up of four senior players all in Year 13 with Captain Josh Dickens at centre forward, Joe Carolan at centre back, Ollie McCann in goal and Sam Fitzsimons on the 4-5 side of the arc. These four seniors were ably supported by some outstanding junior players who, in the case of Lucas Bishop, were as young as Year 9!

The team started strongly in the group stage of their preliminary round competition by beating Newcastle Under Lyme 7-0 and St. Ambrose 4-1. This put them through to a Semi-final against St. Bede’s and St. Joseph’s, which they won 6-1, before beating MGS 4-3 in the final of this preliminary stage.

The team then eased through the Semi-final stage of the competition down in Northampton to make it through to the National Championship Finals, which were held in Liverpool. In a significant blow to our chances, Sam Fitzsimons suffered a concussion in a game for his club before the Finals, meaning that he was unable to play; despite this, the junior players stepped up and performed really well. A victory against Dulwich College followed by a close loss to MGS in the group stages meant a Semi-final match, up against the tournament favourites: Trinity School. The team competed well, but lost another close match to the eventual winners before going on to lose the Bronze medal game 4-3 to City of London School in another tight game.

Throughout the rounds of competition, it was great to see the senior players doing such a good job of working with the juniors in the team and helping them to develop their game.

A huge thanks to the Year 13 students who competed for the School for their final time, some of whom have been playing since they were in Park Road and have shown huge commitment to School Water polo over the years.

The Under 15 boys’ team finished third in their preliminary round competition to qualify for the National Plate Finals. In their group games, they beat St. Bede’s & St. Joseph’s 5-0, followed by a close defeat 4-3 to St. Ambrose. In their Semi-final, they then lost 3-1 to MGS before beating Bradford Grammar 11-0 to claim third place in the competition.

The Plate Finals were played in a round-robin format and despite a surprise defeat in an early game, where the team made some uncharacteristic defensive errors and failed to convert their chances in attack, results elsewhere went in their favour and they held their nerve to win all their remaining games and defend their title as National Plate Champions. The team is made up of a really committed group of players, who have also enjoyed considerable representation at regional level and national club competitions. We look forward to following their progress in future years.

The Under 13 boys’ team performed impressively in the first round of their ESSA competition, winning games against Manchester Grammar School and St. Ambrose College to qualify as the top seed for the next round of competition.

In their Semi-final round, the team won two and lost one of their games; they beat Bedford Modern and Warwick comfortably, but couldn’t recover from a slow start against KES Birmingham; this meant that they finished second and exited the competition at this stage.

They were not at full strength in their Semi-final round due to the injuries and absences of key players, but there were lots of positives to take from the competition, both individually and collectively; there were some really big improvements across the season. We’re sure that the team will continue to work hard and come back even stronger next year!

We are very pleased that five of the team have been accepted into the Under 14 North West Talent Centre, which is the first part of the England talent pathway and many have joined clubs outside of the school. We are looking forward to taking them on tour to Malta at Easter and to seeing how far the team can go in their first national schools competition next year.

The following boys were part of the North West regional Talent Centre, the first stage of the England Talent Pathway.

Under 16 boys: Lucas Bishop, Oliver Carter, William James, David Kurlovic, Luca Ramirez Nievas, Freddie Wardle

Under 14 boys: Rocky Beaumont, Yohaan Bhalme, William Buchanan, William Colvin, Jimmy Elliott, Jensen Gregoire-Parker, Egan Moore, Mateo Sprott, Reuben Wardle

Our Under 12s have progressed well this season and have enjoyed lots of friendly fixtures including tournaments locally, such as at the Jason Kenny Centre in Bolton, and further afield such as a schools’ competition at Haberdasher’s School in London. Perhaps the highlight was becoming the ManUp! 2024 champions at the end of a day’s competition at the outdoor pool in Nantwich in June.

Many of these players have competed in the ‘Talent Games,’ where the regional talent centres compete against each other twice annually and, over the Christmas holidays, Year 9 pupils Jensen GregoireParker, Jimmy Elliott and Will Colvin travelled to Lloret de Mar in Spain, where they competed for England Lions in the HaBaWaBa competition, which welcomes clubs from across Europe.

At the end of the academic year, Ashton Morrissey, Noah Walmsley, Ethan Kennair, David White and Ted Washington were all accepted into the next intake of the Under 14 North West Talent Centre.

In the Under 14 Boys’ Inter-regional Championships, Yohaan Bhalme and Will Colvin helped the North West to win the competition and become national champions.

Jamie Logan, Sam Fitzsimons and Josh Dickens were all part of England squads for their respective age groups during the last academic year.

Over the October half term holiday, Sam Fitzsimons travelled to the Czech Republic to compete in the junior EU nations with the England Under 17 team and helped them to a third place finish. He has also been selected for the England Under 18s team competing in the Next Generation Cup in Barcelona later in the year.

We are lucky to have had a significant number of students who have given up their time to coach at sessions and help younger players develop their skills and inspire a love for water polo. My thanks to the following student coaches: Hasan Baki, Lucas Bishop,

The Under 13s before their ESSA preliminary round competition in Walsall

Josh Dickens, Sam Fitzsimons, Jensen Gregoire-Parker, Will James, Stanley Mathieson and Luca Ramirez Nievas.

Finally, it just remains for me to thank Mr. McGinty and Dr. Yates for their efforts coaching, Mr. James for all his hard work at fixtures and behind the scenes as our Water polo Team Manager, and Ms. Dickinson for all her contributions in the School Office.

With so many promising young players in the school, I am sure next season will be an equally exciting one and I am looking forward to seeing our teams get back in the pool and work hard in September!

Mr. D.F. Teasdale

Bolton School Golf

The largest national school competition, the ISGA matchplay, begins almost as the academic year does and, in the first round, we drew Sedbergh School at home. On a miserable morning, Bolton Golf Club’s fairways were donned and our three players, Joe Emery, Toby Yates and Elliot Davies were keen for a victory. Joe and Toby are veterans in competition golf whereas Elliot was making a School debut; they showed him the ropes and calmed any nerves he might have had. The match was played with the spirit in which it should be, and Bolton were deserved winners and through to the next round.

In the next round, we took a trip to Merseyside and played Birkenhead School. To draw against Birkenhead is always a great fixture as they play their home matches at Royal Liverpool, a British Open venue. The course was immaculate, even in the winter, and our boys were really looking forward to the challenge. The opposing team are all members of the fine links course therefore had the upper hand from the start. The matches were close until the final few holes, but, unfortunately, local knowledge prevailed. The boys from Bolton thoroughly enjoyed the experience and will only benefit from playing such a prestigious venue. There’s always next year!

During House Days this year, we have taken two enthusiastic groups to play the pitch and putt course within Heaton Park. I have witnessed some excellent golf from the younger generation, and I hope that these boys continue to improve and, hopefully, one day, join our Golf team.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all members of the Golf team who have, through much hard work and dedication to their sport, reduced their handicaps throughout the season and are beginning to receive deserved recognition on a county and national level.

Joe Emery leaves school this year and is heading for the United States, where he has received a scholarship to West Virginia

University. He has spent the last five years dedicating himself to his passion and has reduced his handicap in this time by nearly 24 shots, allowing him to enter the most prestigious of competitions. Playing around some of the finest courses in Europe has enabled him to fine-tune his skills. This year, he entered the European Open, held in Andalusia, Spain, and managed a remarkable placing of fifth overall, winning one of the four days outright. Other notable achievements last season were finishing in the top three in the Lancashire Under 18s, holding the junior course record at Harwood Golf Club and representing Lancashire in the Under 18 squad.

