Independent School Parent - Senior - 2014

SENIOR EDITION ÞSPRING 2014 Þwww.independentschoolparent.com

INSIDE...

P 77

What’s on?

Things to do at Easter

P 82

Christian Horner My school days

Picture perfect Raising confident, resilient daughters

How to save on school fees IN FOCUS

LIVING AT UNI

Anthony Seldon on the Great War COMPETITION

WIN a luxury weekend away!

PLUS... HEADS & THEIR HOBBIES... PERFECT CHILDREN HAVE PROBLEMS TOO

Apply now for 2014 Entry

Tahmid Central Foundation Boys’ School Law LLB with English

Professor Lawrence Krauss BSc (Carleton), DPhil (MIT) Professor of Science Literacy

Catherine Ellesmere College Law LLB with English

Where your quick mind

the challenge you deserve.

New College of the Humanities is a meeting place for some of the world’s quickest minds. You’ll be challenged, and you’ll be supported.

You’ll be part of an enriching undergraduate learning community led by world-class academics across a breadth of disciplines. Small lecture groups and weekly one-to-one tutorials make for an intense yet supportive environment.

You can still apply to NCH directly for 2014 entry, in addition to your UCAS choices.

Call 020 7637 4550 or visit www.NCHum.org to find out more.

Where quick minds

Economics BSc

English BA

History BA

Law LLB

Philosophy BA

Politics & International Relations BSc

Contents Discover the school uniforms with a story to tell on page 56

Cover: Wycliffe College, Gloucestershire INSIDE...

P 77

What’s on?

Things to do at Easter

P 82

Christian Horner My school days

Picture perfect Raising confident, resilient daughters

How to save on school fees IN FOCUS

LIVING AT UNI Anthony Seldon on the Great War COMPETITION

WIN a luxury weekend away!

PLUS... HEADS & THEIR HOBBIES... PERFECT CHILDREN HAVE PROBLEMS TOO

In the first issue of the year, we kick off our curriculum feature with a subject that is already dominating the 2014 news agenda: the centenary of the start of the Great War (page 10). Joe Davies, master of Haileybury, was commissioned to write the article back in November, however, it is obvious that schools are forward planning and his article includes all sorts of inspiring ways that it will be remembered. The Great War is also the theme for our Book Club (page 68), with a selection looking back to 1914. From bee-keeping to tango dancing, our headteachers find all sorts of ways to unwind away from school life (Heads and their Hobbies, page 48). While the stories are light-hearted, the message from our heads is clear: that it’s important to have interests outside of school and work life.

Claudia Dudman, Editor 52 Bright young things

Our round-up of hot topics

Josephine Price checks out the stars from the independent schools sector

10 A lesson in remembrance Joe Davies looks at the centenary of the start of the Great War

21 In defence of tutors Kate Shand puts her case forward

31 How to save on the school fees Tracy Cook outlines fee assistance and Chris Masters looks at sixth forms

64 School hero Nicola Hawkins, deputy head of pastoral, encourages pupils to “dare to be different”

Comment

In focus

Giulia Rhodes on the benefits of chess

71 Like father, like son

Sean Dunne explains the value of resilience

Dr Leo and Mr Stephen Winkley

22 The support network Vic Goddard, star of Educating Essex, describes his successful coaching model

25 Destined for the top John Sprague gives you the low-down on the International Baccalaureate Diploma

43 The Great War: my story Master of Wellington College, Dr Anthony Seldon, writes about his family’s experience

51 Keeping up with the world wide web

School’s out

All UCAS offers are – or soon will be – back, James Durant helps you with the next stage

55 Across the board

17 Stronger than ever

Internet safety with Martin Taylor

35 Decision time Follow us on...

weekend A luxury page 75! away on

Jane Phelps offers advice for lower sixth formers creating their university shortlist

School uniforms have a story to tell, Thalia Thompson looks at the history behind them

Follow us on...

WIN!

40 How to find the right place for you

56 Fancy dress

Follow us... Like @ISParent us on...

Issue 10 Spring 2014 independentschoolparent.com

Education 5 News

SENIOR EDITION ÞSPRING 2014 Þwww.independentschoolparent.com

CONTENTS

45 Do it yourself

Life

18 Growing up isn’t easy Janey Downshire and Naella Grew discuss their new book Teenagers Translated

26 Darling daughters It’s all girl talk with Glynis Kozma and parenting coach Judith Reith

60 The perfectionist child Is your child a perfectionist? By Thea Jourdan

68 Spring reads Books looking back to the Great War

75 Competition Win a luxury family weekend away

38 The big step

Young entrepreneur Jennifer Duthie reveals her inspirations and aspirations

77 What’s on?

Where will you choose to live at uni? Rebecca Murch explains all and offers top tips

48 Heads and their hobbies

82 School Memories

Our heads reveal how they unwind

Red Bull’s Christian Horner

EDITORIAL Editor Claudia Dudman Art Editor Puishun Li Sub Editor Natalie Milner Assistant Editor Josephine Price

CNP Ltd, Jubilee House, 2 Jubilee Place, London SW3 3TQ Tel (020) 7349 3700 Fax (020) 7349 3701 Email editor@independentschoolparent.com For website and subscriptions, please visit: independentschoolparent.com/register

www.independentschoolparent.com

PUBLISHING Publisher & Managing Director Paul Dobson Deputy Managing Director Steve Ross Commercial Director Vicki Gavin Media Manager James Dobson Publisher Simon Temlett Subscriptions Manager Will Delmont 020 7349 3710, will.delmont@ chelseamagazines.com Production www.allpointsmedia.co.uk Printed in England by Wyndeham Heron, Essex ADVERTISING Senior Sales Executive Andy Mabbitt Sales Executives Thomas McMahon, Adam White

Things to do this Easter holiday

DISTRIBUTION Independent School Parent magazine is for parents of children educated in prep and senior independent schools across the UK. The prep and senior issues are published termly. Parents can subscribe for a free issue at: independentschoolparent.com/register

Independent School Parent also publishes A First Eleven Guide to Independent Schools biannually. © CNP Ltd 2014. All rights reserved. Text and pictures are copyright restricted and must not be reproduced without permission from the publisher. The information contained in Independent School Parent magazine has been published in good faith and every effort has been made to ensure its accuracy. All liability for loss, negligence or damage caused by reliance on the information contained within this publication is hereby excluded. All pictures by Thinkstock unless otherwise credited.

EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD David Moncrieff, Chairman Tor Down, Parent James Durant, UCAS Andrew Fleck, Sedbergh School Tory Gillingham, AMDIS Rachel Kerr, Girls’ Schools Association Glynis Kozma, Educational Journalist Zoe MacDougall, Teacher Heidi Salmons, The Headmasters’ & Headmistresses’ Conference Dr Anthony Seldon, Wellington College Elaine Stallard, Elaine Stallard Consulting The Rt Hon Graham Stuart MP, Chairman of the Education Select Committee Sheila Thompson, Boarding Schools’ Association Ben Vessey, Canford School David Wellesley-Wesley, Independent Schools Show Peter Young, Marketing/Brand Consultant

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT 3

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News

NEWS

Our pick of the top parenting and education news

Joanna Lumley calls in at Westonbirt School

“Turn your phone off and never go on the dole,” were the sage words of advice given to the girls at Westonbirt School, Glos, by actress Joanna Lumley. The star, whose latest film is The Wolf of Wall Street, visited the school to give her tips on how to get on in life. “If all you are doing is reacting to phone calls, then you never develop. You need to have time to be free and for your heads to be free to think,” she cautioned.

MR BROWNRIGG’S BOYS BECKON

Magdalen College School, Oxford, is delving into its past with the help of chemistry teacher David Bebbington. Mr Bebbington has conducted extensive research in order to write his forthcoming book, Mr Brownrigg’s Boys. Inside, he explores the lives of the former pupils (above) who gave their lives fighting in the Great War.

deVere doubles graduate intake Hopes of a brighter future for graduates are materialising. deVere, one of the world’s largest financial advisory organisations, has committed

EASY PEASY IT’S CHINEASY!

The hardest part of learning the Chinese language, for children and adults alike, is learning how to read the characters. Entrepreneur ShaoLan Hsueh’s book uses striking illustrations to break down the complexity of the language into easily digestible building blocks.

Not only does it look fantastic, thanks to the illustrations by Noma Bar, but it really works too! It has also just won the coveted Wallpaper* Magazine’s Life-Enhancer of the year award.

Chineasy: The New Way to Read Chinese by ShaoLan Hsueh, published by Thames & Hudson, is out on 10th March (RRP £12.95).

www.independentschoolparent.com

to doubling its graduate intake to 150 this September. It aims to offer trainees a “fast-track career pass”

King’s College get on the road

King’s College School, Wimbledon, are ensuring their senior school pupils are ready for all aspects of adult life when they leave. At the end of 2013, fourth form pupils took part in a Young Driver Education programme.

Josie Pearson, MBE, who won a gold medal in the 2012 Paralympic Summer Games, talked to pupils about road safety. Josie suffered permanent spinal damage in a road accident aged 19. The aim to raise awareness of road safety among teens even got them behind the wheel with a trained instructor for some hands-on experience!

into the industry.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT 5

“AN UNMISSABLE EVENT” - THE DAILY TELEGRAPH RAYMOND GUBBAY AND THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL PRESENT

English National Ballet Derek Deane’s breathtaking production

ROMEO &JULIET staged in-the-round

Principal casting includes

Carlos Acosta & Tamara Rojo Vadim Muntagirov & Daria Klimentová Friedemann Vogel & Alina Cojocaru For Principal casting information, view website for details.

11– 22 June Royal Albert Hall 020 7838 3100 royalalberthall.com

NewS

BoARdiNg ScHooLS FoR BRiTiSH PuPiLS in an attempt to attract more pupils from the UK, boarding schools are beginning to stop fee increases and offer discounts to British parents. recent reports in The Telegraph newspaper indicated that schools are concerned that they may lose their quintessentially British character if they simply become a haven for wealthy, overseas families.

Question Time...

A schoolgirl at The Red Maids’ School, Bristol, co-chaired The Young Person’s Question Time in the House of Lords in February.

Page NyameSatterthwaite worked alongside Baroness Massey as the panel discussed the motion: does our education system meet the needs of

Sherborne GirlS’ careerS initiative bridging the Gap is a new scheme at Sherborne Girls school to help prepare pupils for the world of employment. the Dorset school is carrying out a pilot programme with upper sixth students (above) which gives pupils the chance to apply for jobs at fictitious companies through a number of workshops. the initiative hopes to deconstruct the process, to better prepare girls for the real thing.

young people?

iMAges: OziMAges/MOde iMAges/ALAMy

wOrk ExPErIENCE aT HOmE-STarT waNDSwOrTH Family life is not always the smoothest of journeys, but one leading charity aims to make sure it helps everyone cope. Home-Start Wandsworth in London offers an extra pair of helping hands to those families in need. If you are looking for work experience with a heart go to: homestartwandsworth.org.uk

new senior school for London in 2015

Wetherby school, London, is to open a senior school for pupils in Marylebone in september 2015. The boys’ school will be an extension to its current pre-prep and prep schools.

www.independentschoolparent.com

Page founded the politics society at her own school.

Apple to educate the world

Dominating the electronics’ industry is no longer enough for this multi-national company. Apple announced in January that it is to push for a global expansion of its education content. iBooks textbooks and the iTunes U Course Manager will be available in over 50 countries. Leading publishers, including Oxford University Press (OUP), are backing the move to “enrich…the learning experience of students throughout the world,” says Peter Marshall, managing director at OUP.

spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 7

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news

Heads on the move

Lancing College, West sussex, welcomes Dominic Oliver in september.

A CeLebrAtiOn OF ArtistiC HistOry Queen Margaret’s School, York, celebrated its artistic history at the end of 2013. The school has long produced fine artists and decided to celebrate its artistic heritage with an alumni gallery last year. The exhibition featured the work of six alumni artists who span the history of the school: from one of the first girls in the school in 1901 to a young artist who left in 2003.

Fred de Falbe has taken up the reins as headmaster of st richard’s school, Herts.

Hungry for History wellesley House, Harrow school, wellington College, Uppingham school and The King’s school, Canterbury have created a collaborative venture for schools nationwide. In a year of historical commemorations and reflections, these schools have joined forces to try to renew an appetite for the subject and instil a love of history in all pupils through in-house school committees and national competitions. Find out more at hungryforhistory.info

Above, work by alumna of Queen Margaret’s, the late Druie Bowett

MOnMOUTH sCHOOL CeLeBRATes 400 YeARs!

ipswich High school for girls, suffolk, has welcomed Oona Carlin as its new headmistress.

100 years ago, Monmouth school, wales, cancelled its 300th anniversary celebrations due to the outbreak of the Great war. Fast forward to 2014, and a year of exciting events is going to take place at the school – established during the reign of King James I. In this milestone year for both school and country, the 76 Old Monmothians who lost their lives during the conflict will also be remembered.

HappyBird digital Backpack

A new company is helping lighten the load for pupils with a new invention to replace the traditional heavy rucksack.

HappyBird is a “digital backpack”, which taps into the digital world that the younger generation inhabit. Available for £69, the tablet has been created after pilot tests at leading schools and universities. The “digital backpack” comprises of a tablet, a Bluetooth pen and a carry case and weighs 94% less than the average schoolbag.

www.independentschoolparent.com

From oundle to oxbridge

Oundle senior school in Cambridgeshire, boasts 17 students with places at Oxford and Cambridge universities for the 2014 intake. Three pupils have received unconditional offers. Places were given across a range of subjects: six offers in the sciences and 11 in the arts.

sarah Labram takes over as headmistress of st James senior girls’ school in London.

Chris staley will join Wisbech grammar school, Cambridgeshire, to take on the headship in september.

spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 9

HISTORY

A lesson in remembrance Joe Davies,, master of Haileybury College, Hertford, explains how the Great War of 1914 resonates with the school and his pupils today

Military connections

Robert Laurence Binyon was educated at St Paul’s, in London, which saw 490 Old Paulians die between 1914-1918. My current school lost 589 Haileyburians, just over a fifth of all who enlisted. As Dr Anthony Seldon’s and David Walsh’s book, Public Schools and The Great War, tells us, some 35,000 boys educated at independent schools lost their lives in the so-called, War to End All Wars. It is not surprising, therefore, that independent schools give 10 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

such significance to remembering those who made the ultimate sacrifice. Of course, educating pupils about the Great War is not confined to the weeks leading up to Remembrance Sunday. All the schools I have worked in have devoted a large proportion of their history curriculum time to teaching their pupils, usually in Year Nine, about the origins and nature of the war. Pupils examine the causes, the military tactics and technology of the war but it is trench life and fighting that really captures their imagination. Much of the coverage of the war in the media is about needless sacrifice, lions led by donkeys and so on, but it is important that pupils not only understand the horrors of what these men were asked to do but also the courage with which they did it. The timeless qualities of leadership, friendship and service are prevalent in all boarding

Opposite, clockwise from left, Haileybury College, Hertford, Remembrance Sunday, memorial wreath, Haileyburians in the Memorial Quad, the Dining “Memorial” Hall at Haileybury, veterans from the Royal Hospital, Chelsea

schools like Haileybury and these can all be found in the diaries, letters and accounts of the war. The many plaques, the Cross of Sacrifice, indeed even our own Dining “Memorial” Hall serve as daily reminders of those that, in McCrae’s words, “lie in Flanders fields”.

