School Magazine 2015-2016 by Downe House School

TWELVE MONTHS AT

DOWNE HOUSE

CONTENTS

Head and Deputy Head Senior From the Headmistress SCHOOL LIFE House Reports House Officers House Competitions Lower School Production Oliver! with a Twist Food Forum Committee ACADEMIC LIFE Science Maths Religious Studies Geography Art History Modern Foreign Languages English Economics Computing and ICT Higher Education CREATIVE Art UVI Screen Printing Workshop Art Award Holders visit New Greenham Arts Photography Design and Technology Textiles BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

1 2 3 4 15 18 24 26 27 28 31 32 34 36 38 40 41 41 42 44 45 51 52 53 56 63 71

Enrichment Programme Young Enterprise Leiths Academy Global Initiatives Chapel Co-Curricular Foundation Office Founder’s Weekend Leaver’s Day DH Links 10 Year Vision - Centre for Learning

72 76 78 79 82 84 93 94 96 98 102

CHARITY Happy Day Father and Daughter Charity Gala An Evening at the Races Mufti Day for Charlotte’s Helix Rustic Pathways - Taking the Path Less Trodden Charities Supported

103 104 104 105 105 106 106

TRIPS Rome and The Vatican Museums – Sixth Form Trip Calshot Activities Centre – Remove Trip Barcelona – Tennis Tour Berlin – GCSE History Trip Holland – Hockey Tour Nice – Modern Foreign Languages Trip Iceland – Geography Trip Malawi – Holcome House Charity Trip Myanmar – AGS House Charity Trip India – Aisholt House Charity Trip Florence – Modern Foreign Languages Trip

107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118

DRAMA Director of Performing Arts’ Introduction Head of Drama Report Theatre Trips Curriculum and Scholar’s Trips LV Drama Scholar Drama Scholars’ Mentor Programme UV Drama Scholar Drama Practical Examinations Drama Scholars’ Workshops Prep Schools’ Day of Musical Theatre National Youth Theatre Stage Door Lectures Productions and Performances Speech and Drama RADA Examination Results Trinity Examination Results MUSIC Director of Music’s Introduction Heads of Music Report School Music Concerts and Carol Services Remove Music Scholar Lunchtime Concerts Prep Schools’ Orchestral Fun Day UIV Music Award Holder Evening of Light Music Minority Instruments Scheme East Meets West Music Technology DH Young Music of the Year DH Music Showcase, St John’s Church Lower Fifth Music Scholar Celebrating Diploma Success Founder’s Weekend Performances ABRSM Results SPORT Sports Day Lacrosse Hockey Netball Tennis and Squash Tennis at the Top Athletics and Cross Country Swimming and Biathlon Winter Sports The Teams AWARDS AND MORE Prize Giving Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards New Girls 2015/16 Downe through the Generations Scholarship & Exhibition Awards for Sept 2015 University Destinations Public Examination Results

119 120 120 121 122 123 124 124 126 128 130 130 131 132 138 141 142 145 146 146 147 150 150 151 152 152 153 153 153 154 155 156 156 157 160 161 162 164 165 166 167 168 170 171 172 173 176 177 185 186 188 189 190 191

MOVING ON

192

Staff Farewells

193

SCHOOL OFFICERS

197

Introducing our Head Seniors India Laidlaw – Deputy Head Senior

Florence Elliott – Head Senior

I could not have been more pleased to find out that I would be working together with India as Head and Deputy Head Girl this coming year. Having been my first friend and ‘buddy’ when I joined Downe House in the Lower Fourth, India has remained one of my best friends throughout my time at School and I know she will continue to be so for the rest of my life. India is one of the most trustworthy, sensible and compassionate people I have ever met and I am so honoured to be working alongside her. I have so much respect for India, her bountiful and infectious enthusiasm paired with her ability to make working hard ‘cool’ have made her the ideal candidate for Deputy Head Girl from the day she arrived. She is honestly the most motivated and passionate person I know, so the remarkable things she has accomplished throughout her time at Downe have come as no surprise to me. I am confident in saying that whatever she puts her mind to in the future, she will surely succeed in.

This year I am so happy to be working with one of my closest friends, Florence, and I could not think of a more competent person to take on the role of Head Girl. Since her first year at Downe House, Florence has always taken part in every aspect of Downe life. Whether she is charging down the lacrosse pitch or making people cry with laughter on stage, she always excels at everything she does and takes all opportunities given to her. I have great confidence that like everything else, she will succeed with her new responsibility. She is a true inspiration not only to the younger girls but everyone in our own year. Of all her characteristics she is best known for her humour, compassion and kindness. There is nothing more comforting than knowing that I have my best friend by my side whatever the challenges might be this year.

Written by Florence Elliott, Head Senior 2016

Written by India Laidlaw, Deputy Head Senior 2016

From the Headmistress, Mrs Emma McKendrick There is a great deal talked about the future of boarding and the future of single-sex education. Questions are raised about its ability to prepare young people for the fastchanging world that they will enter. I have, however, never been more certain than I am now that a girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; boarding education lays a first-class foundation for modern-day life. Living in a rich, varied and supportive boarding community, where challenge, encouragement and aspiration are prevalent in equal measure could scarcely provide better preparation. In a single-sex environment, the girls have the freedom to grow with no limits set by gender or stereotype and will gain an education tailored to their needs. Through the myriad of opportunities that they have and create, the girls are able to develop a sense of confidence and self-worth, as well as a range of other skills and attributes essential for a happy,

balanced and successful life in the 21st century. You will see plenty of examples in the following pages of girls learning to work in a team, learning to lead and innovate, learning the value of service, compassion, integrity, tolerance, flexibility, resilience and gaining a sense of adventure. I hope that you will enjoy reading this magazine as much as I have. For my part, I could not be more proud of the dynamic community of Downe House. It is a privilege to see girls working together every day, inspiring and supporting one another and each summer to see them ready to leave and take their place in the world with the confidence and desire to make a positive contribution. Single-sex boarding has an extremely important part to play in the educating the women of the future and it is thriving at Downe House. Mrs Emma McKendrick Headmistress

HOUSE REPORTS

WILLIS It is with great sadness that the Willis House staff have said farewell to the Downe House leavers of 2016. The Upper Sixth year is always an intense one and guiding the girls during this very last milestone of their school career has been both rewarding and a huge privilege. While exam preparation and study has dominated much of the year, our Upper Sixth girls have also excelled themselves by leading the younger years in all their various positions of responsibility. Leading the way of course have been Miranda Shaw and Esther Adebajo, who, as Head and Deputy Head Senior, have gained huge respect from both staff and pupils. Their beginning and end of term ‘raps’ will surely go down in the DH history books. The other Seniors and Ambassadors have also represented the School on many occasions and we are very grateful for all their contributions. This culminated in the Lent Term with the organisation of the annual Happy Day which took on a rainbow theme this year. The team of Seniors organised a variety of events including face painting, sweetie throwing and a ‘flash mob’ at lunchtime in the Main Dining Room. The highlight however has to have been the ‘colour run’ on the sports fields which, while very messy, provided huge entertainment for all girls from the Upper Fourth to the Upper Sixth! The Housemistresses of the Lower School and Mixed Age Houses have also been very complimentary about our teams of House Seniors who have played an integral role in the running of the Houses. All have helped with daily routines and have played large organisational roles in the various charity events across the Houses. It is hugely positive to see so many of our girls raising money for a number of charities, including our very own Hope for Justice, which girls have continued to support this year.

Our new team of Global Ambassadors have also made an impact and made the role their own. A new initiative this year, these posts were created to support our international community and also to help set up links overseas and promote a global outlook. The girls created a welcome leaflet and video for new overseas girls and also broadened our knowledge of world affairs in a number of assemblies. We are pleased to see that the number of these global roles is set to increase further next year.

The Upper Sixth continued to feature in all major sporting, music and drama events and we have enjoyed hearing the various reports of successes during our assemblies throughout the year. We thank Livia Russell (Head of Music), Lara Wigan (Head of Sport) and Anouska Royle (Head of Drama) for inspiring so many of our girls to get fully involved in School life. Our society presidents have also led from the front with the Caledonian and Phoenix Societies being well attended and also enjoyed by boys from Radley, Harrow and Eton. Our aim in Willis has been to create a supportive learning environment for the girls and to provide regular incentives and treats to encourage them to keep going. As well as regular ‘tapping’ and meditation classes, the girls have consumed copious amounts of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, bathed in gallons of luxurious bubbles and devoured kilos of kale and frozen fruit – anything that might help sharpen the brain! Another favourite has been ‘Natta’s Nobbles’, introduced by our newest member the House team, Miss Natta. While originally a typing error, the famous ‘Nobbles’ of Italian cheese, cold meats and vegetables have become a Saturday night tradition. We have very much enjoyed guiding this year group over the last two years. They should be proud, as we certainly are, of everything they have achieved. A very exciting future awaits them and we look forward to hearing of their future successes. Mrs Tara Reeve, Housemistress (Willis East) and Teacher of Russian and Current Affairs

SCHOOL LIFE

HOUSE REPORTS

YORK It’s hard to believe we are already half way through our time in York. Looking back to September, we didn’t get much time to fully settle in before the fun began. The first day here after the summer holidays had us on a coach to Oxford for a scavenger hunt and orientation session, followed by the start of our new subject courses. Only a week later House Drama began and it was both daunting and exciting to be on the other side of the curtain; directing the play instead of acting in it. Florence Elliott (Holcombe) directed the winning play, inspiring us all with the truly amazing production of ‘Oliver!’ Throughout the Michaelmas Term everyone was busy joining or forming clubs and societies. Roseanna Bromley started Film Society, Camilla Farrell a Spanish Society and Honor Pattisson a Sports Society, just to name a few. It was also our first opportunity to join the Caledonian Society, through which some of us have enjoyed a number of three course meals and Scottish reels with boys’ schools on Sunday nights. Others got involved with debate, through which a few of us were able to participate in the nationwide Debate Matters competition. This fast pace of the first term brought us into Lent Term, which was even busier!

5 In a word, Lent Term was ‘crazy’ in the best possible way. We had so many competitions, trips, enrichment talks and birthdays that it seemed to pass in minutes, not months. To start we had what I found to be one of the most interesting nights of the term, the ARTiculation competition. Each girl taking part chose an artist or piece of art to give a short presentation on. Eliza Downes won the contest with a fascinating presentation on Gee Vaucher, and Jemima Oliver and Anna Goodman were close runners-up with their presentations on Wes Anderson and Frank Gehry. Phoenix Society continued, Alyx Van der Vorm and Charlotte Simpson giving the headlining speech ‘The Psychology of Serial Killers’ at our first of the term with Winchester. Caledonian Society was also in full swing with I think what must be a record of having an event three weekends in a row! And that brings us up to Summer Term, and things didn’t seem to be slowing down. The first weekend back and we were already attending a Gap Year Fair and putting on ‘A Night at the Races’ charity event, which raised over £2,200 for our House charity, the EdClub Movement. Although AS exams were looming, everyone was working hard and yet still finding time to make the most of the weather and sit in the sunshine with ice-creams. It’s been an extremely busy and sometimes stressful year, but being in a House with all of our friends has definitely been a highlight. I can confidently say on behalf of everyone that the Lower Sixth has been one of the best years so far and we are excited to see what the Upper Sixth brings! Alexandra Milne, LVI DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE REPORTS 6

AGN AGN had a fantastic start to the year with a trip to Sri Lanka to visit our International Link Charity, Sparkes Home with ten girls from the House (Hebe Meredith (LVI), Henrietta Johnston (UVI), Victoria Scobie (UV), Claudine Collins (UV), Daisy Shepherd-Cross (UV), Eloise Percy-Davis (UV), Beatrix Jackson (UV), Sarah Darko (UV), Jennifer Darko (UV) and Sabrina Sambhi (LV)), accompanied by Miss Anger and Mrs Dell. The girls flew into Colombo and made their way across central Sri Lanka. They stopped at an Elephant Orphanage, Sari Shop, the famous Temple of the Tooth, a Gem Factory, tea plantations, Sigiriya Rock, Minneriya National Park, visited the monkeys at Polonnaruwa, all before reaching Sparkes Home. At the home the girls had a fantastic time and got stuck into everything right away. They played games and activities with the girls from the moment they got back from school until bed time. Whilst staying at the home they painted a mural for the hall at Sparkes Home, Kalmunai. They did an excellent job with a design made by Victoria Scobie. After staying at the home for seven nights, the girls made their way to Rana 212 for some relaxation before heading home. House Drama also saw all new budding actresses in the Upper Fourth, Lower Fifth and Upper Fifth take the main parts for our adaptation of ‘Mary Poppins’, written by the director, Roseanna Bromley. We had some outstanding performances from Safiya Shamji (UIV) as Mary Poppins and Victoria Scobie (UV) as Bert, supported by Imogen Webber (UIV) as Jane Banks and Tara Farquhar (UIV) as Michael Banks. A special mention must be made for the hard work of Charlotte Aldrich and Charlotte Orpen (both LVI), who were the choreographers for the House Drama Dance. They managed to create a marvellous dance routine with little time to rehearse, adding a huge ‘wow’ factor to the whole play. AGN had some brilliant performances in House Music this year, the House choir raised the roof with their version of ‘Writings On The Wall’ by Sam Smith, under the theme of James Bond for the competition. There were some excellent harmonies from the AGN vocal group that charmed the judge with their version of Gabrielle Aplin’s ‘Panic Cord’ accompanied by Holly Evans (UV) and Katie Hackman (LV) on guitars. Henrietta Ryan (UV) gave an outstanding solo performance singing ‘Lost Boy’ by Ruth B. Judging by the cheers, we would have definitely won an audience vote! We were certainly looking forward to another potential Sports Day victory, after being the consecutive winners for the last four years, and we were absolutely thrilled to retain the title for another. Miss Anger had her boxing gloves on ready to fight the other Housemistresses for the trophy! We will be sad to see Mrs Lowe leave, who has been a real asset to AGN over the last year. We wish her the very best of luck with her baby and the start of her new family. Meanwhile, we look forward to welcoming Mrs Wise to AGN as the new Assistant Housemistress. Mrs Barnett who has been at the school for 20 years, has finally decided that now is the right time to retire and she will be very sorely missed. Mrs Joice and Mrs Bowyer will take up the Matron role together and we are looking forward to welcoming them into the AGN family. The house certainly wouldn’t be the same without Miss Anger’s never ending enthusiasm and thankfully, she isn’t going anywhere! As a team, we are so proud of everything that AGN has achieved this year. Ad Astra! Imogen Hancock and Hebe Meredith, LVI - AGN Deputy Heads of House SCHOOL LIFE

It has been another great year for AGS. We started the year with a House trip to Reading for Go Karting. It was a great event with lots of teamwork and inter-year bonding involved, as well as fun competitions between both the girls and Housestaff. For House Drama, the theme was Family Musicals, and AGS performed ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’. The performance went extremely well, however, with the competition really high this year, sadly we just missed out. Preparations for our House charity evening began in November in aid of ‘Hope Asia’, our overseas charity that helps orphaned children in Burma. Each evening the girls, with the help of Mrs Ellams and Mrs Liddiard, created an assortment of products and many cute Christmas decorations. We pulled out all the stops to turn the Main Dining Room into a beautiful chic paradise and raised over £15,000. Special thanks goes to Tom Plant from ‘Flog It’ who was our celebrity auctioneer. This summer holiday Mrs McClymont and 12 AGS girls travelled to Burma to spend time working at Hope Asia’s Children’s Home. Lent was a successful term. This year AGS won the overall House Music competition with the song ‘Live and Let Die’. Congratulations to Zoe Carruthers (UIV) for winning the Solo category with her performance of Natalie Imbruglia’s ‘Torn’, which left the whole House on their feet by the end of her performance. We also had harmonious performances from both the vocal and instrumental ensembles who also won their categories.

Our winning streak continued in the House Dance competition later in the term with AGS winning Best Group, with a well-synchronised performance to ‘Footloose’. During the Lent Term AGS had the privilege of welcoming two Swedish exchange students for two weeks - Stella and Sophia. It was really interesting to hear what their school life was like in comparison to ours. This Summer Term AGS made the best out of the gloomy British weather during Sports Day. We came so close to beating AGN (only five points behind!), but scored a very respectable second place. The term was also filled with many trips kindly planned by Mrs McClymont to Newbury to enjoy movies and meals as a break from all the exams happening across the different year groups. Although the past term has been fun for the UV, we had to say goodbye not only to the UIV and LV girls, but also to Mr Treadaway, who will be joining Holcombe House as their Assistant Housemaster and Ms Jensen, who will be moving to London. We wish them all the best.

HOUSE REPORTS

AGS

It has been an amazing year for AGS and the UV are sad to say goodbye, but we leave with our minds filled with the memorable times we had in the House. The experience has been truly remarkable and we hope that the younger AGS girls will love the House as much as we do. Tabonga Yangailo and Nutthapit Poolworaluk, UV – AGS Shadow Heads of House (Summer Term)

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE REPORTS

AISHOLT This year in Aisholt has been highly eventful with lots of activities and events. The House has remained vibrant and cheerful, filled with the positivity and spirit Aisholt is known for. In September the new Upper Fourth were welcomed into Aisholt life; from painting individual mugs, pizza evenings and weekend trips, there was never a dull moment. They had been welcomed to morning break the previous term, and were involved in House events so they were able to feel quite familiar with the House before they joined. They are now very settled in Aisholt and look forward to helping us welcome the new Upper Fourth in September. Aisholt has been successful in the House sport events with highly commendable results in Lacrosse and Netball. These events have always been the perfect occasion for all members of the House to work together, even for those who prefer to stand and cheer furiously, filled with true Aisholt spirit and adorned with red jumpers. The Lower Fifth were kept busy with the House Gym competition and the team were excellently led by Lucy Bergstrom, Georgia Hewitson, Honor Sells and Trinity Hill (all LV). We were all delighted when their hard work paid off and Aisholt placed second, with Emily Manners (UIV) impressing us all with her remarkably flexible routine.

We have worked hard this year to raise money for charity. We have continued to support our overseas charity Reality Gives and have added Berkshire Women’s Aid, a local charity selected by members of the House, that supports women and their families seeking refuge from domestic violence. There have been numerous cake sales and larger events such as the talent competition Search for a Star, which have helped us raise money. Mrs Boswell took a small group of girls to visit Berkshire Women’s Aid earlier this year and they did a wonderful job helping organise welcome bags containing basic toiletries for women who have left their homes to seek safety. In August, 19 Aisholt girls visited our overseas charity Reality Gives in Mumbai to run workshops in Art and Drama for the children at the Royal City School in Dharavi. Our House Chapel Service at the end of the Michaelmas Term showcased an array of musical talent lead by Anna Chalmers in the Lower Sixth and Rosie Blackburn (LV) dazzled us all with a beautiful solo of ‘Once in Royal David’s City’ which left us all feeling thoroughly festive. It was lovely to have parents attend the service and join us afterwards for mulled wine and minced pies. Food, inevitably, has remained vital to the House’s happiness, with lots of lovely treats including smoothies made by Mrs Rigby, Rocky Road by Mrs Rodgers, pizza making with Mrs Boswell and Miss Myers never failing to impress with her innovative baking that everyone loves to sample. The House Suppers have brought great amusement and have displayed unusual creativity when it comes to making comical costumes. Mrs Boswell and Miss Myers have been an incredible team and have made everyone’s year so positive. They are constantly willing to help and always make time when a girl needs them; Aisholt is a House filled with fun and kindness. House Music displayed how the House has come together and it was a great spectacle to see the hard work everyone had put in to the final performance. Special mention must go to Anna Riley who performed a tremendous cello piece and won the prize for Best Soloist. House Drama was, as ever, incredible and everyone adored Aisholt’s interpretation of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ directed by Eliza Downes and assisted by Sophie Manners and Katharine Garvin (all LVI). It was so impressive to see the play that they had such a short amount of time to create. Aisholt has continued to be a busy, cheerful and friendly House - long may it continue! Emily Dodd-Noble, UVI – Aisholt Head of House

SCHOOL LIFE

HOUSE REPORTS

HOLCOMBE This year has certainly been a year of triumph for Holcombe! As a wise Housemistress once said, “Holcombe is in the middle of School and always on top”. This has become apparent both literally and metaphorically speaking over the course of the year. Winning House Drama, as well as the House Cup and House Dance, came as ultimate victories. Special mention has to begin with Jameliah Adekunle (UV) who won the Individual Dance with a truly amazing showcase of her contemporary dance skills. There was not a dry eye in the room after such a beautiful and magical moment. Then, of course, was House Drama. The House Drama Dance group was led by Isabelle Smith and Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan (both LVI) and they did an incredible job co-ordinating their dance to ‘Grease’. Then finally was the Comedy group which certainly showcased the varied talent in Holcombe. The production of ‘Oliver!’ directed by Florence Elliott, Isabelle Smith and Gemma Mountain (all LVI), left the whole audience asking “Please can we have some more?” (UV) Phoebe Evans’ role as Nancy was certainly moving and Rachael Litton (UV) as Bill was terrifying indeed, with Eliza Horn (UV) as Fagin portraying impressive dramatic flair. Certainly, Holcombe’s continued enthusiasm and desire to take part in the many aspects of Downe House life is apparent in our victories. I think placing so many lively characters in one House has undoubtedly maintained our love of getting involved. We have had many sporting achievements too, as we demonstrated a strong capability across two of Downe House’s strongest sports – winning both House Netball and House Lacrosse. Special mention must go to the teams involved for their ambitious determination. Not only will Holcombe lose their Upper Fifth this year, luckily only across the road to Willis, but we will also wave farewell to Miss Baker, our Deputy Housemistress, who is going to try her sleuthing skills in the police force – having spent three years finely honing them at Holcombe with laptop use after lights out! She and her faithful Labrador, Wispa, will be hugely missed as she has provided all of us with encouragement, guidance and a great sense of fun. We wish her all the best and hope that she stays out of ‘trouble’ on the job. If she can survive a house full of teenage girls, we feel she is more than equipped to take on the great British public! In her place, we welcome Mr Treadaway and his soon-to-be wife, who come to us highly recommended from AGS. We also wish Mr Lapwood all the best for his forthcoming retirement.