Toby Yates also leaves us and will be sadly missed. He has played for the School Golf team since joining the Senior School in Year 7 and has always done his utmost to gain victories for the team. He is an excellent golfer with a membership and handicap in one of Merseyside’s most prestigious golf clubs, Hillside. I wish him all the very best and hope he continues to play, as well as join the Old Boltonians.

My thanks go out to Mr. Chilton and Mr. O’Toole for their continued and invaluable help.

Mr. C. Coffey

Chess

Another year has been filled with success for Bolton School Chess. Despite losing some great players at the end of last year as they left for university, we showed that we have strength and depth in the squad. We made it to the National Finals in three competitions.

On 20th April, the Under 19 British Team Chess Challenge and Under 14 Junior Team Chess Challenge National Finals were held simultaneously at King Edward VI School, Aston, with the same format. Teams of four players from across the country, settled into five rounds, played at a rate of play of 10 minutes with a 2 second increment. The winner of each tournament in these competitions is decided on game points rather than match points, so the result on every board was very important.

Sports

Our Junior and Senior teams had qualified for the National Finals a little over a month earlier; The Under 14 team beat Manchester Grammar School and Liverpool Blue Coat School at MGS, and the Under 19 team beat teams from MGS, Gateacre School and Cardinal Heenan CHS in our Boys’ Division Great Hall.

And so, with Mr. Pilkington driving, the two teams left Bolton School early on Saturday 20th April and headed to the Midlands. They arrived in time for lunch and play started soon after.

The short time control and a record number of eighteen teams in each event meant that arbiters were kept busy with time scrambles and illegal moves, and, as usual with Swiss pairings, there were some brutal results in the first rounds. However, after five rounds the clear winners of two trophies were the mighty Wilson’s School, who won 17 out of 20 game points in both the Under 14 and Under 19 competitions. The Bolton teams did well – the Under 14 team (Ashton Morrissey, Edward Chu, Ryan Hung, Daniel Titiloye, Ibrahim Iqbal) came 6th with 11 points and the Under 19 team (Marcus Fung, Leon McGuigan-Lazo, Marlon Wen, Marcus Lam) achieved 10th place with 10 points.

For the third year running, we made it to the Finals of the Under 19 English Schools Chess Championship (formerly known as the National Schools Chess Championship).

Our journey began on 23rd November when we, once again, hosted the qualifier event. Teams from MGS, Cheadle Hulme and St. George’s C of E Academy battled over three rounds – with teams scoring more than 50% match points qualifying for the first round proper.

After beating St. Peter’s RC High School in the next round, our ‘B’ team’s run ended in February when MGS beat them 4-2. The ‘A’ team were of course more successful, just beating Blue Coat School 3.5-2.5 before winning the Regional Final against MGS in March.

And so, in the penultimate week of the Summer Term, we spent Thursday and Friday at the King’s Meadow Campus, Nottingham University with 25 other teams from all around the country. Bolton’s ‘A’ team, Marcus Fung, Leon McGuigan Lazo, Marlon Wen, Zac Walsh, Samarth Misra and Luke Burns sat down at 1pm to face one

of the top teams – Tiffin School. Once again, a brutal first round Swiss pairing meant that Zac’s draw on board 4 was our only score; beaten 5½ - ½.

Round 2 was better – we beat King Edward’s School 3½ - 2½ and then we achieved the same result against our local rivals Altrincham Grammar School in round 3; our scores in the latter coming from our bottom four boards, illustrating the depth of talent we currently have.

Thursday’s matches were done, so at 8.30pm, a tired and hungry ‘A’ team headed to Pizza Express to feast, to wind down and to reset after three long rounds of intense concentration. Bed and breakfast at Rutland Hall set them up for Friday and an early start. Round 4 versus Exeter School did not go our way (we lost 4 - 2) and after a close battle in the final round we were narrowly beaten by King Edward VI Camp Hill School 3½ - 2½.

Prizes were awarded at 2.30pm on Friday. The winners were King’s College School, beating Hampton School and Tiffin School into second and third places respectively. We finished 16th out of the 26 finalists, which was a great result – we entered the Final ranked 22nd and we finished above all other teams from the North of England.

Thanks and congratulations to our ‘A’ team. Marcus, who gave up his free time after sitting his A Levels to face the best young players in the country on board 1, has since been elected to President of the Manchester Chess Federation.

Similarly, Leon and Luke sat their GCSEs this year, but still came back to finish off the chess season. Marlon and Samarth got some important wins for us and Zac did a cracking job on board 4 after being drafted into the team to replace Amrit Mishra, whose duties in his new role as School Captain made him unavailable for the Finals. Amrit deserves credit for his contribution this year, as he was part of the team that qualified for the Final and he has indeed been a valuable ‘A’ team player since he joined us in Year 7.

Rowing

RWell done to all who improved their skills at Chess Club this year!

Mr. P. Costello

owing continues to develop with a new set of students each year and we have been delighted to be able to offer the option to our counterparts in Girls’ Division this year. The winter saw a greater focus on sweep rowing (one blade), moving into sculling (two blades) in the summer. The lads (and girls) who have taken part in rowing this year have been extremely committed and their progress has been outstanding as a group.

Four rowers took part in the Northern Junior Rowing Championships this year, which was held in Leeds. Their individual 2000m times were strong, with Jacob Audley and Harry Adams coming second and third respectively in the J18 race, albeit within a small field. The relay race, however, was the focus of our training, and their performance was incredible with Jacob, Harry, James Bland and Dylan Lincoln finishing in third place in the Senior Relay. They beat many schools and clubs who have a much more developed rowing programme through an innovative technique of fifteen strokes each before switching over.

As always, weather is a huge factor in School Rowing. Most Wednesday afternoons have been rowable, if gusty at times, but the sport generally has suffered this year from the heavy rainfall. Summer rowing hasn’t quite been the shorts and t-shirt weather we wished for, but there is always next year!

Mrs. E.A. Jepson

Gymnastics

ASports

t the start of February, the whole of Year 8 gathered in the Boys’ Division Gym to watch the Year 8 Vaulting Final. Since September, the whole year group has been competing in heats in this long-standing competition, whittling down the numbers until there were just six gymnasts remaining.

Each gymnast performed four vaults in total: Through Vault, Long Fly, their choice of Rotational Vault and finally the Double Box Vault. Mr. Johnson gave each of the boys a score for their efforts, which were added up at the end to decide the overall winner.

The competition was extremely tight, with the boys in first and second place achieving the exact same score! The overall winner was therefore decided based on their performance in the last vault, as the Double Box Vault is the most complex.

First place was awarded to Ben Howarth, second place to Daniel Bleakley and third to Adam Ciechowski.

Medals and certificates were presented by Head of Boys’ Division Mr. Nic Ford, who congratulated all six gymnasts for their efforts in the Vaulting Final. He reminded everyone that gymnastics takes both skill and courage, and added that all six finalists can be proud of their performance and how they handled the pressure on the morning.

Earlier in the week, the Year 7 Gymnastics Final took place. This historic competition, which has been running for over 100 years, saw six boys perform floor routines for an audience of their peers.

Tommy Burke ran out as winner of the Year 7 Gymnastics Final. Due to illness and injury, only six finalists competed on the day and all were commended for their routines – a nerve-wracking experience in front of the whole year group. Third place went to Abdulmateen Ogunnusi and second place to Sasha Milne.

Head of PE, Mr. Johnson, who judged the competition, said: ‘Given the pressure of performing in front of a live audience, there have been some fine eight-piece sequences today, showcasing a wide range of skills including rolls, handstands, back supports, headstands, bridges and beyond.’

