AGN

Ancren Gate North (AGN) is a house full of life and love. All the girls and Housestaff contribute to the amazing atmosphere and adventure you get the moment you step through the door. We are especially enjoying our new refurb and look forward to its completion next year.

It has been an incredible year for everyone, (post Covid!) with many highlights and fun activities all the way through. A long-standing favourite has been Monday Mindfulness run by our very own Housemistress, Mrs Mears-Smith. Many girls take this as an opportunity to start their week off the right way and enter a relaxed state! One of our favourite moments was star gazing in Michaelmas term, all wrapped up warm seeing shooting stars and burning sage. Cookery is also always popular and leading up to Christmas we ran baking activities and stayed on top of all world issues and cultural life with Current Affairs Club. We also loved making egg cups as gifts for our tutors as a thank you for all their hard work. Finally, we went on a whole House festive outing to Windsor where we enjoyed Wagamama and shopping.

In January 2022, we all returned from a restful holiday ready to take on the next term. While the Lent term may be one of the shortest terms, there was certainly plenty going on. We celebrated House Drama, House Dance and Gymnastics, as well as House Music so there was certainly lots of purple spirit about. House Drama is always a favourite, and we were looking forward to the theme of ‘Musical Jukebox’. Our Sixth Form team chose Michael Jackson, which was an exciting and bold show. Unfortunately, AGN did not win overall but we were awarded the prize for Best Lower School Dance and we loved every moment and felt so proud of all we achieved. For Music, we had our friend Janice Lee (LV) perform the most amazing percussion solo, as well as all three years represented in the ensemble, and everyone joined in for the final whole House song performance. This was a most enjoyable act of Bad Romance by Lady Gaga for the theme ‘Female Icons’. Congratulations to our singing ensemble for winning a prize for their beautiful performance of Into the Unknown from Frozen. Finally, Gymnastics and Dance was choreographed and run by two members of our Lower Fifth, Jemima and Alice, who in fact won an award for their gymnastics choreography, as well as our Sixth Form prefects for dance. They ran rehearsals with everyone in the lead up and did a most wonderful job. It was an action-packed term but certainly a fun one!

The Summer term finally rolled around – a favourite term for many in the House despite the challenging exam period. The warmer weather followed a particularly cold Michaelmas and Lent term, which was a relief for everyone, allowing us to make the most of the spacious area outside the House, with AGN hosting BBQ socials with other Houses, as well as lawn games such as Swing Ball and table tennis – showing our competitive sides!

As Founder’s Weekend approached, we were all busy preparing for the House stalls, coming together with Lower School to paint flowerpots to sell, to help raise money for our House charities. It was an enjoyable evening and helped us all bond with the UIV girls joining us in September. We hope they are as excited as we are for them to move to the beautiful spot in the woods.

Some of our other highlights include our infamous break-time Toast Mountain from our matrons, Matron Medal and Dorm Tidy prizes to eat pizza with our friends, and seeing our famous AGN turkey about the place. There is never a dull moment in AGN and we are so appreciative of everyone for being a part of such a great year - from all our staff to each girl. We are so sad to see Mrs Mears-Smith and Mrs MonkHouse leave because it has been a successful year in AGN, and we couldn’t have done it without the support of our incredible Housestaff and matrons. We can’t wait to see what next year brings for AGN!

Our last year in Willis is difficult to describe. We have undoubtedly made up for anything we missed in our absence last year. In a year marked by lasts, we have enjoyed every moment of being together as a year group, perhaps best encapsulated by Happy Day (organised by the Seniors), the condensed celebration of our times here into one day was undoubtedly a high point. This sentiment was echoed at the Foundation Dinner, where reminiscences of Downe from the Remove to Sixth Form made for an emotional yet commemorative evening. We are sure that this compassion and togetherness will persevere beyond our years here.

Throughout the Michaelmas and Lent terms, Caledonian Society remained one of the most popular activities. Friday evening practices prepared us well for Reels at Radley, Eton, Harrow and at home: huge thanks to our Cal Soc presidents and Ms Natta for this organisational feat. Establishing links with other schools, a central tenet of the goals outlined in our Leadership Conference last year, a group of UVI from Downe and Radley collaborated on the Respect Programme; raising awareness and encouraging dialogue around sexual assault has been the group’s priority and they have now passed down responsibility into the hands of the LVI. Alongside these social events, many other activities have now been fully resumed; those taking the Leiths qualification passed with flying colours, and Phoenix Society was back in full swing with a range of thought-provoking talks.