The curriculum

Teaching history always has a greater impact when pupils can form relationships with the past. Our pupils undertake personal research into Old Haileyburians (OHs) who fought and died in the war. It would be invidious to select particular stories, but the Lyon brothers – three of whom died between August 1914 and May 1915 – are remembered in our Chapel. One particularly tragic story involved Cornelius Thorne who in September 1915 recovered www.independentschoolparent.com

IMAGE: ISTOCK/WILLIAMJMURPHY/DOMINIC DIBBS/ALAMY

“

We will remember them,” the enduring line from Binyon’s For the Fallen takes on even greater poignancy this year as the country, and indeed Commonwealth, commemorates the centenary of the outbreak of the Great War.

www.independentschoolparent.com

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT 11

conne s energy & purpose

We are a leading 11–18 boarding & day school for boys & girls in rural Hertfordshire, only 20 miles from central London. Academic rigour and outstanding co-curricular provision are at the heart of Haileybury, providing the exceptional opportunities and truly all-round education that allow our pupils to discover enduring passions and talents. Come and see how we encourage our pupils to use intellectual exploration and practical ambition to fulfil their potential. We offer a choice of IB Diploma or A Levels in the Sixth Form.

Our next Open Mornings are: (13+ and 16+) Saturday 29 March (11+) Thursday 15 May haileybury.com

@HaileyburyUK

For further information, or to attend an Open Morning, you are warmly invited to contact the Registrar, Iona Hutchinson registrar@haileybury.com 01992 706353 Haileybury Hertford Herts SG13 7NU www.facebook.com/HaileyburyUK Registered charity number 310013

history

❝ Winston Churchill described the trench warfare

illustration: louise Quirke

at Passchendaele as fighting machine gun bullets with the breastbones of young men ❞

his dead brother, Marlborough, from no man’s land; Cornelius subsequently wrote to inform his poor mother of Marlborough’s death and told her that “he has found his purpose in life. He has fulfilled it, and is content”. This strikes a particular chord. Cornelius died a year later. Another brother, who survived this war, went on to be killed in May 1940 while fighting in the Second Part of the Great War. These young men sat in the same Chapel seats as the class of 2013 and they, along with all children of school age, are still inspired and saddened in equal measure by the tales of bravery and comradeship, qualities which will never go out of fashion. Our pupils’ research each year forms a book of sacrifice that is laid at either Thiepval or the Menin Gate to honour those 37 and 40 OHs who can be found on the respective memorials. In addition, last year, every Haileyburian took part in a sponsored walk to raise www.independentschoolparent.com

money for two centenary Chapel windows while holding the name of a fallen OH.

Annual pilgrimage

The battlefields trip is an annual expedition, one might say pilgrimage, for Haileyburians and indeed most independent schools. The visit serves many purposes. To remember the fallen, yes, but also to see the war in colour. Even with today’s multimedia technology one cannot grasp, without being there, the scale of the mine crater at La Boisselle or the exposed plains from Ypres towards Passchendaele, over which men were ordered to advance in the slurry of Flanders mud in November 1917. Churchill described it as fighting machine gun bullets with the breastbones of young men. One final purpose, not to be underestimated, is the bonding experience that the trip has on the pupils.

An entire year group, boarders, day pupils

Above, the annual trip to thiepval, France, where a book of sacrifice is laid each year to honour the ohs that gave their lives in both wars

and staff living together and sharing experiences perhaps comes close to replicating the friendships forged on the Western Front. A fellow head commented to me that these visits were as much about living together as learning together. They too experience, upon departure, the same excitement and sense of adventure that encouraged some 750,000 men to enlist in the first few weeks of the war. With this in mind I welcome the government providing £5.3 million to allow two pupils from spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 13

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Touch down in Atlanta, Georgia and drive the scenic route to Hilton Head Island. This island retreat may only be 12 miles long and five miles wide but it is packed with a host of activities for the active family. The island is best explored by bike with miles of paved pathways criss-crossing the island. For those with a head for heights, brace yourself as you zip through a two-hour encounter on the ZipLine Hilton Head finishing with a 900 ft dual cable ride to the finish line.

Or spend an afternoon practising your back swing with a tennis pro, play a round of golf on a championship course or get back to nature with a kayaking or fishing tour. When all the adventure gets too much, retire to Coligny Beach, one of America’s top family beaches.

Above, children running to the beach at Pawleys Island; inset, enjoy a beautiful sunset at Charleston or brave the ZipLine Hilton Head

Drive from the laid back resort of Hilton Head Island and onto historic Charleston. With its picturesque houses, cobbled streets and southern charm, Charleston naturally draws in visitors wanting to explore its history. Take a horse-drawn carriage ride around the city, relive the first battle of the civil war at Fort Sumter or visit the USS Yorktown battleship turned museum. Make sure you visit nearby Pawleys Island, regarded as one of the oldest resorts on the East Coast and known for its shoeless, carefree, laid-back lifestyle.

Then onto one of the nearby plantation homes, which make for an interesting and educational day trip.

Your next stop is Myrtle Beach, renowned for its 60 miles of beautiful beaches, exciting attractions and thriving nightlife for all ages. With such an impressive beach offering, it’s unsurprising that there is a huge selection of watersports on offer.

Practise your boogie boarding skills, cool off at a nearby waterpark or for the more adventurous, try jet skiing or paragliding. When it comes to entertaining the family you’ll be spoilt for choice. Enjoy some time at the

NASCAR Racing Experience, watch the traditional American pastime of baseball and in the evening, why not sit down for an exciting dinner show featuring pirates and medieval knights.

Head inland from Myrtle Beach to Greenville, one of America’s hottest emerging destinations. Nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, its enviable location entices outdoor enthusiasts with hiking, mountain biking and kayaking on their doorstep.

Back in the city, head downtown to the iconic Liberty Bridge, a 355 ft pedestrian walkway suspended over historic waterfalls in the city’s heart.

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and Canada

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT AMERICAASYOULIKEIT.COM 14 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

www.independentschoolparent.com

HisToRy

â?? An entire year group,

image: alamy/Diana Bier Westminster Commemorate

boarders, day pupils and staff living together and sharing experiences perhaps comes close to replicating the friendships forged on the Western Front â?ž every state school in the country to participate in Western Front battlefield tours; it is a shame that such an opportunity is not open to all pupils in the UK. Upon their return, our pupils produce their own projects, reflecting their experiences. The work is humbling.

Original poetry, detailed models of Tyne Cot cemetery, sensitively designed posters and scrapbooks, all these capture the essence of the trip. The Great War, in this sense acts as a catalyst for creativity and emotion, so evident in the work of the Great War poets. This year will see independent schools committing more www.independentschoolparent.com

Above, Haileybury College, Herts Right, The Field of Remembrance at Westminster Abbey

time and resources than ever before to such teaching and learning and rightly so.

It is with good reason that the Great War is often known as The Great Divide.

Nothing was the same after it.

Our commemoration At Haileybury, along with unveiling our new stained glass windows in the Chapel, we will be inviting speakers like Stephen Cooper to visit us. Stephen recently spoke to a large gathering of staff, pupils and parents about his book The Final Whistle: The Great War in Fifteen Players. He has

researched the lives of the fallen 86 Rossyln Park RFC players; many from independent schools such as Dulwich and Uppingham, as well as two Haileyburians.

Cooper inspired the audience because he was able to convey personalities, brought together by a cause which paints a portrait in miniature of the entire war. It is this that every independent school does, each year.

Schools are close knit communities and the Great War began to destroy such communities, all over the country, 100 years ago. Time has helped to heal them, but as Binyon urged in September 1914: we shall not forget. Nor will the whole country. spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 15

Giving young people the confidence to achieve

Wycliffe makes

the difference Small class sizes, individual learning and superb facilities lead to life-changing opportunities and excellent results.

Daily mini bus service available.

We are an Independent Catholic Day and Boarding School for girls and boys aged 3-18 years offering: A stunning 400 acre, rural setting

Wycliffe Nursery, Preparatory, Senior School & Sixth Form For more information please call: Charlotte Phillips (Senior) on 01453 820412 or Wendy Robertson (Preparatory) on 01453 820471.

Superb modern facilities An extensive bus service Scholarships and bursaries available Nursery and Prep School on-site All faiths and denominations welcome

Wycliffe, Stonehouse, Gloucestershire GL10 2JQ Twitter @WycliffeCollege www.wycliffe.co.uk

You are always welcome to visit the college for a personal tour.

For more information please call 01920 824247

Old Hall Green, Ware, Hertfordshire SG11 1DS

www.stedmundscollege.org 16 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

www.independentschoolparent.com

DepuTy HeAD VIeWpOINT

Stronger than ever Sean Dunne, deputy head of Wycliffe College, Gloucestershire, explains why resilience is one of the most valuable skills schools can teach

T

oday, more than at any other time in our society, we need to teach our children resilience.

If we cannot prepare them for certainty then we must then prepare them for uncertainty.

It is not a new concept. In 1789 Benjamin Franklin wrote: “nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes”. What would he say now?

The pace of change in the technical nature of society is in turn accelerating the pace and nature of the workplace and knowledge acquisition, as never before. Just two decades ago, young people could safely presume that a career was for life and good teachers prepared them for that. Now a career for life is the exception, not the rule.

The internet has brought a bombardment of different ideas, norms and values which severely test our young people. The rate of change that this generation must master is exponential.

For parents it can be difficult to comprehend the changes in teaching.

What they remember is their own education but the world has sped on.

It is no longer enough for good schools to teach the core subjects such as maths, arts, sciences, language and history. For our young people to be masters of their destinies they need to hone such skills as resilience, creativity, critical thinking, problem solving and digital literacy.

International educationalist Sir Ken Robinson believes creativity is at the heart of good learning. He thinks that there are three key principles crucial for the human mind to develop. Firstly,

Helping young people understand they must wait to see the rewards of their hard work is crucial in their resilience development, says, Sean Dunne, above

education should foster diversity by offering a broad curriculum and encouraging individualised learning.

Secondly, education should foster curiosity through creative teaching. And finally that education should focus on awakening creativity through alternative didactic processes, with less emphasis on standardised testing. That doesn’t mean we abandon core subjects, but we need to assess our pupils in a different way, one that encourages that creativity.

Do not mistake creative and critical thinking for “dumbing down”. I recently asked a few friends, who studied history in school to answer the questions from an A-level history exam. They couldn’t.

They admitted that they struggled to understand the questions.

❝ Students are encouraged to try,

to make mistakes and learn from them.

A good school needs to give its students the wherewithal to stand on their own feet ❞ www.independentschoolparent.com

There is no hard and fast curriculum for teaching resilience. Rather it is a combination of values, life skills and attitudes that students are exposed to and given time to learn. For example, it is a challenge in this world of instant gratification to understand the value of deferred gratification. Helping young people understand they must wait to see the rewards of their current hard work is crucial in their resilience development.

At Wycliffe College, we not only celebrate the gifted students but also those who work extremely hard to achieve their personal goals. We aim, through example, to help them understand that deep-seated learning is a virtue in itself, and that learning is a lifelong experience.

Students are encouraged to try, to make mistakes and learn from them. A good school needs to give its students the wherewithal to stand on their own feet.

We, as a society, all have an obligation to support our young people by equipping them with the skills to help them succeed as adults. After all, they are our nation’s greatest asset.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 17

Growing up isn’t easy T

he teenage years can sometimes instil fear, anxiety, dread or even resignation amongst parents – a roll of the eyes and a “what can I do, it’s out of my hands” mindset. But gone are the days when we could adopt a “fingers crossed” attitude and just hope for the best. For one thing, the teenage years are no longer a skip and a hop from 13 to 19.

With children growing older younger, the first sign of teenage-style behaviour is appearing probably as early as aged 10.

Brain science tells us that the male brain is still undergoing its re-construction work at 24. Put this together with the reality of many children still being dependent on their parents well beyond their teens – either financially or through living at home – and this parenting period may last up to 14 years. Not only might this play havoc with your child’s

18 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT SPRING 2014

behaviour as their innate need to separate and become independent drives them to rebel, but it also severely tests parenting styles and skills.

Parenting practice Now more than ever, handling teenage problems requires precision tools, as opposed to a sledgehammer approach, and our book aims to help parents develop a better understanding of what is going on at home, to recognise when things are not going well and to find ways to manage things more calmly and effectively. Knowing more about our pre-teen or teenager’s world, what pressures and challenges they are facing and understanding what they actually need from us, translates into better parenting practice. Understanding how the brain changes and develops in the

Gone are the days when we could adopt a “fingers crossed” attitude and just hope for the best

teenage years is an important thread in the book. Your baby’s brain, which was a “blob of potential” at birth, then goes through life adapting and moulding itself in response to outside influences and to its environment.

We now have evidence, from modern brain science, that simple everyday parenting practices can have a very positive or negative impact on a child’s developing habits and behaviour. So if we want to play a proactive part in how our child’s personality is shaping up, this book helps us look at specific aspects of family life that will help us do this.

Parenting is sensitive and emotive stuff. We all want to get it right, to be “good enough parents”, but unlike any other job we may do, we get no training, no preparation, little praise, gratitude or encouragement, no chance of being headhunted, we can’t swap our www.independentschoolparent.com

Images: Istock/monkeybusInessImages/IvosevIcv/aleksandarnakIc/nIcolesy/kcslagle

In their new book, Teenagers Translated, Janey Downshire and Naella Grew look at how to raise happy adolescents

PARENTING

❝ Gone are the

days when most families were like-minded and similar values were imbibed ❞

colleagues or even look forward to a retirement free of work-based dilemmas.

Most of us take our cue from our own childhood experience, but because society has changed, we may need to do things very differently. Teenagers, as we know, are less malleable. It is a fine balance between embracing a preventative approach that deftly avoids problems and not micromanaging every potential danger: of letting go of the reins just enough so that teens can give things a go, but not appearing to turn a blind eye by implicitly sanctioning things of which you disapprove.

A changing society So why are things more complicated now? Why are we facing new and different challenges, so that despite having been teenagers ourselves, we may www.independentschoolparent.com

feel ill equipped, or even unconfident, about what’s right for our child? One way to understand our teenager’s world is to think of it in terms of their culture. A culture, or society, is constantly evolving while attitudes and circumstances change from one generation to the next.

Education now encourages children to be independent thinkers and to develop their own opinions from a young age.

This has been propelled by the internet offering free and accessible knowledge and opinion round the clock. Adults are no longer automatically looked up to, relied upon, respected and obeyed for their wisdom and expertise. So the dynamic between adult and child has transformed. A teenager’s view is moulded by their peers and the internet, and our opinions, as parents, matter less.

Although the internet undoubtedly has huge benefits, it also has a sinister side,

Education now encourages children to be independent thinkers and to develop their own opinions from a young age

where the opinions of a few can be instantly broadcast to many, challenging and modifying beliefs about what is acceptable. Normalising dysfunctional behaviours like self-harm, binge drinking, porn, drug taking or eating disorders will have a significant influence on a child’s developing psyche.

Add to this the changing social values around us and we end up with a potentially combustive cocktail. Gone are the days when most families were like-minded, and similar values would be imbibed while out and about at a friend’s house, at school or even church. A familiar message seems to reverberate around many households now: “it’s so unfair, everyone else is allowed to”. The hard thing is for each of us to hold out for what we consider right for our family, not only to lay down our limits and boundaries, but to uphold them. While teenagers do need to spread their wings and push boundaries, they also need clear limits around them so that they can learn to gauge risks and develop their own moral compass.

We know how difficult this balancing act can be as we both have teenage children.

What we present in our book are the tools and responses that we have found actually work. These have been distilled over the years from our counselling training and from conducting our range of workshops for parents, staff and teenagers. Our book offers a chance to help parents work out the most effective solutions for their child and family.

Go to teenagerstranslated.co.uk JANEY DOWNSHIRE AND NAELLA GREW

hoW to raisE happY teenS

Teenagers Translated – How to Raise Happy Teens

by Janey Downshire and Noella Drew is out on 8th May (Ebury Press), £11.99

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT 19

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in defence of tutors Parents should not have to feel clandestine about employing a tutor for their child, writes Kate Shand of The Tutors’ Association

imAge: isTock/dcdebs

t

he world is getting ever smaller. The children of today are required to excel in the global classroom, not just against their school peers.