The boys perfected their routines involving travelling movements and balances during curriculum PE lessons. They won through to the Final having competed in earlier rounds when all boys in the year group had performed six sequence routines.

Brody Shum (8f), Adam Ciechowski (8d), Ben Howarth (8b), Daniel Bleakley (8d), Mateo Sprott (8d) and Teddy McCarter (8b) were this year’s finalists.

Sailing

Sailing opportunities continue to develop in Boys’ Division.

Year 7 students have the opportunity to sail during their Thursday sport lessons, Thursday evening Sailing Club allows students in Years 8 and 9 to sail during the summer months and the Saturday morning Sailing team allows those that show promise and commitment (in Years 7-13) to sail most Saturday mornings during term time all year round. A voyage onboard Tenacity of Bolton at the end of the year allowed students in Years 8-11 to develop their understanding of cruising.

Year 7 students were given the opportunity to attend a taster session during one of their sport lessons in the first half of the Autumn Term and then some students opted to sail for the remainder of the year. Their sailing skills and ability developed well, and they obtained the Level 1 certificate of the RYA youth sailing scheme.

Year 8 and 9 students developed their sailing skills as part of the Thursday night Sailing Club, which runs from April until the end of September. Many attendees successfully achieved their RYA Level 1 certificate with some achieving their Level 2.

Team members must be tenacious and hardy; they need to be able to tolerate cold, windy and wet conditions. Training takes place most Saturday mornings during term time throughout the year. Some students have achieved their RYA Level 4 certificate this year.

This year has seen team members competing in the National School Sailing Association Single-handed Team races (at Bartley Sailing Club in October) and Double-handed Team races (at Banbury Sailing Club in March). Team members have come a long way in the relatively short time that they have been sailing.

Many team members have gone on to join local sailing clubs and are regularly racing in a wide range of sailing dinghies.

A voyage onboard Tenacity in the Solent with Tall Ships Youth

Trust (TSYT) at the end of the Summer Term enabled students to develop their seamanship, helmsmanship, navigation and meteorological knowledge and skills. All participants achieved their RYA Competent Crew certificate, with many being recommended for a TSYT ‘Empowerment’ voyage.

The 6-day voyage departed from Portsmouth and called at Cowes, Beaulieu River, Yarmouth and Lymington before returning to Portsmouth. During this time, as well as learning to sail a yacht, the students learnt about marina facilities, the importance of ensuring everything is secure below deck before setting sail and the history of ship building on the Beaulieu River.

After a number of Saturday training sessions at the Anderton Centre, we were ready for the NSSA Single-handed Team Racing Competition, which took place in Bartley, Birmingham in October. This was a different type of competition that School hadn’t taken part in before, so it was a very exciting weekend. After arriving at the site early the first morning, we had a briefing, promptly followed by the first of many races.

We sailed in Toppers, a type of singlehanded sailing dinghy, in teams of three: three boats per team. Each race consisted of one team against another team, so a total of six boats in one race. The team that scored the lowest number of points won the race

Dr. M. Procter

(6th place was 6 points, 5th place was 5 points, and so on), so the team with 10 or less points won. It involved precision in passing the starting line on the horn, to get as much advantage as possible, and using tactics to slow the other team down. Each race was quick, but ruthless, with lots happening at once.

Both Bolton School teams were up against many experienced and very skilled teams, so competition was tough. We sailed in 11 races over the two days, up against many different teams, each race being different from the last.

find a small edge on us due to small mistakes which would not have been so important in traditional racing, but due to the extremely short nature of each race cost us the win on multiple occasions.

The conditions weren’t as windy as we would have liked: it was quite calm. However, the races were still very intense over the course of the weekend, and we are proud of what we achieved, and we had a very enjoyable weekend. Team A consisted of Ashton Kay, Lucia Baker and Neve Houghton and Team B consisted of Rory Freestone, Zach Tyrer-Hall and Emily Fox.

Ashton Kay 12e

On 9th and 10th March this year, the sailing team took part in the NSSA Double-handed Team races (DHTRs) at Banbury Sailing Club. We took a team of four people (two boats) consisting of Emily Fox, Daniel Hunter, Harry Farrington and I.

The aim of team racing is to use the rules to get both of your boats across the finish line before the other team whilst following the course. It is very fast-paced and every second counts because it is such a short race.

We arrived on Saturday morning and reviewed the rules and the weather conditions, it was quite windy and due to its westerly direction (this sent the wind through the trees on the east side of the reservoir) it was extremely gusty and was changing direction a lot. This made for very challenging conditions throughout the weekend. All the other teams were extremely competitive and most managed to

We had a brilliant time at the races and hope to use the experience to help improve our strategy next time!

Rory Freestone 9f

Athletics

Athletics has continued its rejuvenation over recent years with a number of Personal Bests, medals and School Records.

Year 7-10 teams entered the English Schools Athletics Association (ESAA) National Track & Field Cup with heats taking place at Longford Park, Stretford. The Intermediate team made up of Year 9 and Year 10 qualified for the Regional ‘B’ Final of the competition at Ellesmere Port; the Junior Boys’ team (Year 7 and Year 8) went one better though and qualified as one of the top twelve schools and competed in the ‘A’ Final at Blackpool. Finishing a very respectable fifth in the region, if not for a harsh disqualification in the Relay, they would have taken team Bronze.

The increase in Athletics talent has been further evident by no fewer than seven School Records being broken, some dating back as far as 1987!

Year 7 300m Jason Abanda

Chris Frank Charlie Simpson

In the traditional Bolton Town Championships, the following were crowned Town Champions in their respective events.

Year 7 Discus Louis Ball

Year 7 1500m Ashton Morrissey

Year 7 High Jump Bear Roberts

Year 8 1500m Daniel Bleakley

Year 8 800m Aryan Nunkoo

Year 9 4 x100m Relay David Kurlovic

Oskar Fadil

Chris Frank

Charlie Simpson

Year 10 300m Kieran Holt

Year 10 High Jump Hugo James

In team standings, all year groups finished in the top three out of twenty schools. Year 7 took Gold at their first event, Year 8 and Year 9 Silver and Year 10 Bronze.

Mr. M.G. Chilton

Senior Cricket

The start of the 2024 Cricket season for Bolton School’s 1st XI was frustrating to say the least, with the infamous unpredictable weather in the North West once again playing a disruptive role. The opening fixture against Manchester Grammar School fell victim to the usual Bolton weather, with heavy rain washing out the match. The squad was eager to get its campaign underway, but nature had other plans.

The first win of the season came in the T20 group stage against King’s Chester. Luke Yates was in excellent form, accumulating a valuable total with the bat, contributing significantly to the team’s total score. However, it was Nikhil Patel’s superb all-round performance that stole the show. His fielding, coupled with a disciplined spell of bowling, led to a comfortable victory for Bolton School, setting a positive tone for the season despite the damp conditions.

A bitterly cold afternoon at home saw Bolton School lose to Lancaster Grammar School. The conditions were far from ideal, with temperatures well below what any cricketer would hope for in early summer. Despite the adverse weather, Keshana Fonseka battled hard at the crease, managing to score 40, but unfortunately not enough to secure a victory.

The lads quickly bounced back and delivered an impressive performance at home, beating Merchant Taylors’, Crosby. On a fine day for cricket, Bolton’s bowlers set the tone early, restricting Merchant Taylors’ to a modest total, which Bolton chased down comfortably.

Bolton School’s fixture against Cheadle Hulme was yet another victim of the unpredictable weather, as heavy rain once again led to a cancellation.

On what turned out to be a beautiful summer’s day in Bolton, we faced Manchester Grammar School. The team fought valiantly, with key contributions across the batting and bowling departments, but ultimately fell short against a strong opposition.