Coming to the end of our time here, those musical amongst us have certainly provided a creative input throughout the year. Starting in November, the Music Department staged the Michaelmas Concert, led by various music seniors and punctuated by panels, it was the first concert of its nature since 2020. An accomplished tableau of talent, both musically and technically, signalled some of the first lasts we experienced this year! The protean artistic capability of our year was demonstrated again in ABBA: The Party, an import of Grecian sunlight into a cold February. With Morgan Wallace (UVI) as Sophie and a charismatic cast led by the UVI, we were drawn into the emotional yet exuberant story, with Slipping Through My Fingers eliciting many a tear. This was followed by the St John’s Music Showcase, the last concert for the UVI, in March. Not to be forgotten amongst these other endeavours was the Dance Showcase of The Nutcracker, and Music and Speech and Drama exams, which were held live, in person.

Alongside these creative ventures, other aspects of School life have been highlighted in assemblies, from the Creative Arts Prefects to the Sports Captains - entertaining and insightful starts to a Monday morning! For those with positions of responsibility, this year has also brought fresh responsibilities and challenges, yet I can safely say that leading the School has been an honour for all of us. We are deeply grateful to Lucy Barrie and Teal Uahwatanasakul for enthusiastically and devotedly leading the School as Head and Deputy Head Seniors, alongside the team of Seniors, who have worked so hard throughout the year. Moreover, we would like to express our thanks to the Housestaff and our teachers for their consistent support and dedication. To the matrons, who have gathered us together for many treat nights, we are deeply grateful also! Contributing to this ecosystem of support are unfortunately too many to mention by name, yet our thanks go out to them also.

Wherever we find ourselves this time next year, the memories, lifelong friends, and support of those at Downe will never leave us. Lastly, I would like to emphasise the gratitude felt, towards each other, our teachers and Housestaff, and to Downe for all it has given us.

This year in York has been a busy one, a new year in a new house for all the Lower Sixth as we began to tackle A Levels. Michaelmas term brought all of us into York with excitement for the coming year and the start of our A Levels. The opening months saw the Lower Sixth take fun whole-house trips to Oxford and Barbury Shooting School combined with the joining of societies. Many were enthusiastic about partaking in their first Caledonian Society reel with Radley. Hockey and Lacrosse matches dominated our weekends with varying successes throughout the sports.

Members of York performed some stunning pieces in the Michaelmas Concert. Although delayed due to Covid, the beloved House Drama was back in all its glory. The theme was ‘Jukebox Musicals’, and Holcombe was declared the 2021 winner for their musical based on the discography of the legendary band Queen. House Music also returned with the theme of ‘Female Icons’ and all the houses gave great performances, but the winners of 2021 were Aisholt for their amazing rendition of some serious power ballads, including Shake It Off by Taylor Swift.

The winter season saw Downe’s very own Winter Wonderland and many in York had fun attending and riding all the attractions as well as ice skating. We ended the term with a House trip to Reading, where many of us did our Christmas shopping and had a lovely buffet.

Lower Sixth have taken part in many competitions throughout this year, one of which was ARTiculation, which saw all the participants give brilliant speeches and presentations on a piece of artwork which fascinated them.

The winning presentation was Lola Oyegunle’s talk about Grayson Perry’s Brexit Vases and their political value. Elfreda Harvey was awarded the runner-up prize for the presentation on the architecture of the Museum of Qatar, Dasha Andreeva and Cordie Reeve were highly commended for their own displays.

The Lower Sixth this year had the chance to reboot the academic mentoring programme. This gave them the opportunity to help the younger members of the School community with their studies face-to-face in the Murray Centre. Some of the girls set up their own societies in addition to the many pre-existing ones, such as the Medical Society and the Lavender Society.