This year Mrs Mears-Smith has given us a fabulous in-House programme of activities, ranging from therapeutic colouring-in and crafts to sports massages and invigorating tai-chi or yoga. Both our physical and emotional needs have been well-catered for – with Mrs Pearson and Ms Beavon also providing ‘TLC’ and good cheer on a daily basis whilst our patient House Tutors keep us on track academically and socially. On a slightly less healthy note (but no less appreciated), special mention must also go to Mr Mears-Smith for his enduring popcornmaking skills every Saturday movie night in Holcombe. We are so very lucky here at Holcombe to have such an amazing team. Thank you Mrs Mears-Smith for keeping Holcombe in the top spot all year and for organising some great House outings as well as providing the day-to-day calm mentorship that comes with being a Housemistress. You have made it your mission to integrate the mixed years within Holcombe and this has been very successful. We are truly characterised as a friendly, easy-going and team-spirited house. Those of us moving on are sad to leave but feel well set up, indeed ‘firm and resolute’, ‘Persta Atque Obdura’ being our house motto, for what comes next in life. Annabel Roest, UV

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE REPORTS

TEDWORTH It has been an eventful year for Tedworth, with the usual succession of annual events as well as being hosts for the new Schools’ Exchange Programme. We have also seen a new and exciting programme of activities in-House. During the Michaelmas Term, the first of our three sets of exchange students arrived. Boipelo, a student at Tiger Kloof School in South Africa, had never travelled to another country before but at the beginning of the Michaelmas Term, she spent two weeks as the dorm mate of myself and Lucy Phillips as well as joining in with the rest of the House and year for lessons and day to day routines. We hope to have the chance to catch up with Boipelo when a group of 14 of us visit Tiger Kloof in October. As always, House Drama was the most anticipated event of the year, with the levels of competitiveness running high. The theme this year was ‘Family Musicals’ and Tedworth performed the musical ‘Bugsy Malone’. Even with the very impressive performance, skilfully directed by Jemima Oliver and Octavia Leahy (both LVI), Tedworth was not able to claim first place but hopes are high for next year’s competition! To finish off the Michaelmas Term, we celebrated the countdown to the Christmas holidays with a House outing to Reading, where we did some Christmas shopping and went ice skating. When Lent Term came around, we welcomed Bella and Eloise, Australian exchange students from Melbourne Ladies College and they were whole-heartedly welcomed into Tedworth. Soon after, we were also introduced to Leonie and Yelena who were on exchange from Germany. House Hockey, House Lacrosse and House Netball marked the end of the Winter Sports season and Tedworth was victorious in lacrosse and hockey so here’s hoping next year will bring similar results. This year Tedworth has focused on making our time in-House more homely with frequent nights of activities such as juicing, frisbee and smoothie-making. This has given us a relaxing alternative to sitting in our dorms during the evenings and many of us have enjoyed them. Everyone put 110% into Sports Day this year, and although Tedworth didn’t win overall we did win several individual races, with victories in the pentathlon, relays and other track events. As the year came to a close, we thoroughly enjoyed Founder’s Weekend, with great showcases of gymnastics, drama and dance, as well as the main school play West Side Story. Several members of Tedworth House had key roles in the production and everyone was excited to see their friends perform. It has been another jam-packed year and we are all looking forward to the challenges and adventures of next term. Kirsty Depledge, LV

SCHOOL LIFE

2015-16 was a very exciting year for Darwin with a complete refurbishment over the summer holidays, which included knocking down walls to make larger bedrooms, redesigning the bathrooms, the construction of a new prep room, music room, a beautiful new kitchen and common room. There was tremendous excitement for girls, parents and staff when term started in September. The House was officially opened by Mr Simon Creedy-Smith, Governor, and our youngest pupil Katharine Corbett on Sunday 20 September with girls, parents and governors present.

HOUSE REPORTS

DARWIN

The LIV old and new settled in very quickly and we were the envy of all those who had passed through Darwin, hearing frequent cries of “it is amazing” and a few cries of “it’s not fair”! After all the excitement the girls settled into a wonderful year of hard work and fun. The introduction of the Wakefield Award brought new life to weekend activities with canoeing, team building, mountain boarding, camping, dance workshops and several fundraising events including a spa evening, film night and sponsored silence. The girls enjoyed their socials with Elstree. And of course we had a changing composition of groups in Darwin with them all going for a term in Veyrines. Throughout the Michaelmas Term the girls were happily absorbed in the Lower School Production of ‘Oliver! with a Twist’ which was performed at the end of January. There were a multitude of outstanding achievements throughout the year and I am thrilled that all the girls have done so well; a particular achievement that must be mentioned is Antonia Holloway’s audition with the National Children’s Orchestra; her performance was so outstanding that she not only gained a place but was also awarded the Leverhulme Scholarship, an outstanding achievement. It was a wonderful first year in Darwin for all the staff, including Ms Scott-Kerley, Mrs Hudson-Smith and Mrs Bowyer who have been such a great support to myself and the girls. We were very sorry to see this group of girls move on but I am sure they were ready to move into the Upper School and we wish them well. Mrs Frances Capps, Housemistress (Darwin), Teacher of PE and Pastoral Staff Mentor DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE REPORTS 12

HERMITAGE A Reflection from Hermitage Housemistress The new Hermitage House is now one year old and what a wonderfully exciting and busy year it has been! From the official Opening in September to our Open Home events during the year, we have been able to promote the House proudly to all our guests and I am sure the girls have enjoyed showing our many visitors around their lovely home. Having Remove and LIV together for the first time has been a very special experience for both year groups. I must congratulate the LIV for setting the standard expected and the Remove for making the transition to boarding so well. The photos tell the story of the year more than I can: the fun, friendship and happiness that boarding at Downe House brings. Mrs Anthea Nash, Housemistress

A Year of Change

‘Hillian to Hermite’

Having experienced my first year as Assistant Housemistress in ‘old Hermitage’ and my final year at Downe House, in the ‘new Hermitage’, I feel privileged to have experienced an evolution in Downe’s Lower School Boarding experience. This year was unique in that we had four different groups of girls coming to join us in the new Hermitage House. We had girls from Hermitage and Hill joining us in LIV, LIVs who were completely new to Downe House and of course, our lovely new Remove. The journey to where we are now has been extraordinary. Hermitage has been designed to work around the needs of a Boarding House; the layout, the design and the facilities. The girls’ accommodation provides the crucial comfort, warmth and excitement that they so need in their first years of boarding and the fact that all three Houses are now together, functioning as next door neighbours, has made for a more collaborative experience for both girls and staff.

Moving from Remove to LIV was going to be a big change especially as I was moving from Hill to Hermitage. Even though I was not moving far from my old House, the differences were pretty huge. The new houses are a lot bigger and more modern. There is more space, more computers and TVs, sinks in our dorms and a music practice room. In terms of moving up a year, it has been the small changes that made a big difference. In LIV you can spend more time in your other friends’ dorms and you get £2 of tuck per fortnight, instead of a £1! In House meetings the LIV get to sit on the sofas and we spend film nights in our special movie room in Mrs Nash’s house. LIV girls also have more responsibility, such as representing the Lower School and attending Student Council Meetings. Moving up into Hermitage has been a great experience.

Mrs Emily Parker-Barratt, Assistant Housemistress and Teacher of Speech and Drama/Musical Theatre

First Year as a Hermite My first year has been really fun and filled with memories I will treasure forever. When I arrived, I was a bit nervous as to what boarding would be like but I soon settled into the homely environment. Hermitage is the best house. Mrs Nash and Mrs Parker-Barratt make it feel like home and it’s like a massive sleepover every night! You are with your friends 24/7 so you soon get to know everyone very quickly. If you are feeling a bit homesick, your friends are always there to comfort you, but we are all having so much fun that you hardly feel sad. This year has gone so fast, I can’t believe that I am about to go into Lower Fourth. I am looking forward to getting to know the new girls. Overall my first year has been incredible and Hermitage has been great fun! Lucy Barrie, Remove

SCHOOL LIFE

Poppy Penney, LIV

Old Hermite in a New Hermitage In September I became a LIV and moved into the brand new Hermitage House. Although the old Hermitage was very cosy, homely and relaxing, I have enjoyed the design of new Hermitage, finding it easy to settle in as the atmosphere is so bright and cheerful. It was a big change moving onto the School campus but it has made life easier and more convenient. Being able to play with our friends from other Houses has been a great change and so easy, as we are now all next door neighbours! Fortunately, we have been able to continue having House Breakfast on Sunday mornings which has been a real bonus! I think that being mixed in with the Remove has brought our two year-groups a lot closer together too. Imogen Ridley, LIV

This year being in Hill House in the new boarding house has been amazing! Sharing with Remove is a great idea as it gives them a chance to settle in, gives them an opportunity to talk to the LIV girls as well as the teachers and Housestaff. This will be really useful when they come into the Mixed Aged Houses as they will know the year above. At weekends we have done really fun activities such as baking, Just Dance, drama workshops, dance competitions and many more! We have been on many trips too, both with and without the Remove, such as ice skating, bowling, shopping and going to the cinema. At the end of every term we have had a House party with pizza, sweets and snacks, and loads of dorm competitions and games. At Christmas we all dressed up in Christmas fancy dress which was great fun. We have also had a 5K fun run, for the charity Teenage Cancer Trust and we raised over £1,000!

HOUSE REPORTS

HILL

I have loved my time in Hill House and I will miss it very much. Jemima Landale, LIV - Head of House

In September, I started at Downe House as a Remove in Hill. Moving up to secondary school was a very daunting prospect, especially a boarding school, as I knew practically nothing about it. Feeling very nervous, I set off not knowing that I was at the beginning of an amazing experience that I will never forget. The House Staff were very welcoming and soon I started to feel at home. I met all my dorm mates, who were also very nervous and it was nice knowing that they were in the same boat as me! We soon settled in and we have had so much fun since. The pristine new boarding house is amazing! We have all enjoyed the brand new dorms as well as the community spaces such as the common room and the prep room. It is really spacious which means that we can have fun on an even larger scale. Activities in-House have been many and va ried including board games, cookery, Just Dance and, most importantly, inter-dorm competitions (although the latter have been rather competitive at times!). We have had many trips at weekends including Cadbury’s World, Paulton’s Park and Winchester Christmas market. They were fantastically fun, as I was with all my friends and even some girls from Hermitage and Darwin, so it was quality inter-House bonding. I know for a fact that it took a lot of teamwork to decide exactly which chocolate bar we were each going to buy! Saturday movie nights are probably the best evenings of the week. What could be better than curling up in our duvets with tuck and all our friends? Well, maybe pain-au-chocolat at Thursday breakfast is a strong contender, although it is a hard decision. Either way, it all involves friends and food! I have loved being in Hill to the very last minute, and I cannot wait until next year for another three terms of fun, creativity and friendship. Alice Pernthaller, Remove

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE REPORTS

VEYRINES It has been a pleasure to work with the Lower Fourth girls again this year. Our programme of lessons and activities is so long and varied that it has proved difficult to summarise the year, so here are just a few highlights: We opened our gates to the local community in the Michaelmas Term for an English garden party and the girls proved to be wonderful hostesses, discovering that they could speak to French people and be understood! Constance Pope, Poppy Scales, Toluwase Agusto and Jemima Harrison were interviewed live on French radio which is a marvellous achievement for girls their age and something of which they should be very proud. Every girl taught English at a local Primary School and performed a play in French for a very enthusiastic and appreciative audience. Each term, the girls organised a number of fundraising events for our charity, Hôpital Sourire and they all worked extremely hard to make our termly cake stall in Sarlat market a huge success. Mrs Deborah Scotland, Head of Veyrines

A Term in Veyrines (sung to the tune of Raindrops on Roses from The Sound of Music) A term here in France is packed full of surprise, It changes us all but in ways we don’t realise, We live a French lifestyle, it’s all such a dream, Whilst having a wonderful time in Veyrines. Sorties and visits make lessons exciting, Keeping a Journal helps improve our writing, After a while, we all speak French with ease, Our confidence grows as we learn in Veyrines.

Truffles and foie gras and strawberries and walnuts, Roast duck, French cheeses and buttery croissants, Nutella at breakfast, we dine here like Queens, These are some things that we eat in Veyrines. When the term ends, it’s all over, And we’re feeling sad, We simply remember our favourite things, And then we don’t feel so bad. Canoeing and cycling and going out running, Archery, dancing and rock and tree climbing, Gymnastics and circuits, we work as a team, These are some sports that we do in Veyrines. Concerts and cake sales and film nights and theme days, Masterchef, markets, performing in French plays, A trip to Vulcania, there’s no end it seems To the list of cool things that we do in Veyrines. Futuroscope, Circus school, spa days and picnics, Mime workshops, tennis, no time for homesickness, Film shows in Sarlat, French films we have seen, The programme is packed for a term in Veyrines. When the year ends, it’s all over, And we’re feeling sad, We simply look back on our time in Veyrines, And then we don’t feel so bad. Mrs Deborah Scotland, Head of Veyrines

SCHOOL LIFE

Head of House Deputy Head of House LVI Games Captain UV Games Captains LV Games Captains Michaelmas Term 2015 LVI Prefects (Michaelmas and Lent) Charlotte Orpen and Rumbidzai Wasterfall Head of House Competitions Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps Foundation Forum Reps Charity Reps House Drama Producer House Drama Director Assistant Director Lent Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps House Shout Conductor House Gym Captains Hackman Summer Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps

Louisa Henry Sophia Donald and Amelia Porter Charlotte Clover and Iona Jardine Jennifer Darko and Ella Houston Lettice Cornell and Lucy Cunningham

Roseanna Bromley, Imogen Hancock, Iona Jardine, Hebe Meredith, Charlotte Aldrich Jennifer Darko and Daisy Shepherd-Cross Minna Crewdson and Florence Fanshawe Fenella Bowlby and Imogen Webber Anna Hall and Arabella Woo Jennifer Darko and Sabrina Sambhi Rumbidzai Wasterfall Roseanna Bromley Imogen Hancock and Hebe Meredith

Holly Evans and Beatrix Jackson Christabel Graham and Yian (Annabel) Shi Georgina Marchand and Arabella Woo Charlotte Aldrich Minna Crewdson, Oluchi Emenike, Christabel Graham and Katie

Claudine Collins and Sarah Darko Eva Percy and Sabrina Sambhi Tara Farquhar and Henrietta Miles

AGS Head of House House Seniors LVI Prefects and Lydia Stonehill LVI Games Captain UV Games Captains LV Games Captains Michaelmas Term 2015 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps House Drama Producer Director Assistant Director Lent Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps Food Committee Rep House Shout Conductor House Dance House Gym Captains

HOUSE OFICERS

AGN

Emma Stonebridge Autumn Davies and Alexandra Kirk Deena Bhanarai, Miranda Bird, Lucy Harley, Olivia Harrison, Lara Kary Lucy Grace and Melissa McAlpine Charlotte Benigni and Sarah Palmer Gabriella Franklin and Milly Hine

Molly Grafftey-Smith and Bethany Perry Esther Bolodeoku and Lara Mountain Annabel Le Grice and Nina Paterson Celine Harborne Henrietta Allen Lucy Grace and Charlotte Simpson

Charlotte Benigni and Man I (Melissa) Chang Imogen Gregory and Charlotte Harrabin Oluwatamilore Bolodeoku and Alexandra Kiy Clarissa Hahn and Jitiratn (Proud) Rojchuphan Olivia Harrison, Lucy Harley and Janice Wing Tung Kwong Lydia Stonehill Esther Bolodeoku, Gabriella Franklin, Imogen Gregory and Charlotte Toogood

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE OFFICERS 16

Summer Term 2016 Head of House Deputy Head of House Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps Food Committee Rep

Henrietta Allen Miranda Bird and Lydia Stonehill Nutthapit Poolworaluk and Tabonga Yangailo Catharina Benigni and Alexandra Jardine Emma Bracken and Clementine Pemberton Clarissa Hahn and Jitiratn (Proud) Rojchuphan

AISHOLT Head of House House Seniors LVI Prefects Sandrine Heller and Florence Palmer LVI Games Captains UV Games Captains LV Games Captains Michaelmas Term 2015 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps House Drama Producer House Drama Director House Drama Assistant Director Search for a Star Prefects Lent Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps House Music Conductors House Gym Captains Summer Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps

Emily Dodd-Noble Georgia Findlay and Isabella Hancock Anna Chalmers, Olivia Clark, Jasmine Coulson, Emily Crowston, Jasmine Coulson and Sophie Manners Sasha Coulson and Natasha Somerville-Cotton Rosie Blackburn and Jessica Hayward-Cole

Mariella (Ella) Bennett and Alice Wills Charlotte Berry and Georgina Pollock Cecilia Boscawen and Holly Fenn Sophie Manners Eliza Downes Katharine Garvin Georgina Fenn and Minnie Royden

Hebe Ide and Rebecca Topping Olivia Kirkby and Elizabeth Reynard Arah Elombi and Emily Manners Anna Chalmers, Emily Crowston and Oi Ka (Natalie) Lam Lucy Bergstrom, Georgia Hewitson, Trinity Hill and Honor Sells Monique Leong and Isabella West Anna Riley and Torpad (Yok) Rungjerdfa Lucy McCreery and Motolani Oladitan

HOLCOMBE Head of House House Seniors Peer Support Reps House Music Captains House Dance Captains House Drama Producer House Drama Director Assistant Director

Lilac Watt Wing Yun (Catherine) Yung and Eleanor Tarling Annabel Roest and Sophia Hill Rose Galbraith and India Burney Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan and Isabelle Smith Isabelle Smith Florence Elliott Gemma Mountain

Michaelmas Term 2015 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps

Ilaria Bevan and Lauren Griffith Alana Robertson and Lucinda Hammond Eliza Inglis and Anna Neville

Lent Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps

Josephine Adams and Isabelle Brown Iman Khalil and Cosima Davies Emily Barber and Mathilde Hughes

Summer Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps SCHOOL LIFE

Annabel Roest and Alexandra Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Kane Amelia Smith and Holly Skinner

Head of House House Seniors LVI Games Captain UV Games Captains LV Games Captains Michaelmas Term 2015 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps House Drama Producer House Drama Director House Drama Assistant Director Lent Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps House Music Conductors House Gym Captains House Dance Choreographer Summer Term 2016 Shadow Heads of House LV Year Reps UIV Year Reps

HOUSE OFFICERS

TEDWORTH Olivia Holden Kezia Dubens and Daisy Padovan Camilla Farrell and Rebecca Radford Alexa Feather and Cecilia Hughes Cecelia Kane and Alexa Wiggin

Rosanna Craig and Anna Hewitt Calypso Cox and Charlotte (Lottie) Zeal Victoria Aarons and Abriella (Abby) Dolbear Octavia Leahy Jemima Oliver Araminta Moore

Eleanor Bishop and Sasha Villiers-Smith Shalayna Assani and Imogen Dundas Alexandra Adderley and Emily Carpmael Violet Crawfurd Calypso Cox, Cecelia Kane, Alexa Wiggin and Charlotte (Lottie) Zeal Kezia Dubens

Georgina Anastassopoulos Tubby and Isabel Wood Cecelia Kane and Miranda Woodruff Anouk Davies and Ottilie Whitbread

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE ART

AGS

The Mixed Aged House Art competition was launched in February inspired by (LV) Florence Fanshawe’s idea. Florence suggested the Art Competition should be inclusive and every girl in each House should have the opportunity to participate. Each House designed a mural based on the theme of ‘Around the World’ and a grid of squares was then drawn over the design. The designs were transferred onto large pieces of card which were cut into squares. All the girls in the Houses were then invited to decorate or paint ‘their square’ using any media of their choice. The girls had fun creating their pieces during a lively workshop and the media used was exciting and imaginative. Collage and glitter featured heavily!

Aisholt

Finally, the individual rectangles were reassembled into the mural designs like a large jigsaw puzzle. They were stuck onto backing board and framed. It was difficult to choose the most successful outcome but it was unanimously agreed that the Holcombe entry was beautifully executed with attention to detail and the judging panel declared that they were the worthy winner and would be the recipients of the lovely glass trophy. Mrs Sally Scott, Head of Art

AGN

Holcombe Tedworth

SCHOOL LIFE

HOUSE DANCE

HOUSE DANCE The theme for this year’s House Dance competition was ‘Movies and Musicals’, which sparked brilliant ideas from the House Choreographers. On the night, the audience was treated to a range of dynamic, imaginative and unique performances across all five Houses. Different dance disciplines were explored from modern, to tap, to hip hop; everyone put their best foot forward! Our very own Miss Rachel Vallance completed a dance workshop with five girls from each House on Saturday afternoon, after which they had a little bit of time to perfect their moves before performing their dances at the competition in the evening. Miss Vallance set the bar high and we marvelled at the routine the girls had to pick up in a very short space of time, set to Rhianna’s ‘Work’- it would have defeated many. On the night, we were so lucky to welcome Christina Andre as our adjudicator, a professional choreographer and dancer from the much acclaimed Rudeye Dance Agency. Between Christina and Miss Vallance, the girls received excellent adjudication. The evening culminated in Holcombe winning overall, with Jameliah Adekunle (UV), Holcombe, winning ‘Best Solo’, Lydia Stonehill (LVI), AGS, clinching ‘Best Choreographer’ and AGS winning ‘Best Group’. All the perfomances were wonderful and every single girl who took part, should be so proud of what they achieved - many congratulations to all.

Mrs Genevieve Ford, Boarding Deputy

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE DRAMA

HOUSE DRAMA Sunday 18 October saw the return of the annual House Drama Competition. This year’s theme was Classic Family Musicals and we were honoured and privileged to have the renowned lyricist, Sir Tim Rice, as our adjudicator. As ever, the Lower Sixth girls took full charge of the event, adapting the scripts, producing and directing the plays and planning the costumes, props and all of the technical elements. The plays were based on five well-known family musicals. Tedworth presented ‘Bugsy Malone’ directed by Jemima Oliver, Aisholt ‘The Wizard of Oz’ directed by Eliza Downes, Holcombe ‘Oliver’ directed by Florence Elliott, AGN ‘Mary Poppins’ directed by Roseanna Bromley and AGS ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ directed by Henrietta Allen (all LVI). Although the theme had a musical slant, the directors were free to adapt their pieces as they wished; some chose to stay true to the source text and included a number of songs and dances from the original shows, while others adapted their plays more freely.

I cannot think of a more appropriate adjudicator for the theme of ‘Classic Family Musicals’ than Sir Tim Rice; an Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, Tony Award, and Grammy Award-winning lyricist. Sir Tim was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for services to music, he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, is an inductee into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame, is a Disney Legend recipient, and is a fellow of the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors. In addition to all of this, Sir Tim is a former Downe House parent, who has watched the last five House Drama Competitions from the other side of the auditorium. He found it a fascinating and surprisingly intimidating experience being on stage and making the big decisions this year! Sir Tim was very impressed with the professionalism of all five of the House plays and he commented on the excellent way in which each of the original pieces had been adapted into their thirty minute versions. He also thought the standard of acting, singing and dancing was very high. Anouska Royle (UVI), the Head of Drama, supported Sir Tim throughout the day, introducing him to the audiences and assisting with the adjudication. She was an excellent ambassador for the School and the Drama Department, and she really enjoyed spending the day critiquing all of the plays alongside Sir Tim and, ultimately, helping to make the final difficult decisions about which Houses were going to win the main prizes. SCHOOL LIFE

After much deliberation, Sir Tim and Anouska awarded Holcombe’s performance of ‘Oliver!’ the Overall Winner’s Trophy, with Tedworth’s ‘Bugsy Malone’ coming a close second and winning the Artistic Endeavour Cup. There were several individual performances that were singled out as having been particularly impressive, most notable were Phoebe Evans (UV) as Nancy in ‘Oliver!’, Charlotte Berry (LV) as the Tinman in ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and Emma Bracken (UIV), who received the Head of Drama Award for the Most Promising Young Performer for her portrayal of Truly Scrumptious in ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’. Special mention must also go to Katie Hackman (LV) for her beautiful rendition of ‘Feed the Birds’ from ‘Mary Poppins’. This was a performance that Sir Tim deemed worthy of any West End stage and which earned Katie the award for the Best Live Musical Performance. Mrs Rebecca Watson, Head of Extra-Curricular Drama TROPHY WINNERS House Drama Cup

Holcombe

Artistic Endeavour Cup

Tedworth

Best Actress Award

Phoebe Evans (UV, Holcombe)

Best Supporting Actress

Charlotte Berry (LV, Aisholt)

Head of Drama Award for Most Promising Young Performer

Emma Bracken (UIV, AGS)

ACTING AWARDS AGS

AGS - Isabella Huber (UV)

AGN

Victoria Scobie (UV)

Holcombe

Eliza Horn (UV)

Tedworth

Cecilia Hughes (LVI)

Aisholt

Saskia Wormsley (UV)

HOUSE DRAMA AWARDS Best Adaptation

Holcombe

Most Creative Staging

AGS

Best Lower School Direction

Tedworth

Best Choreography

Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan (LVI, Holcombe)

Best Live Music Performance

Katie Hackman (LV, AGN)

Best Set Design

Tedworth

Best Technical Direction

Tedworth

Best Special Effect

Aisholt

Best Costume

Tedworth

Best Hair and Make-Up

Aisholt

Best Poster

Holcombe

Best Programme

AGN

Best Lower School (LIV) Programmes:

AGS - Emily Glover AGN - Matilda McDougall Holcombe - Lua Vazquez Sanchez Tedworth - Molly Dubens Aisholt - Torrung (Mook) Rungjerdfa

SPECIAL AWARDS Most Lovable Villain

Cecelia Kane (LV, Tedworth)

Most Unlovable Villain

Rachael Litton (UV, Holcombe)

Best Romantic Moment

Cecilia Hughes and Anna Hewitt (UV, Tedworth)

During House Drama I was honoured to be presented with the ‘Best Actress’ award by the adjudicator Sir Tim Rice. I am so happy to have been part of House Drama this year and I really enjoyed working with the Sixth Formers during the month of September frantically practising for the final performance. It was an amazing feeling to be performing the part of ‘Nancy’ in front of all the parents and my peers, and I was very pleased for Holcombe and especially the directors and producer that we managed to win! It was a great privilege to receive an award from such a talented and well renowned lyricist and I will remember the moment forever. I would like to thank all those involved in the organisation and preparation for the day and I am very sad to see it all coming to an end.