The 1st XI’s T20 campaign came to an end in the group stage against Rossall. Despite some spirited performances, particularly with the ball, the chase proved too difficult, and Bolton School couldn’t overcome Rossall’s total.

A win came against Birkenhead in their final Saturday fixture. The team came together in all areas, with solid batting and tight bowling performances to secure the victory. This win was a morale booster for the squad, showing the potential of the team when they’re firing on all cylinders.

One of the standout fixtures of the season for Bolton School was the prestigious match against the MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club), a fixture that holds great significance for both the current 1st XI and the School’s alumni. The match, played as a timed game, saw the MCC bat first and post a competitive total of 250+ runs, challenging the Bolton boys to dig deep. The occasion was more than just a cricket match – it was a celebration of the School’s rich cricketing history, with many Old Boys returning to support the current squad. The atmosphere was electric, with lunch being a highlight, offering a fantastic opportunity for the players, coaches, and past pupils to come together and share in the spirit of the game. As part of the event, the boys were awarded their Colours, a moment of recognition for their hard work and dedication to the sport. Despite the pressure from tough opposition, Bolton School’s 1st XI showed great resilience, batting through to secure a draw, a result that was well-earned and a testament to the team’s grit and determination. For both the current squad and Old Boys, the MCC match is a cherished tradition that reinforces the pride in representing the School at the highest level.

The 2nd XI Cricket Festival, held this year at Port Sunlight Cricket Club by Wirral Grammar School, proved to be a successful outing for Bolton School. Over the course of three days, the 2nd XI showcased their talent and teamwork, securing victories in all three matches. The team defeated Wirral, Ratcliffe College, and Rydal Penrhos, with each win highlighting strong individual performances and collective determination.

A special mention must go to Keshana Fonseka, who has had an exceptional cricketing journey during his time at Bolton School. Kesh, who represented England Under 19s, has been a key figure in the 1st XI, with his performances on the field setting a high standard for those who follow. His talent and hard work have not only earned him a place in the England Under 19 squad, but also culminated in him securing a professional contract with Lancashire County Cricket Club – a tremendous achievement for Keshana. His departure marks the end of a remarkable chapter, and he will continue to inspire future generations of cricketers at Bolton School. We wish him every success as he embarks on his professional career, confident that his name will shine in the cricketing world for years to come.

Thank you to all the players, parents and coaches who have supported the team throughout the season.

Having coached the team in Year 8, I had already experienced the strengths and weaknesses of this squad, and at pre-season training I looked to identify particular areas that needed to be improved, and to give the team a focus to work on for the season. The side had always been blessed with a plethora of bowling talent, but it was the fielding and batting that would need to improve if they were going to progress as a team.

Unfortunately, the excitement of a new season was quickly dampened with a cancellation on the first Saturday morning due to very wet conditions. The season finally started the week after, with an excellent home win against a competitive Lancaster side. Sid Kumar was the pick of the bowlers with 3-17-0-4. The following week also fell victim to the poor weather, but the lads waited patiently to finally play against their biggest rivals MGS the following week. Bolton made an excellent start to the game, bowling MGS out for 111 runs thanks to some tremendous fielding and an outstanding bowling performance from Harry Iddon, with figures of 7-26-2-6. Despite this excellent start to the game, a huge batting collapse meant that Bolton couldn’t see it over the line, highlighting that it was also the batting that needed to be worked on.

It was really important that the lads responded quickly to show their character in what was a very disappointing defeat, having had MGS at their mercy. The team certainly managed to show this, with a convincing victory the following Saturday. Captain Will Lucas,

produced an exceptional batting performance against AKS, scoring 50 not out. Confidence was restored and the lads then went on a purple patch, producing some exceptional performances against King’s Macclesfield, St. Michael’s, Thornleigh and Birkenhead. The innings of the season was produced by Adam Jenkins, who fluently smashed 88 runs in the County Cup to knock out St. Michael’s, showing real strength, technique and power hitting.

This excellent run of form enabled the side, which was now brimming with confidence, to reach the 20/20 Finals Day at Northern CC. Unfortunately, this finals date clashed with the school’s Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards and meant that the team was now decimated, losing half of its players. Despite this, we were able to find some talented cricketers from the year below to play; however, the team was beaten on the day by a very strong Kirkham team.

Overall, the team showed an excellent attitude throughout the season and had worked really hard to improve its fielding skills, making it a greatly improved side. I would like to thank the boys for their commitment and excellent work ethic throughout what was a very enjoyable and successful season.

Mr. M. Johnson

Under 14 Cricket

The season got off to a soggy start with two of the first four fixtures cancelled due to the wet weather. The first fixture was against LRGS, away, which was a cold affair, with the conditions proving very challenging and tricky. Muhammad Kassim batted superbly well to steady the loss of quick wickets to get to a respectable total. Lancaster’s batting line-up proved too strong for the boys, who lost by five wickets.

The second game was against a tough opponent: MGS. Captain Jacob Prill won the toss and elected to bowl first. The opening bowling of Jacob Prill and Joseph Michael proved too strong for the two openers, who were dismissed early on in the innings. It was the middle order of MGS who capitalised on the bowling changes, to bring the total to 142 for 7 off 30 overs. Adam Bhuta and Musa Haq opened the batting for the Under 14s, who scored runs quickly, but with the dismissal of Adam Bhuta, brought Muhammad Kassim to the crease. A partnership of 57 from Musa Haq and Muhammad Kassim put Bolton in a great position to chase down the total of 143. A bowling change from MGS saw the back of the batting pair, bringing Jacob Prill and Alex Hilton-Jones to the crease.

Mr. L. Watkinson

Under 15 Cricket

Sports

Unfortunately, the pair could never really get going and the Under 14s narrowly lost by 35 runs, finishing the innings on 107 for 5 off 30 overs.

Four wins on the bounce shortly followed with some welcome good weather. AKS Lytham, King’s Macclesfield, Blue Coat (Lancashire Cup) and Birkenhead School all fell to the dominant run that the Under 14s found themselves on.

Next was the County Cup Quarter-final vs. Merchant Taylors’. Daniel Watts, Joseph Michael and Jacob Prill were dominant with the ball in the first innings, which saw Merchant Taylors’ restricted to 132 for 8 off 25 overs. Musa Haq and Dylan Yates started brilliantly, with two huge 6s from Dylan to put the hosts in the driving seat. Unfortunately, Dylan was dismissed by a great piece of fielding from the opposition to bring Adam Bhuta to the crease. Musa and Adam played quite exquisitely, both going to 50s, with a strike rate of over 100, reaching the required total from just 19.2 overs. Superb!

On to the Semi-final vs. LRGS once again. Bolton won the toss and elected to bowl first. A great choice as Daniel Watts dismissed the LRGS opener with only 1 run on the board. With Lancaster rebuilding to 64 for 5, Bolton were in with a great chance. Lancaster’s number 4 batsman took the game to Bolton with some destructive hitting, climbing to a total of 158 for 8 off their 30 allocated overs. Bolton’s openers fell early on, with the visiting side 36 for 3 off 10 overs. It was a big task for the remaining batsmen, however Jacob Prill and Alex Roberts dug in, bringing the total to 88, for 7 wickets. We were still in with a chance. Unfortunately, the LRGS opening bowlers came back on and bowled Bolton out for 114, falling 45 runs short.

It was a sad end to the season, but one that has been a learning curve for all the boys. Numbers have been healthy at training with over 20 boys in Year 9 regularly attending and many of those playing in fixtures throughout the season.

Thanks for all your efforts.