What today’s most economically and politically powerful countries in the world have in common is that parents are taking more control when it comes to their children’s education. Another key characteristic is the popularity of one-to-one learning. Whether you’re in the US, China, or India, tutors are seen as an indispensable asset which complements and enhances what children are learning at school. With research from the European Commission recently concluding that one-to-one tutoring is the ultimate in adaptive and interactive learning, it’s not surprising to see why.

The UK is catching on; according to The Sutton Trust, which champions greater social mobility, one in four parents – rising to 40% in London – are employing tutors for their children.

Enlisting the help of a tutor can often be a vital stitch in time in a child’s academic development. For instance, if a child is struggling in a subject, the tailored support from one-to-one attention can help boost confidence.

Similarly, if a pupil has been off school, a short burst of tutoring is the quickest way to get them back up to speed.

If a child has learning difficulties, the personal attention and adaptive nature of one-to-one learning can make all the difference in the long term. Conversely, if your child needs stretching and challenging, a private tutor has the time and means to do just that.

It is clear also that education itself is evolving. Given the plethora of online content available to children – even before they set foot in a classroom – means we must develop a pluralistic

www.independentschoolparent.com

one in four parents – rising to 40% in London – hires a tutor for their child

and multi-faceted view of what and how education is accessed by children.

As Tony Little, Headmaster of Eton College, was recently quoted as saying in the Daily Mail: “The student of the future need have no reason to go to the physical space called a school to access these powerful ways to educate themselves.”

Undoubtedly, schools do and will always have a crucial role to play in the educational and social development of our children, but there is a desperate need for more transparency and better communication between schools, parents and tutors.

And if a child’s learning is no longer confined to the classroom, there needs to be a way for parents to know that they can trust in whatever supplementary education their children is receiving, whether in person or online.

I am not alone in this belief, which is why I and several practitioners within the UK’s tutoring industry joined forces earlier this year to create The Tutors’ Association (TTA). As members of the TTA, our goal is to advance the private

tutoring industry by encouraging professional standards, supporting tutors in their work, and keeping parents better informed of what they should expect from a tutor.

Another significant aim is to open up the dialogue between schools and tutoring companies. The tutoring industry recognises that there has not been enough communication with schools to encourage the successful working of a symbiotic relationship.

The TTA has already been taking on the role of spokesperson for the industry. To kickstart this dialogue with schools, the TTA is meeting with several of the independent school associations, including the Independent Association of Prep Schools (IAPS). Following this, we hope to cement communication further by convening with The Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference (HMC) and the Independent Schools Association (ISA).

As vice president of the TTA, I understand that it will take time to build bridges and establish trust and the TTA wants to show schools that we are open for business and discussion.

The TTA is keen to highlight that the question of responsibility is entrenched within the TTA’s ethos.

We also want to emphasise that the TTA’s codes of practice are open to discussion, and we welcome the chance to consult with school heads and the aforementioned organisations to build on the principles that the TTA has already put into place.

The TTA also wants to hear from parents, which is why we have three positions on our board filled by people not working in the education sector.

Parents are understandably very aspirational. Tutoring is a worldwide phenomenon and parents should not have to feel clandestine about it.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 21

TEACHING

The support network

Vic Goddard, head of Passmores Academy, and star of Channel 4’s hit Educating Essex, talks about the highly successful coaching model he set up at the school

I

t is hard to imagine how one decision, to make Channel 4’s TV series Educating Essex, would lead to this. As much as I have been uncomfortable at times through the last two years, it is hard to be anything other than thankful that we did it. The school has grown stronger and even closer, the students have had some great opportunities. I have been lucky to learn so much and meet some amazing people.

Under my headship at Passmores, we introduced a whole-school coaching model that represents a vital part of our progress and is something that we’re really flagging up now. I guess it may have come from my PE background, as I was very much into coaching for improvement. The first thing I did when I became a head was to approach one of our co-educators/learning support assistants and ask her to be my coach.

After she’d picked herself up off the floor, she asked the obvious question: “what do I know about your job?”

Thankfully the lovely Suzette Mondroit said “yes” and went off to do some research and attend some courses before she started coaching me. We didn’t mention it to anyone, so when the time came I could demonstrate that it could be done, regardless of the job you were in or the role you had in school. Within a few weeks, I was able to invite staff to attend a meeting (voluntarily!) after school to explore who might be interested in doing some coaching.

Obviously, the objective behind coaching is to create empowerment and skill

Vic Goddard’s new book: The Best Job in the World, is in shops now

7+( %(67 -2% ,1 7+( :25/'

9,& *2''$5' people up to make good choices by asking the right questions.

There are numerous books out there, for example Jackie Beere and Terri Broughton’s recently published The Perfect Teacher Coach, but in school, we started off and continue to work with coachinginschools.com. The fantastic Annie has helped us set up a model where every newly appointed or newly promoted member of staff is given a coach to help them sort the wheat from the chaff. We started a programme of training people to become coaches and Suzette progressed from being my coach, to being our coaching development manager, then leading

❝ The objective behind coaching is to create

empowerment and skill people up to make good choices by asking the right question ❞

22 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

coaching across the whole school, both for staff and students. The results quickly became very evident but not in major ways. The staff started to feel there was somebody they could talk to and who could support them, which made a great contribution. Also, I began to catch bits of conversations in corridors where staff could be overheard supporting young people with problems.

Instead of telling them what to do, we now invest time in coaching so they can make their own judgements. To hear a member of staff talking to a young person about the choices they’ve made, or asking them how they could have done something differently by repackaging a question to make them think about it more deeply, is very encouraging. That’s what comes of being a good coach.

It’s seven years since we started and it’s time to refresh our ideas. We’ve recently invested money in a coaching space. Suzette is now working with other schools, developing a similar model in and around Essex, which has been really good for her and good for us too.

Coaching provides on-going support for people who may need it in all sorts of situations, whether it’s organising their finances, sorting out relationships or getting a job. It is about helping people focus on the important issues in their lives and taking practical steps to look at things differently, in order to achieve their objectives.

Yes, I still have my coaching sessions, though I don’t have them often enough as I would probably be more efficient if I did. Now, the coaching sessions are more about self-coaching than anything else. In all, coaching has certainly been a big part of our school’s journey.

Book extract taken from The Best Job in the World by Vic Goddard (Independent Thinking Press), RRP £14.99, ISBN 9781781351109

www.independentschoolparent.com

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comment

Destined for the top John Sprague, director of IB at Sevenoaks School in Kent, tells you all you need to know about the International Baccalaureate Diploma

What is the IB?

Image: IStocK/BlacKjaKe

The International Baccalaureate® (IB) Diploma Programme is a two-year curriculum aimed at students aged 16 to 19. The IB was founded in 1968 as a non-profit educational foundation by a group of forward-thinking teachers from the International School of Geneva, with help from other international schools. It is administered worldwide from three global hubs: in the US, Europe and Asia.

The vision of the IB is premised on a notion of what being well-educated means. And this is that an 18-year-old school-leaver should be numerate, literate, be able to apply rigorous scientific and mathematical thinking to the world, while being able to engage in foreign cultures. These are the basic requirements in living in the multifaceted world of the 21st century.

The IB has remained remarkably consistent over nearly 50 years in its identity, content and quality. This consistency has been maintained alongside huge growth. In 1971, 750 students in seven schools took the IB; in 2013, 1.1 million students in 3,580 schools completed the same programme.

How is it structured?

Students take six subjects, including a foreign language, maths and English — three to higher and three to standard level. They must also write an extended essay (a 4,000-word independently researched project), take the theory of

As well as learning the core materials in the IB subjects, students are encouraged to think around the topic

knowledge course which focuses on developing thinking and reasoning skills; and follow the creativity, action and service programme by engaging in sports, the arts and voluntary work.

There are seven points available for each of the six subjects, and three more points for the core programme, totalling a possible score of 45 points.

One step ahead...

Even though the IB’s main agenda is broader than simply university entrance, the depth and rigour of the programme means it is no surprise that IB students have the edge in UK university entrance.

“If we are hesitating about making an offer at all, we would be more likely to make an offer to an IB student than an A-level student,” says Geoff Parks, director of admissions at the University of Cambridge. In addition, the

❝ If we are hesitating about offering a place at all,

we would be more likely to make an offer to an IB student than an A-level student ❞ Geoff Parks, director of admissions, University of Cambridge

www.independentschoolparent.com

experience gained in various elements like the Extended Essay and Theory of Knowledge and independent learning and time management skills mean that students are ready for the rigour of university study and often find the first year of university easier than their final year of IB. The Russell Group is beginning to recognise the importance of the wider portfolio of an IB student.

Sevenoaks has been a flagship school for the IB for years. Introduced in 1978, 2006 saw the first full IB sixth form cohort. We like the IB’s unique balance of the pragmatism, vision and pedagogy.

We are now one of the world’s leading IB schools, with a points average of 39.4 (10 points higher than the world average).

For the future The IB provides what employers want: “A broad set of so-called employability skills. That is, being able to work in a team, to solve problems, to communicate effectively, to understand how businesses work and the ability to manage their time,” says John Cridland in Changing the Pace: CBI/Pearson education and skills survey 2013.

Pupils are encouraged to be reflective and questioning in their own learning as well as mastering the material in their broad and deep academic courses.

The benefits of a broad curriculum are many, and profound. We want our scientists to be good communicators, our humanities specialists to appreciate the methodology of science and the beauty of mathematics. We want successive generations to think critically, challenge accepted views and appreciate and analyse multiple perspectives more than we want them to memorise facts.

The IB has proven its ability to better prepare students for university and its single vision is an attempt to prepare young people for a life of learning in an unpredictable future.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 25

Darling daughters So you want to raise your little girl to be a confident, resilient and successful woman.

Leading parenting coach, Judith Reith, reveals all to Glynis Kozma

D

arling daughters. These might not be the first words that come to mind as your teenage daughter flounces out of the room and tells you that you make her life a misery. Parents are warned that boys are tricky to steer through the teenage years, but now the focus is on girls. Why? Judy Reith, parenting coach, author, and director of Parenting People, agrees.

“There has been an explosion in studies about what is happening to our daughters in a fast-paced changing world. The biggest difference between our childhoods and our daughters is the power of the media and technology, which bring cyber bullying, the need to be popular – how many Facebook friends you have for example – as well as the pressure to achieve A*s.”

Modern pressures Dr Helen Wright, headmistress of Ascham School, Sydney, former head of St Mary’s Calne and author of Decoding Your 21st Century Daughter, says: “Despite the array of options open to girls now, they are often held back by the pressures placed on them by a pervasive objectification of women in the media telling them they are only valued for their appearance.”

We used to worry about stranger danger and although that is still relevant, 26 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT SPRING 2014

parents are most concerned about binge drinking, drugs and girls lacking the confidence to say “no” according to research by Reith.

As a parent to three daughters, Reith is aware of the pressures, which is why she is writing Darling Daughters, a practical guide to parenting daughters. Her recent Darling Daughter events, hosted in conjunction with the parenting portal Mumsnet, have been sell-outs – proof that parents are concerned.

“I want parents to celebrate their daughters and emphasise the potential they have,” she explains, “but I am fully aware of how your daughter may yell that you are ruining her life, when all you asked was when would she be home for supper that night.”

But aren’t teenage girls much more mature than boys? “Girls mature earlier physically, but that doesn’t mean they have enough life experience to deal with whatever life is going to throw at them,” Reith explains.

According to Reith’s research for her book – anonymous online questionnaires to hundreds of parents and daughters – parents are concerned that: “our daughter will have the confidence to say ‘no’, to believe in herself and be what she wants to be”.

Wright confirms this. “We want our daughters to grow into the people they can be, not squeezed into narrow expectations of what women should be. www.independentschoolparent.com

parenting

girls mature earlier physically, compared to boys, but that doesn’t mean they have the experience to deal with what life will throw at them

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 27

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pArenting

❝ We used to worry about stranger danger but parents

are more concerned about binge drinking, drugs and girls who lack the confidence to say ‘no’ ❞

ImaGeS: SIlke WoWeRIeS/CoRbIS

Liberation was not supposed to be about sexualisation so that ‘the pout’ becomes the default pose for all girls when they are photographed.”

And Photoshopped images – showing perfect bodies and complexions – add to the pressure Reith explains. “Parents need to be aware of the pressure on girls to be perfect. The online images of high-achieving, stick-thin girls, creates an image girls aspire to.” Wright adds: “parents should challenge images and expectations of women whenever they see them – often and vocally.”

Long-term vision

So what’s the answer to raising girls?

Reith says, “I ask parents to focus on their long-term vision for their daughter and how that translates into day-to-day life, whether that’s bedtimes, boyfriends or bulimia. What does your daughter need from you? What kind of parent do www.independentschoolparent.com

you want to be? And how do you achieve it?” How indeed, when your daughter storms out of the room shouting: “you know nothing!”

“You should keep the lines of communication open. Work out when you are about to explode and over what.

We all have our tipping points, but try not to overreact. One parent told me that the most valuable tip she has learned is to have a ‘pause’ button. Try to discuss options and outcomes open to your daughter. If you are too heavy-handed you will alienate them and they will look elsewhere for affirmation, be that online or with unsuitable friends.”

Reflecting on how you taught your daughter to deal with other dangers when she was younger is key to helping her now. “You taught your daughter how to cross a road safely; now teach her how to use technology safely,” advises Reith.

If you aren’t up to speed yourself, then there is a plethora of help online.

Above, praise your daughter for qualities such as kindness and generosity not simply exam results or appearance

Girls can be very sensitive and it’s easy to destroy their confidence. Parents can boost their daughter’s self-esteem by reassuring them they are loved for who they are, not what they achieve. “It’s very easy,” explains Reith, “for girls to set themselves very high standards in a competitive world, which is why parents should focus on effort and not achievement. Praise your daughter for qualities such as kindness and generosity, not simply exam results or appearance.”

Helen Wright agrees. “We’ve come a long way in enabling women to have choices; these can only become real when girls realise they are valuable for who they are.”

Praising your daughter if she has demonstrated she can say “no” is something Reith advises. And is there one piece of final advice for parents?

“Listen twice as much as you talk and locate your ‘pause’ button,” says Reith.

For more go to darlingdaughters.org SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 29

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sChool fees

Y

ou want the best education for your child, but can you afford it? In this tough economic climate, paying school fees can seem daunting if not impossible. But there may be more help than you first expect.

It’s in the timing Both Year Nine and sixth form can be times of movement, so if you are considering a change for your child, this could be a good opportunity to apply for fee assistance. Most schools, both boarding and day, offer scholarships and bursaries not just on entry at age 11, but also at age 13 and at 16.

“Our schools are sympathetic to the financial challenges facing many parents and the amount of fee assistance available has grown to reflect this,” says Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the Independent Schools Council.

“ISC schools provided fee assistance to the value of almost £600 million in 2012.”

What’s the difference?

how To save on The fees A bursary or scholarship can help take the sting out of the school fees. Tracy Cook reports www.independentschoolparent.com

Scholarships are awarded for achievement in academic work, sport, music, art and drama and they are provided irrespective of income – but your child will need to be outstanding.

Bursaries, on the other hand, can be based on exam performance, but are dependent on financial need and are always means tested.

Bursaries range from providing a small percentage of the fees, all the way up to 100% and beyond – schools occasionally offer to help with travel, uniform, lunches and school trips.

The good news for parents is that, encouraged by the Charities Commission, more schools than ever are switching their resources away from scholarships and into bursaries, to help children who might not otherwise be able to go to independent schools.

All change “The 75% scholarship from the past is very rare now. Most are for 10%,” says Mike Lower, general secretary of the Independent Schools’ Bursars SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 31

IPSUM

Association. “It is far better to give a means-tested bursary to a bright child who needs it, than to one whose parents could pay anyway.”

The facts One in three children at over 1,200 independent schools received help with their fees in 2012 and there are nearly 40,000 pupils on means-tested bursaries.

Their average value is £7,200 per year, while more than 5,000 pupils paid no fees at all and over 40% paid less than half.