HOUSE DRAMA

Best Actress Award Phoebe Evans

Phoebe Evans, UV

Best Supporting Actress Charlotte Berry I very much enjoyed playing the part of the Tin Man in Aisholt’s production of The Wizard of Oz. It was great to play such a challenging role and to have the opportunity to develop my creative ideas. I particularly liked the hair and makeup; my hair was spray painted silver and my skin was painted silver too, with a silver costume as well. It was really fun acting in House Drama alongside my peers from different year groups. The Lower Sixth teams did a fabulous job of directing us all and I am looking forward to having the opportunity myself in a few years’ time. I was really excited for the awards ceremony, and when my name was called out for Best Supporting Actress, I was very shocked and overwhelmed but very grateful to Sir Tim Rice for giving me the award. It was a moment I will remember for a very long time and I look forward to performing in other productions. Charlotte Berry, LV

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

HOUSE GYMNASTICS

HOUSE GYMNASTICS This year many girls have been very enthusiastic about gymnastics with members of the gym club increasing and many girls attending KD Gymnastics Club in Newbury. The annual House Gymnastics competition was hotly contested with each of the five Houses producing some stunning choreography across all the disciplines. On the floor Aisholt and Holcombe shared the honours of the group Floor, whilst Romilly Cox (LIV), Tedworth, secured victory with her beautiful individual Floor routine. On the Beam, Tedworth manged to hold their nerve and win the overall Beam Prize with Alexa Wiggin (LV) and Florence Stringer (LIV) winning the Individual prize. The Vaulting prize went to AGS with Jessica Hewlett (UIV) springing her way over for the individual medal. Over the course of the year two girls have made significant progress and the Most Improved prize went to Emily Manners (UIV), Aisholt, and Mathilde Hughes (UIV), Holcombe. The competition was a huge success and AGS were victorious and took the overall title.

Olivia Clark, LVI â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Gymnastics Captain

SCHOOL LIFE

HOUSE MUSIC

HOUSE MUSIC House battle commenced on Wednesday 10 February to see who would be awarded the grand title of House Music Champions 2016. We were fortunate to welcome the Director of Music from Garden House School, Mr Andrew Boddicker, as adjudicator. As a self-confessed James Bond fan he would be well qualified to judge this year’s James Bond theme. The current champions, Holcombe, opened the show with a slick and well-choreographed performance of Adele’s renowned ‘Skyfall’ featuring fantastic harmonies. Tedworth followed, with a dazzling rendition of the glamorous ‘Diamonds are Forever’, some dressed head to toe in tinsel for full effect. Their instrumental performance of ‘Tequila’ also got feet tapping with trombone improvisation and energetic audience participation. AGN presented the most recent James Bond theme tune; ‘Writings on the Wall’, with exposed vocal harmonies and simple, but thoughtful dance moves. The vocal ensemble offering, ‘Panic Chord’, was well-staged and performed with emotional empathy. By contrast, party poppers covered the stage at the end of Aisholt’s inventive rendition of the instrumental James Bond tune, which was sung with real energy and (LV) Anna Riley’s solo cello performance of Fauré’s ‘Élégie’ impressed. AGS closed the James Bond theme with a dark and menacing performance of ‘Live and Let Die’. Their instrument ensemble was the largest and they played an original composition by Man I (Melissa) Chang (UV) making a very distinctive performance.

During adjudication, Rose Galbraith (LVI), Katie Hackman (LV) and Lauren Dunn (LV) entertained the crowds (2015 House Music Solo Winner and 2015 Bring the House Downe winners respectively) and then the results were in. Tedworth was awarded Best Conductor and Aisholt won Best Soloist and Programme which included cake. Holcombe won Best House Choir, AGN Best Presented House and AGS swept up Best Instrumental Ensemble and Best Vocal Ensemble leading to Best Overall House. Particular congratulations go to the soloists in each house, Phoebe Evans (UV) for Holcombe, Katherine Garnett (UV) for Tedworth, Henrietta Ryan (UV) for AGN, Anna Riley (LV) for Aisholt and Zoe Carruthers (UIV) for AGS. Special mentions are due to all the Lower Sixth House Conductors for their hard work in arranging and rehearsing all ensembles. Mrs Amy McPherson, Assistant Director of Music DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

LOWER SCHOOL PRODUCTION 24

OLIVER! WITH A TWIST Director’s Note Having a joint role, as Assistant Housemistress in Hermitage and as a Teacher of Speech and Drama/Musical Theatre, has allowed me to witness the superb talent our Remove and Lower Fourth girls have to offer in the performing arts. It was clear to me that these girls simply could not wait until they were in the Upper School to play leading roles and I felt that we needed a production to showcase our Lower School. Therefore, when I was given the opportunity to direct the Lower School Production I knew we would have to perform something really special, something truly memorable to stay with them forever and timelessly relevant for all involved. Growing up, I would spend hours with my grandmother watching our favourite musicals over and over again - we just couldn’t get enough of them! The first musical she introduced me to was Lionel Bart’s ‘Oliver!’. She and I would sing our way through each musical number and to this day I still remember my nana’s laugh at the cheeky Artful Dodger, her smile during ‘Where is Love?’ and our voices singing along to ‘Who Will Buy?’ I have wanted for such a long time to have the opportunity and the right cast to re-tell this amazing story using both the infamous words of Dickens and the entrancing music of Lionel Bart. The characters are unforgettable, the themes are as true now as they were then and the music stays with you, as any good song should. Therefore, I knew this would be the perfect opportunity for the girls and I to put our own twist on the famous classic. The challenge would of course be how to include every girl in Lower School with the obstacle of a third of our Lower Fourth being in Veyrines. However, with some adapting, recording, filming and intense last minute rehearsals, we were able to include every single girl; making it, whole heartedly, a true, Lower School Production. The girls and production team worked tirelessly throughout the Michaelmas Term ready for our production on the 23 January. We rehearsed, sang, choreographed, filmed, recording voice overs and narration, and used every last bit of energy we had. The cast were committed, resilient and consistently collaborated with one another. There was no doubt that each and every girl was stretched and challenged above and beyond, no doubt that they poured everything they had into it and as a result we had an amazingly successful show. Once the curtains were drawn and the rehearsals were no more, it seemed none of us could get the songs out of our head, none of us could shake the choreography or stop quoting lines and although we were all suitably exhausted, I know we would happily do it all over again in a second! The production was truly a highlight of my career here at Downe House and I hope the girls will treasure the memories we share as I know I will. Mrs Emily Parker-Barratt, Assistant Housemistress (Hermitage) and Teacher of Speech and Drama/Musical Theatre

SCHOOL LIFE

I have always loved acting but not this much. I first got into it when I was auditioning for Nancy (from Oliver) at my old school. When I moved to Downe House, I thought that acting wouldn’t be taken as seriously because of the emphasis on academics and exams but I was wrong. As soon as I heard there were going to be auditions for, ‘Oliver! with a Twist’, I dived straight in. I learnt the script, did the audition and soon found out, I had been chosen to play Oliver! I knew I could do it and with all the staff to help, I improved my acting skills enormously. Rehearsals were hard to keep up with at first, as everyone was tired from our long school days but I kept remembering that if I just stepped into Oliver’s shoes and thought about how he would act in each situation, I would be fine and it turned out, I was!

LOWER SCHOOL PRODUCTION

My experience of playing Oliver in, ‘Oliver! with a Twist’

Eleanor Gibbs, Remove - Hill

Filming ‘Oliver! with a Twist’ In January, the Lower School performed the play, ‘Oliver! with a Twist’. However, because some of us were going to Veyrines in January, like me, we filmed our scenes in the Michaelmas Term. These filmed scenes were then projected onto big screens, either side of the stage, during the live performance. We played modern day Downe House girls as part of Mrs Parker-Barratt’s adaptation. I was cast as the lead girl. My character was often found with her head in a book, reading, ‘Oliver!’ by Charles Dickens. The idea, and one of the ‘twists’, was that the live performances on stage represented the daydreams of my character and as she read the book, she was bringing the story to life. It was really fun to film but it was hard not to laugh at some points with a camera following and filming my every move. I also needed to record some moments of narration, so I was able to go into the recording studio. It was really cool because I got to use professional recording equipment but it was weird to hear my voice when we played it back! Overall, it was a really great, fun experience. Jemima Harrison, LIV - Hermitage DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

FOOD FORUM COMMITTEE

DELICIOUSLY DOWNE!

Eleanor Armstrong (UVI) Jessica Campbell (UVI) Anna Chalmers (LVI) Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan (LVI) Olivia Clark (LVI) Sarah Creedy-Smith (UVI) Anouk Davies (UIV) Alicia de Broë-Ferguson (Remove) Georgina Dick (LVI) Molly Dubens (LIV) Kezia Dubens (LVI)

Food Forum Committee Throughout the school year, girls have been giving voice to their opinions on the very important and much discussed topic of the food and refreshments that are provided for them. It’s a topic that everyone has an opinion on and not surprisingly it’s a big part of what makes Downe House a home. Throughout the year over 40 girls have gathered feedback and suggestions from their friends and housemates, and contributed to one of the half-termly Lower School, Upper School or Sixth Form Food Forum Committee meetings.

Thank you to all the girls who have taken part in the Food Forum this year:

It’s part of an initiative run by Ross MacTaggart, Deputy Catering and Events Manager, and other members of the Catering Team and House staff, and something that has proved hugely successful in terms of participation and results. As the team continually evolve what they offer both in School and the Houses, it’s a great opportunity for them to gauge how the girls feel about changes that are made and how their new initiatives are received. This year, the girls have relished the chance to represent their peers and their contribution has been very effective ... • The three week menu rotation has been reinstated in place of the two week cycle that had been in operation at the beginning of the year. • The new evening Bistro Bar, with pre-plated meals, has become a permanent fixture on the menu.

Lyla Elichaoff (Remove) Christina Elliot (LIV) Freya Esam (UVI) Camilla Farrell (LVI) Georgina Fenn (LVI) Louisa Fiertz (LIV) Anna Goodman (LVI) Christabel Graham (LV) Clarissa Hahn (UV) Madeleine (Maddi) Hales (Remove) Holly Halestrap (UV) Alexandra Hamilton (LIV) Imogen Hancock (LVI) Théa Hawtin (Remove) Sophia Hill (LVI) Amelia Hughes (LV) Eliza Inglis (UIV) Yoo-Jeong Kim (LIV) Madelaina Lavelle (Remove) Maria Manduca (LIV)

• The Pasta and Panini Bars are back – to the delight of girls and staff alike!

Emily Manners (UIV)

• The welcome return of the mid-week roast means that every girl has the opportunity to enjoy a scrumptious roast dinner at least once a week.

Matilda McDougall (LIV)

• The feedback has highlighted that often it’s the little things that can make a difference. Squash is now available along with bowls of fruit on every table at lunchtime and supper.

Alexia Milliken (UV) Alexandra Milne (LVI) Kate Mulvany (Remove) Charlotte Orpen (LVI) Charlotte Pearson (Remove)

Some food facts … The catering team serves 660 lunches every school day – that’s over 4,000 lunches each week! Favourite puddings are banoffee pie, brownies and fruit crumbles. Toast is the favourite snack in House with AGN consuming 18 loaves of bread per week.

Poppy Penney (LIV) Bethany Perry (UV) Anna Riley (LV) Jitiratn (Proud) Rojchuphan (UV) Torpad (Yok) Rungjerdfa (LV) Livia Russell (UVI)

Every menu is checked by the Medical Centre staff to ensure an excellent nutritional balance.

Lydia Stonehill (LVI)

Hot chocolate with marshmallows is the top treat in the Lower School Houses.

Ottilie Whitbread (UIV)

SCHOOL LIFE

Niamh Taylor (UVI)

SCIENCE

@BRISTOL WITH THE REMOVE On Wednesday 22 June, the Remove visited a science museum called @Bristol. It was one of the most fun museums I have ever been to. There were many interactive elements that were very exciting and really engaged everyone to get involved with the science behind them. The Planetarium was where we watched a very interesting 3D film about the possibility of alien life and ‘if we are alone’ in the universe, which was thought-provoking. In particular, the bubbles display was really fun and everyone enjoyed making massive bubbles. We also learned how animation films were produced and we even made a few animations ourselves. There were so many things to do that everyone was kept busy for the entire time. Overall it was a very interesting and exciting day! Lucy Barrie, Remove

BERKSHIRE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CHALLENGE

On the glorious, sunny morning of 4 July, 12 girls from Lower and Upper Fourth, accompanied by Mrs Charlesworth and Miss Pugsley, made their way to Reading College for the Berkshire Gifted and Talented Science and Technology Challenge. Each girl was put in teams with children from other schools from around the county to complete a range of tasks, and in order to score points and win prizes they had to work collaboratively with their new team-mates. The challenges included a Vehicle Challenge, to build the fastest car, a Medical Challenge where the girls learnt how to perform CPR and diagnosed a patient’s ailments based on taking a medical history. The other two challenges involved programming Lego robots to complete a complicated course of manoeuvres and tasks, and an E-Fit challenge, identifying a suspect using e-fit technology. The competitive spirit was running high, and the girls were thrilled to leave with many awards for the best teams out of the 32 taking part: • E-fit Challenge: Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho and Annie Hazlitt (both UIV) • Medical Challenge: Gardiner Hunt and Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho (both LIV) • Overall Winners on the day: Sophie Armitage and Rosanna Love (both LIV), who go forward to the second round of the Challenge at King’s College, London, in December, where they will compete against teams from other counties. Mrs Yvonne Charlesworth, Director of Operations and Head of Science ACADEMIC LIFE

SCIENCE

JUNIPER HALL BIOLOGY FIELD TRIP A beautiful sunny weekend in October saw the Biology Department return to Juniper Hall, for the UVI biologists to carry out ecological surveys in support of their Pre-U studies. Advances in technology meant that for the first year a specific app could be used to support data collection, and girls were introduced to this as they carried out sampling on Box Hill. The old woodlands provided an excellent site for investigating the distribution of certain plants in coppiced and uncoppiced areas, and two successful mammal trapping sessions gave girls the opportunity to discuss and compare the adaptations of voles and wood mice. After much data collection, collation and statistical analysis it was time to bid Juniper Hall farewell for another year. Miss Christina Pugsley, Head of Biology

LOWER FOURTH VISIT THE LIVING RAINFOREST On Monday 27 June, the Lower Fourth sciences classes all took an exciting trip to the Living Rainforest. When we arrived, two guides welcomed us and introduced us to the plants and their inhabitants. I was really excited as I have never been to a rainforest or even seen many of the animals they showed us. Two of my favourite animals were the chameleon and the sloth. These two animals I found very intriguing and interesting. The chameleon was the first and at the beginning of the talk no one could find him in the enclosure. Then, just as we were leaving, Mr Webb pointed the chameleon out to us. It was so well camouflaged that we had not seen it even when in plain sight! After the tour was over we were able to go and walk around by ourselves and of course I wanted to see the sloth. Because the sloth is a very gentle animal it is allowed to roam free throughout the whole of the rainforest area. Once again we did not find the sloth until the very last moment when it was time to leave. However, he was adorable but quite difficult to see unfortunately as he was up in the top of the rainforest understory. I think the trip was a great success and I am happy to say that I learnt many interesting facts during the trip. Gardiner Hunt, LIV

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

SCIENCE

ENGINEERING EDUCATION SCHEME In October, four Lower Sixth students (Harriet Emery, Olivia Rosengarten, Anna Chalmers and Melissa McAlpine) embarked upon an engineering project as part of the Engineering Education Scheme (EES), working on a real life problem with an engineering company. We were paired up this year with Costain with the task to investigate common failures in pipe joints with the aim of making a training model that could be used by Costain in the future. After some initial work and meetings, the project really came to life at a residential workshop that the team attended at the University of Hertfordshire, with the aim of finalising our design and starting to actually build our ideas. The team split into two, with Harriet and Olivia making some metal pipes joints whilst Melissa and Anna made plastic models – two of the common materials used in pipes. Both teams made gaskets for their models and some innovative testing of different gasket materials followed. The teams increased the pressure of water inside their models until the gaskets, which are used in between the joints, failed.

Project progress was really helped by use of the advanced equipment the university offers and also talking to academics working at the university, with the additional help of our wonderful engineering mentor James Edwards. Further testing followed in the weeks after. A wider variety of gasket materials were used, plus further developments such as testing different torque and bolt patterns. Spot re-testing of previous experiments helped us validate our results. Progress was ably managed by the team by using a Gantt chart, which held all their targets and milestones on a timeline. The final project report was finished in good time and sent off to the EES assessors. This was read by a panel of engineers, to whom the team also presented their work at the ‘Celebration and Assessment Day’ at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. There was also a stand where the team displayed their work and answered many interview questions from other teams and visiting scientists. The feedback from the assessors was hugely positive. They praised, amongst other things, the ordered structure and content of the report, the knowledge of the team and the obvious teamwork and organisation they had showed throughout the project. As their teacher I was very proud of their journey and how they embraced the project so enthusiastically; they were a delight to work with. The team all qualified for the prestigious BA Crest Gold awards, as well as the Science Cadet awards. Mrs Yvonne Charlesworth, Director of Operations and Head of Science

ACADEMIC LIFE

‘YOUR BODY, YOUR CONSENT’ WORKSHOP On Friday 11 March, a small group of girls were fortunate to be able to attend the ‘Your Body, Your Consent’ workshop at the Royal College of Surgeons in London. During the first part of the event, we discussed the history of human tissue donation and body snatching which led to the introduction of the Human Tissue Act of 2006, and the importance of the donor’s consent and autonomy. In the second part of the workshop, we were split into smaller groups to discuss a particular case study and given the opportunity to explore differing opinions towards human tissue donation and confidentiality. We also explored the different scenarios in which doctors may or may not need to ask for consent and whether the patient needs to know exactly where their tissues end up. After the workshop, we were given the chance to look around the Hunterian Museum, which houses a huge collection of tissue samples. This was fascinating and gave us a rare opportunity to see the effects of diseases on various parts of the body. This prompted us to do further research on consent and autonomy, which are sources of ethical debates in the medical world. We all had a very insightful and inspiring day and would definitely recommend this opportunity to any aspiring scientists or medics. Sereena Singh, Janice Wing Tung Kwong and Uchechukwuka (Sandra) Etuokwu, LVI

MATHS

ANNUAL MATHS PUZZLE DAY In December girls from the Remove were joined at Downe House by pupils from visiting prep schools to take part in our annual Maths Puzzle Day, run by The Happy Puzzle Company. The format of the day is that pupils work in teams on a variety of challenges. Most challenges will be solved fairly quickly, but require each team to work together to develop strategies to find a solution. If the temptation to give up starts to appear, pupils are encouraged to persevere, put their own skills to better use as part of a team and overcome difficulties by approaching problems from different perspectives. An enjoyable and productive time was had by all.

MATHS INSPIRATION EVENT

UK MATHS CHALLENGE

In February the annual Lower Sixth trip to the Maths Inspiration event in Reading was widely appreciated by the girls.

As usual, girls were entered for the UK Maths Challenges, with all Remove & LIV girls sitting the Junior Challenge, LV sets 1 & 2 together with UIV sets 1, 2 & 3 sitting the Intermediate Challenge, and top set UV, Sixth Form Further Mathematicians and volunteers from the Sixth Form sitting the Senior Challenge.

Maths Inspiration shows include three interactive talks from some of the country’s most engaging maths speakers, followed by a lively Q&A session during which students get to ask the panellists anything they want. This year the event was hosted by Matt Parker, and speakers were: Hannah Fry – Lecturer in Mathematics of Cities at the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, UCL Mr Robert Barnes, Head of Mathematics Rob Eastaway - Director of Maths Inspiration Mr Robert Barnes, Head of Mathematics Paul Shepherd - Lecturer at the University of Bath Mr Robert Barnes, Head of Mathematics Matt Parker - Stand-up Mathematician, Author and London Mathematical Society Popular Lecturer Mr Robert Barnes, Head of Mathematics

Particularly impressive was Sumin Kim’s (LV) performance in the Intermediate Challenge, which resulted in her gaining a Gold and Best in School Certificate and being invited to sit the Intermediate Maths Olympiad, in which she gained a Distinction. Ruyao Xu (UIV) also did very well, gaining a Silver Certificate and also being invited to sit the Intermediate European Kangaroo (in which she achieved a creditable score), as did Oi Ka (Natalie) Lam (LVI) in the Senior Challenge, gaining a Gold and Best in School Certificate and also being invited to sit the Senior Kangaroo. In the Junior Challenge, Alice Pernthaller (Remove) came Best in School, gaining a Gold Certificate and was also invited to sit the Junior Kangaroo. All articles by Mr Robert Barnes, Head of Mathematics

MATHS SUCCESSES We were obviously delighted with Jane Zhen’s success in gaining a place to read Mathematics at Cambridge and wish her well. A successful new initiative in the department were the morning Maths Department all-hands Maths Clinics, Tuesday-Satuday mornings from 8:25am to 8:55am. These drop-in sessions for girls when they needed some specific help, have proved to be very popular and we look forward to continuing these next year. DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

RELIGIOUS STUDIES

UPPER FOURTH VISIT TO CENTRAL OXFORD MOSQUE AND THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN On Thursday 23 June, the Upper Fourth girls went on an RS enrichment trip to Oxford. We were privileged to start our day by visiting the Central Oxford Mosque. We were kindly greeted and welcomed by Imam Amin, who gave us a fascinating insight as well as very thorough information about the Mosque and the Islamic Community. Imam Amin shared with us his personal experiences, he told of his duties and also fully explained to us the routines that Muslims undertake during Salah (prayer) and Ramadan, which is the Muslim holy month of Sawm (fasting).