Mr. S.R. Foy

Under 13 Cricket

As an age group, this set of boys had a tough introduction to School Cricket in Year 7 in terms of how good the standard was and consequently where they needed to be. From the outset of our winter sessions, I stated I wanted to see improvement of our levels and this resulted in an improvement in our results. I can safely say this improvement has been achieved although there are still areas that can greatly improve; however, this does not just apply to this age group, it is also apparent throughout other teams in school as well.

As an age group, attendance has been fantastic and we have many boys wanting to represent School at this age group, which meant fielding an ‘A’ and ‘B’ team was never an issue. Over the season, the ‘A’ team played nine games, winning six and losing three, the ‘B’ team played two games, with one win and a loss. The number of games played during the summer was severely affected by our great English summer weather, which was very disappointing.

During the games played, the highlight was probably a great win over Lancaster by one run. Batting first, there were fifties for Abbas Khambalia and Diren Dhiraj and a quick-fire 30 from Tobias James. An economical bowling spell by Tobias then followed and a very impressive and miserly spell by Matthew Molyneux resulted in a very tight win.

Pheo Marsden produced a fine innings of 47 not out during a very impressive team win against AKS Lytham in a game where all players contributed at some point.

A game that highlighted the improvement made by the group was the fixture vs. MGS. Last season, this team lost by over a hundred runs – this year, they lost by just 20 and, in all honesty, should probably have won this game. Matthew Fern batted nicely for 30 not out.

Matthew has also been our leading wicket taker over the season and, together with Ben Hopkins, has provided us with an opening attack that was very threatening in all games; however, Ben possibly did not get the wickets he deserved. In most games, we have managed to get everybody to have a bowl, which shows our bowling has depth and is consistent. If we can get the same consistency with the bat, this team will continue to improve.

One other performance worthy of a mention was in the ‘B’ team victory over King’s Macclesfield and this came by Theo JaraboIshaque, who took six wickets in the game – no mean feat at all. Another mention must be made for Ben Howarth, who took on wicket keeping duties and always carried them out with a smile on his face.

The team has progressed smoothly to the Semi-final of the County Cup with relatively easy victories in every round; however, with the poor weather, we had to wait until the next academic year to complete this competition.

My thanks go to Diren and Matthew for being Captain and Vicecaptain respectively, to the boys for their impeccable behaviour during the season and willingness to attend training, to the parents for the support they have shown me and the boys over the season, to Mr. Chilton for his help and advice over the summer and finally to Mr. Watkinson for his organisation of the programme and his help over the Summer Term.

Mr. P. Heaton

Under 12 Cricket

It was a great regular season for this year’s Under 12 Cricket side, only losing one match away to King’s Macclesfield; this included a strong Lancashire County run that saw victories against QEGS Blackburn, Crompton House and Stonyhurst. There were lots of standout performances, with George Melling getting 40 runs off 29 balls including some big sixes down the ground! Archie Hill scored a measured 40 vs. MGS early in the season as part of a run chase that saw us 9 runs down in a nervy finish. Milan Kumar chased down a low total, opening with some big hitting vs. Crompton House.

With the ball, Noah Adams picked up four wickets against a strong King’s Macclesfield side while Rhys Parry got three impressive wickets in the Quarter-final of the Lancashire Cup. There has been lots of spin option on show with Aashrith Govindu, Chris Fern and I offering lots of variety, while the opening bowling pair of Dhruv Patel and Aayush Patel will certainly be ones to watch in the future.

Our biggest totals of the season saw us post 154-4 in our 20 overs vs. AKS, with Aashrith Govindu and George Melling retiring at 30. There was also a massive 188-6 vs. Birkenhead, with the runs and wickets shared around. It has been pleasing to also have some strong ‘B’ team performances that included wins against King’s Macclesfield and Lancaster RGS. Nearly thirty boys have been given the chance to represent Bolton School.

The North West weather meant that the Lancashire Cup Final was postponed until Year 8, in a match that went right to the last over. Bolton left themselves with too much to do, having not scored quickly enough; although disappointing, the standard of cricket was extremely high and something we look forward to working on next season.

As Captain, I want to thank Mr. Chilton and Mr. Heaton for coaching us in our first season. We are already looking forward to the winter nets!

Teddy Daly 7e Tennis

Playing tennis for school was an exciting and memorable experience, even though we didn’t win, we all enjoyed ourselves and it was a good experience to have as I’m not in other sports teams though I can’t speak for my teammates. Our opponents, Stonyhurst, were very good in the Semifinals of the LTA Competition at Under 15 level and deserved to win even though it is disheartening we couldn’t. Hopefully, we can come back stronger and hopefully win next year.

Thomas Melpignano 10f

We enjoyed a narrow 7-6 win thanks to a 10-4 tie-break, which allowed us to progress to the Regional Finals.

We played away against Lancaster Royal Grammar School in the Regional Tennis Finals on 27th June 2024. The members of the team were Thomas McGinty, Dan Hinks and George Pickett and I. We each played one singles match and one doubles match against their team. After a long tournament, Bolton School were the overall winners. It was an enjoyable game for the team.

The Climbing team won the Greater Manchester Climbing competition on the last day before Easter. The team consisted of Sasha Milne, Ethan Knight, Jenson Heath, Tristan Harris, Louie Healey, Cipri Prasad, Zayd Adam, Zaid Ahmed, Adam Bakker and Cyrus Wong.

In the KS3 category, Tristan Harris and Sasha Milne were placed 3rd.

In the KS4 category, Cyrus Wong was placed 3rd, Zaid Ahmed was placed 2nd and Zayd Adam was placed 1st.

James Atkinson 7f

Climbing

Red squirrels may have declining numbers in Britain, but at 19th Bolton (Bolton School) our new Squirrel drey is proving very popular and we are looking to be able to increase their numbers for our next intake.

We are very grateful to all the members of staff from varied corners of the School, who are so vital in leading our different sections and the many volunteers, mainly originating from parents, who enable Scouting at Bolton School to be a reality and an amazing experience for all the young people. If you are interested in getting involved, do drop me an email: alh@boltonschool.org

Mrs. A. Hough

As the academic year began, it was back to Brookside on Friday nights. New faces were introduced to the Troop, along with familiar faces, helping to kick-start the meetings. Year 6 Scouts moved up into the main Troop, having been placed into their new patrols, and promotions for a few Scouts meant we had fresh Patrol Leaders. Three of our Year

11 Scouts (Alice Nielson, Ella Nielson and Alex Pearce) also came across to the opposite side of the ‘horseshoe’ to enrol in their new positions as Troop Leaders (TL).

Meetings this year have been based around the usual Scouting themes, featuring night hikes, tent pitching, orienteering, first aid, pancakes and bushcraft; these meetings are centred around our preparations for Scout Camp, but also keep the Scouts up to date with certain skills. Amongst these activities, the Troop has also partaken in various nights such as our ice skating trip, Christmas Party, and a visit from North West Ambulance Service.

Finally, we’d like to mention a few names, starting with those who achieved their Chief Scout’s Gold Award, these being our three new TLs, and James Wilson. We would also like to thank Veer Patel, Charlotte Hothersall, Jamie Latchford and Rianna Latchford for their continued voluntary efforts over the past three years and wish them good luck in the future. Once again, a massive thank you to all volunteers on Friday nights and those who help to run camp – 19th Bolton would not be the same without them.

Chris Ferrier (19th Bolton Scouts Lead Volunteer)

19th Bolton Scout Group

19th Bolton Scouts Troop Report

Scout Long Camp

The first full day of camp! After a restful night in the tents, we woke up in high spirits. We took some time for thoughts and reflection. Everyone came away full of thought. Then we went to set out our patrol areas before cooking our shepherd’s pie on wood fires.