Many schools are committed to widening access and are actively canvassing for pupils to apply for bursaries.

Christ’s Hospital in Sussex helps an outstanding number of its pupils, with 90% of its children receiving some level of assistance with their fees. Of these, 83% pay less than half and 110 pupils pay no fees at all.

“We are offering bright children the opportunity to have a first-class education,” says head John Franklin.

32 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

❝ Christ’s Hospital in Sussex helps an

outstanding number of its pupils, with 90% of its children receiving some level of assistance with their fees ❞ State to private Schools are also looking to help pupils from maintained schools. Eton College, which has 250 pupils on fee assistance, offers eight full scholarships in the sixth form for boys of the right ability from the state sector. The school is working to form relationships with state senior schools across the country to encourage pupils to apply.

“We are putting a lot of time and effort into building relationships with maintained schools, particularly those without sixth forms, to find boys who

Above, clockwise from top left, King’s Ely, Cambridgeshire, Cobham Hall, Kent, King’s Bruton, Somerset, Bradfield College, Reading, Wells Cathedral School, Somerset

would benefit from the opportunities we can offer here,” says Tony Little, head master of Eton.

“It can be transformative for the individual and it can have a palpable effect on boys here. If a pupil arrives hungry for opportunities, it can encourage the boys around him to appreciate what is on offer more clearly.”

Opening doors A co-ed sixth form can also be a draw for girls from single-sex schools who want a different experience. “My www.independentschoolparent.com

school fees daughter definitely wanted a new challenge. She felt she’d outgrown her old school, but we felt the local sixth form colleges were too big and impersonal,” says one mother, whose daughter won a 20% music scholarship to St John’s School, Surrey, from an all girls’ state school.

“Now she has more opportunities – her music lessons are paid for and as part of her scholarship she does choral singing. If you are going to spend money on education, the sixth form is the best place to focus it.”

Philip John, former head of Gresham’s School, Norfolk, agrees. He noticed increased demand at sixth form for both places and bursaries, particularly for boarding. “More parents want their children to experience the relative independence of boarding as a stepping stone between school and university. Gresham’s is trying to increase bursary provision.”

They are building a new sixth form centre to respond to the demand.

A scholarship or bursary can be particularly helpful if your child chooses to board at school

More choice Others may be attracted by the opportunity to study the IB diploma. Red Maids’ School, the oldest girls’ school in the country, has a brand new sixth form centre and is the only independent school in Bristol to offer both A levels and IB. “Girls are attracted to us because of the IB,” says Isabel Tobias, Red Maids’ head.

“It has quite a presence in the school, bringing a more international flavour and interest in global issues.” About 15% of the school’s pupils have some fee assistance, a few with 100% bursaries.

How to apply With school fees averaging £3,903 per term for day pupils and £8,780 for boarding, you can see why parents might need help. Assistance may be on offer to families with incomes up to around £50,000, but each school has their own criteria, so it is always worth approaching a school for further consideration.

But applying for a bursary is not for the faint hearted. The school will carry out a detailed examination of your personal circumstances, including all forms of income, assets, savings and pension. It will look at your lifestyle including your mortgage, number of dependants, childcare costs and whether you already pay school fees – even how many holidays you have. And the bursary will be reassessed every year.

“It was quite intrusive,” says one mother, a single parent whose son was awarded a 50% Foundation Bursary in Year Nine at Reed’s School in Surrey. “It can feel quite demeaning, but I understand why they have to be so thorough. And without the bursary, there is no question that my son could not have gone to the school.”

So an independent school education for your child is not out of reach. If you are prepared to put in the work, there is support with fees to be won.

For more information visit... www.independentschoolparent.com

chris Masters explains the fee assistance process at Ashbourne sixth form college, Kensington, where most scholarships cover up to half of the fees

A

s the “squeezed middle” classes become ever more compressed, schools need to find ways of making independent education affordable to British families. Traditionally, schools have provided a range of scholarships and bursaries to worthy students, and now sixth form colleges are just as generous.

Our institution, Ashbourne College, is an independent college in Kensington, which has over 230 students, most of whom are taking A Levels, with a small number of pupils in Years 10 and 11.

Ashbourne produces students who gain excellent exam results and generally go on to top-ranking universities. Obviously, the small classes and high level of individual attention come at a cost, which Ashbourne alleviates by offering scholarships to exceptionally able students. Many of these

are British, though the awards are in fact open to students of all nationalities.

Ashbourne’s scholarships, which are usually worth up to 50% of the fees, are available to students in a variety of disciplines, from drama, music and art – areas in which we have a few full scholars – to maths and science. The main round of music and drama auditions takes place in October but in practice we award scholarships up to the end of March – so there is still time left for an application relating to the coming academic year! Students apply to us directly rather than through their school, though we have good relations with some other schools that refer suitable students.

All applicants have to attend an audition, present a portfolio or take a test appropriate to the subject that they are hoping to study. This is a vital part of the

❝ Students who have gained scholarships at

Ashbourne cannot rest on their laurels ❞

www.independentschoolparent.com

process, but to gain a scholarship, a student must also have excellent school grades and references, and should demonstrate in interview a lively personality and a range of extra-curricular interests. The awards are not meanstested but we are in no doubt that they provide considerable financial relief to the families that benefit from them.

Students who have gained scholarships at Ashbourne cannot rest on their laurels.

We expect scholars to fulfil the expectations that we have of them by working hard and performing well throughout the time they are with us.

They should be role models for the rest of the student body, as well as being good ambassadors for the school. Clearly, Ashbourne reaps considerable benefits from the contributions of such capable and motivated young people. In return, we trust that our scholarship programme provides invaluable opportunities to individuals who would otherwise not have access to such a stimulating and successful learning environment.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 33

ADVERTORIAL

Learning from the best The British Institute of Technology & E-commerce (BITE) offers degree programmes that are complemented by its strong industry links

T

he British Institute of Technology & E-commerce (BITE) is one of the leading institutes in the UK and is the 5th top private institute reported by the Times Higher Education. Its success lies in the partnership they have with the industry and how they nurture this relationship by building career opportunities for students.

Technology is driving the global economy, creating an ever increasing demand for trained and talented individuals. That is why BITE not only teaches skills needed for the future through its range of undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes, it also champions the pioneering work of the best in the sector – the people who inspire others to follow their lead in creating the technologies that will transform the world.

Naser Ziadeh, Microsoft, awards BITE student

Rt. Hon. Lord Ahmed awards the President of Tatarstan

The BITE Industry Awards, in association with Rolls Royce, recognises individuals who have shown continued and effective commitment to the leadership, creativity and dissemination of technological advances for the benefit of the wider community and economy.

The “Championing of Technology” prize was awarded to Dr Rob Smith of BAE Systems for the pioneering work and leadership he showed in working with the Eurofighter Typhoon. Former recipients of this award include Professor Zhores Alferov the noble laureate for physics for his outstanding work on nano technology and Dr Richard Noble, director of The Bloodhound Project that aims to break the world land speed record.

In association with All Party Parliamentary Group on Entrepreneurship the “Outstanding Business Leadership” award 2013 was received by Remzi Gur, a Turkish billionaire and businessman. Previous winners include former chief executive of Tesco Sir Terry Leahy and CEO of MillenniumIT – used at the London Stock Exchange – Tony Weerasinghe.

“Globalisation, and the opportunities it provides to companies and individuals, means that the selection of the appropriate university programme is a key decision in building your career momentum,” says principal of BITE. “The courses we offer intend to meet the demands of the industry for multiskilled and talented elite graduates, with our curriculum providing a broad-based academic, and practical, experience enabling students to understand and apply current theories in technology, management and e-commerce as well as acquiring the knowledge to specialise in a chosen field.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT BITE.AC.UK 34 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

At the BITE Industry Awards, H.E. Unal Cevikoz presents the “Outstanding Busine ss Leadership” award to Remzi Gur

Rt. Hon. Lord Erroll

CEO of TATA UK and Prof. M Farmer

Prof Knibb awards BT

Nina Amin KP MG presents awar d to BITE student with Nick Ross

Kustar University, UAE and Dr Ivan Boyd

,Microsoft Naser Ziadeh student awards to BITE

British Institute

Naser Ziadeh awards Dr Ali Al Khouri of EIDA

of Technology & E-commerce

www.independentschoolparent.com

UNIVERSITY Once you have received all of your responses, it’s time to choose your firm and insurance university options

O

nce a UCAS application form is completed and submitted, the wait begins for offers to come back. The time it takes for responses to come through will be slightly different for each student. It all depends on each university’s admissions policies, though by the time the end of March rolls around, most people will hopefully have all their offers in front of them and be in a position to choose which to accept.

Narrowing it down

Decision time

So you’ve submitted your UCAS form, now all you have to do is sit back and wait. But what do you do once you receive your responses? James Durant of UCAS takes you through the process… www.independentschoolparent.com

It’s only when all the responses (whether they are conditional or unconditional offers, or rejections) have come back that you need to make your replies. You’ll need to reply to your offers through UCAS Track, choosing one as your firm choice – the course you want to study on the most. If you want to, there’s the option of having an insurance choice, in case you end up just missing the grades for your firm choice. Once a firm, and insurance choice is selected, you’ll need to decline any remaining offers.

Your firm acceptance – of which you can have only one – is your first choice university. This is your favourite option out of all the offers you have received.

Most will have a conditional offer as their firm choice – this means that your place on the course is dependent on achieving specific grades in the Summer.

If you’re offered, and accept, an unconditional offer, then your place is confirmed on the course in the Autumn.

What’s insurance?

If your firm choice is a conditional offer, it is wise to accept another offer, usually with slightly lower acceptance grades, as a back-up plan. If you don’t meet the conditions for your firm choice but meet the grades of your insurance, you will be committed to that course. And like the firm choice, you can only have one insurance selection.

Once you have accepted a firm choice, if you’re not sure about any of your other university choices you’re not obliged to accept one as a back-up – you don’t have to accept an insurance choice.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 35

New Medical Degree for International Students Places still available for 2014 A new self-funded undergraduate medical degree is being launched

by UCLan in September 2014. The Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MB BS) is an exciting and stimulating course delivered in state-of-the-art facilities in Preston, Burnley and East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust. We have created a supportive, but academically challenging MB BS for a small cohort of international students. With early patient contact, our students will emerge as doctors that are not only well grounded in clinical knowledge and skills, but also with strong values of caring and compassion. The General Medical Council (GMC) has committed to work with UCLan to enable the MB BS to acquire full GMC recognition. See website for full GMC status.

UCLan is a world-class institution, recognised with its inclusion in the most recent QS World Rankings – the first modern university in the UK to gain this status.

To find out more: Visit www.uclan.ac.uk/courses/bachelor_medicine_bachelor_surgery.php Email cenquiries@uclan.ac.uk Call +44 (0)1772 892400 2014 Application deadline 28th March 2014 Later applications may be considered.

Innovative thinking for the real world

One of the World’s Top 200 Universities with the Best Student Experience in Scotland* • Offering over 200 undergraduate programmes in a wide range of subject areas

• A compact campus in the city centre

• More than 4 in 5 go into graduate-level jobs

• A range of scholarships available

• One of the best Student Unions in the UK

For further information please visit www.dundee.ac.uk/undergraduate * Times Higher Education 2013

36 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

www.independentschoolparent.com

UNIVERSITY

❝ If you submitted your UCAS application by

15th January, you should hear back from the universities by 7th May, but hopefully earlier ❞ What’s next?

Once you have decided which offer to accept firmly, and which (if any) to accept as an insurance, you’ll then need to decline all the rest. If you don’t want to accept any of the offers that have come back, you can decline them all – you’ll then be eligible to use UCAS Extra depending upon your circumstances.

If you submitted your UCAS application by the main 15th January deadline, you should hear back from the universities by 7th May, although hopefully it’ll be earlier. UCAS encourages universities to make as many decisions as they can by 31st March. The deadline for your replies is determined by the date the last decision comes back from your universities, so students in the same class may have different deadlines. In the 2014 entry cycle, if you receive your last decision by 31st March 2014 then your reply www.independentschoolparent.com

deadline date is 7th May 2014; if you hear by 8th May 2014 then reply by 5th June 2014; if it’s 5th June 2014 then choose by 26th June 2014; and if it is as late as 17th July 2014 then you will need to respond by 24th July 2014.

UCAS Extra

If, in the unfortunate event that all your choices come back as unsuccessful and you are without any offers, or indeed choose to decline all the offers you receive, then all is not lost. UCAS Extra will give you an opportunity to secure an offer before the summer.

UCAS Extra opens in late February, though not every university will have places available at this stage of the cycle, so it’s important to check. If you find a course that interests you, you’ll need to apply for it online through UCAS Track.

Just follow the on-screen instructions and UCAS will send your application onto the new choice. If you’ve paid the

The deadline for your final choice depends upon the date you receive your final offer

full application fee of £23, there’s no further payment needed to use Extra, and it remains open until early July, everyone eligible will be informed through Track.

One university choice at a time can be made through Extra, but there’s no limit on the number of times an Extra choice can be added to the application before July. Students can use Extra to apply for any course that has vacancies – you don’t have to stick to your original choice of subject(s). But the personal statement can’t be changed so, if you are applying for a different course, it’s a good idea to contact the university or college first and explain to them that you’ve changed your mind and offer to send through a revised personal statement specific to the new choice.

It is definitely worth looking into Extra if you end up not holding an offer, as each year it’s the way that around 8,000 people secure their place.

For more information on replying to offers, and Extra, go to ucas.com. Plus award-winning UCAS advisers are at hand on facebook.com/ucasonline, on Twitter at @ucas_online or you can call 0871 468 0468.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 37

The big step

Where you choose to live in the first year of university can have a positive impact on the entire experience, so choose wisely and you’ll have a ball, writes Rebecca Murch of UNITE

Where to start?

There are many accommodation choices available for students these days, from halls of residence to shared houses, lodgings with a family and, of course, the option for parents to buy a property for their son or daughter and their friends to 38 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT SPRING 2014

live in. The choices are endless, but the university itself is also a good place to start. All universities have an accommodation office that can give advice about the different options as well as allocating places in halls of residence.

Many universities still run traditional halls of residence, both catered and self-catering. Plus, most university towns and cities also have a range of private halls run by companies such as UNITE. These offer a wide range of choices from budget options through to a very high level of specification and service.

Students can choose from shared flats with several study bedrooms, usually en suite, sharing a kitchen and common area, or self-contained studio flats. Other options such as sharing a flat with a room

There are many accommodation choices available and the university itself is a good place to start

mate, or a more traditional corridor of study bedrooms, are also available in some cities.

Staying on campus Halls of residence are still the most popular choice for first years. In our recent Next Generation survey of applicants, more than 90% said they wanted to live in some kind of student halls because it would help them meet other students. In the same survey, current students told us they were surprised how easy it was to make close, supportive friends in halls, which gave them a network to fall back on through all the ups and downs of student life.

Many halls now have a Facebook page so www.independentschoolparent.com

ImagEs:IsTock/blINdToy99/dImITrIjE

T

he transition to university is always a significant step in the lives of young people and their parents. As well as being a rung up the educational ladder, it also represents the next phase of independence, moving away from school and the family home into student accommodation – and the right living environment can help you get the most out of university.

UNIVERSITY

Top Tips for making friends in your sTudenT accommodaTion

1

Personalise your door You will all arrive at university at different times, so sometimes it is hard to know who has, and hasn’t, moved in. Why not display a photo or something with your name or a nickname on your door to remind people who you are in the early days?

Be prepared Although it might feel a bit manufactured, having your ice-breaker conversation down to a tee is not a bad idea and can help prevent any initial awkwardness. When you first meet everyone try and have some quirky facts about yourself at the ready and asking people questions always help.

2

❝ Many university halls have a Facebook

page so that students can get to know one another before they arrive ❞ that applicants can get to know one another before they arrive. The ability to make friends easily is perhaps one of the biggest benefits of halls.