After visiting the Mosque we toured around The University Church of St Mary the Virgin, located in the centre of Oxford. We learnt about the history and the significance of the Church from the Reformation to the 20th Century and how the University Church still remains highly respected and influential for the University today. The Church is the oldest in the University and has intricate architecture, as well as a library where Oxfam was founded. We ended our day with an interesting visit to the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, including exhibitions on numerous art collections from religions such as Islam, Buddhism and Christianity. We had time to explore and expand our knowledge on how art is deeply associated with religion and worship. It was a truly valuable opportunity for all of us and we all enjoyed our day very much. On behalf of our year group, I would like to thank Mrs Ford, Mrs Toogood, Mrs Hatton, Ms Raines, Mrs Dourountakis and Revâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d Taylor for organising the trip for us and being excellent company on the day. Mathilde Hughes and Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho, UIV ACADEMIC LIFE

RELIGIOUS STUDIES

LOWER FOURTH TRIP TO NEASDEN TEMPLE AND OXFORD SYNAGOGUE On Wednesday 22 June, the LIV girls visited the Oxford Synagogue and Neasden Hindu Temple. First of all we headed to the Neasden Temple and the building was magnificent; it looked like it belonged in India not central London. The marble and stone was carved beautifully, with nothing out of place at all. Next to it was the Prayer Hall, which was built in teak and oak, which was also exquisite with thousands of designs covering its walls. We walked inside and took off our shoes to pay respect to the deities that were worshipped inside the Mandir and went to watch a video showing how and why the temple was built. We learnt about the Hindu Monk, His Holiness Yogiji Maharaj, who dreamed of an amazing temple, and how his dream became a reality in 1992, when the foundations were laid - in only one day! It took three years to build, with the Temple being completed in 1995. Over 100 full time volunteers and 1000 part time volunteers took part in the building of the Temple and the Prayer Hall. Craftsmen from India carved the stone immaculately and every single stone was boxed and shipped to England. We asked our Hindu guide several questions about his religion after the video. He talked about the food he eats and the monks who live at the Temple. Hindus are not allowed to eat meat, fish or poultry. Their diet consists of dairy products, vegetables and fruit. The monks who live in the Temple have several rules to live by; they are not allowed to handle money as it corrupts their souls, they can only eat what is given to them and they cannot leave the Temple by themselves. They are also allowed to talk to fellow monks and nuns. After our talk we were led through the Temple to the Dome where we witnessed a prayer service. The room was beautiful and full of light. The different carvings were very intricate and

unique. It was mesmerising. After the midday service we walked through the room, stopping to look at the many deities, which were covered in silks and expensive jewels, on our way to an exhibition about Hindu traditions. It was very interesting and I learnt loads about Hinduism, its customs and deities. Then it was time to leave the Temple so we boarded the bus again to take us to Oxford for our short walk to the Oxford Synagogue. As we walked through the doors, we could see many colourful Jewish symbols, which were later explained to us. We were led inside to the small Synagogue by Sarah Montagu, who gave us a fascinating talk about being Jewish and Judaism. We learnt about several customs including what Jews eat at â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Shabbatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and when they pray. Later we saw a Sefer Torah and the Ark, where the Torahs are kept. All of the Torahs were covered in velvet and beautiful fabrics to symbolise respect and love for God. We were then led to the big Synagogue, where our guide explained the layout of the room and how it is used. Overall it was a very interesting and informative trip, and I learnt a huge amount about the two religions and their places of worship. Personally, I particularly enjoyed visiting the Temple, because it was so colourful and I liked the atmosphere this created. I had also never been to a Hindu Temple before, so it was a new experience for me and several of my other classmates. Daisy Williams, LIV

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

GEOGRAPHY

REMOVE GEOGRAPHY FIELD TRIP TO RUSHALL FARM On a beautiful sunny day in June, all the Remove girls visited a local spot in West Berkshire called Rushall Farm. We were demonstrating the girls’ theoretical work on rivers in the ‘field’ and they all had great fun! We were split into four groups and each group had the chance to do pond dipping and chemical analysis of the River Pang. The most excitement was generated when the girls all donned chest waders, rode on a trailer pulled by a tractor, and proceeded to measure the River Pang’s depth, width, velocity – and also try and catch as many river creatures as they could. The top prize went to the group who caught the American crayfish! Our thanks have to go to the wonderful fieldwork staff at Rushall Farm for a super field trip. Miss Kathryn Rawlinson, Head of Geography

LIV GEOGRAPHERS LOOK INTO THE FUTURE The LIV geographers visited not one but many cities in one day, as well as glimpsing the cities of the future. The Crystal is a hugely inspiring interactive exhibit showcasing the most up-todate solutions to the complex, geographical issues facing the world today. These included smart technology to help provide healthcare to an ageing population, improve urban design as well as control security and services in our cities. Our LIV geographers assumed the role of Mayor of various cities around the world and used the information at The Crystal to research possible solutions to their city’s problems, emulating the real-life clients of The Crystal. On returning to School, the girls prepared speeches to their citizens describing and justifying their decisions, as well as those they rejected. In Lent Term we had fantastic views of the City of London as we ‘flew’ over the Thames in the Emirates Air Line cable car before walking along the Thames Path to the Thames Barrier. We enjoyed some beautiful weather and along the way we looked at the redevelopment taking place on the Isle of Dogs as well as considering the sustainability of the Thames Barrier to protect London in the future. Unfortunately the same couldn’t be said of the Summer Term, rain rather ‘stopped play’ but at least it wasn’t bad enough for the Thames Barrier to be lifted. Miss Joanne Clarke, Teacher of Geography and Duke of Edinburgh Assistant ACADEMIC LIFE

GEOGRAPHY

UIV HENGISTBURY HEAD GEOGRAPHY FIELD TRIP On a beautiful bright and windy day in March we took all of the UIV girls down to Hengistbury Head in Dorset. We were demonstrating the girls’ theoretical work on sand dunes and groynes in the ‘field’ and they all had great fun. Each group of girls had the opportunity to measure the changes in vegetation within the sand dunes and to investigate the success of the groynes on the headland. In pairs, the students looked at the management of the area for tourists by counting cars and tallying the activities being carried out by tourists. The girls visited the local history and wildlife centre to learn about the local bird populations and they were fortunate to be able to observe herons nesting on the nature reserve, using binoculars. The girls found it a very interesting day out and it was an extremely effective way to investigate the interactions between humans and ecosystems in a coastal environment. Miss Kathryn Rawlinson, Head of Geography

SIXTH FORM FIELDWORK INVESTIGATIONS AT JUNIPER HALL This year the Geography Department took the girls to Juniper Hall which is a Field Centre near Box Hill on the North Downs, run by the Field Studies Council. The girls learnt how to measure various aspects of the River Tillingbourne and this fieldwork was linked directly to their studies of fluvial geomorphology in AS and Pre-U Geography. The girls had lots of fun during the day collecting their results. They then had to learn how to analyse these results using various strategies to see if the results that they had found matched the theory that they had learned in the classroom. Miss Kathryn Rawlinson, Head of Geography DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

ART HISTORY

LVI STUDY TRIP TO LONDON On Tuesday 10 May the LVI Art Historians visited two London art galleries to consolidate their Pre-U learning for their Analytical Studies and Historical Topics papers. In the morning the girls carried out analysis of ancient Greek artworks from the British Museum, focussing particularly on the Parthenon marbles and the re-creation of the Nereid Monument, along with key examples of black and red-figure Attic vases. They were also able to study in detail the colossal Egyptian depiction of Ramses II The Younger Memnon, and the sensual, gilded sculpture of Tara Bodhisattva, featured on their Analytical Studies syllabus. In the afternoon the girls analysed early Renaissance works in the Sainsbury Wing of the National Gallery, before examining various other works in the main galleries, such as Holbein’s Ambassadors, Titian’s Diana and Actaeon, and Constable’s Hay Wain, for their Analytical studies paper. Ms Diane Slocombe, Teacher of History of Art

UVI STUDY DAY IN LONDON 36

On Sunday 24 April the UVI Art Historians took part in a special workshop arranged by renowned company Art History Abroad, in order to consolidate their study for Pre-U Paper 3: The Nude. Ms Alex Fielding devised a programme of revision focusing on works at Tate Britain, with the aim of studying at first hand examples of the Nude directly pertinent to the Pre-U course, and to draw links between all the thematic elements of the syllabus. In the morning the girls toured the gallery collection, picking out key works to debate the characteristics of the Classical nude as interpreted by the Victorians, as well as gendered depictions and contrasting the terms ‘naked’ and ‘nude’, before examining feminist re-interpretations of the female nude. After lunch, the girls discussed modernist adaptations of the nude, before dividing into small groups to focus on different examination questions; they prepared a response by comparing appropriate examples in the gallery and presenting their ideas for everyone to consider and discuss. The girls enjoyed a very busy, stimulating and refreshing revision of their classwork, while testing their ideas and deepening their understanding of the contrasting debates surrounding the Nude in art. Ms Diane Slocombe, Teacher of History of Art ACADEMIC LIFE

On Sunday 6 December, girls from the Sixth Form visited the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford to see an exhibition called: Titian to Canaletto: Drawing in Venice, with a Contemporary Response by Jenny Saville. This exhibition focused on new scholarship, and demonstrates the importance of drawing in Venetian art for over three centuries, contrary to long-held beliefs that Venetian artists were primarily interested in the effects of light and colour on painting. The girls were able to view a variety of drawings by artists such as Bellini, Carpaccio, Tiepolo, Titian and Canaletto. Taking inspiration from these Venetian drawings, Jenny Saville exhibited new works, updating drawing to incorporate ideas focused on movement, interaction between figures, and drew parallels between the genres and ideas of Old Masters with those of today. This was a fascinating, awe-inspiring exhibition.

ART HISTORY

ART HISTORY SOCIETY

Ms Diane Slocombe, Teacher of History of Art

LVI ARTICULATION COMPETITION On Tuesday 26 January the LVI were invited to take part in ARTiculation - an annual event designed to promote the appreciation and discussion of art. This competition seeks to engage students with art, regardless of background or experience, and to develop their confidence and ability to express their opinions, thoughts and conclusions. Thirteen girls competed, presenting for between five and seven minutes on a work of art, design or architecture of their choice. The presenters and their topics were as follows:

Georgina Dick – Hurricane Katrina & the Ogden Museum of Art Jemima Oliver – Wes Anderson’s films Poppy Winsor – Mimmo Rotella & Marilyn Lucy Harley – Hockney’s Mr. & Mrs. Clark & Percy Lydia Stonehill – Edgar Degas & The Little Dancer Violet Crawfurd – Sir Frederic Leighton’s Athlete Wrestling a Python Yiting Jin – The Chinese Garden Anna Goodman – The Guggenheim, Bilbao Honor Pattisson –Vermeer’s The Milkmaid Eliza Downes – Gee Vaucher Katharine Garvin – Ai Weiwei’s Straight Caroline Watkinson – Caravaggio’s Beheading of John the Baptist Georgiana Ward – Anselm Kiefer’s Shulamite. All the girls worked hard to present in an informative and very entertaining way. Mr Hill and Mrs Toogood kindly adjudicated for the evening and presented the first prize to Eliza Downes and the runner-up prize to Yiting Jin. Ms Diane Slocombe, Teacher of History of Art

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

MODERN LANGUAGES

SPANISH SYMPOSIUM AT WINCHESTER COLLEGE On 15 November a group of LVI and UVI girls went to a Spanish Symposium at Winchester College that was about ‘La Movida’, the period in Spain after Franco’s regime. The day consisted of a lecture and some group activities, lunch and then another lecture from a ‘La Movida’ art specialist. Our first lecture was by a brilliant Spanish lecturer from King’s College who presented all the different characteristics that feature in ‘La Movida’, explaining that this was the first time that the Spanish people had been able to express themselves. The lecture was very thoughtprovoking. We learnt about different clothing and music which was produced in ‘La Movida’, all with a key theme of freedom and identity. We then went on a tour of the College, followed by a session with a graffiti artist who explained the different types of art and graffiti seen in Spain, in particular in Madrid and Barcelona, showing examples of different graffiti he had created in the expressionist style of ‘La Movida’. We had a fantastic time and were made to feel very welcome by the Spanish Department at Winchester College. A big thank you to Miss Garcia Niguez, Miss Beltrán and Miss Cazorla for taking us and supporting us to make the most of the day. Olivia Rosengarten, LVI

MANDARIN SPEAKING COMPETITION

Outside the classroom, one of the activities the girls took part in was the HSBC British Council Mandarin Speaking competition. Girls from LV, UV and UVI competed against schools across the country in the Southern Heat at London’s Victory Services Club. Nina Bugeja, Katie Hackman, Esther Bolodeoku, Elizabeth Bolodeoku (all LV) and Amelia Bentley (UV) devised and performed a skit led by the amazing Miss Zheng, all in Mandarin, entitled ‘Frog in a Well’ which is a Chinese fable with a moral behind it. The pupils collaborated wholeheartedly and delivered a fantastic performance. In the individual category Clarissa Hahn (UV) and Emily Dodd-Noble (UVI) delivered a two minute presentation in Mandarin followed by on the spot questions from the judges. The girls all thoroughly enjoyed the day and have had their eyes opened to the wider Mandarin learning community. Mr Cheng-Han Wu, Teacher of Mandarin ACADEMIC LIFE

MODERN LANGUAGES

A YEAR OF MODERN LANGUAGES Once again, we have had a busy year in MFL. Girls in all age groups have been involved in numerous events where they have been able to use their languages and learn some new ones. The year started with the European Day of Languages, a day to celebrate languages from all around the world. To mark the event the Department ran a speed-dating session where pupils had one minute to quiz staff to find out the answers to a series of questions. The only catch was that all these questions and answers had to be delivered in a foreign language. It was a great way to start the day and proved popular with both pupils and staff alike. Of course, we were also treated to a lovely international lunch made by our own catering staff. Other activities included an Arabic lecture and lesson – both of which were well-attended. The Michaelmas Term saw the Sixth Form girls treated to a fascinating lecture on linguistics given by Dr Paul O’Neill from the Department of Hispanic Studies at the University of Sheffield. Dr O’Neill shared with us his research in a number of peculiarities of current Spanish pronunciation and he explained why it is that people speak a different Spanish in Spain and in Latin America. He offered an insight into why sounds change and what Spanish may sound like in the future. The Sixth Form audience was duly impressed and posed some intriguing questions. For girls in Lower Fourth we ran our annual Taster Day, to help them to decide which languages to study in Upper Fourth. Taster lessons in Chinese, German, Italian and Spanish were followed by a short talk given by former pupils Charlotte Stephen and Alice Wonnacott. The Lower Fourth girls also had the opportunity to have a lesson on linguistics which allowed them to test their language skills. Linguistics is a domain we touch on briefly with the Lower Sixth as they enter the Linguistics Olympiad. It is our second year of entry into this competition and we are looking forward to mastering the skills needed to attain Bronze, Silver and Gold level. The Department has entered girls into a number of other competitions too and notably Isabelle Smith (LVI) received a Highly Commended Award for her entry into the Oxford University Modern Languages Department Film Competition, which requires pupils to embrace the world of French cinema and re-write the ending of a French film (in this case, Bandes de filles by Céline Sciamma) in under 1500 words. Congratulations must go to Isabelle on her success in what is a difficult challenge.

Sandrine Heller (LVI) Runner-up Regional Heat Key Stage 5. Near-native speaker, German. Olivia Harrison (LVI) Runner-up Regional Heat Key Stage 5. Near-native speaker, German. Camilla Farrell (LVI) Winner - overall competition Key Stage 5. Non-native speaker, Spanish Davina Drummond (LV) Key Stage 4. Near-native speaker, Italian. Amelia (Millie) Bennett (LV) Key Stage 4. Non-native speaker, Spanish Poppy Scales (LIV) Runner-up Regional Heat Key Stage 3. Near-native speaker, French. Yasmine McLennan (Remove) Winner Regional Heat Key Stage 3. Near-native speaker, Chinese. Alethea Ings-Chambers (Remove) Key Stage 3. Non-native speaker, French Special mention must go to Davina Drummond who spoke passionately about her favourite film and kept the audience mesmerised. She deserved her win and the prize money. Our main goal in the Department is to inspire a love of languages in all pupils. Not just in the language itself, but in the culture and history of all languages. Obviously, we teach a number of European languages and we could not let the important matter of the European Referendum go unnoticed and there was an excellent turn out for our own Referendum Vote and the MFL staff were ably assisted by Lower Sixth language and politics pupils. The results were as follows: No. Votes

% Remain

% Leave

Remove/LIV

114

UIV - UV

140

LVI - UVI

Staff

Total

412

It was a majority vote to remain part of Europe and whilst this is not how the country voted, a knowledge of and passion for Modern Languages at Downe House remain high on the agenda and will continue to do so for many years to come.

We are always very keen to give girls opportunities to show off their speaking skills and once again we entered the Routes into Languages Speaking Competition. Nine girls took part and spent time preparing some fascinating and engaging presentations.

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

ENGLISH

ENGLISH SEMINAR SERIES As well as being massively useful in lessons, essays and especially interviews, the English Seminars have been enormous fun! Every Tuesday night our horizons have been broadened on topics ranging from Chaucer to Orwell, Keats to Yeats, whilst we blushed at the dubious exploits of Lord Byron. We have had a seminar on Hypotext and another surprisingly fascinating and jolly one, entitled ‘Keyboard Scribes: The End of Print’. There was a particularly interesting seminar on two poetic Thomases, Edward and Ronald Stewart (RS), and one really stimulating talk on ‘Celebrity: Media and Manipulation’. It’s always good to see members of staff from other departments sharing their passions, so we are not just hearing from our English teachers. It was also great to be joined for some meetings by the Scholars from the UV, learning what the study of English might be like for them in the following year.

However, the undisputed kings of this year’s seminar series were Mr Sentance-Davis and Mr Atherton. They challenged each other to a ‘Poetry Crit. Slam!’ which was forty minutes of intense, fast paced, knuckle-whitening unseen poetry analysis, which took place before more than thirty girls in a rather muggy Room R. It was really interesting, as well as funny, to watch and pick up techniques for poetry analysis which later became very useful in exams. The English Seminar series has inspired me to read more widely and engage more with all sorts of texts. It has been extremely useful in both academic and non-academic life and has really opened my eyes to the pleasure and passion which literature can inspire for a lifetime. I know that, despite the regretted departure of Mr SentanceDavis, Mr Atherton will be taking over the running of this fantastic series. DH girls, watch this space! Lucy Mortlock, UVI

AN INSPIRATIONAL DAY FOR DH SHORT STORY PRIZE WINNERS

On a balmy Thursday in March, the winners of the DH Short Story Competition left School for a celebratory trip to Oxford. An odd ‘prize’, perhaps, but by the end of the day we felt more than rewarded. When we arrived at the Ashmolean Museum, we didn’t really know what to expect. We wandered and browsed while we were waiting, gazing at some of the spectacular exhibits; I remember feeling particularly inspired by a huge eighteenth century tapestry map of Britain that covered a whole wall. Soon, however, we were taken up to the top of this beautiful building to take part in a creative writing workshop. We were presented with some stunning paintings and engaged in an unique and amazing experience, writing our own thoughts in response to them. The contemporary art was an especially interesting stimulus from which stories could spring; much of it very minimalistic. Everyone experienced different emotions and ideas - the same

painting produced two completely different works! By the end, we had all written lots of stories and descriptions that seemed to have so much potential; I’m still developing mine. Then it was time for our winners’ supper; the guests featured all of the winners and a few of the judges too. Everyone had a lovely time, the food was delicious and there were some fascinating conversations around the table. I was seated next to Katharina Dixon-Ward, a DH alumna who is currently at Oxford studying English. We got on really well, talking about our all-time favourite poetry and she told us how much she was loving university. All in all, it was such an inspirational day and an awesome chance to spend time writing creatively in the most beautiful surroundings. Mrs Boswell deserves a massive ‘thank you’ for organising the trip! Isabel Fincham, LV

MR MCBRATNEY RETURNS! On Friday 6 May, Mr McBratney, former Head of English at Downe House, came over from his new home in Northern Ireland to talk to us about the new A Level English Literature course. This was quite a coup for the School and for the Lower Sixth girls studying English, as he is currently Principal Examiner for AQA, the examination board we use. Indeed, he devised much of the course that we are all studying. With his typical, friendly humour, and a few lively interactions with Mr Sentance-Davis, Mr McBratney gave us invaluable insight into what exactly it is that examiners are looking for and how to maximise our success next year. His lecture was incredibly useful and very entertaining as we looked at a selection of poems and songs, both traditional and modern, from Scottish ballads to Hosier! Our understanding was further increased by him showing us some exemplar essays, unseen by anyone else in the country. This was a wonderful opportunity, especially given the fact this is a new A Level course, and there was much in his talk that will undoubtedly, and significantly, improve our exam performance. Thank you to the English Department for organising this for us. Alyx Van der Vorm, LVI ACADEMIC LIFE

This year, as LVI A Level Economics students, we have enjoyed a newfound understanding of economics that has enhanced our knowledge of both the economy and generally the political make-up of our country. The ‘AS’ part of the new Economics A Level course has included studying market failure and government intervention on the microeconomic side and on the macroeconomic side, and focusing on the government’s macroeconomic objectives, such as economic growth, and how it implements policies to meet these targets. In particular, this new economic knowledge helped us to understand the EU referendum debate and, despite not being able to vote, has informed and shaped our opinions when weighing up whether leave or stay would be best for the economy.

Lessons are both interesting and relevant, and they always start with Mrs Cahill and Mrs Lowe reviewing the news and events that have happened within the last 24 hours, including stock market fluctuations in commodity prices as well as global affairs. This is a great way of becoming well informed as well as better economic students as it gives us information to apply to our exam answers. Before we began economics we were advised to ensure we kept up with current affairs in the news, especially ‘The Week’ which provides a concise overview of news stories around the world. This really helped us when we started the course in September and also gave us an understanding of the important economic figures around the world who influence economic decisions.

ECONOMICS

ENJOYING EXPLORING ECONOMICS

We are looking forward to the year ahead, with the start of the A2 part of the course which includes topics such as globalisation, inequality and business economics. Economics is a constantly evolving subject which we couldn’t recommend more. India Laidlaw and Olivia Holden, LVI

COMPUTING THE CHANGES Digital technologies are important in the lives of the girls across the School and girls are now enjoying Computer Science more and more.

All pupils study ICT alongside an innovative Computer Science curriculum. In Remove girls start building their version of the robot and they focus on graphic-based programming, British Standard flowcharts, special awareness and fine motor skills. At Lower Fourth, girls start expanding their understanding and they start writing pseudo code and code with graphical aids. In Upper Fourth, girls will then have access to higher-order programming language learning. LEGO EV3 Mindstorms robots are fun to learn with and this educational ‘toy’ is a great vehicle for teaching in the Computer Science Department. Mr Christian Wilke, Head of Computing and ICT

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COMPUTING AND ICT

The Computer Science Department has purchased a class set with LEGO EV3 Mindstorms, which the girls thoroughly enjoy. They can see the relevance of this playful approach to learning and teaching, because all elements of this particular curriculum can be related to real life. For example, robots can perform 3-point turns, react to low-light conditions and they can emit a sound when approaching an obstacle.