As the blistering sun rose over the Peak District, we ventured to the Blue John Cavern to explore the incredible chambers and tunnels. We then returned to camp to compete for the prestigious Greenhalgh Trophy (our version of MasterChef).

As the Year 6s joined our main party during the Incident Hike, we all had fun performing various outdoor activities. Scouts were put to work bailing David’s hay for the sheep. We finished the day with a Spoons Tournament, won by Jack Rothwell.

On the Year 6’s second day, we participated in Camp Olympics followed by our Swimming competition. Then we roughed it out on the infamous camp commando course before an orange juice crisis occurred! Lastly, we came together and sang around the campfire as we have for so many years.

The Scouts were slowly accepting the fate that camp was coming to an end as we took on the bushcraft challenges set for us. From lighting fires with mirrors to baking a lamb roast, the lads and ladies put on a good show. The camp came to an end with a visit to Jodrell Bank and Macclesfield Football Club.

‘Day is done, gone the sun, from the lake, from the hill, from the sky. All is well safely rest, God is nigh.’

The Explorer Scouts plan their programme to include activities which enable them to acquire new skills, develop existing knowledge, as well as having fun and socialising.

During this academic year, the Explorers’ programme has included traditional Scouting activities such as backwoods cooking, pioneering and evening hikes. The walks have revisited Rivington Pike and Winter Hill as well as Turton and Entwistle reservoirs. On November 12th, a small group climbed Great Gable to attend the Remembrance Service.

Paradox members enjoyed expressing their ideas through painting on canvases, balloon debates, poetry reading and engineering challenges. They have had a refresher outdoor first aid session given by a member of the Bolton Mountain Rescue Team. In addition to these activities, the Explorers have participated in trampolining, ice skating and ten-pin bowling.

An integral part of the activities has been working towards the Scout Top Awards as well as the Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.

Mrs. Ann Chambers (Paradox Lead Volunteer)

Mrs. A. Hough

Paradox Explorer Scouts

Explorers’ Camp Report

This year, the Explorers went on a 10-day grand tour of Scotland, taking in many varied locations and activities. Great fun was had around a campfire with a group from Glasgow and a Troop from Cologne. In true Scouting style, badges and neckers were swapped. Despite the rain, they had two lovely nights on the Isle of Mull, exploring Tobermory and touring the distillery.

As each camp is planned by the Explorers, this year’s group were keen to visit places of historic interest, so Rosalyn Chapel, Hermitage Castle, Culloden Battlefield and Fort George were also on the itinerary. Wildlife was seen during the boat trip on Loch Lomond and foxes were spotted around one of the campsites. They spent a lovely day at Balmoral and enjoyed exploring Edinburgh, including visiting the Royal Yacht Britannia.

Great fun, good food and the bonds of friendship summed up the experience.

Mrs. A. Hough

Message from the President

Iam honoured to be serving you as your President for the coming year and would like to thank the Association’s members for electing me.

I am very proud of this appointment. I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Bolton School and am forever grateful to both my father, Jack, and mother, Shirley (now both 85 years old), who believed in the value of education. I am equally grateful to all the teachers and friends who taught and guided me during those seven formative years. (Some of you may know me as ‘Morph’, the nickname I acquired at school and by which many friends still address me!)

Given my role as OBAFC Chairman, I am looking towards the year as a special opportunity to replicate the successful camaraderie and resolve of the football club in the Old Boys’ Association as a whole.

I have decided to continue Richard Washington’s theme of a ‘threepoint’ focus during my presidency and to highlight the importance of ‘commitment’. Commitment is something we all learnt about at this wonderful establishment and is the root to all success. I would like to see everyone in the OBA embody this principle and contribute to the Association’s growth.

I hope to inspire commitment in three areas:

1. Commitment to the Bolton School legacy by encouraging Old Boltonians to make a difference by raising funds for the School’s Bursary scheme;

2. Commitment to deliver growth by reconnecting with Old Boltonians via different sports (golf, rugby, water polo, cricket) –as we do at the Football Club – to increase involvement and thus boost attendance at the various Alumni events organised by the Development Office;

3. Commitment to provide guidance to current pupils via inspirational talks in School and to fellow Alumni via motivating mentoring and coaching sessions.

A final word on commitment and why it is my focus: I believe that if we achieve the three points listed above, an inner positive belief will be ignited within us all. This belief will drive us toward something good happening, and, when it does, it will be because we made it happen.

The Old Boltonians

I hope that you will support me in this quest during my presidential year and I look forward to serving you with passion and enthusiasm.

On a personal note, I have recently undertaken a 600 km, 51-day running challenge, raising almost £12,000 for Maggie’s, a beautiful and calm safe haven at The Christie in Manchester for those being treated for cancer and for their supporters. Details can be found here: https://bit.ly/BBP_Maggies

Richard Morris (Class of 1986) Old Boltonians’ Association President, 2023-2024

Old Boltonians

On leaving School, every boy automatically becomes a member of the Old Boltonians’ Association and is subsequently given the title of ‘Old Boy’. Membership of the Association is free, and all Old Boys receive a twiceyearly newsletter, ‘The Bugle’, and invitations to a variety of events, which provide a great opportunity to keep in touch with both the School and with former classmates, as well as to establish new friendships with other Old Boys. Old Boys who are not currently on the mailing list, but would like to join it, should contact the Development Office.

We look forward to seeing as many Old Boys and Old Girls as possible throughout the coming months – please keep an eye on our social media channels for news of Reunions and School events.

The Development Team

Stay in Touch

The Old Boltonians

Connect with Old Boys and Old Girls on the Bolton Alumni Network: www.boltonalumninetwork.com

‘Like’ our Facebook page for event invitations, School news and memories: search Bolton School – Old Boys and Old Girls (Official)

Connect with fellow Old Boys on LinkedIn: connect with Bolton School Alumni and join the Bolton School Group

Follow School and Alumni news via X (Formerly Twitter): @BoltonSchool/@BoltonSchAlumni

Follow boltonschoolalumni to keep up with news, events and memories on Instagram. You can also follow bolton_ school_foundation for the latest news and photographs from School and use #BSAlumni to share your own memories and photos.

Watch short films posted on the School’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/boltonschoolmedia

Read regular blogs from pupils and staff from across the campus: boltonschool.me/

View photos of Alumni events on Flickr at www.flickr.com/ photos/bsalumni/albums

Visit the ‘Former Pupils’ section of the School website at www.boltonschool.org to see event photos, read Alumni career profiles, find news of Old Boys, view an up-to-date events calendar, update your contact details and more.

Contact Us: Development Office

Bolton School

Chorley New Road

Bolton BL1 4PA

T: 01204 434718

E: development@boltonschool.org

The Development Team:

Rebecca Brayshaw Head of Development

Lorraine Dewhurst Development Assistant

Laura Firth Director of Development, Alumni Relations and Marketing

Frances Johnson Development Officer

Rebecca Kendrick Development Assistant

Emma Metcalfe Development Manager

Mia Wild Development Officer

School Captain 2023-2024

As the academic year draws to a close and School Captain Alex McKie makes the transition from pupil to Old Boy, he tells us about his year in post and offers advice to incoming Captain Amrit Mishra.

Full Name: Alexander Jack McKie

Years at School: 2017-2024

Vice-Captains: Harry Adams and Veer Patel

Were you a member of any teams, clubs or societies in Sixth Form?

I was a member of the School Hockey team, the Chamber Choir, and the Christmas Production in the Lower Sixth. I also volunteered for the Junior German Club in my first year of Sixth Form.

What were your key responsibilities as Captain?