Finding the best fit

3

Play a game Cards, Monopoly, Jenga, you name it – games are often a great way of getting a new group of people interacting and being themselves.

Be social media savvy Have a look on social media sites for others in your building, course or university before you arrive.

Get involved The choice of events, clubs and societies at university is endless. Make the most of Freshers’ week and sign up to a range of activities.

Be adventurous; there are often new things to try and many clubs allow a trial session. It is a great way to meet new people.

4 5

Visit independentschoolparent.com for our free checklist for all you need to know on University Accommodation.

Getting your accommodation right is key to enjoying all that a university has to offer

When it comes to living arrangements, everyone has different preferences so it’s worth trying to match yours with the choices on offer. Some halls will organise social and sports events and even trips or volunteering opportunities, so it is worth looking in detail at each available option, not just the specification of the rooms but the way in which the community is run.

For the more independently minded student, a room in a shared house might be a better fit. If you want an independent opinion the university accommodation office should be able to give advice.

When to begin the search...

You can start looking at options as soon as you start applying to universities, but until you receive confirmation of a place be wary about what you sign. Some accommodation providers – both universities and private companies, including UNITE – will offer rooms on a no-risk basis, whereas other landlords may hold you to a contract even if the university place falls through. www.independentschoolparent.com

SPRING 2014 independenT scHooL parenT 39

UNIVERSITY

How to find the right place for you Jane Phelps, director of external relations at New College of the Humanities, has some sage words of advice

M

ost sixth formers are regaled by parents, friends and even teachers on what university was like in their day. Well sixth formers, it has all changed! Not the enjoyment of study, nor the excitement of social life, but the number and content of the courses, how they are taught, by whom and how they are examined.

Start your research in the spring term of the Lower Sixth/Year 12 on the UCAS website: ucas.com. It’s rather daunting – with over 37,000 undergraduate courses – but with the course search facility and all the information behind the subject entries, there is enough information to start your “long” list of possible universities.

Armed with a list, you need to ask yourself if the information tells you what you need to know. The answer is probably yes – and no. The real research begins after UCAS, and be prepared to examine forensically what’s on offer.

For the best way of getting the inside knowledge on an individual university, check its website and prospectus. While they are indeed selling documents, they will give you more detailed information on the institution.

Alternatively, attending open days gives you a good feel of the atmosphere of the university, and a view of where it is, how easy it is to travel there and how much everything costs.

Do remember on the open day that you should meet the faculty and current students of your chosen course. While lifestyle questions are useful, the real questions at this point should be focused on how much teaching you will get and from whom. And this is exactly where forensic examination comes into play.

Attending sample lectures, and speaking to academics and current students should tell you more about course

40 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT spring 2014

Right, New College of the Humanities, London, offers a deeper, liberal arts programme

options and how many people are in a lecture or seminar group. If you get figures like 400 for the former and 25 for the latter, be aware that is big!

Numbers will provide insight into how accessible the academics are, if they will know your name at some point and if they have enough time to dedicate to your academic development. Academics also do a lot of research, so make sure teaching doesn’t come secondary to that – you need support, encouragement and academic rigour from your chosen university and course.

Current students of a particular course can also help if you ask them questions like: how many essays they complete, and how helpful the marking process is. Illegible squiggles on your paper and a lack of guidance will not help you stay motivated and excited about your learning.

Be selective when going to open days, be aware that going to lots of these days is expensive and time consuming, so be robust in your approach. Twitter and Facebook can also help you contact current students; check out the forums

on Student Room: thestudentroom. co.uk/forum, What Uni for university reviews: whatuni.com and for the very keen and determined, take a look at HEAP Degree Course Offers – you or your school need to subscribe if you want to use the course search – and go to heaponline.co.uk.

Finally, you may want to abandon the beaten track in your research and check out other institutions which aren’t in UCAS. If you would like to study one of the humanities and have an interest in studying your degree within a broader, deeper liberal arts programme, try the New College of the Humanities and take a look at: nchum.org.

Perhaps you’d like to travel further afield and the US system appeals to you; in which case the Fulbright Commission: fulbright.org.uk would be the first port of call.

Don’t be daunted – and do not expect to make a course decision straight away – there will be many changes of direction along the way, particularly as you go through your sixth-form programme. Good luck! www.independentschoolparent.com

Explore your creative potential Central Saint Martins Short Courses for under 19s

Easter and Summer 2014 courses at Central Saint Martins in London to introduce 16 to 18 year olds to new subjects, help with their course work or prepare their portfolios for future application to art college: Animation • Digital design • Drawing • Fashion • Fine art • Graphic design • Illustration • Interior design • Painting • Performance • Photography • Portfolio preparation • Textiles • Theatre design • Web design Plus these specially designed residential Summer Art, Design and Fashion holiday programmes: • 2-week Art and Design or Fashion and Styling Workshops for 13 to 17 year olds in Suffolk (July) • 3-week Art, Design or Fashion Summer Schools for 13 to 15 year olds in Berkshire (August)

www.arts.ac.uk /csm/shortcourses Short Course Office, Central Saint Martins, Granary Building, 1 Granary Square, King’s Cross, London N1C 4AA, UK. Email: shortcourse@csm.arts.ac.uk Sign up for special offers and updates by email: www.arts.ac.uk/csm/subscribe.

Telephone enquiries and Customer service: 020 7514 7015 (From overseas dial +44 20 7514 7015)

COMMENT

The GreatMy War story Dr Anthony Seldon, master of Wellington College, writes a moving account on how his family was affected by the conflict

N

o anniversary in my lifetime compares with the centenary of the Great War from 2014-2018. As the head of Wellington College, Berkshire, I am acutely aware of what it means. The school lost 707 of its old boys in the fighting, the third highest number of any school in Britain.

The anniversary also provides the opportunity for all of us to reconnect with the history of our own families. I was moved to write Public Schools and the Great War, in 2013, because of the experience of my own grandparents, Wilfred and Eileen Willett.

They met at a May Ball in Cambridge in 1913 and they fell deeply in love. The outbreak of war on 4th August 1914, Eileen’s 21st birthday, disturbed their idyll. Wilfred had been an enthusiastic member of the Officer Training Corps at St Paul’s; despite Eileen’s protestations, he decided at once to join up.

Wilfred enlisted in the London Rifle Brigade, and was sent out with the British Expeditionary Force to Belgium, finding himself in action at Ploegsteert Wood, to the south of the Ypres Salient.

He formed a close bond with fellow junior officer, Henry Williamson, with whom he shared a love of writing and nature. Williamson went on to write Tarka the Otter.

On 13th December 1914, Wilfred’s servant was shot in no man’s land.

Without pausing to consider his own safety, Wilfred clambered out of the trench, and tended to his wounds. A German sniper, seeing a British officer

Right, Dr Anthony Seldon laying a wreath on Remembrance Sunday 2013

crouched over a wounded body, took careful aim, and shot him in the head.

Eileen was distressed that she had no message from Wilfred before Christmas.

Exploiting her family connections, she demanded that the War Office tell her what had happened. She badgered the government to let her sail across the Channel to bring him back. She secured an official permit to do so, a remarkable coup, and almost without precedent.

Wilfred’s speech was badly affected and much of his bodily movement severely restricted; he realised he would never be able to become a doctor.

However, the arrival of a son and two daughters brought some joy.

Wilfred’s friendship with Henry Williamson, who moved towards the fascists, fell apart, while he himself

The long shadow of the Great War affected not only world history, but that of countless individuals ❞ ❝

www.independentschoolparent.com

became a communist. Wilfred nevertheless sent my mother to a private school in Tunbridge Wells. At the end of the school day, he would be on the railway bridge selling copies of The Daily Worker, while she would cross to the other side of the pavement, crimson with embarrassment.

The long shadow of the Great War affected not only world history, but that of countless individuals. My mother sits day after day gazing at the mantelpiece with photographs of Wilfred and Eileen.

The war might have finished 100 years ago, but for many people living in Britain today, it is still far from over.

Public Schools and the Great War by Anthony Seldon and David Walsh, (Pen and Sword), RRP £25.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT 43

Your world of difference

We’re independent and we’re not-for-profit This means our sole focus is on ensuring that the standard of teaching, the quality of the environment and the student experience are outstanding.

We offer dynamic British and American undergraduate programmes in: › Business and Management › Psychology › Drama, Film and Media › Arts and Social Sciences › Fashion and Design

Visit our beautiful campus in Regent’s Park, London.

Register for one of our undergraduate open days regents.ac.uk/opendays

T 020 7487 7505

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SCHOOL’S OUT

Do it yourself...

Shell LiveWIRE Young Entrepreneur of the Year finalist, Jennifer Duthie, went against the grain to start her own business. Josephine Price caught up with her

1. How would you describe your experience of school?

My time at school, especially my sixth form years, were really great as I was studying subjects that I really enjoyed. I went to Arnold (now AKS), a prestigious independent school in the Fylde Coast, Lancashire. I was lucky to have the chance to do extra-curricular activities that have formed me as a person, and to be pushed academically, to achieve exceptional results.

8. What do you do to seek inspiration and creativity?

I got the idea for Skribbies when I was day dreaming about being a kid and playing with fabric paints. Of course the challenge is turning an idea into a reality and that takes time and resilience. Ideas can come from anywhere.

9. What advice would you give to yourself if you could start over?

I would tell myself that even when everything seems to be going wrong and could not be worse, that it is not really that bad and that I will look back at the really tough times with fond memories.

I would tell myself to stress out less and that I have the skills to take on anything and should remember that.

2. Do you have any views on independent (private) education?

I think that private education does give children more opportunities and I would certainly invest in private education for my children when the time comes.

3. How do you think your experience at school shaped you?

At school I was involved in several extra-curricular activities which have taught me time management. In addition, I played a considerable amount of hockey at a national level which has given me team skills and the ability to cope well under pressure. I had the chance to do things like Army cadets, Duke of Edinburgh, fundraising and Young Enterprise.

4. What did your teachers do to inspire you and nurture your dreams?

My teachers pushed me. I was not the most intelligent child in school but the teachers worked with me to understand how I best learnt. I am a visual learner which means I need pictures and visual aids to help me remember things.

5. Have you always wanted to start your own business?

No. As a youngster I was quite risk averse. I am scared of heights and swimming in the sea so you wouldn’t see me doing any thrill-seeking activities like bungee jumping. Also school encourages you to go to university and take on a “safe” corporate job. I thought I would get a steady job and climb the ladder. I www.independentschoolparent.com

Shell LiveWIRE Young Entrepreneur finalist, Jennifer Duthie with one of her Skribbies shoes

spent my time at university interning at major corporates not start-ups and joined the Lehman Brothers’ graduate programme. The company went bankrupt a few days into my training and there began my road to becoming an entrepreneur.

6. Tell us a little bit about your route to success since leaving school?

Success is very subjective. I am proud of what I have achieved to date and I have high aspirations for Skribbies. Since leaving school I feel that studying business at Aston Business School, who encourage a year spent working in industry, helped me; plus I worked for Microsoft, as well as several summers at Lehman Brothers. I developed valuable professional skills at both companies and I thoroughly enjoyed my time there.

I also took risks such as leaving a well-paid banking role to move to Asia where I started my first company.

Running a business in a developing economy, rife with red-tape makes running a business in the UK seem easy.

7. What advice would you give to those at school with a business idea?

Start it!

10. What has been the biggest challenge since leaving school?

My main challenge was actually deciding to study business and go against the traditional Asian “approved” professions: doctor, lawyer or engineer.

My father is Indian and felt that these were solid professions and a business degree would not give me job security. I guess he was right as losing my job at Lehman showed me early on that no corporate role is a safe role.

11. How did you find starting out on your own as a female?

I never usually focus on gender roles. I just hope that I can inspire other young women to start their own companies.

12. Tell us a little about your business, Skribbies?

Skribbies is a brand of kids’ shoes made with a special material that allows children to customise their shoes every day from new. Kids can draw all over them, then wipe off and start again.

13. What next for Jennifer Duthie?

Growing Skribbies into a respected international brand with revenues in excess of £1 million within the next three years.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 45

10mm Margin

THINK

BEYOND BORDERS SOAS is the world’s leading institution for the study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

A SOAS education will develop your understanding of a complex and interconnected world, encouraging you to consider your subject from a new perspective.

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THE TIE COLLECTOR ADRIAN PALMER Wycliffe Preparatory School, Gloucestershire Instead of the usual leaving gifts the children give me ties: the more outrageous the better, and so my collection has blossomed to over 200. When I put one on it reminds me of the child who gave it to me and why they chose it. What a wonderful way to start your day!!

HEADS HOBBIES From tie collecting to tango dancing – how our headmasters and headmistresses unwind after a long day at school...

THE PINBALL WIZARD MARK POTTER Laxton Junior School,

THE AVIATOR

Cambridgeshire

DAVID ALEXANDER

The first pinball machine that I

Newland House Prep School, London

bought was in such a sorry state that

My love of flying started when my wife bought me a

I stripped it from top to bottom,

lesson for my 18th birthday. This led to me gaining a pilot’s

taught myself to solder and enjoyed

license, which was at about the same time as being

the moments when I could get

appointed to my first Headship. Today, I command No.

away from work issues and lose

616 Volunteer Gliding Squadron. This role involves training

myself in the machine. To date, I

future RAF pilots. It also came in handy recently when I

have traded a further 13 machines.

flew a plane to France to join the children on a history trip!

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SCHOOL’S OUT IPSUM

THE SAILOR ANDREW FLECK Sedbergh School, Cumbria Having been a sailor since birth, I head over the horizon when the summer holidays arrive. For the past ten years, me and my family (all sailors) have used Shetland as a base from which to sail our classic wooden yacht in the north Atlantic. In winter, boat maintenance and snowboarding keeps the adrenalin flowing and stress at bay.

THE TANGO DANCER BERNICE MCCABE North London Collegiate School On a trip to Buenos Aires in 2009, a friend persuaded me to try the Argentine Tango. I fell in love with

THE EVENTER

it and spent the remainder of our

NICOLA HUGGETT

holiday practising in classes.

Blundell’s, Devon

When I returned, I continued the

There is no doubt that having an interest away from

lessons and I occasionally go to

school is vital if you want to stay sane as a Head. I love

“milongas” – special events

being out in the fresh air, so riding is one of my

around London where people

favourite activities. I find that I can think most creatively

dance tango. I use my experience

when I am outside – away from phones and computers.

to encourage NLCS girls to try new things. Today, I still have my tango shoes lined up in my

❝ Whereas my

bedroom to remind me of the importance of having hobbies outside of work.

THE COMPOSER ALEX OSIATYNSKI Bilton Grange, Warwickshire I really look forward to being at the keyboard with pencil and manuscript: composing has always been a passion. While not every piece is a masterwork I really enjoy the challenge of writing for children, especially children’s voices, whether it is an original composition or an arrangement. I like to gauge their opinion too!

THE BEE KEEPER ANNE SWEENEY Coworth Flexlands School, Surrey I have my own hive in my garden and the honey we produce has a unique taste

IMAGES: ISTOCK

from the herbs growing nearby. Bee keeping is a contrast to school life.

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school is a pacy place to work, you have to be very slow and gentle when handling bees - very effective in calming a busy mind! ❞ Anne Sweeney, Coworth Flexlands School

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Keeping up with the world wide web

COMMENT

How we use IT in schools, and exercise our control over teenage use, is headline news in education, writes Martin Taylor, director of IT at Heathfield School, Ascot

I

n the last few weeks, we’ve had stories in the national press about how politicians think we should police pupils’ phones and protect them from the apparent plague of sexting images; stories about the latest software tools schools are using for decoding potential misuse of the internet, such as Impero; Eton College banning Snapchat; and the subsequent debate on protecting children from damaging apps and sites. Suddenly, IT and how and whether to censor and block sites or not is one of the hottest topics in education.