HIGHER EDUCATION

LVI HIGHER EDUCATION APPLICATIONS DAY On Wednesday 22 June, the Lower Sixth attended a Higher Education Applications Day to get us thinking about the next step in our educational career and university applications. There was a workshop on personal statements, a very important aspect of our higher education applications, followed by talks from universities such as Bristol and Exeter on different aspects of university life. Bristol University talked about Student Finance, including information on loans and bursaries. We set up our online UCAS profiles with the help of our tutors. This was followed by a presentation by Miss Clark on how to choose universities. Finally, we had a talk from an external speaker about ‘Self-Branding’, especially in a digital age, and how we should make ourselves stand out from the crowd. It was an invaluable experience and I think I speak on behalf of the whole Lower Sixth when I say I am very grateful for the day. Gemma Mountain, LVI

HIGHER EDUCATION FORUM The Higher Education Forum was a very well organised day with many talks on a variety of different topics. I went to the Keynote Address by Mrs Curnock Cook, CEO of UCAS, who gave valuable information and statistics on university entrance rates and the importance of work experience. I found this talk informative and reassuring especially when she highlighted that when applying for university, you do not need to have decided on a career, but should focus on a subject that you are truly ardent about. An example she gave was that if you wanted to be a lawyer, it is not a requirement to have studied law at university as you can train to be a lawyer afterwards.

The talks on Russell Group Universities and Overseas Universities provided valuable information, especially concerning personal statements. The Admissions Officer was adamant that being punchy and clear in your personal statement is fundamental to success, alongside the portrayal of true passion about your chosen subject, your hobbies and interests. All the talks proved extremely informative; inspiring all girls to start thinking about their own choices for their Higher Education pathway. Florence Elliott, LVI

LVI HIGHER EDUCATION PARENTS’ MEETING The Higher Education Afternoon for Lower Sixth parents and girls was held on 5 December 2015. The event was very well attended and the audience enjoyed the keynote address given by Mr Martin Birchall, Managing Director of Highfliers, who outlined the changing landscape of HE and Graduate Employment. Parents and girls were given an overview of the Higher Education Applications Process at Downe House, along with a glimpse into how the girls are prepared and supported in making these applications. It was an opportunity to be introduced to the wider team of specialist staff who manage the UCAS, Oxbridge, Medicine, Overseas and Creative Applications, and to outline the subtle nuances of managing the new Linear A Level and AS Level qualifications and examination entries, keeping in mind the examination board requirements and the universities applications timeline. Finally, there was some time to talk to Heads of Departments, Tutors and Higher Education Staff after the presentations. This annual event enables girls and parents to plan ahead and prepare in good time for university education. Ms Marya Akhtar, Director of Higher Education and Global Initiatives ACADEMIC LIFE

In early March, the parents of the prospective medical applicants from the Lower Sixth, along with the girls themselves, gathered for a presentation about the medical application process. Medicine is a deeply rewarding vocation that requires extremely high levels of commitment and dedication even before the student applies to medical school. The increasingly competitive applications for UK medical schools means that the amount students have to do to convince admissions tutors that they are suitable candidates to embark upon the career presents a significant challenge.

Work experience is important, as is volunteer work and wider research to ensure that the student both understands the profession and possesses the potential to develop the diverse set of skills to become a doctor. Add a highachieving academic record and all this has to be packaged into a UCAS application that, along with admissions tests and interviews, has to be as strong as possible for it to stand a chance of being amongst the mere 10% or so of successful applications. Our intention is that every aspect of the application is as well-prepared as possible in order to maximise chances of success. Dr Michael Frampton, Teacher of Chemistry and Head of Oxbridge and Medical Applications

LVI OXBRIDGE APPLICANTS MEETING

HIGHER EDUCATION

MEDICINE APPLICATIONS TALK

On Tuesday 2 February, Oxbridge Applications came to give us a series of talks about applying to Oxford or Cambridge. We were riveted by the former admissions tutor’s talk which explained the importance of showing potential and motivation in an interview as opposed to relying on the limits imposed by working within a syllabus. It made us all feel very well prepared and informed about the potentially intimidating prospect of putting together a strong application. Celine Harborne, LVI

LVI OXBRIDGE WORKSHOP Girls from the Lower Sixth attended a workshop in June in which they were introduced to many of the skills that will not only equip them for university interviews but also help them prepare for interviews that they will inevitably have once they embark on their later careers. Interviews, whether the traditional one-to-one, a panel interview or even the newer style of multiple-mini interviews have long been the final step in the application process for those applying for medical degrees and to Oxford or Cambridge. Whilst the admissions tutors down-play the significance of the interview as ‘just one part’ of the application process, it without question enables them to compare candidates under a standard set of conditions and therefore is an opportunity for an applicant to show just what they have to offer. Our girls were also given a short mock interview as part of the workshop and now have the summer to reflect upon their strengths and weaknesses and how they will approach interviews in future. They also had a further chance to practise their interview technique with a School Interview Exchange. Most Oxbridge applicants will have interviews in December and there will be further support with formal mock interview sessions and practice interviews with mentors, tutors and teachers before that date. Dr Michael Frampton, Teacher of Chemistry and Head of Oxbridge and Medical Applications

OXBRIDGE AND MEDICAL APPLICANTS INTERVIEW EXCHANGE On Wednesday 4 November, our Oxbridge and Medical applicants took part in an Interview Exchange with local schools. Teachers and students from St Bartholomew’s School, Kennet School, The Downs School and Trinity School took part, along with a handful of students from St George’s. Commenting on their experience, Livia Russell and Bella Hancock said that “The afternoon was a great opportunity for all to experience being put under pressure in interview scenarios with someone we didn’t know and making us think on our feet. They drew questions from our personal statements and some of us were given sources to look at with the interviewer. It was really useful to have an interview from someone you don’t know, and it was good to talk to students from other schools, to share views and discuss what they had done to prepare for their interview.” Livia went on to say “I found my practice interview particularly beneficial because it was conducted in the foreign languages I am applying for, which really put me on the spot.” All girls received useful feedback at the end of each of their respective interviews and more formal written feedback followed later. Isabella Hancock and Livia Russell, UVI DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

Wings by Kwan E (Claire) Tay, UVI

The girls in Lower School have been working hard over the last academic year, to hone their artistic skills and learn about different styles and techniques used by artists.

acrylic paint. They have looked at early work by Kandinsky among other Fauvist art and developed a landscape study on canvas or board.

Over the Michaelmas Term, the Remove created drawings exploring different media as well as printing methods, all inspired by tools and the work of American artist, Jim Dine. The Lent Term kept them busy with designing and making ceramic mirror frames inspired by architecture – past and present. Recently, the sunnier English days enabled the girls to work outside, painting small watercolours of views around the school. They combined these into their large oil pastel compositions exploring the theme of ‘interior and exterior’, focused on the use of colour and the work of Matisse.

UIV challenged their ceramic skills to develop teapots and pitchers inspired by birds. They looked at a number of artists including ceramics by Picasso. The project involved designing and planning a piece of ceramics that could have either a functional or decorative use. Glazing techniques were explored in more depth and the girls used a range of different techniques to embellish their work. The variety of completed work was tremendous with some characterful, innovative and beautifully made pieces. Over the last two terms, the girls worked on their drawing skills and explored the world of everyday objects with contextual reference to the work of Michael Craig Martin and Andy Warhol. They developed compositions which they carved into lino, printing their images using a variety of background techniques. The end of the Summer Term enabled the girls to work together on a group project to create a tile mural to be installed outside the pottery room. It should make a really colourful and decorative addition to the entrance.

In the two terms of LIV Art at Downe House, the girls have created an array of ceramics inspired by sea-life, ranging from languishing mermaids on coil pots, shell clad treasure chests, a sculptural skull covered with barnacles and anemones, among other exciting creations. They have explored how to construct pottery using different methods such as modelling, slab building and coiling methods. Latterly, landscape painting has been the focus. The girls have explored painting techniques, working with colour and

ART

LOWER SCHOOL ART

Mrs Alison Keeling, Teacher of Art and Tutor

REMOVE

Georgia Dunkerley

Théa Hawtin

Madelaina Lavelle

Harriet Boucher

Hannah Perkins

Remove Mirrors Matilda (Tilly) Wilkinson

Antonia McClintock

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ART

LOWER FOURTH

Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho

Georgia Duckworth

Sophie Armitage

Francesca Horton

Gardiner Hunt

Olivia Jackson

Lavinia Geddes

Ayobami Razak-Shittu

Omolade Pearse

Tabitha Kendall

UPPER FOURTH

Imogen Fowler

Olivia Lopes

Victoria Aarons Emma Bracken

Nosa Ogiemwonyi

Enekole Mark Charlotte Nicholson

CREATIVE

Yi Wei (Lily) Peng

Expressive Portrait by Emily Duckworth, LV

ART

LV, UV, LVI AND UVI ARTWORK

Native American Indian Self-Portrait by Florence Fanshawe, LV

Reflections by Louisa Ansell, UV

Canopy Door by Man I (Melissa) Chang, UV

Fruits de Mer by Isabella Huber, UV

Rustic Door by Lauren Griffith, UV

Fruit Basket by Verity Hornby, UV

Trafalgar Lion by Catharine Wippell, UV

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ART Fruit by Eliza Downes, LVI

Balinese Statue by Poppy Winsor, LVI

Peruvian Women by Jemima Oliver, LVI

Nuns by Isabelle Smith, LVI

CREATIVE

ART

Decayed Tractor by Katherine Lyons, LVI

Abandoned Barn by Katharine Garvin, LVI

Folly by Florence Palmer, LVI

Holly by Sarah Bergstrom, UVI

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ART

Wings by Kwan Ee (Claire) Tay, UVI.

Mechanical Reflections by Charlotte Boughey, UVI

Interaction by Emily Dodd-Noble, UVI

Ship Wreck by Sarah Orpen, UVI

Truth and Fantasy by Holly Parkinson, UVI

CREATIVE

ART

SCREEN PRINTING WORKSHOP FOR UVI On Saturday 26 January, the Upper Sixth Art students took part in a day of screen printing at the ‘Squeegee and Ink’ print studio in Newbury. They went along armed with their original designs on acetate, which were photographically exposed onto some silk screens. The girls washed down their screens using a pressure washer to clear away unwanted photographic emulsion, which they found to be a highly entertaining activity! The screens acted like a stencil through which inks could be passed, and the girls created a multitude of prints onto paper, stickers, canvas bags and even the walls of the studio. Everyone agreed that it was a valuable and action-packed day, and the resulting prints went on to feature in the girl’s Art College application portfolios as well as their A2 coursework submissions. A return trip is much anticipated by the current Lower Sixth! Mrs Kirsten Mortimer, Teacher of Art

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ART

ART AWARD HOLDERS’ TRIP 2016 New Greenham Arts It was with much excitement that the Art Award Holders set off on their annual trip. This year the venue was New Greenham Arts. As the studio space for the Corn Exchange Theatre in Newbury, New Greenham Arts houses an Auditorium, a gallery, ten resident artists’ studios and a studio space for workshops. The day began with a lively debate about how the human body has been used in contemporary Art and how the role of women in Art has been presented in different works from the Museum of Modern Art. The girls shared their views in an animated discussion and were then encouraged to create their own Art installation communicating a message. We then had a tour of the artists’ studios and the girls were fascinated to see the environments where the resident artists produce their work. The spaces were all individual and the girls were able to see how the artists used their resources to develop their ideas. We then enjoyed a tour of the Art exhibition where we saw examples of figure drawing, creative folded card books and exciting print work.

We were then taken to the huge studio where the props are made for the Corn Exchange’s outdoor productions. A Theatre Company was rehearsing for an Arts festival and we were treated to a hilarious performance of ‘The Camper Van of Love’. This was an artistic play about an unconventional cupid shooting an arrow at a camper van. Everyone who came into contact with the van fell in love and this was portrayed with a series of puppets. It was both bizarre and surreal and the girls found it both funny and clever. After a delicious lunch we returned to the studio where the girls participated in a workshop about mime art. They had to consider time, space, the performer’s body and the relationship between the audience and the performer. Everyone agreed that it had been a really interesting day and the girls felt challenged and inspired by their experience. Mrs Sally Scott, Head of Art

CREATIVE

PHOTOGRAPHY 53

Roseanna Bromley (LVI), Form Project

Olivia Clark (LVI), Linear Project

Kezia Dubens (LVI), Portrait Project

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PHOTOGRAPHY

Katherine Maloney (LVI), Form Project

Imogen Hancock (LVI), Culture Project Modupe Lamikanra (LVI), Cinematic Project

CREATIVE

Hannah Beck (UVI), Communities Project

Charlotte Boughey

PHOTOGRAPY

(UVI), Culture Project

Minna ConybeareCross (UVI), Documentary Project

Autumn Davies (UVI), Community Project

Katarina Huth (UVI), Triptych Project

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

LOWER FIFTH LAMP PROJECTS Sophie Bott Laser cut and strip heated acrylic are used here to form the cactus shape.

Calypso Cox These stackable plywood boxes each contain a superheroâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s logo. They are laser cut from acrylic plastic and solvent welded in position.

Hoi Laam (Karis) Cheung This laser cut design features a cat stretching out for a butterfly. The fluorescent acrylic butterfly glows in the light.

Kirsty Depledge This acrylic shark design creates the effect that it is swimming across the table!

Lauren Dunn

Christabel Graham

This lamp is an innovative twist on a familiar exit sign. It is made from laser cut acrylic mirror and plywood.

A mitre jointed plywood box contains a light that projects through the laser cut lettering.

CREATIVE

The boxes that make up this lamp can be stacked in different formats. The design is based on a London home theme.

Lucinda Hammond The close proximity of the acrylic mirror layers to the bulb is made possible by using an LED bulb that generates very little heat.

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

Imogen Gregory

Milly Hine This plywood box lamp has a front screen that can be swapped for other logo designs.

Alexandra Jardine The iconic telephone kiosk makes for an interesting lamp. It is laser cut from acrylic and solvent welded together.

Isabella Jones This lamp also functions as a storage unit for small items. It has a number of recesses constructed from plywood.

Zara Karoly Lamp for a coffee lover! Holes drilled around the sides allow the light to radiate. DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

Alisia McKay This lamp has been inspired by the street art images of Charles Uzzell-Edwards. The image of Elvis was laser cut and solvent welded together.

Andreja Mirosevic-Sorgo Laser cut acrylic plastic design on a mitre jointed plywood box.

Emma Talbot Rice

The curved sides of the balloon were created by softening acrylic in a plastics oven and then bending around a styrofoam mould. The design is solvent welded together.

You-Oceane Wang This design of this lamp developed from experimenting with steel cable and aluminium and is based on the shape of flower petals. The plates are pop riveted together.

Audrey Wong This lamp is based on an â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Alice in Wonderlandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; theme and is made using acrylic that has been softened in a plastics oven.

Jennifer Wai Luen Yung This lamp makes use of fairy lights within a hollow shape inspired by the infinity symbol. It is made from 1.5mm thick plywood that can be easily bent to form the curves. The finish is emulsion paint. CREATIVE

Grace Devereux This storage table makes a feature of the plywood edges. It contains a sand and shell sculpture that can be rearranged to suit!

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

UPPER FIFTH GCSE CONTROLLED ASSESSMENT PROJECTS

Georgina Anastassopoulos Tubby This project is to fulfil the brief for a product that is suitable for sale in the ‘outdoor living’ section of a department store. It is a bench for a dog, complete with storage baskets and water bowls. It is made from pine with a painted finish.

Eliza Gibbons-West This backgammon table is constructed from walnut veneered MDF and features laminated pivoting drawers to store the pieces and other games. The backgammon board is laser engraved on to the veneer.

Beatrix Jackson This pop art inspired chair was designed for children and contains a useful toy storage basket. The backrest was laser engraved and then hand painted. It is made from pine and plywood.

Omotara Edu This children’s storage chair includes educational features and a blackboard with convenient chalk holders. It is made from veneered MDF and lasered acrylic plastic.

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

Alexia Milliken This jewellery box has been made using finger joints with contrasting beech and walnut. The sliding lid features a veneered geometric pattern.

Sarah Palmer This childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rocking toy makes use of a car suspension spring. It is made from painted plywood, cut out by hand with a jigsaw. A template was first made on the laser cutter.

Jessica Pemberton 60

This storage system is constructed from plywood. It can be rearranged and bolted together in different formats. The drawer fronts have been laser engraved.

Nutthapit Poolworaluk This jewellery box has been made using finger joints with contrasting beech and walnut. The sliding lid features a veneered geometric pattern.

CREATIVE

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

Jitiratn (Proud) Rojchuphan This modern storage system makes a clever use of pivoting cupboards and is constructed from oak veneered MDF.

Daisy Shepherd-Cross This storage chair was constructed from walnut veneered MDF using biscuit and dowel joints. It has a generous drawer and laser engraved backrest.

Lauren Smith The curves in this bench seat were achieved by bending thin plywood around a softwood structure. The finish is a medium oak varnish.

Katelyn Taylor This Rubix cube inspired makeup box has three pivoting layers and is made to store specific items of makeup such as nail polishes. The hinged lid includes a useful mirror. It is made from MDF and acrylic plastic.

Eloise Tucker This clever table contains an insulated compartment for keeping things hot or cold! It is made from plywood with a sold ash top. The discs were cast from pewter.

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

LOWER SIXTH AS LEVEL COURSEWORK PROJECTS

Lavinia Falck

Melissa McAlpine

This occasional table makes effective use of the contrasting materials of glass, ash and walnut. It is designed to fit a specific space within the home. The glass forms a river through the table and there is also a sliding drawer below.

This outdoor bench is made from sapele with aluminium and toughened glass sides. The materials and joining techniques were selected for their resistance to weather. The bench can be easily flat packed and has a Danish oil finish.

Kirstin Gray This practical occasional table also functions as a wine storage unit. The glass opening allows light and good visibility into the wine rack without having to bend down to see. There is also useful storage for wine glasses. It is made from solid oak and oak veneered MDF.

Harriet Emery This modern chair also provides generous book storage. It also has an opening for a Bluetooth speaker set. The unit can be easily taken apart for transport or storage and is made from oak veneered MDF.

CREATIVE

UPPER SIXTH A2 LEVEL COURSEWORK PROJECT Laura Vaughan-Johnson This chair also converts to steps and is made from solid oak with a wax finish. The oak tree emblem has been laser engraved on veneered MDF. The simplicity of the product belies the research and development needed for the chair to be successful in both functions!

TEXTILES

LOWER SCHOOL DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY TEXTILES REMOVE In Remove the students learn how to block print and batik organic cotton. These hand decorated fabrics are then patchworked and embroidered to create a Lavender Heart that could be sold as a Fair-Trade Product.

Georgia Dunkerley

LOWER FOURTH In LIV, students are asked to design and make an Anya Hindmarch inspired clutch bag that incorporates French influences. The students learn how to use applique to add bold designs to their bag.

Elsa Karoly

Saskia Mactaggart 63

Lily Mathews

Florence McNair Scott

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TEXTILES

UPPER FOURTH Students are asked to customise a t-shirt inspired by 1980s Punk. Graffiti sprayed flounces are layered, safety pins are clustered and strips of stretch jersey are plaited and slashed to create unique and striking outcomes.

Emma Bracken

Anouk Davies

Elodie Hersee

CREATIVE

TEXTILES

GCSE DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY TEXTILES COURSEWORK UV students answered one of three set design briefs. To design and make a high street product inspired by a Culture of their choice, the Swinging Sixties or Japanese Streetstyle.

Alexa Feather

Lara Mun-Gavin

Flora Lindsay

Lara created a two piece suit inspired by the boxy shapes of the 1960s. Her cropped jacket with metallic trim and A-Line skirt are faultless.

Alexa created a co-ord outfit consisting of a top and skirt inspired by Japanese Streetstyle. She incorporated bold colours, innovative fabric and emoticon applique logos to create a vibrant outfit.

Flora created the fabric for the front of her skirt by hand weaving the patterned panel using a portable wooden loom. She used this fabric to create a beautiful skirt inspired by Indian Culture.

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

TEXTILES

AS PRODUCT DESIGN TEXTILES COURSEWORK LVI designers were set a challenging design brief where they were asked to design a couture product inspired by the work of Alexander McQueen.

Laura Conneely

Kezia Dubens

Laura created two dresses, the overlay dress is created by draping a navy warp knitted fabric on the stand to create a wraparound halter dress. The underdress incorporates a fishtail shape and a strapless bodice after much timeconsuming pattern cutting.

A black sheer maxi dress has been made with French seams to conceal raw edges. Keziaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hand sketched illustrations of butterflies and birds were transferred onto the dress with automated stitch using computerised embroidery and then coloured in with stitch. The outcome is super.

Georgina Dick Georgina has created a dress that incorporates a halterneck and a full textured skirt. The bodice was created by modelling and draping fabric on the stand. The skirt is embellished with layered flounces with raw edges to replicate elements of McQueenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work.

CREATIVE

TEXTILES

Anna Goodman

Katherine Lyons

Anna created a muslin blouse inspired by the white on white collections. A lace up silk and cord aesthetic fastening and hand beaded vintage lace applique detailing are beautiful.

A white maxi dress has been made incorporating computerised embroidery and cutwork inspired by Astronomy. Moons and Stars are applied with white stitch and the middle sections cut out and removed. The back of the dress features an intricate ribbon and loop fastening.

Charlotte Orpen

Florence Palmer

Charlotte excelled herself in creating a dress that incorporates her own digitally printed fabric, layered handsourced feathers and intricate beadwork.

Florence created her own digitally printed silk fabric and also laser cut her embellished beaded shapes, using digital technology and laser cutting technology to create a truly unique and exciting dress. DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

TEXTILES 68

A2 PRODUCT DESIGN TEXTILES COURSEWORK Sophia Donald Sophia created three outcomes no less, a cage-inspired accessory, a dress with computerised embroidery and an overdress with eyelets and ribbon detailing. The dress incorporates Oriental-inspired computerised embroidery that Sophia designed herself. The overdress continues with Oriental influences seen in the embroidery dress. The cage accessory is inspired by Military structures and the Crinoline of the 1800s. All three items worn together create quite an impact.

Lara-Lily Hurd Lara created an outfit inspired by Androgyny, she aimed to create garments that were genderless in colour and shape. Her hand sprayed trousers are entirely unique and these are complemented by her bold silk printed top. The fabric for the top was created using ink, this was then photographed and digitally printed using a company called R A Smarts.

CREATIVE

TEXTILES

Nurshat Izbassar Nurshat created a two-piece lingerie set and a digitallyprinted silk kimono. She created the artwork for the kimono with ink on cartridge paper, this was then photographed and digitally printed at a larger scale, the outcome is really stunning.

Amelia Whiting Amelia created a loose fitting smock dress inspired by Laura Ashley and Gypsy influences.

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TEXTILES

FOUNDERâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S WEEKEND FASHION SHOW The Textiles Fashion Show at Founders Weekend is a fantastic way to showcase the talents and hard work of the young designers here at Downe House. A live fashion show on the Greek Steps, organised by Lower Sixth girls Florence Palmer, Katherine Lyons and Caroline Watkinson, displayed the creations of girls from LV to UVI.