York’s chosen charities were Variety and Coppafeel; which meant we took part in many charitable fundraising events, including a colour run and bake sale. A lot of the members of York took part in organising, baking and running in the event to raise money for Coppafeel, the total figure being over £1700. A lot of the girls have also individually found charities which they have passionately supported through collections of stationery and clothes or mufti days. This initiative to find causes that they want to support has shown how generous and altruistic the members of York are.

These characteristics have set up our approach to our new positions of responsibility and newfound place at the top of the School going into Upper Sixth. All of us are very excited to enter our last year at Downe and tackle A Levels head-on.

Georgia Kynaston, Head of York (LVI)

Thursday 24 March 2022 saw the inaugural ‘So you think you can move?’ competition, combining for the first time the House Gymnastics and House Dance competitions. The LV (Gymnastics) and LVI (Dance) captains were set the challenge of choreographing and creating group and solo routines for their teams to perform in the competition. We were very fortunate on the day to have Kirsty Noble and Hollie Taylor judging the competition along with the help of the Gymnastics and Dance seniors, Heloise Friedlander and Louisa Healey (UVI). The judges and the audience were wowed by the performances from all houses and all the competitors should be congratulated for their beautiful work.

In the gymnastics categories, congratulations go to Isabelle Withey (LIV), AGS for winning the Individual Floor and Holcombe for winning the Group Floor routine. Eloise Harrison (LIV) was named as the Most Improved Gymnast and AGN were awarded the LV Captain’s Cup for Leadership.

In the Dance element, congratulations go to AGS for winning the Group Dance and Holcombe for the Duo Dance. The Standout Performer for Dance went to Cheuk-Yi Cherie (Sage) Lau (UIV), AGS. With all the totals added up the overall So you think you can move? Cup went to Holcombe. The competition was a wonderful showcase of the talent we have throughout the School. We can’t wait for next year!

Mrs Elizabeth Broyd, Assistant Director of Sport (Curriculum)

This year’s House Drama Captains were given the challenge of creating an original piece of theatre using the ‘Sound of Icons’ as inspiration. Directors and script writers were tasked with choosing a popular musical icon and then creating a piece of theatre that used the music or the icon as the basis for their piece. The LVI certainly rose to the challenge with a vibrant and eclectic mix of stories from Britney Spears through to Queen. The standard of the script writing was excellent and was further bolstered by the quality of the direction. It was fantastic to see pupils stretch and challenge themselves by creating these original contemporary drama pieces.

First up were AGN with their brilliant ‘Off the Wall’, a gripping murder mystery using the extensive musical catalogue of Michael Jackson. This was then shortly followed by ‘Lucky’, which was performed and directed by AGS and provided us with an insight into the ‘Free Britney Spears’ movement and won Melissa Hulse (UV) the award for Outstanding Performance. This was shortly followed by ‘Love, Mrs Houston’ by Aisholt, who gave us a thrilling crime drama using the music of Whitney Houston. Tedworth came next with their performance of ‘Valerie’ which was a moving dedication to the life of Amy Winehouse. Last, but certainly by no means least was Holcombe’s performance of ‘Killer Queens’ a School of Rock-esq piece using the rousing music from the legendary Queen. Holcombe seamlessly incorporated the music throughout their piece, and noone will forget their finale of We Will Rock You which had the whole audience joining in – it is no wonder they were crowned winners of House Drama 2021!

The awards were a very intense affair, after the hours of creative planning and rehearsing, which was led by our outstanding production teams from LVI. The Artistic Endeavour Cup was given to AGS for their creation of ‘Lucky’ and the overall House Drama Cup was awarded to Holcombe for their slick and professional ‘Killer Queens’.

Our adjudicator for this year’s House Drama was Elena Skye, who has starred in West End productions of Les Misérables, Kinky Boots and We Will Rock You. Elena was tremendously impressed by the standard of the productions the girls had created in such a short space of time and was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm Downe House girls have for Theatre. This year’s LVI received extra praise for the resilience and determination they displayed in the face of so much diversity when rehearsing, it was a fantastic moment to finally see their pieces performed live on stage.