At Heathfield, I run the IT department and also work on the Senior Leadership Team. This is relevant because it is a mark of how important IT is to the school as far as using it innovatively to enhance the curriculum and therefore the education we offer, and to monitor usage of the internet to identify any disturbing trends. It is important for the senior management to be up to speed with all these issues every day, and I am the link between them and any potentially harmful emerging trends.

I like to think that we are very much in the vanguard of those schools identifying and blocking inappropriate websites. We’ve been doing so for several years with an advanced firewall and content filter, identifying and blocking sites such as Snapchat, Bebo, Omegle and Formspring shortly after they appeared because they allowed malicious or anti-teacher content.

But you can never stand still.

Monitoring and filtering damaging social sites is a constant exercise – it’s never “set and forget”, which is a

In his role as director of IT at Heathfield, Martin Taylor, above, keeps the school management abreast of any disturbing trends on the internet

well-worn and worthwhile motto of experienced IT professionals. New sites and apps which target teenagers and can be a threat to them are constantly appearing on the internet.

We have a responsibility to block malicious social sites on the school network but blocking can never be the only story – neither can censorship because the power of the internet is in its adaptability and innovation and this can work for the good and, sometimes, for the bad. We will therefore only really win the struggle against such sites and apps by educating users and those who oversee them. This is crucial because, of course, any 3G mobile devices allowed at school, such as smartphones, bypass all our efforts at blocking.

This is one of the reasons why I don’t believe we should use keyword-based software to monitors students’ internet and email use which suggest inappropriate use. I think there is a fine

❝ You can never stand still with the web.

Monitoring damaging social sites is a constant exercise – it’s never a case of ‘set and forget’ ❞ www.independentschoolparent.com

line to tread between over-zealous monitoring and spying on our students.

All that will happen is that they will increasingly acquire 3G devices and bypass us entirely, which would put them into potential danger from grooming and similar activities.

Education is definitely the solution, not increasingly desperate attempts at censorship in the face of the everchanging landscape of the internet.

At Heathfield, only senior (over 14) girls are allowed monitored access to social networking. Younger girls are not, nor are they allowed to have smartphones at school, but it may be a different story at home so we need to educate the girls and parents.

Students are educated during PHSE lessons about all aspects of internet safety and the potential dangers of giving away personal information; how to spot signs of grooming; and the dangers of taking conversations one-to-one.

Parents must actively participate in helping to protect their daughters and we speak to the Parents’ Association and parental year groups on a regular basis.

We brief them on the signs to look for – changes in behaviour, secretiveness and high data usage and encourage them to maintain open communications. They are encouraged to activate teenage filters in their daughters’ mobile contracts and to consider using filter software on their home computers, such as Net Nanny.

But I do not personally believe in the latest suggestions by senior politician Norman Baker from the Home Office that teachers should be responsible for looking through pupils’ phones for sexting images and deleting them. It is not a teacher’s responsibility to do this routinely. We would only consider it acceptable to do so if such use was strongly suspected.

I firmly believe that educating pupils and parents about internet safety is more effective than any amount of blocking will ever be.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 51

Bright

YOUNGTHINGS

Up-and-coming stars from the independent school sector, by Josephine Price

Rick Findler, 29

Photographer WELLINGTON COLLEGE, BERKSHIRE Rick’s photojournalism degree has led him to document events from the London riots in August 2011 to the Royal Wedding earlier in the year, but his real passion lies in photographing conflicts.

His work on the Syrian civil war sparked a worldwide debate when The Sunday Times refused to accept his images as they did not want freelancers to take any unnecessary risks. These images have featured in the Press Photographers 2013 Exhibition in London. Rick has now

Sophie Millns, 20

co-founded his own agency specialising in conflict zones, called Borderline News.

Stage designer EASTBOURNE COLLEGE, EAST SUSSEX Young Sophie Millns is making her mark on the world of theatre and hasn’t even

Alan Mak, 29

finished her studies yet. She is currently

Lawyer and philanthropist

studying Technical Theatre and Stage

ST PETER’S SCHOOL, YORK

already begun to showcase her talents

Alan has curated an impressive CV for

in some renowned settings. Sophie has

himself since school. He is an

been working in the props and design

award-winning lawyer, investor and

departments at Glyndebourne Opera

president of the Magic Breakfast

House and the Royal Shakespeare

charity, which helps 8,000 children

Company and recently staged her first

have breakfast before school. His

design work at RADA’s Gielgud Theatre

charity work has been recognised by

in London in a Phillip Ridley production.

Management at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), but she has

David Cameron, Boris Johnson and even by the Olympic Committee who selected him as a “local hero” to carry the Olympic torch in London 2012.

52 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

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SchooL’S out Vikki Stone, 28

Comedian

WeLLS cathedraL SchooL, SoMerSet Vikki is a talented artist who has been celebrated for her acting, singing and comedy. She has graced many a stage with her popular stand-up comedy shows, entwining her wit and musical abilities. Like many modern stars, she has witnessed the successes of going viral as her Youtube video about her longtime crush on Phillip Schofield helped her gain a spot on

Sophie Kennedy Clark, 23

his show, This Morning, where she serenaded her hero.

Actress

LathaLLan SchooL, ScotLand Playing the part of a young Judi Dench is no mean feat, but Sophie Kennedy Clark took it in her stride in her latest film, Philomena, alongside the Dame herself and Steve Coogan. Since leaving school, Sophie has got involved in a number of projects, but her big break came in 2010 when she appeared in the BBC production, Single Father with David Tennant. She also made her mark on the modelling world when she was selected to be the face of a Burberry campaign with Mario Testino. And with one Vogue cover under her belt, modelling could always make a comeback for Sophie.

Chris Robshaw, 27

Rugby player

MiLLfieLd SchooL, SoMerSet iMAgeS: KeiTH MAYHeW/AlAMY

Chris Robshaw is an English rugby union flanker, captain of the Harlequins and captain of the England rugby union team for the RBS Six Nations 2014. His time at school from the age of seven, first at Cumnor House and then at Millfield was dominated by rugby, where he excelled in the first teams. His commitment to the sport has made him a likeable leader who has won many “player of the year” accolades.

www.independentschoolparent.com

For more information visit... www.independentschoolparent.com

spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PaRENT 53

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54 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT SPRING 2014

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hobbies

Across the board Chess builds concentration and thinking skills, which are clearly beneficial for academic learning and life beyond the classroom, writes Giulia Rhodes

ImaGe: bRett PReStIdGe

F

or busy children and busy parents alike, extracurricular activities can sometimes feel like a chore.

What starts as fun soon ends up as another source of tiredness, nagging, expense – and dirty washing.

There is however a free, fun and exciting hobby, which helps children make new friends, improves confidence and self-esteem, develops focus, concentration, memory and problemsolving skills – with no muddy kit!

Chess has been around for over 1,000 years, but as the game enjoys a worldwide resurgence in popularity, schools too are increasingly discovering the benefits of the ultimate strategy game enjoyed by over 500 million players across the world.

There is no shortage of research detailing the benefits of chess for children. Studies have highlighted important links with improved academic performance, behaviour, classroom engagement and self-esteem.

“Winning is a great feeling but children also learn how to deal with not winning,” says Alasdair McBay, director of studies and head of chess at Hampton School for boys, South West London.

“The great thing about chess is that they don’t see it as losing – they just see it as an opportunity to learn another tactic.”

“After every big game the players get together and replay each other’s matches. They often use a computer chess analysis programme and discuss what they could do better next time. It’s wonderful to see such enthusiasm.”

Chess is often perceived as an individual’s game, but in fact, it is a fantastic way to teach young people the value of teamwork. “Our players look out

Chess is not all about winning, the game encourages teamwork, tactics and problem solving

for each other. They mix with different age groups – as ability is not age dependent. They have a lot of respect for each other’s abilities,” says McBay. While the purpose of offering chess at the school – through a popular daily lunchtime drop-in club and teams – is to offer the children “a great sport which is fun and accessible to all”, McBay is also proud of his players’ success.

The school’s five teams take part in local and national championships. With an already bulging trophy cupboard, they recently won the National Schools’ Chess Plate Championship and the most committed players are offered occasional sessions with a local Grand Master to help develop their games.

“The school encourages pupils to participate in a broad range of co-

❝ Winning is a great feeling but children

also learn how to deal with not winning ❞ www.independentschoolparent.com

curricular activities, as we find this helps them to grow into happy and well-rounded individuals. Chess is very much a part of this,” says McBay. “And it is popular amongst a wide mix of pupils – for example we have two “A” squad rowers and a First team rugby player in the First chess team.”

Having watched his parents play, Jake Ruse, 14 and in the First chess team, joined a local club aged eight.

“I enjoy it because it is different from other sports. It challenges people mentally, not physically,” says Jake. He believes games that have lasted as long as four hours have enhanced his problem solving ability and strengthened his concentration.

Most of all Alasdair McBay is delighted that his students are developing a hobby they can keep.

“Whether you choose to sit and play a game with your grandchild in front of the fire or take it seriously and enter competitions, it is pure pleasure.”

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 55

FANCY DRESS Thalia Thompson looks at the school uniforms with a story to tell‌

SCHool uniFoRM

F

or most parents and pupils, a school uniform simply means not having to worry about what to wear in the morning. But in some schools, the clothes students wear really have become part of the fabric of the school. Here we take a look at some of the more distinctive school uniforms and the stories behind them.

Wearing a piece of history

Uniforms have been part of British school life since Tudor times. Back in the 16th century, foundling hospitals or schools began to be established to educate poor children. Many of these came to be known as “bluecoat schools” thanks to the distinctive blue uniforms worn by pupils.

Christ’s Hospital, founded by Edward VI in 1552, was one of these original bluecoat schools and putting on its uniform today is like wearing a piece of history. It’s one of the oldest uniforms in existence and is still provided free of charge to pupils.

It’s Tudor in style, with a billowing dark blue coat known as a “housey” fastened with a leather belt. This is worn with bright yellow socks – allegedly

helpful for keeping the rats at bay in days gone by – breeches for the boys and pleated skirts for girls with white cotton bands in place of a tie.

And that’s just the everyday uniform – there’s also a ceremonial uniform with an ankle length skirt and lace jabot, not to mention the velvet cuffs and silver buttons awarded to high-achievers.

The oldest girls’ school in the country, Red Maids’ in Bristol, also gets its name from its uniform. It was founded in 1634

by Mayor and MP John Whitson who left directions in his will that the girls should be “apparelled in red cloth.”

The girls still wear a red uniform today, though here the traditional capes, bonnets and gabardines are only brought out for Founder’s Day, when the whole school marches through the city centre to a thanksgiving service at Bristol Cathedral.

A modern approach

Of course, distinctive uniforms can be a more modern introduction too. When Oundle went co-educational in 1990, they wanted a uniform that was both “unmistakably Oundle and that cut a dash”, explains former second master, Norman Brittain.

The result was the Oundle culottes.

Viv Gascoine, housemistress and chair of the current uniform committee, explains that the school wanted “to make a statement on both identity and commitment. The culottes were chosen as they were seen as a way of creating www.independentschoolparent.com

Far left and bottom left, Christ’s Hospital, West Sussex Above and bottom right, The Red Maids’ School, Bristol

femininity without compromising the girls as equals to the boys.”

They were also a very practical choice, with the design being amended over the years until now they are ankle length.

“Girls are able to climb stairs, walk, run and yet still feel feminine and comfortable. They are a great hit, with them particularly appreciating the ability to surreptitiously wear warm woolly socks and even pyjama bottoms underneath them on cold winter days!”

It’s a very practical tradition Tradition meets practicality at Godolphin School in Salisbury, where girls wear Victorian-style pinafores over their uniforms – red for the prep school, blue for the senior school all the way up to the sixth form.

These “pinnies” have come to symbolise the school and are loved by the pupils for their individuality and their sheer usefulness.

“The pinny captures the essence of Godolphin in one big baggy blue flourish” enthuses Godolphin pupil, Georgie Smith. “It keeps your skirt clean, keeps your hair dry in the rain, is useful for mopping any unwanted spills and can be used to smuggle biscuits or hot chocolate. I spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 57

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58 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT SPRING 2014

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SChOOl unifORM

Right, Oundle School, Cambridgeshire Below left, Godolphin School, Wiltshire

love my pinny to bits and will miss it so much when the time comes to stop wearing it.”

A sense of community A uniform can help promote a sense of community in a school. Even when a pupil might initially think it is unusual, all these schools report that pupils come to love the uniform and enjoy its quirks.

At Merchiston Castle in Edinburgh, the boys wear a kilt for formal occasions and international students in particular can be taken aback by this at first. The school

❝ When Christ’s Hospital put updating

their uniform to the vote, 95% of students voted against changing it ❞ doesn’t insist on the kilt being worn, but as housemaster Philip Rossiter explains, “I always say to new boys that it may strike you as a bit odd but when you see all the other boys you’ll want to look part of a crowd. And it’s amazing how quickly they want to wear one and then they take great pride in the photograph being sent to parents of them all in their kilts on the first formal occasion of term.”

Kilts are an optional part of the dress uniform at Gordonstoun School too.

These, like the girls’ kilts, are made in the official Gordonstoun tartan, registered in 1956 and designed by combining the colours of the three families who had owned the estate over the centuries.

Standing out from the crowd

There’s no doubt of the affection the pupils feel for their uniforms. Both Christ’s Hospital and Godolphin have www.independentschoolparent.com

Boys at Merchiston Castle, Edinburgh, wear kilts for formal occasions

suggested changing their uniform and both had a resounding answer that pupils and parents wanted to hold on to tradition and keep the uniform.

In fact, when Christ’s Hospital put updating their uniform to the vote in 2011, 95% of students voted against changing it, one commenting: “the uniform was pretty much the reason I wanted to come to Christ’s Hospital in the first place; it illustrates the unique experience Christ’s Hospital offers.”

Different as the uniforms adopted by all these schools are, there’s a real sense that pupils are proud to stand out from the crowd in their distinctive attire. spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 59

There’s a difference between striving for excellence and aiming for perfection 60 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT spring 2014

www.independentschoolparent.com

healTh

The

perfectionist

W

e all want our children to try hard and to do their best – but what happens if your child believes that their best is never good enough?

That’s the position Sara and her daughter, Milly, found themselves in.

“Milly had always done really well at prep school,” remembers Sara. “But when she started at senior school, the

www.independentschoolparent.com

child

academic work ramped up and it just became unsustainable to put in the kind of hours she was.” Things came to a head when Milly was 14; she became increasingly anxious about her work and ended up in tears one day over a B grade. “It was just a piece of homework, not even a formal assessment,” says Sara. “But it made me realise Milly was getting things seriously out of proportion and it needed to be addressed.”

Recognising perfectionism Dr Gordon Flett, a psychologist at the York University in Canada, is internationally renowned for his work on perfectionism.

“It is important for parents – and teachers – to emphasise the difference between striving for excellence, which is encouraged, versus striving for perfection.”

Jane Gandee, headmistress at St Swithun’s senior school, based in Winchester, Hampshire, and a member of the Girls’ Schools Association, agrees with this distinction.

“Perfectionism is always unhealthy and generally counter-productive in terms of learning, but attention to detail and a desire to produce work of a high standard are to be commended.”

A perfectionist will set themselves impossibly high standards and often believes that their self worth or acceptance is dependent on meeting these standards. He or she can be fiercely self critical and fear of failure can make them unwilling to take risks or even begin a piece of work. According to Dr Flett, perfectionism in children and adolescents has been linked to anxiety and depression as well problems in personal relationships.

spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 61

images: Brian Jackson/alamy/istock/pJdodd/idealistock

What’s wrong with having a child that always strives to get things right? Thalia Thompson finds out…

healTh

❝ Make sure your child knows

they are loved unconditionally – just for being themselves, not for what they achieve ❞

IS yOur CHILD a PErfECTIONIST? The following signs indicate that your child could be developing perfectionist tendencies:  They’re very critical of themselves – perhaps tearing up work that they don’t consider to be acceptable.  They procrastinate and avoid starting difficult tasks.  Your child finds it difficult to prioritise work – typically working unnecessarily on the presentation of a piece of work or spending too long on an optional extra.  Despite spending hours on homework, they often hand it in at the last moment or even late – because there was always “just one more thing to do” to it to make it PERFECT.

www.independentschoolparent.com

Parents have a huge role in helping their perfectionist child moderate their expectations

What can you do to help?