CREATIVE

ENRICHMENT

LOWER SCHOOL ENRICHMENT The Lower School Enrichment Programme aims to enhance the curriculum and broaden the girls’ knowledge of the wider world. This year we have had a wonderful variety of experiences both in and out of School and particularly explored different aspects of classical history, art, British history, biology and drama. We started our year with a trip to the beautiful city of Bath where we explored the ancient Roman Baths. This was followed by a talk, as part of Bath Children’s Literature Festival, by Holly Smale, author of ‘Geek Girl’. This series of books is hugely popular with the girls and they were very excited to meet a favourite author. Still on the theme of classical history and linking with their Latin lessons, the Remove had a wonderful drama workshop on ‘Gladiators and the Afterlife in Ancient Greece’ in the Lent Term.

Also in the Lent Term, the girls were lucky to be visited by ‘Wild Science’. Linking with the Biology topics of Classification and Ecology, the girls were introduced to animals representing different classifications i.e. millipede, tree frog, corn snake, parrot and a huge rabbit called Thor! In May, the whole of Lower School visited Windsor Castle and were given an exclusive insight into the role of the Irish Guards stationed there. The girls loved the grandeur of the Royal State Rooms and enjoyed learning about royal history over the centuries. To round off the year a small group of LIV enjoyed an artistic day in London. We visited The House of Illustration to see three exhibitions; stunning Japanese manga paintings, Russian children’s books and some of Quentin Blake’s original drawings. We then visited The Cartoon Museum, looking at their exhibition on the ‘British Graphic Novel’ followed by a workshop on illustration for cartoons. Miss Rachel Black, Assistant Housemistress (Hill), Higher Education Administrator and Lower School Enrichment Coordinator

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

Downe House was honoured to welcome to the School The Honourable Matthew Barzun, Ambassador of the United States of America to the United Kingdom, as part of our America Day celebrations on Wednesday 30 September, a celebration of all things American. Our partners across the pond are a huge influence on our lives culturally, politically and economically. What better way to recognise this than with a day of enrichment based on the fascinating and diverse country that is the United States of America? With a set of distinguished speakers and workshops on everything from gun control to Walt Disney, from American literature to cheerleading, this was a true exploration and appreciation of the pioneering spirit that has made the USA an international superpower.

We were hugely privileged to have the presence of The Honourable Matthew Barzun speak at the culmination of this day of learning and celebration. The Ambassador, who was selected by President Barack Obama as Finance Chair for the 2012 re-election campaign and has enjoyed a distinguished career as an internet pioneer, delivered a talk on Perceptions of the United States to bring proceedings to a memorable conclusion.

ENRICHMENT

UNDER THE STARS AND STRIPES FOR AMERICA DAY

Joining the Upper Fifth DH girls for America Day were boys from Radley College and there was plenty of opportunity to socialise in-between activities at the Milk Shake Bar and the bucking bronco. Mrs Genevieve Ford, Boarding Deputy

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ENRICHMENT

STEM DAYS Again this year, a number of Lower Fifth girls embraced the opportunity to attend STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) days in Bristol. It was an opportunity to participate in workshops and lectures on many different areas of STEM with an eye to future career paths. At Edgbaston High School, the girls were fortunate to hear from Sir Robert Winston about aspects of his career in various areas of Biology, and he highlighted that there are many more female scientists nowadays at the top of the profession. It was an amazing experience for the girls to hear such an eminent and motivational speaker. Amongst the workshops, one of the most popular was using liquid nitrogen and seeing the effect it has on different materials. The girls also took part very successfully in a challenge to design a landing craft for space craft so that the astronauts landed unharmed. In this case the astronauts were marshmallows and the spacecraft was made of paper and elastic bands! The Downe House team managed to produce not one but two successful ‘spacecraft’ and were the most successful team by far. At Red Maids School, the girls had chosen workshops that they would like to attend from a wide variety including whether they could outrun a dinosaur, the use of maths in Google, the work of statisticians in the Treasury, Medical Physicist research into destroying cancers and Sports Science. Mrs Yvonne Charlesworth, Director of Operations and Head of Science

MEDLEY LECTURE BY LORD GEORGE CAREY Our Medley Lecture in April gave rise to some interesting ethical, political, medical and religious debate as the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord George Carey introduced the subject of assisted dying.

Compassion, choice and suffering were some of the issues meticulously examined as the audience gave rapt attention to Lord Carey’s moving discourse, borne of personal experience. In all, 137 Downe House girls from LV to VI Form attended the lecture, along with parents, plus pupils from Pangbourne College, St Bart’s School, St Gabriel’s, Radley College, Bradfield College, Trinity School and Kennet School. Having become closely acquainted with the suffering of terminally ill individuals over the course of his ministry, Lord Carey changed his opposition to the assisted dying bill in 2014 and has declared that he would support legislation to allow those with less than six months to live to end their lives in the face of needless suffering. Following some probing questions, Lord Carey asked for a show of hands which revealed that many of his listeners had sympathy with his message of placing human dignity and concern at the heart of this debate. Ms Kate Raines, Communications Manager

Here the girls share their experience of the day: I went to the STEM careers day to look further into my choices for A level and even my career later in life. With my interests in sport and science, I have been advised to look into Sport Science A level but I didn’t understand what exactly it is. The Sport and Exercise workshop was extremely interesting and intriguing, using gadgets and other technical equipment to create results and statistics about performance, and looking at the importance of keeping muscles warm so that they perform to their maximum potential. The sport scientists also work closely with engineers, which is another career I am looking into and so the day was extremely relevant and I am very thankful for the opportunity. Amelia Hughes, LV The first workshop that I did was learning about how Rolls Royce make jet fighter engines for Typhoon planes and what the Bloodhound project is and how it works. It was really interesting to learn how engines in the planes that take us on holiday work and how they differ to military aircraft engines! I also went to a workshop about robots and how driverless cars are programmed. Charlotte Harrabin LV I went to the STEM Career day to explore my options for A level. I found the workshop on Sports Science very interesting as my passion is playing hockey and the workshop provided me with a deeper understanding and knowledge of the subject. Shalayna Assani, LV

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

The Sixth Form have had many enrichment opportunities again this year. There have been a variety of topics and speakers, ranging from ‘Prisons and the role the arts can play’ by Angela Findlay to ‘The Existence of God’ by Philosopher Peter S Williams. We have enjoyed a visit from the New College of Humanities for the first time this year and had an interactive Economics session and an interesting English lecture by their professors . By far the favourite lecture this year was the Politics lecture on ‘Obama’s Drone Legacy’ by Dr Chis Fuller from Southampton University. After the fascinating talk, Dr Fuller kindly provided the girls with his PowerPoint presentation, original documents and research which the Upper Sixth were particularly grateful for.

We are grateful to Lauren Brolly and June EricUdorie (UVI), this year’s Presidents, for all their hard work in leading and hosting the Phoenix Society talks and suppers so well. Thanks of course also go to all those who took part and opened our minds to something entirely different. The Summer Term saw the Phoenix Society launch again with an introduction during Sixth Form week for the Upper Fifth, with our new president Georgiana Ward (LVI). We are looking forward to hearing many more inspiring lectures by our very own Downe House girls.

ENRICHMENT

SIXTH FORM ENRICHMENT

Miss Nardin Thabet, Teacher of Maths and Sixth Form Enrichment Coordinator

The Upper Sixth’s Phoenix Society continued successfully with a variety of presentations, from ‘China’s one child policy’ to the scientific presentation on ‘The Brain of a Serial Killer’. This year the Sixth Form were invited to a Phoenix Society at Radley where we tried a new and exciting format. Girls and boys were paired up, given a photograph and 15 minutes to research and prepare a presentation on the never-seenbefore image. It was an enjoyable evening that challenged the girls and allowed them all to practise their presentation skills.

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

YOUNG ENTERPRISE SCHEME 76

YOUNG ENTERPRISE SCHEME Young Enterprise is an entrepreneurial opportunity available to LVI that engages students in research, production and finance in an attempt to run a profitable company for the year. It is student-led and girls create a viable business by creating or inventing a product or service to sell. Each business must create a business plan detailing the production costs and how they plan to manage functional areas such as Finance, Operation, HR and Marketing. Throughout the year groups have the help and support of an external business advisor who is currently working in industry. Through Young Enterprise students learn vital transferable skills such as organisation, motivation and the importance of problem solving; it’s a great opportunity to gain a valuable insight into the world of commerce. This year we had five successful businesses, each making a profit at the end of the year. Libertea reached the Regional Final and have shared their Young Enterprise story with us here. Mrs Orla Cahill, Head of Business and Economics

LIBERTEA - BUILDING A TEA COMPANY Libertea is our Young Enterprise tea company that created two products - a Tea Advent Calendar and a Herbal Tea Box, both linked by the common service of providing a variety of tea bags. From October to December we worked on our Tea Advent Calendar, developing and selling it mainly within the School either as early Christmas presents or as advent calendars for personal use. The main aim of the calendar was to establish our brand and give people a literal taste of what was to come. This was achieved, and we soon became known as the ‘tea company’. We sold mainly through the use of verbal communication, priding ourselves on being able to talk with our customers and describe the ethos of our company. Many people were genuinely interested in the idea behind our product and we were very happy to enlighten them! To further promote our product we created adverts and leaflets and social media was also extremely important and we had a presence on all major sites including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and even Pinterest. Our aim was always to be as enthusiastic as possible, making the customers feel as passionate about our product as we do. We are even able to sell to non-tea drinkers, suggesting that they buy it as a gift, or convincing them that they might like it! Our first big success was the selling of our advent calendars. Initially predicting sales of around 50 calendars, we took preorders for 125 calendars! In addition to this massive success in sales, we also managed to collect lots of market research for future products as well as making a good profit margin. We invested the profit into our new product, the Herbal Box, which also went on to be a great success. Libertea faced various challenges along the way, particularly in the production of our products. When starting out the biggest problem our group had to overcome was the time and cost needed to produce 125 calendars. As the production of the calendars was all done by ourselves and included many steps, the time and effort that had to be put in was huge. The product also required many components such as envelopes, stickers, stamps and cellophane, not to mention the tea itself. At first, we struggled to keep the costs low enough to make significant profit but we overcame this by comparing the prices of materials from different suppliers and finding the most cost efficient deal. We also emailed many tea suppliers to find the best deals, although we realised that we could not make decisions on where to source our tea based just on price - we needed to BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

YOUNG ENTERPRISE SCHEME

ensure the quality as well so we talked to tea suppliers and asked for samples. By tasting the tea ourselves we were able to buy tea of good quality and at the best price. When we finally began putting the components together we discovered that the time it took to create one calendar was much longer than expected. After some discussion, we decided to create a ‘production chain’ where one person would place certain components together and then pass it on to the next station where more was added to it which worked very well. Armed with the experience of producing our advent calendar, creating our second product, the Herbal Tea Box, went much more smoothly and we encountered fewer issues. At the Young Enterprise Trade Fair, initially we were discouraged to find selling our products quite difficult but although we were frustrated, we kept up our enthusiasm and became less afraid of approaching people. We also learnt to target certain age groups and types of people who were more likely to be interested or willing to listen to us. In the end, we were able to overcome the challenges and become successful, selling more products than other Young Enterprise groups from Downe House. To sum up our experience, Libertea has been successful, winning multiple awards in both the area and regional finals. We were particularly proud to win ‘Best Business Plan’ in both rounds. We have thoroughly enjoyed the experience of setting up Libertea; it has been intense and illuminating, really highlighting the ups and downs of business life. We are very thankful to have had this opportunity and highly recommend this to anyone who is eager to gain some business experience.

Janice Wing Tung Kwong, Arabella Nourse, Georgina Galbraith, Emily Crowston, Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan, Gemma Mountain, Katharine Garvin, all LVI

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

LEITHS ACADEMY

COOKING UP A STORM WITH THE LEITHS ACADEMY If there was ever any doubt that Downe House endows its girls with an enhanced set of skills for the wider world, then the proof of the pudding is Leiths. Filleting fish, baking an occasion cake, spatchcocking chicken and perfecting pastry are all hallmarks of Leiths Academy graduates. The students who sign up to Leiths Academy at Downe, an additional option to curriculum studies, not only learn an impressive set of cookery skills and discover a creative channel to counterbalance academic studies but the means to earn a buck or two or endear themselves to family and friends.

“My daughter loves her Leiths lessons. Lots of cooking and experimenting going on in the holidays and I get lunch or supper cooked – everyone is happy!” Introduced in 2006, the Leiths Food and Wine programme (now the Leiths Academy) brings the reputation and knowledge of Prue Leith’s School of Food and Wine within the reach of young people who want to add a string to their bow for life ahead. Whether it be feeding themselves healthily at university, devising menus and cooking for family get-togethers, earning some pocket money as a hired chef or spending a ski season as a chalet girl, the theory and practical skills behind the course equip them with the know-how to pull off a boeuf bourguinon, ice a birthday cake to perfection or handpick the right wine for any occasion. Course leader Seema Singh reports, “This is a hugely popular choice in the LVI and UVI and Downe is recognised as a flagship centre for the course. The girls gain the Food and Safety Hygiene Certificate and the Leiths Introductory Certificate which allow them to work in the industry either as a career or as a holiday job. But more than that, they acquire an incredible life skill, learning nutrition, time management and perseverance. In the broader sweep, it is a fantastic confidence builder, everyone admires an accomplished cook and great food brings people together. I love teaching the course, it is my absolute passion and many of my past students go on to use their skills in a huge variety of ways for personal pleasure or professionally. Cooking is inherently creative, complex, nurturing and instinctive, no wonder the girls find it so rewarding.” Miss Seema Singh, Head of Design and Technology, Coordinator of Leiths and Resident Tutor

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

The programme aims to strengthen the international focus of Downe House’s activities and develop world-ready, outward-looking students, equipped to take their place in the world, furnished with the knowledge and sensitivity they need to foster rewarding relationships, whether personal or professional. The Global Schools’ Exchange Programme started with schools across the world in India, USA, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden and Germany. The incoming girls have been hosted in different boarding houses and welcomed with open arms by their housemistresses, teachers and buddies alike. The outgoing programme was launched in March and the first group of Ambassadors went to Germany and South Africa this Summer and we look forward to many more planned for the next academic year. Miss Laura Myers, Assistant Housemistress (Aisholt) and Student Exchange Coordinator

Here some of the visiting students have shared their experiences:

“When we arrived, Sarah and I went to our separate Houses and were welcomed by our Housemistresses; because we were separated, it gave us the chance to make new friends, this helped us to truly make this experience our own” Eve, USA “The boarding here at Downe House was the best part of our entire experience. We’ve created many memorable moments that will last us forever. We became so attached to our Houses here and considered ourselves truly a part of the Downe House family. From setting up our House stalls at Founder’s Weekend to making new acquaintances and bonding with the people, it was a wonderful experience altogether.” Lhachi and Areena, Germany Ester from Czech Republic

GLOBAL INITIATIVES

GLOBAL SCHOOLS’ EXCHANGE PROGRAMME

Tereza from Czech Republic

“The main difference is that, at Downe House, classes are far more interactive which really helped me in understanding a given topic.” Ester, Czech Republic “What I enjoy the most here is the great amount of activities you can get involved in. I attend cookery classes, and I also joined the Caledonian Society as everybody here was so excited about it and I have been to two black-tie events so far both of which were amazing!“ Tereza, Czech Republic “The lessons at Downe House were focusing on completely different things than we are used to in Sweden. Even though we have studied some of the subjects before, the new perspective really helped us develop our knowledge further.” Sofia and Stella, Sweden

Eve and Sarah from USA

GAP YEAR FAIR With university application season quickly approaching, the Lower Sixth began to scope out potential university locations and courses and considered the opportunities a Gap Year can provide; whether giving something to the community or developing a new skill for career progression before going to university. The Gap Year Fair was our opportunity to learn more about programmes available. From volunteering projects to business training programmes to cookery schools, whether in the UK or abroad, we were able to meet people involved with the companies to find out how to prepare for a gap year and what to expect. For those seeking hands-on expeditions, helping other people or simply travelling overseas, there were volunteer organisations such as Africa & Asia Adventure, Flooglebinder or Frontier on hand to offer travel to areas of the globe such as Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam to engage in exotic cultures and get involved in community projects. For those wanting something different, perhaps looking for a part-time job at a ski resort, Peak Leaders and the Orchards School of Cookery were on hand to offer advice. Gemma Mountain and Deena Bhanarai, LVI

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GLOBAL INITIATIVES

CHINA DAY 2016 In February 2016, the Higher Education and Global Initiatives team hosted China Day, which included a range of sessions such as calligraphy, a fashion show, Chinese festivals, Chinese instruments, singing in Chinese and even a Chinese language taster lesson. We were treated to an amazing Chinese lunch and sampled some traditional food like dim sum; we really enjoyed the fortune cookies. We were joined for the day by boys from Elstree School. At the start of the day we were spilt into four groups named after dynasties; Xia, Tang, Qin and Han, we had an amazing show of martial arts and calligraphy followed by a keynote talk by the First Minister (Deputy Ambassador) from the Chinese Embassy. The Chinese language taster with Mr Wu was great fun where we learnt a song to help remember the numbers. Miss Zheng taught us some Chinese calligraphy and we wrote words like love, heart and home. Transition, a Chinese band, held a workshop and the day ended with us watching a fashion show with Downe House girls modelling traditional and modern Chinese outfits. They were accompanied by two world renowned artists playing typical Chinese instruments, the Chinese violin and the Erhu. China Day was an amazing experience, I hope next yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Remove have as much fun as we did Gwyneth Choi, Remove

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

HIGHER EDUCATION & GLOBAL INITIATIVES

OYSTER SOCIETY TALKS Twice a term the HEGI team organises Oyster Society talks inviting professional speakers to visit Downe House and talk to girls from UIV to UVI about their particular profession, career path and personal experiences. These provide the girls with a valuable insight into the world of work and it encourages them to begin thinking about life beyond Downe House, as they move through the School.

ARMY CAREERS AND HIGHER EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES On the 25 January 2016, Mr Edward Pawsey and Captain Sarah Dunn (Royal Logistics Corps) came to talk to us about prospects within the British Army. Mr Pawsey, who is an ex-British Army officer and is now the British Army’s Senior Careers Adviser for the area, talked about the different career areas available like medical, engineering, human resources and management. We learnt about how the British Army offers bursaries and scholarships to some Sixth Form and university students in exchange for up to six years’ service, and went on to outline the excellent working hours and holiday entitlement in the British Army, especially for British Army doctors in comparison with NHS Junior Doctors. We all learned a lot and it showed us that the British Army can be an excellent option and a very rewarding career. Charlotte Orpen, LVI

BATH UNIVERSITY Mrs Doris Bechstein, Student Recruitment Manager from Bath University, gave us an insightful and interesting talk on university applications and Bath University. She began with an overview of the application process and what an ideal personal statement should include, as well as the specific requirements for some courses. We then heard all about the City of Bath and what Bath University has to offer a student, including the accommodation and student life, as well as an overview of the university’s facilities, beautiful campus and sporting pedigree. Overall, it was a very beneficial talk which will no doubt be of use to everyone that attended.

Charlotte Simpson, LVI

THE WORLD OF FASHION We had a wonderfully insightful talk on ‘The World of Fashion & Design” from Zoe Souter, Marketing Manager at Conde Nast College of Fashion. She took us on a whistle-stop tour of the industry, highlighting that it is not simply just ‘designers’ and ‘artists’. In fact the fashion industry, as one of the biggest industries in terms of employment in the UK, is a thriving and promising field to work in. With her many years of experience working in this sector, from being the Personal Assistant to Norman Parkinson, to Fashion Bookings Editor at British Vogue, she gave a perceptive view on the topic, telling us of her own experiences. It was delightful, interesting and inspiring to those looking into a creative career. Georgina Dick and Laura Conneely, LVI

INTRODUCTION TO INTERNSHIPS On Wednesday 27 November, the Lower Sixth were invited to an Introduction to Internships (i2i) event which was a wonderful opportunity to discover more about the recruitment process of large organisations and what can help them to ‘stand out from the crowd’. The event included an interactive workshop session run by Deloitte staff, covering topics such as writing a CV and cover letter, interview and assessment centre skills, a career in consulting and opportunities at Deloitte. Mrs Sofia McClymont, Housemistress (AGS), Teacher of PHSE and World of Work Co-ordinator

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

CHAPEL

CHAPEL REPORT The Year in Chapel began with food, and ended with fire. Food by virtue of the fact that the School held its traditional Service of Welcome for new families and pupils in the Lower School, and food (beautifully prepared and arranged for the Service through our Catering Department) was the visual aid for a homily that centred on sharing life in community. Fire … that comes a little later in this report! We had a theme for Chapel Services for each of the Terms; The Lord’s Prayer in Michaelmas, The Parables of Jesus in Lent and Stories of Hope in Summer. The Chapel relies heavily on the willingness of staff to participate in giving a homily or talk and I remain very grateful for the fact that they are prepared to do this, and continually delighted by the range of approaches that are used in addressing the theme of the particular day. In fact, no Chapel Service goes by without significant participation all round; from the Chapel Seniors, the musicians (Downe House is very fortunate to have such fine musicianship on hand), those pupils who play before Junior Chapel, Seniors who read the lesson and are on hand for duty, and the members of our AV Department, whose good humour in all circumstances is greatly valued. Like everything else in a setting such as a School, a seemingly straightforward event such as a Chapel Service has behind it a large group of unnoticed organisers of one kind or another.

We welcomed as visiting preachers on various Sundays the Rev’d Douglas Dales (who has been a good friend to the School and invaluable in his advice on School ministry); The Rev’d Jane Chaffey, the Chaplain of Wycombe Abbey, who preached for us at Harvest in October; The Venerable Olivia Graham, Archdeacon of Berkshire and, for the most recent event in the Chapel Calendar, the Founder’s Service on 1 July, the Rev’d Ruth Scott, who announced her arrival for the homily with a demonstration of fire eating. That is certainly one way of getting your congregation’s attention, even though we had on hand behind the scenes (and just in case) a member of staff with the ubiquitous fire extinguisher! I ought to mention the exhibition of black and white photographs of the Chapel that the School’s teacher of photography, Natalie Bloor, very kindly made for us as part of the Founder’s Weekend celebrations in 2015, and which we kept on display during part of the Michaelmas Term. As a series of unusual perspectives of the Chapel, our aim was to enable a different way of viewing a space with which we are all familiar but which has its own hidden spaces.