My main responsibilities were managing my team of Monitors to have a presence on the school corridors through shifts at lunch and breaktimes and help at all the major events of the school year, whilst speaking at many of them myself. Another key responsibility I had was, alongside my Vice-captains, serving as a connecting voice between the Sixth Form and, to a lesser extent, the larger school and the Leadership Team within the Foundation.

What was the most memorable occasion for you as Captain?

My most memorable occasion for me as Captain is a tough decision, but I would have to say giving the vote of thanks to Adam Crook at the 51st Tillotson Lecture, as he was truly an inspirational character, who showed the importance of determination and grit in the face of a shifting career path after he left Bolton to become a partner of Goldman Sachs. It was fantastic to meet him beforehand.

What was the most difficult aspect of being Captain?

The most difficult aspect of being Captain was the time management in my final year of Sixth Form. With A Levels, university applications, a social life and my role as Captain, I was quickly confronted with the fact that I would have to work hard to establish a routine and relegate less important aspects of life for a time. It was tough to begin with and only became easier as I learnt to delegate effectively.

Has the role helped you develop any new skills?

I would say the main skill I learnt, leading on from a previous point, was delegation – realising that a balance had to be achieved between taking everything on yourself and giving others all the responsibility of the role. It is a tough balance to achieve, but I would say its instrumental in any leadership role and I am glad to have learnt it. Other skills I have developed from being Captain are people skills and communication, as having to represent the School at events and speaking with members of the public at Open Days has allowed me to develop my public speaking skills further.

What would your advice be for the incoming Captain?

My advice would be to get to know your Vice-captains and Senior Monitors to learn the areas that they excel at, and be confident in delegating certain roles and relying on them to help you out. A strong leadership team will help you get through the many responsibilities of being Captain. I would also say that using spreadsheets for Monitor duty rotas and tracking attendance of Monitors at events is very helpful. Finally, just remember to enjoy your final year and embrace the opportunities that come with being Captain!

How do you feel about leaving School?

While I am wholeheartedly looking forward to moving on into the next step in my life with universities, there is still a bit of sadness at leaving Bolton School behind. It has been, and will remain, a huge part of my life and I believe the School has given me a fantastic foundation for the rest of my life.

Which university are you going to and what will you be studying?

I am hoping to go to Cambridge University to study Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic if all goes well, or the University of York to study a combined degree of English and History.

Are you planning on being involved in any activities/societies at university?

I am planning to take every opportunity university presents to me, as I have learnt from being at Bolton, but I hope to join the Hockey team there, as well as the Debating Society and perhaps try out some new sports such as fencing.

What are your career aspirations?

I do not really have any set in stone, but I am thinking of perhaps doing a conversion into Law after my degree and hopefully working in the corporate sector. Or I have thought about pursuing a career in the Civil Service.

Will you continue to be involved with School?

I have signed up to be a part of the Alumni service of the School, and hopefully, in a few years, I will be able to give back to the School as well. But I am determined to continue to be involved with the School.

Despite a mixed Summer weather-wise, the golf section has enjoyed somewhat of a resurgence this year.

In May, a team of Mark Millhouse, Norman Fletcher, David Johnson, James Chadwick, David Crammant and Nick Baxter went to Huddersfield Golf Club to attempt to qualify for the Grafton Morrish Finals at Hunstanton and Royal West Norfolk. In spite of a somewhat below par performance, the team did manage to qualify

The Old Boltonians

for the Finals in September. This was a very good achievement, given the standard seems to get better every year.

The Taylor Trophy was resurrected in June at Bolton Golf Club with a slight difference this year whereby current pupils were encouraged to attend. We had an excellent turnout of 27 golfers on the day ranging from age 13 to 80! The event was won by Joe Riding with an excellent 40 points on what was a very windy day.

The season closed with The Grafton Morrish Finals over the weekend of 27th September in Hunstanton. Bolton were drawn against Oundle, who have previously had an excellent record at the Finals and we were narrowly edged out 2-1 by a strong Oundle side in some very brutal winds. I would also like to mention that it was great to see a stalwart of the society and long-time Grafton Morrish participant Andrew Fletcher make a surprise visit to support the team.

We will be arranging The Taylor Trophy again next June and details will be circulated shortly across email and social media channels. Any Old Boy or Old Girl wishing to get involved in the society can do so by contacting The Development Office or me directly at markm@pmdbusinessfinance.co.uk.

Mark Millhouse (Class of 1994) Golf Secretary

L-R: Richard Sellers (1998), James Chadwick (1998), David Crammant, Mark Millhouse, David Johnson (1976), Guy Haynes (1995)

Old Boltonians’ Golf Society

OBAFC Report

The Old Boltonians

Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come…

Sadly, 2023-24 proved not to be quite the season to which the more confident of us aspired. The First Eleven and the Reserves, both in a state of flux, completed difficult seasons having survived in their divisions – flirtations with relegation having been overcome! The Veterans had a considerable churn of personnel, but ultimately had an enjoyable season, finishing third in their second tier, a division which well suits their standards and attitude. The Ladies also consolidated with a run of injuries precluding any later season successes.

Remembering times gone by is well-nigh a prerequisite for any OBAFC former player and this year’s major memory fest was the inaugural Bill Stevenson Memorial match. Stalwart of the lower teams and former Chairman, Bill was perhaps as much remembered for his wit and storytelling as skill on the pitch, but nonetheless a major figure in any history of the Club. Some 30+ players were, as ever, well supported, and managers Dave Shoesmith and Harry Lane juggled their squads to cajole many eye-catching cameos from the ageing limbs – Dynamos beating Heroes 7-4 in a match and day worthy of a fine Old Boltonian.

As well as looking back, there persists the never-ending need to find new blood, so the Club has undertaken two major initiatives, hoping to brighten the way ahead and rekindle those aforementioned aspirations.

Boltonians Youth has been resurrected, but this time with a mix of two groups of youngsters run for many years by two club stalwarts – consequently they have a squad of both good quality and quantity, well-versed in the Boltonian way; they will play in the local Under 18 league, with the best also available for the Saturday teams.

In mid-July, we enjoyed a festival of six-a-side football. In a huge push to reconnect school leavers from the past decade, several recent past captains and star players were contacted and their squads played alongside two teams from the noughties. With the club and the youth sides also represented, the 100+ players were completed by a team from the School staff! The inaugural Summer Sixes comprised some 16 teams and nigh on 60 games and was won by A Drop of Teachers! It was another thoroughly enjoyable Saturday at School and we look forward to a possible influx of players into the Saturday set-up. Indeed, anyone interested in accessing our latest news or joining the Club in whatever role should initially visit the club website: www.oldbolts.co.uk

As ever, the writing of this piece precedes the start of our various seasons. Its publication will hopefully see us thriving on half a dozen fronts, whispering it will be happier.

Martin Wadsworth (Boys Division Staff, 1974-2006)

Photo credit – Lancashire Amateur League

Club Awards

Player Awards were won by:

1st XI Leon Farrimond

2nd XI Reece Amos

Vets XI Ian Marsh

Ladies XI Emma Pilling

Congratulations go to Martin Wadsworth for earning the prestigious Clubman of the Year award for off-the-field services to the Club. Martin has been committed to the Old Bolts cause for over 40 years now and you will usually find him serving the brews in the clubhouse

on match days and an ever-present at the 6 weekly committee meetings, where he professionally and succinctly summarises in minute form all the waffle/action points that occur over the two-hour period.