Dealing with mistakes

The first step is to help your child understand that perfectionism isn’t a good thing. Make sure your child knows they are loved unconditionally – just for being themselves, not for what they achieve. When talking about school work, Gandee suggests praising your child’s efforts not just their grades.

“Praise creativity, interesting ideas or trying a different way of doing things rather than the finished product.”

Perfectionists can be too inhibited by the fear of failure to take the risk of trying something different. But making mistakes is a very important part of learning and growing up.

Talk positively with your child about having the courage to try new things – and let them know it’s okay to make mistakes. “A good conversation starter is when parents discuss mistakes that they’ve made in the past and how they coped with them,” says Dr Flett.

The practical way we deal with everyday problems and setbacks at home or work can set a useful example, too, with Dr Flett recommending that we demonstrate “appropriate calm responses when we make mistakes.” Or, as Gandee puts it “make sure that as an adult you model a healthy disregard for perfection, for example by not worrying too much about mess, mud and the normal detritus of family life.”

Help them get a sense of proportion Learning how to prioritise tasks is an important life skill. “Remind children never to aim for perfection, but always to aim for excellence. Encourage them to give their full attention to their work for a set period of time and then to stop,” advises Gandee.

spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 63

SCHOOL HeRO

[ Meet tHe… ]

Deputy head of pastoral Nicola Hawkins of Stonar School, Wiltshire, encourages her pupil “family” to discover their individuality

I

n my office, I have a picture of Dalmatians, all of them white with black spots apart from one who has fluorescent spots. It is captioned “dare to be different”.

When I was at school I was lucky enough to have an inspirational P.E teacher. She had a pastoral heart and was a big advocate of outdoor education. She took me along Crib Goch in Snowdonia when I was about 13 years old; and over the next five years, and in every season of the year, we went on to do just about every gnarly ridge scramble in the Lake District and Snowdonia she could find. Along the way she taught us to climb, to sail, to kayak and to cave and under her ministrations we thrived. In essence we were just a group of kids, supported by an individual who believed in us. That teacher gave me the confidence to dare to be different; she gave me a belief in my own abilities and the determination never to give in. That is the power of a great teacher, a role model, and that is what I hope to be for the pupils under my care.

Each child should have the freedom to “dare to be different” and this is why, since becoming a teacher, I have forged a pastoral role. I still love the buzz I get from teaching science, but pastoral care is where my heart lies. Living with young people is never dull and the transition from childhood, through adolescence into early adulthood is no easy one. Hormones and a maelstrom of emotions require careful handling, yet I do it because I believe in what I do. Being a houseparent is an enormous responsibility. Parents entrust us with their children and ultimately they need to know that their child is not only safe, but thriving under our care.

I work with a fantastic team of teaching houseparents who truly live the job. Each one has great sense of humour, kindness and empathy in bucket loads. They have

64 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT SPRING 2014

Above, Nicola Hawkins with pupils at Stonar School, Wiltshire

the ability to remain positive no matter what life throws at them and when push comes to shove they can function on little or no sleep which also comes in handy!

Together we guide and nurture, while remaining “firm but fair”, we help our pupils respect boundaries, yes the pupils still make mistakes, we all do, but I don’t believe in regrets; rather that we should

needs to find their inner confidence and motivation, each has distinctive needs. In our small school, with a strong sense of family and community spirit, relationships are strong; houseparents and tutors really get to know the pupils; not just who they are, but their learning styles, their motivations, their strengths and their fears too.

There is a saying that goes “a cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart”, and this idea can be applied to education.

First, ensure that pupils feel comfortable in their own skin and that they feel they belong. If a child is happy then their mind is likely to be open to new possibilities. The second is in recognising a pupil’s strengths.

For some this may be through academia but for others it may be for another talent – and for many of our pupils it may involve a horse! Helping children make the most of their talents by recognising their individual learning style, and supporting them with staff who give them the attention they require, helps to build a

Helping children make the most of their talents by recognising their learning style helps to build a sense of self-belief and confidence ❞

❝

learn from our mistakes. How you move forward is the measure of the individual.

At Stonar, pastoral care is at the heart of what we do. The Pastoral Care team I head up works closely with staff throughout the school to ensure each child’s learning is developed in an individual and unique way to support and challenge them appropriately. Whether a pupil is gifted in a particular academic area, requires specialist support or just

child’s own sense of self-belief and confidence. The final strand is to provide every child with the chance to shine in an environment where their strengths are recognised; they then discover and believe that they matter and develop a real sense of confidence and self-worth. With these three strands in place pupils will exceed expectations both academically and personally and leave school equipped to be successful, contented adults. www.independentschoolparent.com

Boatloads of family fun this summer Our collection of award-winning holidays is designed for families who want far more than the usual summer break.

Try white water rafting in the French Alps, mountain biking in Tuscany or snorkelling off the Galapagos Islands.

We have a range of holidays to suit all ages and abilities.

Visit www.activitiesabroad.com or call 01670 789 991 to find out more.

THE ULTIMATE FAMILY HOLIDAY IN GREECE LET US GUIDE YOU TO YOUR PERFECT VILLA

www.fivestargreece.com +44 208 422 4885

www.independentschoolparent.com

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 65

trAveL

FAMILY Adventures Activities Abroad help you to create a family holiday that you’ll never forget with their hand-picked experiences

image: viewingmalta.com

F

inding something that will keep all family members happy over the long Summer is no mean feat. But, as the UK’s leading family activity travel company, Activities Abroad have been helping families achieve the perfect balance for over 12 years.

Working with local suppliers, each and every activity, hotel and restaurant is hand-picked, with all trips embracing the trusty motto: “We’ve been, we love it, so will you!”

Kids’ clubs are replaced with an assortment of activities which will excite and challenge all family members, encouraging everyone to spend time together as a family. However, there’s a fine line to getting the amount of family time just right, so there’s the added peace of mind of an age-matching service, which will ensure that your offspring will find themselves amongst like-minded friends.

Holidays which follow this tried-andtested formula are now offered in 19 exciting – yet not overly touristy – destinations, including the UK, Europe and further afield. One such location is Malta’s little sister island Gozo.

A 20-minute ferry crossing from Malta, Gozo presents families with an open-air adventure playground that’s ideal for activity holidays – from its favourable climate and clear, warm sea to its striking landscapes.

The Gozo family adventure starts with a boat trip along the coast, factoring in numerous stops for swimming and snorkelling. Stop, too, for a swim at the Blue Lagoon, a glorious bay with swimming-pool-clear water and white sand, situated between the neighbouring island of Comino and the even tinier, Cominotto. Another day will find you paddling sea kayaks following your guide along the stunning coastline, dipping in and out of caves, stopping for a snorkel and working up an appetite for the evening’s poolside BBQ. The penultimate day is spent mini B diving – a simplified form of SCUBA diving, which opens up another dimension of the island’s rich marine life. With its impressive cliffs, the island also lends itself to rock climbing and, for a dose of local culture, families visit a family-run farm for the day where

there’s the opportunity to try delicious local produce.

Whichever holiday you opt for – be it this easygoing, yet adventurous, holiday in Gozo, surfing in Portugal, or encountering wildlife in the Galapagos Islands – parents can be guaranteed that boredom will be banished and that everyone will come away from the trip with far more than just a tan.

With departures in April, July and August, Malta – The Island of Gozo costs from £1,345 per adult (over 12s) and from £1,245 per child (ages eight to 12) and includes flights from London, transfers, seven nights’ B&B, eight meals, all activities, equipment and tuition, plus local guides.

For more information, or to speak to one of the team, call 01670 789991 or visit activitiesabroad.com.

take a boat trip and stop for a swim or go snorkelling

ADVERTORIAL

Summer in the Sporades Islands...

image: five star greece

I

f you’re a fan of Greece and want a holiday with a luxe, but truly undiscovered, feel for this Summer then look no further than Five Star Greece and the idyllic islands of Skiathos, Skopelos and Skyros.

If you are a die-hard Mamma Mia! fan, you will know these islands as the technicolour beach and chapel-studded promontory backdrop to Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan’s melodic carry-ons.

Alternatively, if you are a fan of the Great War poet Rupert Brooke, you will know Skyros as the island where he is laid to rest: “If I should die, think only this of me; That there’s some corner of a foreign field That is forever England… …Washed by the rivers, blest by suns of home.”

www.independentschoolparent.com

If you’re a die-hard Mamma Mia! fan, you will recognise these islands as its backdrop ❞ ❝

Luckily the sunshine that blesses the island of Skyros belongs to Greece, and not that of England.

If you haven’t heard of Skiathos, Skopelos and Skyros, then this is the year to discover them.

Hellenic Seaplanes have promised a seaplane route to these lushly-forested, sandy-beached gems in the northern Aegean – the coolest way to arrive on holiday. The Sporades offer great value, and a similar climate to Corfu and the Ionian Islands, which have been all too much discovered. They share the crystal waters, the green canopies of cypresses,

Take some time out to chill this Summer

olive and pine, and the calm seas of Corfu, but have fewer crowds and a smaller price tag.

Five Star Greece has a portfolio of glorious private villas with pools or direct beach access, privacy and service.

Their concierge will help you plan your stay and organise activities, boating and water sports, and anything else you need to fill your Summer holiday with memories to last you through the rest of the year.

For more information visit: fivestargreece.com spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 67

BOOK CLUB

Spring reads

We round up the literary works that look back to the Great War…

ONE FOR YOU…

MY DEAR I WANTED TO TELL YOU

By Louisa Young

Paperback, £7.99, HarperCollins, out now, 18+ Louisa Young gives a gripping insight into the effects of war on personal relationships. Riley Purefoy and Peter Locke fight for their country as Nadine and Rose await their return. But who knows what the war will bring and how their relationships will stand afterwards. This heart-warming tale has been selected as a 2014 CityRead to mark the commemoration of the start of the Great War. Look out for The Heroes’ Welcome – the sequel to this much-loved novel – out in April.

Books for teens…

The First World War

By Paul Dowswell

The Steady Running of The Hour

By Justin Go

The Foreshadowing

By Marcus Sedgwick

Paperback, £8.99, Usborne Publishing,

Hardback, £14.99, William Heinemann, out

Paperback, £6.99, Orion Children’s Books,

out now, 10+

on 8th May, 16+

out now, new edition out 5th June, 12+

This is a fascinating account of the conflict,

Set just before and during the Great War, this

It is 1915 and 17-year-old Sasha Fox is the only

published in association with the Imperial

is part love story, part historical tour de force.

daughter of a respected doctor living in

War Museums. It looks at its causes, its great

A young American discovers he may be heir

Brighton. But her brothers, Edgar and Tom,

battles and catastrophes, as well as how it

to the estate of an English army officer, which

have gone to war and Sasha has a terrible gift.

affected nations and people all over the

launches him on a quest across Europe. The

She can see the future. Her premonitions

world. Pages are brought to life through vivid

author Kate Mosse has described this debut

show her the horrors on the battlefields of the

illustrations and original photographs, as well

as: “a wonderful story, beautifully written and

Somme, and what will happen to her brothers.

as timelines, maps and fact boxes.

with a superb sense of place.” We agree.

A stylish read in Sedgwick’s familiar poetic prose.

68 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

www.independentschoolparent.com

Be inspired.

Hidden Turkey We’re here to provide you with wonderful villas and boutique hotels in beautiful places, all exclusive to us. An exceptional service is supported with real knowledge and attention to detail, and on your escape we’re here to help when you need us and leave you alone when you don’t.

Discover so much more online: exclusiveescapes.co.uk

Looking for Summer Programmes?

Thinking of America for University?

CV need Improvement?

Need Advice?

Camp Experts & Teen Summers We are the only FREE advisory service in the UK We represent over 1000 programmes Worldwide and have over 25 years of experience.

Traditional Style Summer Camps Teen Travel & Community Service Languages, Leadership, Sports, Adventure, Crafts, Arts, Drama, Film, Computing/Robotics, Fashion, Academic Enrichment, Summer Courses at American & British Universities SAT & USA College Counselling Secondary School & University Internships

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KIRKER HOLIDAYS

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Venice

Ca’ Dei Conti **** Superior

Formerly a patrician palace, the Ca’ Dei Conti is a family-run, boutique hotel with just 35 rooms and a small terrace. It overlooks a canal and is five minutes’ walk from St. Mark’s Square. All bedrooms are decorated in classic 18th Century style.

Kirker clients staying in Venice on a Tuesday will be offered a small group walking tour with an expert local guide, for only £15 per person.

4 nights for the price of 3 - price from £659 per person, saving £90 Includes Doge’s Palace, Accademia or Guggenheim tickets and water taxi transfers

70 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

travellers

Kirker Holidays provides carefully crafted tailor-made holidays to over 140 destinations in 40 countries throughout Europe & beyond. We specialise in tailor-made holidays to Italy, for both individuals looking to escape for a cultural short break, and for families seeking to broaden their children’s education and take in some of the great historic cities and ancient sites - itineraries include private airport transfers and carefully selected hotels.

The Kirker Concierge can help to arrange restaurant reservations, museum and gallery tickets and expert local guides to ensure all members of the party get the most out of the experience.

Prices include flights, car hire or transfers, accommodation with breakfast, Kirker Guide Notes to restaurants, museums and sightseeing and the services of the Kirker Concierge.

Rome

Sorrento

Capo d’Africa **** Superior

Grand Hotel Cocumella **** Deluxe

Located just five minutes’ walk from the Colosseum in the heart of ancient Rome. All 65 bedrooms in this restored 19th Century town house are furnished with great taste in a comfortable, contemporary style.The large rooftop terrace overlooks the historic 4th Century SS. Quattro Coronati Church.

3 nights for the price of 2 from 16 July - 31 August - price from £679 per person, saving £1,085 Includes entrance tickets to the Vatican Museum & Sistine Chapel or Villa Borghese.

Speak to an expert or request a brochure:

kirkerholidays.com

discerning

This fine hotel is located on the cliff edge overlooking the Bay of Naples just 45 minutes from the ruins of Pompeii (ask the concierge for details of private tours) There are 35 comfortable bedrooms decorated with antique furniture and a lovely large swimming pool in the extensive tranquil gardens.

A private lift operates to sea level where there is a sun deck and bathing platform. There is an excellent restaurant, a grill restaurant on the terrace with wonderful sea views, a piano bar, and a wellness centre.

7 nights for the price of 6 (excl.3 - 19 Aug) - price from £1,525 per person, saving £185

020 7593 2283 Please quote code XIS

www.independentschoolparent.com

ScHooL’S out

Like father, like son Josephine Price catches up with Leo and Stephen Winkley, the only co-serving father and son headmasters in the history of the HMC

What school did you attend?

LW Cranleigh School, in rural Surrey.

SW St Edward’s Oxford.

Right, Leo and Stephen Winkley at the Rossall School Speech Day in Lancashire

How would you describe your school days?

LW Eventful…

SW Difficult. I was a clever weed and many of other boys were the opposite!

How would your headmaster describe you?

LW I was rather a difficult pupil; I suspect teachers’ children, like the offspring of vicars, are often a bit of a handful… My housemaster once cautioned me for “sailing close to the wind”. On my final day of school he said: “you’ll be a teacher, Leo”. And he was right. As he usually was.

SW Our warden described me as talented, but awkward and difficult.

What did you always want to be when you grew up?

LW Aged eight, I was convinced I would mastermind the Arsenal midfield. In my teen years, I fancied myself as a candidate for the Poet Laureate – assuming you could secure the post by writing soppy sonnets and melancholy meditations on teen life. All the while, teaching was in the blood.