And we were glad to have our own Area Bishop of Reading, Andrew Proud, with us for the most recent Confirmation in the Summer Term. Alongside these three Anglican Services, we also had the pleasure of taking five candidates to Radley College in May, joining with its own pupils for Roman Catholic Confirmation there. Two very different independent Services were introduced over the Year as one way to address some different perspectives. On All Souls Day (2 November) we held a Service in Chapel for all who wished to come to remember and give thanks to God for all family and friends who had died. As an idea it was, in retrospect, a little too sombre an occasion. The second idea, however, suggested that repetition might be worth exploring for future years. We marked the end of the Christmas and Epiphany Season with a Christingle Service for the Remove on 2 February. They were invited to make their own christingles at home over the previous short exeat, with some manufactured at School for those who weren’t able to do that. We also welcomed the Gideon Society to Junior Chapel on 1 December to distribute copies of the New Testament to all new pupils of the School. This is always an extraordinary gesture, with the Bibles sponsored by private donation, and we remain indebted to the Gideons for their continued generosity. This year, for the first time, the School entered girls for the Cranmer Awards. This is an annual competition organised by the Prayer Book Society, in which competitors have to learn by heart a five minute selection of prose from the Prayer Book, and recite it before an audience. The two pupils selected for each of the Junior and Senior categories, Isabel Fincham (LV) and Lucy Mortlock (UVI), went on to take first and third place respectively at the regional final in Oxford, with Isabel then going on to represent that region in the national finals at Worcester Cathedral in February. We were grateful to members of the English Department in preparing the girls for the competition, and it looks to become a regular feature of School life for the future. In finishing, I wish to extend my personal thanks to our outgoing UVI Chapel Seniors, Felicia Tchen and her deputy Ngozi Emenike. They were invaluable at many points during the Year, in doing so many jobs behind the scenes getting ready for Services, organising their peers for the rota and in participating within the Services themselves. We wish them much luck for their respective careers beyond School. Rev’d Andrew Taylor, Chaplain

Three very different bishops visited us for Confirmation over the course of the Year. Bill Down, the retired Bishop of Bermuda, came to us in Michaelmas; John Went, retired of Tewkesbury, in Lent. Both have given excellent service to the School in recent years, and we remain in their debt for this ministry, not least for their wise and compassionate words.

Isabel Fincham and Lucy Mortlock at the Cranmer Awards

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

CHAPEL

PERSPECTIVES BY NAT BLOOR

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

CO-CURRICULAR

A BUSY YEAR OF CO-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES What a busy year it has been, we have overseen a whole raft of activities from Ski racing in Flaine to Ice Skating in Bracknell. We have toured the world in our Dance Showcase and helped numerous academic and House trips head off around the world. As I write this, during the first week of the summer holidays we have students on school trips to Malawi, Myanmar and Germany and we have others preparing to depart to India and South Africa. A truly exciting time. On a more day to day basis, uptake of our evening sessions has grown from strength to strength, as has participation in the weekend activities that we organise. It has been such a delight seeing so many girls getting stuck in and enjoying themselves. We have seen changes to some of these activities as well, such as cycling and dance. We recently purchased a fleet of bicycles and had a group cycle home for the long exeat in May. Downe House to Hampton Court Palace was no mean feat.

We have seen a reshaping of our provision of dance through the creation of DHDance, the banner under which all dance is taught. DHDance was launched to a full audience in the Main Dining Room on the 18 June, just before Sports Day. This launch heralded the appointment of a dedicated Dance Coordinator, Miss Claire Bowden, who oversaw the production of this year’s truly breath taking Dance Showcase, Bon Voyage. Through the inception of DHDance it has been wonderful to see a true sense of unity and pride across all the genres of dance. I heard one girl exclaim “We are the Dancers of Downe House!” What a success! The Duke of Edinburgh’s award has had another successful year, with the girls having only just returned from their Gold Assessed Expedition in the Brecon Beacons. Mr Riddle was understandably pleased with the girls getting through this expedition in what was described as miserable drizzly conditions with poor visibility making navigation a constant challenge. At the end of the Summer Term we organise the Lower School Enrichment and UIV Volunteering Days; both were a great success. Our equestrian achievements have also had another great year, fielding our first polo team in recent years and seeing many rosettes awarded throughout the eventing and jumping season. Mr Matthew Ilott, Head of Co-Curricular Activities BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

Some significant changes within equestrianism at Downe House have happened this year to enable us to offer even greater support to the girls in their riding pursuits. Polo has now moved to Hampshire Polo club and continues to prove very popular. Groups of girls from Remove to Sixth Form play polo throughout the week, with many girls commencing their polo learning upon joining the School. For the first time, a Downe House team played at the Schools SUPA Polo Tournament. The immediate run up to the tournament was fraught as rain played havoc with organisation and in the end the venue changed completely giving the girls the fantastic opportunity of playing on a high goal pitch. The team of Mili Haywood (UVI), Kitty Shepherd-Cross (UVI), Emma Talbot Rice (LV), Gabriella Nelson (LIV), Henrietta Johnston (UVI) and Melissa Farquhar (LV) worked well together giving a performance of which we were all very proud. As the girls’ polo skills improve it is planned to send more teams to future school polo tournaments. The appointment of Clare Chamberlayne to the role of Equestrian Coordinator has enabled girls to form teams to compete at NSEA show jumping qualifiers and all the schools’ one day events in the spring calendar. The weather wrought considerable challenges for the girls in their preparations for these competitions as all training had to be abandoned. Early March saw a team of girls line up at Berkshire College of Agriculture. The team of Imogen Webber, Camilla Read, Amber Spencer (all UIV) and Honor Stephens (LV) tried very hard in what was an incredibly competitive class. Camilla jumped a foot perfect double clear to finish individually in third place. The first schools’ one-day event was held at Swalcliffe and all six girls got off to a positive start in the dressage phase, a couple achieving personal bests. Amelia Hughes (LV) and Jessica Hewlett (UIV) then proceeded to jump encouraging double clears, the only Downe House combinations to do so. Sadly a few too many time faults kept them both just out of the prizes.

Hewlett jumped solid double clears to finish just outside the top ten. A special mention at this point must go to Jessica who has jumped some considerably solid rounds despite only starting riding her new pony Cruise just two months beforehand. Individually in the 80cm class Jemima Landale (LIV) followed up a stunning dressage test with two immaculate jumping rounds to finish in an impressive second place at her swansong competition with her long-time competitive partner Jigsaw. The cancellation of the Schools’ One Day Event at Millfield saw Downe House sending a team to the NSEA Schools’ Show Jumping qualifier at West Wilts during the May half term. This was an extremely competitive affair with a huge number of teams and individuals in each class. We had a team in the 90cm class with all four members trying hard to produce speedy competitive clear rounds. Despite valiant efforts a couple of poles were rolled keeping the team out of the prizes but a fast clear from Jessica Hewlett meant that she finished in 5th place individually out of over 70 starters.

CO-CURRICULAR

AN EXCEPTIONAL EQUESTRIAN YEAR

The girls all had a lot of fun at their spring competitions and continued to practise hard for autumn one day events and show jumping qualifiers. In the 2016 Eventing Pony programme Sapphire Graham and Eloise Bartlett (both UV) were very busy training hard and competing in the Pony Trials. Sapphire had some fabulous early results and particular credit must be awarded to Eloise who, with her lovely pony Kilcoran Blue, produced consistent jumping rounds for regular placings in all the Pony Trials, and then at the Pony National Championships to be selected as first reserve for the British Pony Three Day Event team at the Pony European Three Day Event Championships in Denmark in August. This is a huge achievement that has been attained whilst studying hard and we wish Eloise all the best and hope that she may get to compete for GB. Miss Clare Chamberlayne, Equestrian Coordinator

A fortnight later saw Jessica Hewlett riding at a stronger cross country pace to win her class at the Schools’ Hunter Trial at Foxhill Farm, alongside Charlotte Nicholson (UIV) who was competing for the first time on her new pony and went clear in the 80cm class. It was then on to the Mini Stonar Schools’ One Day Event where there was a strong enough contingent from Downe House to field a team in the 90cm class. A couple of refusals in the jumping phases meant that the team unfortunately did not finish. However, both Amelia Hughes and Jessica

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BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

CO-CURRICULAR

FOUNDER’S WEEKEND DANCE SHOWCASE Bon Voyage This year, our dancers took us on a magical and momentous voyage across the globe. They transported us to far-off lands, and invited us to linger a while to indulge in a myriad of cultures, from exotic Arabian nights to spectacular Kenyan sunrises, from sophisticated New York cityscapes to a raucous Cockney homecoming! Our DHDance students exceeded all of our expectations to bring a sparkling performance to the stage. All had been on their own personal journeys through a tremendous amount of hard work, blood, sweat and tears to achieve such high standards of technique and performance. I would especially like to thank our technical team for working so hard both during and in advance of the show, to bring together the wonderful audio visual links that allowed us to follow the good ship Bon Voyage’s progress via dotted line around the globe, and to incorporate the additional film and live excerpts, to bring the show to life in such a charming way. As ever, the showcase was very well supported, so our thanks to all those families and friends who joined us for a wonderful afternoon. All five of the genres taught at School were represented on stage, allowing the girls to demonstrate the raft of talent and ability we are so proud of here at DHDance.

I would like to offer my hearty congratulations to the DHDance students who were presented with Cups for Outstanding Effort and Achievement: Junior Ballet: Antonia McClintock (Remove) Senior Ballet: Isabelle Smith (LVI) Contemporary: Jameliah Adekunle (UV) Junior Hip Hop: Alice Peters (UIV) Senior Hip Hop: Charlotte Orpen (LVI) Junior Modern Theatre: Florence Stringer (LIV) Senior Modern Theatre: You-Oceane Wang (LV) Junior Tap: Alice Weldon (UIV) Senior Tap: Sacha Martin (UV) Each year, we award the Campbell Cup for Outstanding Performance in Dance to the most deserving girl, and this year it was presented to a dancer who is totally dedicated, attends multiple classes each week and whose sparkling performance on stage rivals that of any professional. My most sincere congratulations to Jameliah Adekunle (UV) who managed to focus on no less than four dances in our showcase and to attend all rehearsals, even during her GSCE year – quite an achievement and a shining example to all our younger dancers. Her performance and attitude to dance is exceptional. Miss Claire Bowden, DHDance Coordinator DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

CO-CURRICULAR

DUKE OF EDINBURGH’S AWARD SCHEME A record breaking year at Downe House After an incredible 100 Awards being achieved last year, this year proved to be even better – 113! The School has achieved its highest number of Bronze and Gold Awards completed in any one season since records began, with 17 Gold and 96 Bronze Awards. Across the country many start the scheme but the completion rate is low. The majority of Downe House girls go on to complete their Award and this is a fantastic achievement that shows the commitment and dedication the girls have to their activities across the board. The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award continues to be highly regarded by employers and Gold Award holders are invited to Buckingham Palace to recognise their achievement. In a delightful ceremony, Prince Philip himself met the Gold Award holders to give them their Award. This year Mrs Scott and I also had the honour and pleasure of accompanying a few Downe House girls at St James’ Palace to meet with with Prince Philip. A list of girls completing their Bronze and Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards can be found in the Awards and More section. Mr Tony Riddle, Teacher of PE and Duke of Edinburgh Coordinator

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

With drizzling mist over the Brecon Beacons, two teams of Downe House girls ventured over the hills and valleys to complete their Gold expedition. On day two, even with the poor communications signal across the wild country area, news still reached them that Wales had suffered a semi-final exit in the Euro 2016 football competition! Despite the news and the weather, this did not dampen their spirits and they marched on completing their four-day adventure somewhat weary but rightly proud of their achievement. There is nothing like having coke and a Welsh Cake to celebrate your finish! They were described as two of the strongest Downe House teams and this was evident by how little they relied upon staff throughout their journey. It was truly an adventure of self-reliance and the girls supported each other through thick and thin. From night time navigation exercises, frosty de-camping mornings, the bleak Dartmoor landscape and the Breconâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s winds easily toppling rucksack-loaded expeditioners, the girls all showed great grit and determination to finish. Well done!

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GOLD EXPEDITION 2016

Mr Tony Riddle, Teacher of PE and Duke of Edinburgh Coordinator

LOWER FIFTH BRONZE EXPEDITION Fun, cameraderie and gutsy determination. Once again, the majority of the Lower Fifth took on the mighty two day self-sufficient Bronze expedition. Overnight temperatures at training in March were near 0 degrees, which was a little bit beyond the summery kit that turned up so, sadly for some, we didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t camp out. Fortunately in April temperatures rose for the practice expedition to Rushall Farm, which had a look of Glastonbury in its muddiest year yet. The colourful Marlborough hills with bright yellow rapeseed fields were the setting for the final assessed expedition. As always, the experience was tough but one that has created memories for life. Well done and congratulations to all who made it through. Mr Tony Riddle, Teacher of PE and Duke of Edinburgh Coordinator DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

CO-CURRICULAR

UIV VOLUNTEERING DAY It is a source of great pride that our girls at Downe House are so eager to help others and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t shy away from putting their skills and talents to work. Each year the Co-Curricular team organises a Volunteering Day for UIV girls and this year saw the girls complete a variety of amazing charitable activities These included busking in Newbury to raise funds for a new swimming pool at a local specialist deaf school, Mary Hare School, as well as helping out at the local Riding for the Disabled centre in Newbury. A few of our UIV girls spent their time working at a local nursey while others helped out at a local food bank. Other groupsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; voluntary work had a more environmental theme, working at Rushall Organic Farm, the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust and the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust. All in all a great day was had by all! Mr Tony Riddle, Teacher of PE and Duke of Edinburgh Coordinator

LOWER SCHOOL ENRICHMENT DAY Another great asset to Downe House is our amazing staff that are so willing to share their knowledge and experiences with the girls in Darwin, Hill and Hermitage Houses. This year saw a variety of fun and engaging sessions, including archery in the Cloisters, making unleavened flatbread and silver jewellery, First Aid and Accident Procedure training, learning how to dance with Maori Sticks and how to Hip Hop. It was a fun packed afternoon for staff and girls alike. Mr Matthew Ilott, Head of Co-Curricular Activities

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EVENING AND WEEKEND ACTIVITIES There is so much to do with the time outside the classroom it is sometimes an issue getting the girls to do less! Alongside all the different musical options offered through the Schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s excellent Music Department, we as a department strive to cater for all girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; interests and hobbies through offering interesting and engaging activities in the evenings and at the weekends. There are at least two different genres of dance to choose from each evening as well as either polo or horse riding. We also offer climbing, sailing, kayaking, pottery and art, boxercise, yoga and Pilates to name but a few. This year we have seen great take up in our weekend activities. It has been a busy year offering an array of exciting events across the year groups, including trips to Thorpe Park, the theatre and shopping as well as adventurous activities such as cycling, high ropes courses and off-road Segways. The girls have had a choice of fun-packed activities giving them the opportunity to get stuck in or just to relax. Mr Matthew Ilott, Head of Co-Curricular Activities

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

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INFLATABLE FRIDAY! To celebrate the last day of school before the UVI depart for study leave to prepare for their final exams, it is customary that we host an afternoon of fun to send them on their way.

This year was no exception, holding an eight element inflatable obstacle course, a hog roast and vegetarian paella, as well as candyfloss and popcorn stands. Initially, the fun and food was enjoyed solely by UVI and then the rest of School joined us on the field as the UVI departed to prepare for their Foundation Dinner. Mr Matthew Ilott, Head of Co-Curricular Activities

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FOUNDATION OFFICE

A YEAR IN PICTURES Reunions and Celebrations

ICE

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T I ON O DA

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FOUNDER’S WEEKEND 2016 Bringing the Downe House community together The showers didn’t dampen spirits at Founder’s Weekend 2016. 28 events, more than 300 performers, stunning displays and delicious food over two sensational days. On Saturday 2 and Sunday 3 July, the Downe House community gathered for our annual Founder’s Weekend celebrations. Now in its sixth year, the weekend was filled with entertainment and family fun. From the stunning departmental displays, the family tennis tournament and climbing wall, to the wonderful showcases and performances from the girls in Music, Dance and Drama. It was a spectacular weekend that was enjoyed by all. The catering team provided exquisite refreshments throughout including the legendary Founder’s afternoon tea and the delightful family BBQ to the sounds of the Big Band. BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

Parents and friends of Downe House were treated to a magnificent display of Downe at its best. As one parent said, “At Downe House you manage to achieve positive vibes for every girl in the school which is a wonderful achievement.” We couldn’t agree more! Mrs Michelle Scott, Assistant Headmistress (Foundation)

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LEAVERSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; DAY

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DH LINKS

A career and professional development network for current girls and alumnae DH LINKS has enjoyed another very busy year with much to celebrate. We have now established seven Cluster Groups in Medical and Healthcare, PR/Media and Marketing, Finance, Law, Education, Creative Arts and most recently Property, Architecture & Engineering. Each of these Cluster Groups has brought together our alumnae, current parents, former parents and Sixth Form girls, all of whom have enjoyed the opportunity to network with each other within a professional setting. Plans are well underway for the next Cluster Group which will take place during the Michaelmas Term for Entrepreneurs and those currently with or wishing to pursue a Start Up Business. We now have approximately 1100 alumnae and parents who have joined DH LINKS, offering to be a contact to current girls and other alumnae, to come back to Downe House and give a careers talk and/or offering work experience and internships. We are delighted with how much the DH LINKS initiative has grown in the last twelve months and we were delighted to support a number of current girls with work shadowing placements this year. We are continuing to forge links both in the UK and internationally, with word about DH LINKS quickly spreading amongst the Downe House alumnae network.

Mrs Alexandra Barlow, Alumnae Relations Manager, DH LINKS Coordinator, Holcombe Tutor

CREATIVE ARTS CLUSTER GROUP On Wednesday 18 November 2015 we took a group of fifteen Lower and Upper Sixth girls who are potentially interested in creative related careers to Indigo Design Associates in London to meet alumnae and parents who are either training or working within a creative environment. Our host for the evening was alumna and current parent Mrs Iona Duckworth who kindly opened the doors of her interior design studio in Fulham. We were delighted to welcome approximately thirty alumnae and current parents who all provided the girls with a wonderful insight into the world of creative arts. It was a worthwhile evening with business cards and contact details being exchanged. We hope that the Creative Arts Cluster Group members will continue to network informally and everyone will benefit from the contacts in this group. Mrs Alexandra Barlow, Alumnae Relations Manager, DH LINKS Coordinator, Holcombe Tutor

“I really enjoyed meeting everyone there and learning about their careers in the creative industry! It all sounded amazing and I really want to become an interior designer now!” Ione Sandberg, UVI “I am hoping to follow a career in photography and managed to chat to someone who has followed a similar path, she gave me her contact details which was very kind.” Modupe Lamikanra, LVI “Congratulations on the event last night. An inspiration for all those involved. I am happy to come and talk at some point also will assist with anyone undertaking any projects.” Ms Kitty North (DH Alumna 1978)

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

Property, architecture and engineering were the focus of the seventh DH LINKS cluster group which took place in London on Wednesday 2 March 2016. We were delighted to welcome 50 alumnae, parents and current girls who spent the evening exchanging information about university pathways, careers, work experience and contacts to make this one of the most well attended cluster groups so far.

“I think that it was really useful for me personally because I now know more about what ‘engineering’ is and it gave me an insight into what jobs these engineers actually do in the real world. This event got me excited for university and after hearing from all these people I know that I will be doing what I actually love and enjoy, and engineering is the right path for me.”

Girls aspiring to careers in property, architecture and engineering found a wealth of information at their fingertips with business cards being exchanged during the course of the evening. The careers and networking event for this sector was held at Savills Global Headquarters in London, which provided the perfect platform to explore options for girls with A level or university choices ahead of them. The setting was inspirational and all guests enjoyed the wonderful drinks and canapes provided by the fantastic catering team at Savills. During the evening Mrs Laura Ogilvie-Jones (Director of Admissions, School & Professional Links) gave a short talk in which she thanked Mr Jonathan Hewlett (Head of London Residential at Savills) who had kindly hosted the event alongside us.

Nutthapit Poolworaluk, UV

Mrs Alexandra Barlow, Alumnae Relations Manager, DH LINKS Coordinator, Holcombe Tutor

DH LINKS

PROPERTY CLUSTER GROUP

“It was great to see so many current Downe House girls keen to learn more about the property industry, all of whom networked the room and approached the alumnae and the current and former parents in the industry to ask their questions. All in all, a great evening.” Mr Jonathan Hewlett, Current Parent “I wanted to say thank you and congratulations for putting on such a fantastic event – it was the perfect number of people which meant you could talk to everyone. Above all I thought the DH girls were fantastic, smart, intelligent and very commercially aware which is exceptional for girls at that age (I certainly wasn’t like that!). It’s great to see so many of them showing an interest in the property and development sector.” Miss Kitty Vaughan, DH Alumna 2009

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DH LINKS

DH LINKS WORK SHADOWING

CASE STUDY ONE

Industry: Law Alumna: Annabel Corbett (Pilling DH 1991) Pupil: Annabel Roest

In the first week of the summer holidays I spent a couple of days shadowing District Judge Annabel Pilling in St Albans, which was very kindly set up for me through the extensive contact list at DH LINKS. I sat in on a real variety of cases, ranging from a minor corporate case to serious criminal ones. It was very interesting to learn and gain insight into the industry from such a knowledgeable and experienced expert. I found it fascinating to be able to sit inside a real court and observe the very real ways in which it operates. Each day we went into the courts and were given our cases for the day, and then we would head down for each case. The time spent on each case was dependant on the procedure required for each one. Many of the cases we were dealing with were purely the administrative side, as opposed to the longer ones, which were sentencing - watching Judge Pilling at work was by far my favourite part! It was such an amazing experience that I have gained so much from. Thank you very much to Annabel Pilling for her invaluable guidance and Mrs Barlow in Foundation Office for setting the whole thing up for me. Annabel Roest, UV

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CASE STUDY TWO

Industry: Recruitment Alumna: Ros Kindersley (DH 1979) Pupil: Isabelle Brown

I spent a week during the summer at JFL Recruitment, based in the heart of London. As soon as I arrived on my first day the team at JFL Recruitment made me feel extremely welcome. They all were very friendly and made me feel comfortable within their office very quickly. My desk was right in the mix of the team allowing me to quickly pick up the different aspects of the company and everyone was willing to help me learn the ropes. For someone having no previous knowledge about recruitment I now have a solid knowledge of how the process works within JFL as a company, but also within recruitment generally, and the different aspects that have to be considered in this industry. I have learnt how to handle both clients and candidates on the phone which is a skill I will have for the rest of my working career, wherever I end up. I filled my week with learning how to write adverts from the job descriptions sent through by leading global companies, which has expanded my style of writing as well as my persona. I am now also able to work my way around the database used within the company, examining CVs and being able to distinguish between a good CV and a less clear CV, a skill that is very useful for me to know as I am in the process of putting together my own CV. I also thoroughly enjoyed learning how JFL choose to present their company on social media and how they advertise jobs they are recruiting for, through picture adverts. I was kept busy throughout the whole week with different tasks. I have to thank the JFL team for giving me the best first experience of the working world which I have really enjoyed, and also for helping me to see where I may end up in the future. Isabelle Brown, UV

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

Our thanks go to our alumnae for the invaluable support and guidance they provide to our current girls.