Neville James Collier (Class of 1957, Boys’ Division Staff 1959-1964)

Neville James Collier, a remarkable individual, whose life was deeply intertwined with Bolton School, passed away on 11th August 2024. He leaves behind a legacy of kindness, dedication, and unwavering spirit. Born on 16th October 1937, Neville’s journey began in Bolton, where he quickly blossomed as a student, demonstrating both academic prowess and a genuine passion for athletics and rugby.

The Old Boltonians

After obtaining a scholarship to Bolton School, Neville thrived, leaving an enduring mark on the institution. He excelled in both rugby and gymnastics, earning Full Colours in both sports. Neville also actively participated in a wide range of extra-curricular activities including the Philatelic Society, the Film Society, the Railway Society, the Savings Group, the Choral Society, the Literary and Debating Society and the Dance Club. He was also a member of the School’s Military Band. Neville’s dedication to service was evident in his roles as Secretary of the Dance Club, School Monitor and House Physical Training Instructor. In his final year at Bolton School, Neville was School Captain.

Neville’s pursuit of knowledge led him to Downing College, Cambridge University, where he initially studied Law, but eventually found his true passion in Modern Languages. He graduated with a talent for languages, becoming fluent in nine different tongues. He later shared his love of language with students as a teacher at Bolton School and as an Assistant Master at Bolton County Secondary School.

His passion for education led him to pursue a Graduate Certificate in Education at Leeds University, ultimately resulting in a position as a Lecturer in Modern Languages at Bolton Institute of Technology.

Throughout his life, Neville’s dedication to service and his unwavering kindness touched the lives of countless people. He was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather, always ready with a helping hand and a listening ear. His memory will forever inspire those who knew him to live their lives with warmth, generosity, and an appreciation for the simple joys of life. His legacy as a valued member of the Bolton School community will endure, serving as a reminder of the impact a dedicated individual can have on the lives of others.

Andy Collier, David Collier, Elizabeth Collier Grainger

Destination of Leavers 2024

Harry Adams University of Leeds Biochemistry

Kiran Adiyodi Gap Year

Adnan Ali University of Central Lancashire Business and Management

Subhaan Akbar Liverpool John Moores University Accounting and Finance

Ahmed Akram Gap Year

Omar Al-Falahi University of Manchester Medicine

Mahmoud Alzubaidi University of Huddersfield Science

Abdhullah Anas Gap Year

Frederick Audley University of Warwick Discrete Mathematics

Jacob Audley Employment

Zayan Azad University of Manchester Medicine

Fezaan Aziz Gap Year

Ahmet Balanyan Gap Year

James Bland Durham University Natural Sciences

James Bowie Gap Year

Jonathon Brennan University of Liverpool Business Management

Billy Burrows University of Manchester English Literature

Joseph Carolan Gap Year

Matthew Chae University of Chester Zoology

David Chow Gobelins, l’école de l’image, Paris Character Animation and Animated Filmmaking

Harry Connor Northumbria University Geography and Environmental Science

Matthew Cooney Degree Apprenticeship –Laing O’Rourke

Peter Craig University of Liverpool Aerospace Engineering with Plot Studies

Evan Dare Northumbria University Sport Management

Ewan Davies University of Warwick Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE)

Elliot Davies University of Leeds History

Tom Debreczeni Nottingham Trent University Law

Ketan Dhokia University of Leeds Dental Surgery/Oral Science

Harvey Dhokia University of Salford Law

Joshua Dickens Leeds Beckett University (‘25) Architecture

Jake Dickinson Northumbria University Business and Management

Nathan Elcock Gap Year

Daniel Elding-Parry University of Nottingham Chemical Engineering

Joe Emery University of Exeter (‘25) History and Modern Languages

Saul Farrell Newcastle University Economics and Finance

Priyesh Fernando University of Southampton Music

Neo Fitzgerald Degree Apprenticeship – RSM

James Fitzsimmons Manchester Metropolitan University Product Design Engineering

Samuel Fitzsimons University of Nottingham Health Sciences

Finn Flanagan Northumbria University Product Design

Keshana Fonseka Loughborough University (‘25) Human Biology

Marcus Fung University of Liverpool Philosophy

Cameron Geskell Employment

George Gkikas University of Nicosia, Cyprus Medicine

Max Goodwin Loughborough University (‘25) Commercial Management and Quantity Surveying

Tom Griffiths University of Leeds Philosophy, Psychology and Scientific Thought

Liv Hextall Futureworks Independent Filmmaking

Danny Heywood University of Warwick Discrete Mathematics

Finn Hogan University of Manchester Management (Marketing)

George Houghton University of Birmingham Modern Languages and English Literature

Thomas Hunt Apprenticeship – Beech Business Services – Accountancy

Harvey Husbands Employment

Jamal Hussain Employment

Haashir Imran Gap Year

Lucas Ingham Lancaster University Accounting and Finance

Mohammed Faheem Jiva University of Hertfordshire Optometry

Sahir Jiva University of Central Lancashire Ophthalmic Dispensing

Akshat Kamath King’s College London, Dentistry University of London

Fenn Kay Staffordshire University Art and Design

Daud Khan University of Manchester Computer Science

Harry Laithwaite Newcastle University Civil and Structural Engineering

Khalid Lakhi Gap Year

Jamie Latchford Gap Year

Tom Leach Newcastle University Accounting and Finance

Dylan Lincoln University of Manchester Law

William Littlefair University of Reading Biomedical Engineering

Darragh Livesey Nottingham Trent University Accounting and Finance

Kevin Longthorne University of Wolverhampton Podiatry

Jayden Luhar Degree Apprenticeship – Airbus

Kian McDonald Newcastle University Mechanical Engineering

Alexander McKie University of Cambridge Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic

Luis McPherson Lancaster University Geography

Billy Maher Employment

Panashe Mambo Employment

Ollie McCann Employment

Zain Mehraj Aston University, Birmingham Medicine

Fletcher Mellor-Brook University of Manchester Modern Language and Business & Management

Uwais Mitha Gap Year

Wesley Mok Durham University Accounting

Oliver Morrow Employment

Mohammed Hussain Natha Gap Year

Noah Nethercott Newcastle University Biomedical Sciences

Yash Panasa University of Liverpool Accounting and Finance

Nabil Pariejwala University of Huddersfield Science

Jake Partington Lancaster University Law

Aamir Patel Gap Year

Ismaaéel Patel Degree Apprenticeship –Waterman Building Services

Muhammad-Mustafa Patel University of Liverpool Computer Science with Software Development

Veer Patel Imperial College London Medicine

Raees Patel University of Liverpool Computer Science

Samuel Paton Lancaster University Mechanical Engineering

William Pearce University of Leeds Accounting and Finance

Lewis Pierson University of Birmingham (‘25) Chemistry

Adi Ranganath University of Leeds Chemical Engineering

Hamza Razzaq Gap Year

Ben Rimmer University of Cambridge Modern and Medieval Languages

Harry Roebuck Gap Year

Patrice Rostami Gap Year

Bilal Sardar Aston University Biomedical Science

Kiran Sastry University of Birmingham Economics

Raoul Saxena University of Leicester Marketing

Mohammed Shaikh Gap Year

Andy Shen University of Manchester Materials Science and Engineering

Charlie Silvester Aberystwyth University Filmmaking

Jacob Simmonite University of York Mathematics

Jack Stevens Newcastle University Economics and Finance

Archie Stocks Gap Year

Harry Summers Gap Year

Davyd Sywanyk Gap Year

Harry Taylor University of Huddersfield Mechanical Engineering

Benjamin Turner University of York Mathematics

Cameron Weatherley University of Leeds Classical Civilisation

Evan Weston University of York Computer Science

Kofi Wilkinson Leeds Beckett University Human Geography and Planning

Toby Yates University of York Physical Geography and Environment