Mrs Kirsty Richardson, Director of Drama and Dance

“I loved being Director for Holcombe House and working with my whole year was so much fun. It felt like such a long time since we have been able to do a House competition but after all the hours put in, by the end it with it being pushed later, it didn’t affect our overall performance as we had managed to use our rehearsal this it was a bit daunting to begin with but once we had and I am very proud of everyone’s input. I loved being able to oversee all the amazing work from our House team who put in so many hours. From the costumes and designs, the Lower and Upper School dance, the tech team, to the whole House scene - there was so much going on. One of my favourite parts was working with the cast as I really got an insight into managing a team and the importance of communication. It was such an backstage, seeing it all pull together was such a rewarding feeling and one that I won’t forget.”

Elodie Davies, House Drama Director (LVI)

“It was an event that I had been looking forward to since the Remove. I would describe it as a Downe House ‘rite of passage’ by the time we reach the Lower Sixth. The great thing about House Drama is that all year groups throughout the School take part. Competition between the Upper School Houses elevates, as everyone becomes very secretive about what plans they have in mind. Initially met with slight confusion as to what we would create, my Upper School House, AGN, put on a devised piece entitled ‘Off the Wall’, inspired by the discography of Michael Jackson. It followed the drastic murder of Billie Graham, son of a billionaire tycoon, and the two detectives assigned to the case, weaving their way through misleading clues and dubious suspects. I was appointed Producer, amongst a team of 18 members of the LVI, who had roles ranging from movement direction to set design to lighting coordination. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience to have the whole House working together and I was very proud of everyone’s the opportunity to mirror that of a professional theatre production, as we are now all able to say that we produced

Akinkugbe, House Drama Producer (LVI)

The House Music competition came back in April 2022 with a bang! After the delays of the pandemic, all the houses truly embraced the theme of ‘Female Legends’. Lead by the dedicated Sixth Form seniors, the pupils displayed a range of talent from AGS taking on the challenging song It’s All Coming Back to Me Now by the iconic Celine Dion to Tedworth’s performance of Umbrella by one of the ultimate female legends, Rhianna. We welcomed Sophie Cleobury, Head of Music at the Royal Ballet School, as our adjudicator, and along with Dr Charlotte Exon, they crowned Aisholt the House Music 2022 winners.

“This year I had the honour of leading Aisholt’s whole house choir and vocal ensemble, alongside Willow Wilkinson (LVI). After being given the theme of ‘Inspirational women’ by our Music seniors, we decide to perform Shake it Off by Taylor Swift as our whole house song and Valerie by Amy Winehouse as our vocal ensemble piece. The rehearsal process consisted of an electric atmosphere from the outset, as the girls all really channelled their ‘inner Swift’ as this enthusiasm and excitement from the girls that allowed Aisholt to win House Music this year. It was an amazing experience which we will never forget and was a great way to introduce House competitions back to Downe after

On the 15 June the five representative Houses assembled and went head-to-head in the annual Inter-House Science competition. Each house team was comprised of a Remove, Lower Fourth, Upper Fourth, Lower Fifth and two Lower Sixth members. The competition proved to be a close one, with some excellent individual and collective performances. The first round (The Buzzer Round) was designed to test speed of thought and general knowledge across all three sciences. Questions within this round were targeted to three specific age ranges: Lower School, Upper School and Sixth Form. The Lower School sub-round was won by Holcombe with an impressive display. AGN proved the stronger house in the Upper School and Sixth Form sub-round with overall scores of 40 and 30 points respectively.

The second round saw each team presented with a particularly challenging problem to solve. Each House was allowed access to the internet and had 10 minutes to solve as much of the puzzle as they could. The exercise required each House to work both efficiently and collaboratively to maximise their score in this round. Congratulations to AGS who were the only team to successfully complete the challenge in the allocated time frame. The additional 50 bonus points accrued would prove crucial.

The final round of the competition was named the ‘Famous Scientist Round’. Each House nominated two of their team members to answer questions on their chosen scientist. Clearly all the contestants had done their homework, with an impressive performance by all. Holcombe came out top in this round, thanks to their outstanding perfect score (120) on Dorothy Hodgkin.

In the end, however, it was AGS who came out on top, with a total of 220, closely followed by Holcombe on, 200 and Aisholt in third with a score of 180. My thanks once again to all the participants and to those who kindly came along to offer support to their house.

Mr Alastair Reynolds, Teacher of Chemistry