SW I was simply told I was going to teach Classics at Oxford.

❝ I have always

admired great, original heads who know what their leadership role is ❞ Stephen Winkley www.independentschoolparent.com

How did you get in to education?

LW I was born in it and never managed to find my way out!

SW When I was running out of money (I was doing a tedious research degree) someone rang me up and offered me a job at Cranleigh.

What did you learn from each other in the education sector?

LW Amongst other things, he taught me to love learning and to value community.

And not to try not to take yourself too seriously. I’m still learning that.

SW Leo and I overlapped for a year at spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 71

UKSA Independent School Parent Senior.pdf 1 17/02/2014 20:26:17

30th May - 1st June, Cheltenham Racecourse -

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A magical weekend of music, workshops for all ages, comedy, poetry, kids literature, Headphone Disco, Real Ale Festival, Healers & Sculpters areas, great food and idyllic camping beneath the Prestbury Hills.

Don’t just settle for a good job.

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DAY & WEEKEND TICKETS AVAILABLE. U5s & PARKING FREE. 72 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT SPRING 2014

UKSA is a registered charity no. 299248 Patron: HRH The Princess Royal

www.independentschoolparent.com

SCHOOL’S OUT

❝ We share a

similar sense of the ridiculous and a shared love of bizarre animals. For him, the tapir; for me, the anteater ❞ Leo Winkley Cranleigh while I was teaching. That year he was the star pupil, routinely earning more commendations than anyone else. But he was, at times, difficult and awkward, like his father.

Who inspires you? Who is your hero?

LW My father. That’s the only possible answer in this context, isn’t it?!

SW Well no, Cyril Allington – who was a headmaster of Eton College – was mine. He was once asked by a boy: “Sir, is there a difference between you and God?” and after a pause he replied: “there is one, but while you are at my school it need not concern you”. I have always admired great, original heads who know what their leadership role is (and it isn’t about league tables). I’ve also always had sympathy with Mark Twain who told an audience of girls: “ladies, please make sure that this school doesn’t interfere with your education”.

If you could make one change to schools today, what would it be?

LW I would encourage schools to be less like one another.

SW I think all schools should be more like boarding schools. Boarding schools have the enormous advantage of providing chances for kids to encounter adults at lots of crossover points. For example, Frank is not just a (rather feeble) member of my French class, he is also in my hockey team, he sings in the choir, and he is in the boarding house where I am a tutor. There’s always something to talk to him about and to praise him for. I also wonder why pupils now have to ascend through school at exactly the same rate. www.independentschoolparent.com

Above, Leo and Stephen on a family holiday in Rhodes, 1982

What are your views on an independent school education?

LW English independent schools represent some of the most important educational values: at their best they are about a caring for each individual, and also ensuring that every child has a strong sense of responsibility to others and to the wider world. They educate, as well as teach.

SW They are not independent enough.

They do set very good examples but sometimes a lack of vision means they are too busy trying to be like each other.

How would you describe your fatherson relationship?

LW I’ve always been very close to my father. We have a similar sense of the ridiculous and a shared love of bizarre animals. For him, the tapir; for me it is the anteater.

SW We’re incredibly close. He’s cleverer than me and a better head: he understands all the technical stuff.

How have you both found following the same profession?

LW My father is well-known as something of a maverick, an eccentric, often to be seen sporting red shoes and possessing a bewildering array of ties.

He casts a long – and, these days, rather wide – shadow but he has been gracious

in offering very little in the way of advice. When I started out as a Head I asked him for a tip and he said, simply: “you change things by being there”.

Enough said – it’s very important to be yourself.

SW Getting feedback about each other is great. I’m really thrilled when colleagues tell me how well he’s doing.

What advice would you give the younger generation at school today?

LW I rather like Walt Whitman’s line: “keep your face always toward the sunshine – and shadows will fall behind you”. I would ask them to be whatever it is to be themselves.

SW You’ll never get a better chance to do things. Try everything. Try to be really good at something. And don’t waste hours on social media.

Dr Stephen Winkley has spent all his working life in independent education, beginning in 1969 at Cranleigh. He has since worked at Winchester, Uppingham and at Rossall near Blackpool until he retired again in 2013.

Leo Winkley grew up at Cranleigh School.

He studied Theology at the University of Oxford and then lived in France for two years before starting teaching at Ardingly.

He has since worked at Cheltenham Ladies’ College, Bedales and has been head master of St Peter’s School since 2010.

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT 73

COMPETITION

WINa family weekend getaway Independent School Parent and Sugar and Loaf have joined forces to offer you and your family a stylish weekend break in the Welsh Black Mountains…

I

ndependent School Parent and Sugar and Loaf are delighted to offer readers the chance to win a weekend stay at the beautiful Patrishow Farm, which is situated in the stunning location of the Welsh Black Mountains. Sleeping up to eight, this meticulously restored farmhouse with its breathtaking views and high-spec finish will give you, your family and friends a weekend away with a difference.

Nestled in 100 private acres, it combines the tradition of a Welsh farmhouse with subtle contemporary touches to keep you warm and comfortable. Ancient Welsh flagstones, oak-beamed rooms and open fireplaces are coupled with underfloor heating, ultra-modern bathrooms and all the latest mod cons including flat screen TV and wi-fi. Children can let off steam straight from the back door: walking and cycling are just two of the activities that all members of the family can enjoy.

If you’re feeling inquisitive, you can explore the nearby towns of Crickhowell and Hay-on-Wye – where the internationally famous literary festival takes place – and visit any one of the Norman castles that are scattered along the Welsh Borders.

And there are a plethora of great pubs and restaurants for you to choose from should cook want a night off!

The prize includes: A two-night stay for up to four adults and four children staying in four bedrooms.

HOW TO ENTER: For your chance to win, simply answer the following question on our website at: independentschoolparent.com/win Q: What is the name of the town, situated near Patrishow Farm, that hosts a famous literary festival each year?

Terms & Conditions: All Sugar and Loaf holiday houses are self-catering, full information on local pubs and restaurants is on the website, alternatively please ask the Sugar and Loaf team, who are happy to help. Holiday insurance and travel are not included. The prize is non-transferable, there is no cash alternative nor is any spending money included. The booking is subject to availability and is not available on the following weekends: 25th April, 18th July, 8th August, 29th August and 24th October. The weekend must be booked by 30th September 2014 for a stay before 31st December 2014. Competition closes on 2nd May.

www.independentschoolparent.com

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 75

Stunning selection of 4* & 5* self-catering family houses in Highland Perthshire, Scotland

Luxury accommodation sleeping 2-12 Over 600 tropical butterflies Leafcutter Ant Exhibition Insect Study Centre with Open regular handling sessions 24th March2nd November Natural Play Area 10-5 18 Designer Gardens every day Cafeteria Gift Shop & Plant Sales Children’s Holiday Activity Programme Free Parking Located near St Albans, just off J21a of the M25

01727 869203 info@butterflyworldproject.com

www.butterflyworldproject.com

‘The perfect family holiday’ Hot tubs ~ Saunas ~ Games Rooms ~ Pet Friendly Onsite facilities include bar & restaurant, deli & gift shop, 9 hole golf course, riding stables and trout & salmon fishing nearby on River & Loch Tay

Real Freedom, Real Luxury, Real Scotland T: 01887 830226 E: info@taymouth.co.uk W: taymouth.co.uk

www.monkeyworld.org

Where Families Matter!

Wareham, Dorset BH20 6HH T: 01929 462537 E: apes@monkeyworld.org With over 250 primates of more than 20 different species, Monkey World is the largest ape and monkey rescue centre in the world!

Visit the park to see the stars of TV’s “Monkey Life”, then ‘monkey around’ in the south’s largest Great Ape adventure play area!

OPEN EVERY DAY, EXCEPT CHRISTMAS DAY, FROM 10AM! FREE INFORMATION LINE: 0800 45 66 00 76 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT SPRING 2014

www.independentschoolparent.com

What’s on?

LIFE

Our round-up of events for the Easter holidays [HertfordsHire]

thE BUttErFLy WorLd ProjEct

re-opening on 24th March, the Butterfly World Project gets you up close and personal to around 800 butterflies from 15-20 species. you can explore the largest leaf cutter colony in the country in ant World, handle insects and see live footage on “Bee cam” from the Bee hut. there are craft and environmental workshops for all ages during the Easter holidays. butterflyworldproject.com

[nortHuMberland, 8tH MarcH-21st april]

[Montenegro]

LUŠtIca Bay

Luštica Bay is a developing destination to keep an eye on in 2014. With seven hotels, two marinas and a golf course, this gem in Montenegro could be set to become a popular choice for school holidays. and what’s better, it’s the first certified eco-labelled development in the country. that’s the sustainable travel box ticked then! lusticabay.com

[cHesHire, 19tH-21st april]

caLLING aLL FoodIES! The Giant Chester Food, Drink and Lifestyle Festival is back at Chester Racecourse, with over 150 exhibitors, from the finest cheese makers to game sellers from Cumbria, dry cured meats from north Wales and top cider makers. There are free cooking classes for kids from the Academy of the Culinary Arts, plus Simon Rimmer, of Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch headlines the chefs’ line-up. chesterfoodanddrink.co.uk www.independentschoolparent.com

Brick city Hot on the heels of the Lego Movie, this exhibition of architectural landmarks, made entirely of LEGO bricks, highlights stunning design and engineering from across the globe, including the Colosseum in Rome, Berlin’s TV Tower and the London 2012 Olympic Park. At the Centre for Life, Newcastle. life.org.uk

spring 2014 independent scHool parent 77

Destined to create the world’s most beautiful bathrooms

Showrooms located at Mayfair I Clerkenwell I Knightsbridge I Battersea I Wandsworth I Selfridges I Kent I Surrey I Sussex For enquiries please call 0333 011 3333 ‘At Home Design Service’ available see website for details

LiFe [CarDIff]

doctor Who experience

As the next era of Doctor Who dawns with the new Doctor, take an interactive journey through space and time and see him do battle with some seriously scary monsters. doctorwho experience.com

[LONDON, 19TH-23rD MarCH 2014]

CounTry Living Spring Fair

For inspirational ideas for your home and garden, including contemporary crafts, beautiful textiles, vintage interior furnishing, gardening accessories, stylish fashion, handmade jewellery and bespoke millinery, take a trip to the Country Living Spring Fair.

SpeCiaL reader oFFer: if you quote CL14S2 you will receive £12 tickets, saving 25% (rrp £16.50). countrylivingfair.com

[YOrkSHIrE, 27TH MarCH-15TH JuLY]

[SOuTH-wEST fraNCE, 17TH -23rD Or 24TH-30TH auguST]

Take a Look aT ShakeSpeare’S FirST FoLio

henry Lamb France residential Camp

There are currently only four copies of Shakespeare’s First Folio, a compilation of 36 works by the Bard, on display in the world, and no two are identical. in keeping with the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth, the yorkshire Museum has one of these crucial pieces of english literature on display for you to see. yorkshiremuseum.org.uk

it’s a long way off, but this Summer course will book up quickly. The Chateau de Sauveterre was established by the Cothill educational Trust as a centre for year Seven children to experience France and learn French. This week-long course, for children aged 10 to 13, will include a full programme of tennis coaching, French lessons and activities like swimming, caving and tree climbing. £1,375 per week. henrylamb.co.uk

[BrIgHTON, 29TH-30TH MarCH, BrISTOL/LONDON/ OxfOrD, 5TH-6TH/11TH-13TH/18TH-19TH aPrIL]

The Chocolate Festival

This Spring, cocoa heaven descends on four cities across the UK. There’s a Tasting Lounge with Seventy%, The Cocoa Spa, with luxurious cocoa butter beauty treatments, Easter Zone, Health Zone – for raw chocolate and Free-from varieties – or head on a mouthwatering quest with the Brownie Trail. festivalchocolate.co.uk

www.independentschoolparent.com

spring 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ParENT 79

LIFE

[WILTSHIRE]

NEW STONEHENGE VISITOR CENTRE

One of the UK’s oldest visitor attractions has a modern new addition. The ancient site has had an upgrade in the form of a £27 million new visitor centre. The new centre will be host to temporary and permanent exhibitions with over 250 prehistoric objects. Experience the unique story of Stonehenge with the family this Easter. english-heritage.org.uk

[BIRMINGHAM] [GLOUCESTERSHIRE, 30TH MAY-1ST JUNE]

IMAGES: ISTOCK/MANONROY/DNY59/NO_LIMIT_PICTURES/WALES NEWS SERVICE/SPLASH NEWS/CORBIS

WYCHWOOD FESTIVAL CELEBRATES 10 YEARS

The family, folk, rock and world music festival returns to Cheltenham Racecourse this year for its 10th anniversary.

There will be 100 bands across five stages including The Stranglers, The Boomtown Rats, disco and soul guru, Craig Charles, folk hero Newton Faulkner and Brit nominees Bipolar Sunshine. The weekend is full of family workshops, delicious food, late-night comedy, the Children’s Literature Festival and the return of Roald Dahl Museum and – for the adults – Wychwood’s very own Real Ale & Beer Festival. wychwoodfestival.co.uk

[MAURITIUS AND ZANZIBAR]

Enriching Moments

The Residence hotels by Cenizaro are offering new, luxury experiences on their holidays.

You can take a three-day photography course in Zanzibar, taking you to the spice island’s hottest spots with one of Africa’s leading photographers Paul Joynson-Hicks. Or discover wildlife on the idyllic island of Mauritius, including the tiny coral island of Ile aux Aigrettes. theresidence.com

www.independentschoolparent.com

Have a cracking time in Bourneville Cadbury created its first Easter egg, in 1875, out of dark chocolate – also filled with chocolate drops. Visit Cadbury World to track its history, the workers and the process of chocolate making. Plus, join in the Easter egg hunts from 18th-21st April or take home an egg crafted by their chocologists in the World’s Biggest Cadbury Shop. cadburyworld.co.uk

SPRING 2014 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT 81

MEMORY LANE

School memories Team Principal of Red Bull Racing, Christian Horner, tells us about his time at Warwick School…

Describe your school in three words Lots of fun.

Did you customise your uniform?

No, I always abided by the rules!

Who was your best friend?

Charles Silk – we’re still good friends today.

Were you a stalwart of the detention room or teacher’s pet?

I was far too cunning to ever be in the dentention room, but that said, I wasn’t quite the teacher’s pet either.

What prize were you most proud of?

I don’t think I ever got a prize!

Where was your favourite lunchtime hangout?

The shelter in the park where the girls’ school used to meet up.

❝ My lunchtime hangout was the shelter in the

park where the girls’ school used to meet up ❞ Which teacher stays with you to this day?

Mr Frickman, the chemistry teacher. He was completely nuts really, but great, great fun.

Let’s talk school food: only fit for the slop pail or worthy of a Michelin star?

We ate our school dinner from a pre-moulded metal tray, so it appeared more like prison food in that respect! Sometimes the dessert ended up slopped on top of the main course.

We had a choice of what we ate, but not much. Monday was always a bad day and Friday was the best because it was fish and chips day!

82 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL PARENT SPRING 2014

Which of your teachers would really remember you?

Any of them who were unlucky enough to have taught me.

Best prank?

I was too good to play pranks.

Would you rather double maths or an afternoon of art?

I’d choose art, every day.

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Were you an all-star sports captain or outside field lingerer?

More of a lingerer on the sports field!

Homework: all done by Friday night or left until Monday morning?

Forget Friday or Monday – it was usually all done by someone else…

Were you a team player or out for yourself?

A total team player.

Any nicknames that you’re particularly proud of?

(Thinks) I don’t think I ever had a nickname.

What was your most embarrassing moment at school?

There were plenty, but I would prefer not to divulge any.

When I was growing up, I wanted to be a…

Stuntman.

Finally, what piece of advice would you give your school-age self?

Don’t be afraid to pursue your dreams.

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