DH LINKS

CASE STUDY THREE

Industry: Food Alumna: Grace Regan (DH 2009) Pupil: Kitty Henry

During the summer holidays I really enjoyed working with Grace Regan who is a Downe House alumna. I was put in touch with Grace through the DH LINKS career networking initiative. Grace runs her own business and is a serial entrepreneur. Grace founded SpiceBox in 2015 and it is a vegan healthy plant based company making delicious curries. Throughout my four days with SpiceBox I thoroughly enjoyed going to two markets, one in Kings Cross and the other in Canary Wharf. During the market days I helped Grace set up the stalls and did general tasks including doing a bit of the cooking. The markets were such a fun way of really understanding the company while still learning. On the other days I learned some useful IT skills while I did some admin for the company, this helped me really grasp not just the fun market days but the essential business tasks too. I thoroughly enjoyed my four days and would definitely recommend work shadowing through DH LINKS. Kitty Henry, UV

CASE STUDY FOUR

Industry: Architecture & Design Alumna: Juliette Blackshaw (DH 2000) Pupil: Lauren Griffith

During the summer I spent one week working with Farrells Architecture, an international corporation operating mainly from Hong Kong, Shanghai and London, at their office in North London. On arrival I was partnered up with my mentor for the week, Alec, who works as an architectural assistant as well as managing the work experience activities of the company. Having expressed my interest in rejuvenation, redevelopment and sustainability over previous emails, Farrells kindly recognised this and designed my week around this. On my first day I was given a plot of land near Paddington Green and was asked to come up with my own ideas on how I would redevelop this abandoned area, hypothetically. I was very much thrown into the deep end, which I did enjoy, as I was asked to not only raise the socioeconomic rating of the area of land to be rejuvenated, but also had to consider how my ideas could intertwine with and involve the surrounding communities. Having sketched up design ideas, debriefed them to Alec and his team, I was set off transferring my sketches into their graphic design programming software in order to formalise my suggested ideas. The intricacy of the programme required patience and care, and eventually I got used to the software and the work became easier. On the fourth day my designs were printed in a blue print format and I was taken to the model workroom to make my ideas come to life in 3D form. I was shown how the company uses a 3D printer to make other large scale models they have produced for the numerous masterplans Farrells has undertaken, including the Earl’s Court Redevelopment project. I used foam to make a miniature model of my blue prints, which again was very fiddly but really rewarding, and it was amazing to see my ideas transform into something more lifelike and realistic. Throughout the week I was introduced to various members of the Farrells team who all work as architects with an emphasis on large scale projects and masterplans. The week was very informative and it opened my eyes to the world of architecture as well as the path I would have to take to find myself a place in this fascinating business sector. I cannot thank Farrells enough for granting me this opportunity as well as DH LINKS which was hugely important in helping find me a work shadowing placement with the company. Lauren Griffith, UV DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

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CENTRE FOR LEARNING

AS ONE DOOR CLOSES ANOTHER OPENS It’s all go at Downe House! Following hot on the heels of Easter, the estates team began the enabling work for the Centre for Learning. Safety barriers were put in place around the Water Tower, and work began to make the site ready for demolition. In early August, the demolition team moved in to clear the site to make way for the foundations for the Centre for Learning.

The history of the Water Tower In 1922, Downe House moved to The Cloisters in Cold Ash. The Cloisters was built as a Roman Catholic Convent for the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary. The Water Tower sat at the centre of the site and contained a large rainwater tank in the basement, a well-equipped laundry with hard and soft water supply on the first floor, a battery room and store on the second and on the third floor were four tanks of 6000-gallon capacity. The water pumping machine was underground where large domed tank stored 1000 gallons of oil. The atmospheric position of the tower through the trees would have pleased the architect James McLaren Ross who was heavily influenced by the Arts and Craft style - with the tower closing the vista at the end of the drive. Miss Willis, on purchase of the School in 1922, had been assured that the water supply for the main buildings was plentiful but at dry times, there were considerable problems with the supply and the girls wrote about this in charming and poetic ways. They and the staff always banded together to get water to a bathtub and for necessities - timed bathing was essential and hair washing was special.

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The School laundry operated from the Water Tower for many years and the tower was used for all sorts of other School activity. Hester McClintock (née Wilder) wrote that Miss Nickel was asked to take her violin pupils to the water tower for their lessons: “to keep the general peace, all violin lessons were relegated to the top of the Water Tower – out of everybody’s earshot!” Four days of holiday in June 1953 celebrated the Coronation and though a number of the girls went to London, some stayed and decorated the Water Tower with flags and bunting. The Water Tower served the School beautifully for many years and its memory will remain forever in its history. Whilst we say farewell to an iconic sight the future awaits and we hope that the next generation will have fond memories of the Centre for Learning when it takes its place. The Centre for Learning will provide a multi-purpose innovative learning space that will enhance the experience of every Downe House girl. A state-of-the-art 250 seat auditorium will provide a space for recitals, workshops, lectures, demonstrations, performances and teaching. Seminar rooms will be used for small group learning, discussions, meetings and tutorials. The entrance foyer will be a welcoming art and sculpture gallery, and the learning café and School shop will provide areas for the girls to relax, study and socialise. Developing our current facilities means that we can continue to move forward and provide outstanding specialist, ageappropriate teaching, learning, boarding and enrichment opportunities. The project will cost £6.5 million. To date we have raised over £3.5 million from current and past parents, Governors and alumnae. The Governors have agreed to commit a further £2 million to the project, leaving us with £1 million left to be raised. Mrs Catherine Newman, Deputy Development Director and with thanks to the School Archivist, Mrs Jane Caiger-Smith

BEYOND THE CURRICULUM

For more information or to discuss ways to support this groundbreaking project visit the School website, or contact the Foundation Office on: 01635 204719.

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CHARITY

HAPPY DAY In support of Street Child Amidst all the madness and colour on Wednesday 16 March, there was a serious side to the Happy Day celebrations. It was just one of the events being held through the year in support of Street Child. Street Child is a UK charity, established in 2008, that aims to create educational opportunities for some of the most vulnerable children in West Africa. The day of fun culminated in a colour run on the playing fields. We are delighted that four of our Sixth Form are Ambassadors for Street Child: Alyx Van der Vorm (LVI), Lucy Mortlock (UVI), Anouska Royle (UVI) & Miranda Shaw (UVI). Ms Kate Raines, Communications Manager

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On Friday 24 June, I hosted, alongside the Lower Sixth committee (Florence Palmer, Imogen Hancock, Isabelle Smith, Celine Harborne, Emily Crowston, Alexandra Milne, Georgina Galbraith, Hebe Meredith, Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan, Rumbidzai Wasterfall, Sereena Singh, Zara Chamberlain, Lucy Harley, Arabella Nourse, Rose Galbraith and India Burney) the Father and Daughter Charity Gala in support of the Purple Community Fund. PCF is a charity that I have grown up with, having first been introduced to the organisation when I was living in the Philippines. The charity aims to eradicate poverty on a dumpsite in Manila by setting up livelihood programmes, medical schemes and building a school. The night, open to the Lower Sixth girls, had been around a year in the making and was a wonderful opportunity for fathers to come to the school and meet other fathers. On the night we had a champagne reception followed by a two course dinner, a speech from Jane Walker the Founder of the Charity and a quiz. There was also an opportunity for girls to have their photo taken with their fathers by Hebe Meredith. The Quiz was hosted by Georgina Galbraith and Alexandra Milne and it was incredibly fun but also quite difficult! We are delighted to announce that we raised ÂŁ2,750 for PCF. Caroline Watkinson, LVI

CHARITY

AN EVENING AT THE RACES On Saturday 23 April, York house held their charity event an ‘Evening at the Races’ in aid of EDCLUB. As a new member of staff experiencing my first weekend and first charity event at the school I was unsure as to what to expect. From the moment I walked into the dining room it was clear that charity events are something that the Downe House community is passionate about. The Dining Room had been transformed with fairy lights and bunting and there was an excited buzz from parents, girls and staff alike. The evening kicked off with a presentation about the charity we were raising funds for from Georgina Witter (LVI), who had been involved with EDCLUB at her previous school. She told us about what the charity does and why she feels its work is particularly important. EDCLUB (Encouraging Disadvantaged Children to Learn Using Broadband) has set up computer labs in disadvantaged communities so that lessons can be taught to children over Skype by teenage tutors in schools here. The charity began its work in Kenya and has now expanded to work in Malawi and India. It is evident that EDCLUB is a charity that means a great deal to Georgina and was great to see that Downe House empowers and encourages the girls to fundraise for charities whose values and objectives they whole heartedly believe in. We were also fortunate enough to have the co-founder of the charity, Alice Macaire, attend the event. Following the delicious starters, the evening moved on to a horse auction led by Florence Elliott and India Laidlaw (both LVI), the Head and Deputy Head Seniors. The girls delivered amusing introductions to the horses, who were all named after members of staff. The Leadership Team was particularly active in the bidding, with some even winning their namesakes. Betting then began on the first race and with a limited number of tickets available for each horse the competitive spirit soon took hold as the betters had to do a little bit of racing themselves! Next came the auction, where there were some impressive lots on offer thanks to the tremendous generosity of some of the parents. The lots were very varied and ranged from personal polo lessons to a stay in idyllic converted barn, to work experience at a top law firm. Bidding was extremely competitive but thankfully there was an extensive raffle afterwards so very few people went home empty handed.

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The evening as a whole was a great demonstration of the generous and inclusive character of the School. The participation of all the girls, who worked together to pull off such an enjoyable event was commendable and it was so nice to see the girls relaxing and enjoying time with their parents. It definitely made a change from seeing the parents as luggage porters at the beginning of term! The event raised over £2000 for EDCLUB. Miss Aneya Scott, Assistant Housemistress (York)

MUFTI DAY FOR CHARLOTTE’S HELIX The girls slipped easily into the spirit of dressing down on Friday 9 October, each making a donation for the privilege of dressing in mufti. The proceeds of the day went towards Charlotte’s Helix, a charity selected by one of our Upper Fifth girls, Alice Wills, to help them achieve specific goals by 2016. Charlotte’s Helix is a charity dedicated to uncovering the genetic roots of eating disorders and cracking the code to understand what makes some people more predisposed to developing these conditions. In order to do this they need to collect 25,000 DNA samples from around the world and at least 1,000 samples in the UK. All funds collected go towards the global effort to find new insights and effective treatments. This is an exciting prospect and one that Downe House is proud to contribute to.

Mrs Mel Stimson, Head Of Sixth Form, said “Everyone knows somebody affected by eating disorders and we are thrilled to be supporting a charity that is doing valuable research to find the genetic markers that make some young people vulnerable to these debilitating conditions.” The girls reported that it felt great to be out of uniform and doing something worthwhile too. The charity is named in memory of Charlotte Bevan who was a fierce advocate and activist. Ms Kate Raines, Communications Manager DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

CHARITY

TAKING THE PATH LESS TRODDEN Over the last two years, Honor Sells (LV) has travelled and volunteered on an international community service programme run by Rustic Pathways, that aims to introduce high school students to experiences that benefit the communities visited, while showing the students the impact they can have on the world. Here, Honor shares some of her experiences. In 2015, I travelled to Thailand on a programme called ‘Elephant training and the hill tribe experience’. I spent my first week at the Rustic Pathways Children’s Home in the beautiful hills along Thailand’s western frontier. Here, I had a language partner and taught in a local school for young children. They were all very excited to meet us and greeted us with a song and dance they had prepared. Later, we drove to one of the largest refugee camps, helping the Karen people who are fleeing from the Burmese government. Although amazing, this part of the trip was very upsetting. It was difficult to see these people who were struggling, and many of them no longer had families, trying to stay positive and appreciate what they had. We stayed in the orphanage and spent time teaching English to the teenagers, as well helping to build a new kitchen and bedroom (which mainly involved mixing a lot of cement!). Next it was on to central Thailand to work with elephants! We bathed, fed and cared for the elephants and are now officially licensed manhouts. Elephants are amazing creatures and it was wonderful to be able to work so closely with them. Whilst in Thailand I was also able to spent time hiking up waterfalls and visiting mountaintop temples and night markets. I loved all of the activities and came away with a new appreciation of this diverse country.

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In July 2016, I headed to India to Mcleud Ganj in the Himalayas and then on to Balla in the south. I was in India to help Tibetan refugees learn English (and hearing about their stories), and to work ona construction project to build some new toilet facilities for the local community in Balla. These trips were both very different and incredibly eye opening, although I found the people equally inspiring. I learnt about the amazing Buddhist and Hindu cultures, and visited many monasteries. I even went to His Holiness the Dalai Lamas Temple. It was a busy three weeks in which I tried many new foods worked in a home for the disabled and mentally ill, visited the Museum of Tibetan Art and Culture, and much more. One of my favourite aspects was meeting all the wonderful people and discovering the dramatic contrast between the west and sout Asia. We also met a Tibetan activist which was truly fascinating, hearing about his struggles against the Chinese government in the fight for a free Tibet. I hope to visit India again when I’m older and continue to explore and have new experiences there. Honor Sells, LV

CHARITIES SUPPORTED 2015/16 Downe House has a long tradition of forging strong links with charities and this year has been no exception. Many girls have chosen to support charities outside of the School environment and have shown outstanding commitment and dedication both to raising funds and giving of their time to directly support their work. In addition, through charitable activities within the Downe House community, we have raised over £42,000 for our House and other charities both at home and abroad. It is an outstanding achievement and we offer everyone that has been involved a big THANK YOU! Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Berkshire Woman’s Aid Bishop of Oxford Outreach British Heart Foundation British Red Cross

CHARITY

Room to Read

Swings and Smiles

Helen and Douglas House

MacMillan Cancer Support

Charlotte’s Helix

Hope and Homes for Children

Malawi Children’s Home

Ed Club Movement

Hope Asia

Mary Hare School

Sparkes Home Sri Lanka

Teenage Cancer Trust

Hope for Justice

Music as Therapy

Save the Children

Tiger Kloof

Hounds for Heroes

Plan UK

Sport Relief

Toilet Twinning

Reality Gives

Street Child

War Child

Riding for the Disabled

Street Child of Sierra Leone

WaterAid

Cancer Research The Castle School

French Charities Global Action Nepal Great Ormond Street

Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust

Royal British Legion

Tearfund

WWF

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ROME

SIXTH FORM ENRICHMENT TRIP TO ROME AND THE VATICAN MUSEUMS Over the January exeat weekend, 24 Lower and Upper Sixth girls travelled to Rome, at the invitation of the Vatican Patrons’ Office. Although the primary purpose of our visit was to enjoy a private tour of the Vatican museums, we couldn’t resist the opportunity to see as much art and culture as possible while we were there! Our hotel, Domus Sessoriana, was huge and its rooms had been adapted from the cells of an ancient monastery, dating from the 10th century, adjacent to the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem. The glass-walled breakfast room on the rooftop terrace had a beautiful view of Rome and gave us an insight into what we were about to explore. On our first day we walked down the cobbled streets and suddenly standing ahead of us was the enormous Colosseum. It was amazing to experience its mass and scale for ourselves. Next, we embarked on a flurry of visits to quite remarkable churches, collectively known as the Colle Celio churches. Santo Stefano Rotondo is the most ancient centrally planned, circular church in Rome, dating from the 5th century. The walls are decorated with frescoes portraying 34 scenes of martyrdom. The Oratorio di San Silvestro is a simple rectangular space with a barrel vault, decorated with stars and crosses. The floor has a Cosmati-like pattern of coloured marbles and a cycle of frescoes depicting the legendary life of Emperor Constantine. San Clemente is named after St. Clement, the fourth Pope and we were able to explore excavations under the present basilica, revealing the original, fourth century basilica directly underneath, and further below the remains of a first-century Mithraic temple.

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Bernini’s Ecstasy of St. Teresa in the church of Santa Maria della Vittorio was particularly memorable with its contrast between the heavily embellished church’s interior and the simplistic exterior. It was amazing to see the sculpture in such close proximity as it is a key case-study for the Pre-U visual analysis paper. Our final visit was to the Borghese Gallery which houses many of Bernini’s baroque sculptures including Apollo and Daphne. The variety of textures and contrast of polished and un-polished marble showed the sculptor’s skill with a relatively fragile rock. The drama of Daphne’s twisting pose and Apollo’s determined pursuit belie the extraordinary technical accomplishment of the artist and his assistants. Ms Diane Slocombe, Teacher of History of Art

Our visit to Rome was a truly amazing experience; I particularly enjoyed our private tour of the Vatican and was not expecting the Basilica or the Sistine Chapel to be so vast and remarkable. Every aspect of the city is picturesque and beautifully created, including the wonderful Vatican Gardens. The tour of the Vatican was incredible, the highlight being the Sistine Chapel. Our guide Christina took us there early and it was virtually empty; being able to stand in the chapel with just our tour group was something I am sure I will never have the opportunity to do again and something I will never forget. As we turned out eyes to the ceiling, Christina talked us through the amazing artwork of Michelangelo in impressive detail. We were also able to spot some paintings that we had studied in our History of Art lessons, and it was amazing to put the artwork into context and space. Our last stop within the Vatican museums was a visit to the painting conservation laboratories. It was amazing to see the restoration work in process and the difference it makes to the preservation of often very delicate works. It was fascinating to see some of the methods used. We were also extremely lucky to tour the Pope’s private gardens; the wonderful architecture, fountains and decorations were outstanding. A fantastic grotto-like fountain perched on a hill over-looking the museums reminded us of an ancient structure one might find in a jungle. The parrots sang and the sun shone and the only reminder that we were in the busy city of Rome was the towering dome of St. Peter’s Basilica, which could be seen from all points of the garden: a sight I will never forget. We visited St Peter’s on our last day and it is a beautiful church housing many famous artworks, including the Pietà (a statue of Jesus, after the crucifixion, lying on the lap of the Virgin Mary). I especially loved seeing the giant bronze Baldachin or canopy over the high altar, designed by Bernini, with the assistance of Borromini. We also had the opportunity to visit the Pantheon which is one of our History of Art Pre-U case studies. It was amazing to link what we had learnt with what we could experience in person. The vast scale and intricate decoration was awe inspiring. At the beautiful Trevi Fountain, in keeping with tradition, we all tossed a few coins into the fountain hoping that one day we will return to Rome - the most beautiful city in the world. Contributions from: Violet Crawfurd, Georgina Galbraith, Katharine Garvin, Imogen Hancock, Lucy Harley, India Laidlaw, Alexandra Milne, Jemima Oliver, Florence Palmer, Caroline Quillen, Lydia Stonehill, Caroline Watkinson, Poppy Winsor (all LVI), Emily Dodd-Noble, Isobel Wild, and Clementine Swallow (all UVI)

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At the beginning of June every year, girls in the Remove look forward to a long weekend trip to Calshot Activities Centre. The centre, in Southampton, offers a range of exciting activities and water sports, many of which the girls will try for the first time. Windsurfing, sailing and kayaking are all on offer, as well as other dry activities such as wall climbing, snowboarding, mountain biking skills, track cycling in a velodrome, and team swing, which consists of being dropped from a great height – quite terrifying if you ask me

CALSHOT

REMOVE TRIP TO CALSHOT ACTIVITIES CENTRE

In the evenings, the fun continued with activities on the beach and team building exercises. Competitive spirit came alive when the girls were up against each other in a race to build the tallest shoe tower, and the longest line possible using their bodies and any other items they had with them. The instructors were fantastic at coming up with such stimulating and exciting challenges and the girls seemed to really enjoy themselves. On the beach, the girls even helped their community by undertaking some beach clearing! Hermitage and Hill were split up into different groups throughout the weekend so that there was an opportunity for them to make friends outside of their usual social circle. Completion of the weekend went towards the girls’ Wakefield Award, which aims to develop their sense of collaboration, compassion, creativity and most importantly, resilience. It was lovely to see such a growth in the girls’ confidence throughout the sessions at Calshot, and with the help of some inspiring instructors, they were able to overcome their fears and learn many new skills. Every girl was encouraged to try every activity and many personal goals were set and achieved in this supportive environment. Overall, I’m sure all of the girls will remember this weekend as one of their highlights of Remove, just as the year above them did! Miss Gabrielle Collie, Resident Pastoral Assistant

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“Windsurfing was amazing. It was difficult to turn but I got the hang of it in the end.” Matilda (Tilly) Wilkinson “I learnt lots about teamwork, especially in Team Swing.” Tara Dyer “It was great working with people who I don’t usually hang out with.” Honor Neville “I wish we could go back again!” Charlotte Pearson “I kept capsizing when I was sailing. It was hilarious.” Ashley Iguh

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

BARCELONA

TENNIS ON TOUR TO BARCELONA During the Easter break a group of 16 girls from LV to LVI, accompanied by Mr Allen and Mrs Hathaway, went on a Tennis Tour to the Catalunya Tennis Resort in Girona, near Barcelona. We spent five days on their clay courts improving our tennis through training, practice and match play in preparation for the Summer Term. We had three enthusiastic coaches, Sean, Jack and Felix, who helped us all to improve our technique and tactics. Each day there were two tennis sessions in which we focused on a particular area of our game, starting with specific drills which focused on our technique and then moving into ways that we could use these skills in matches. The coaches chose their Player of the Day, someone who they thought showed great enthusiasm and improvement in this specific area. In between the tennis sessions, we could be found doing a combination of swimming, relaxing in the sun or playing Padel with Mr Allen, a Spanish racket sport similar to squash. Although at first we were not that good, following a quick lesson from Mr Allen and researching the rules, it quickly became a favourite activity. Mr Allen and Mrs Hathaway arranged different activities for the evenings including a quiz, which got very competitive, and a prize-giving evening to finish off the tour. Anna Chalmers, LVI

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Day One began with an early wake up followed by a coach ride to Heathrow Terminal Five to catch our flight to Berlin. We were greeted at Berlin Airport by our German bus driver who took us to the Hotel Meininger, situated near the centre of Berlin, close to the Reichstag Parliament building and Brandenburg Gate. Our first port of call was the Soviet Memorial in the ‘Tiergarten’, one of several war memorials in the capital erected by the Soviet Union to commemorate its war dead, particularly the 80,000 soldiers of the Soviet Armed Forces who died during the Battle of Berlin in April and May 1945. Next stop was the Topography of Terror, the location of the headquarters of the Secret State Police, the SS and the Reich Security Main Office during the Third Reich, where there is now a fascinating museum that covers German war history in all aspects from a wide variety of viewpoints. I personally found it very informative. We decided to walk back to the hotel and on the way we passed the Memorial for Homosexuals, an intimate, simple memento in the corner of a park in memory of a group of people very much affected by Nazi rule in Germany. It was touching to see another aspect of Nazi persecution acknowledged in such a quiet but powerful way. Mr Lane had warned us the night before that Day Two was going to be a long one. Our destination was Sachsenhausen, a concentration camp used primarily for political prisoners and racial minorities, such as the Jews, from 1936 to the end of the Third Reich in May 1945. Then after World War II, when the surrounding area of Oranienburg was in the Soviet Occupation Zone, the structure was used as an NKVD special camp until 1950. The Nazis also used Sachsenhausen as a training camp for SS officers to learn about the running of concentration camps and so it developed the name of ‘a model camp’. We were shocked by a sign outside the camp, which described the camp as ‘the most beautiful camp’ in Germany. Possibly the most chilling part of the camp was the Pathology Block and experimental building where torturous pathology experiments on prisoners took place. This was on top of a mortuary cellar where 200 corpses were stored at one time.

Our next appointment was at the Wannsee Conference House. We learnt that it was in this house that high-ranking members of the SS and Nazi Party planned the ‘Final Solution’, the Holocaust of the Jews. On the way back to the hotel, we visited Platform 17, an old platform adjacent to Berlin-Grunewald station that was one of the major sites of deportation of the Berlin Jews. The trains left mainly for the ghettos of Warsaw and from 1942 directly for the Auschwitz and Theresienstadt concentration camps. A monument was placed around the platform with plaques recording the numbers of people and locations of transportations from the platform.

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GCSE HISTORY TRIP TO BERLIN

We began Day Three with a walk around Berlin, travelling on the Berlin Metro. We then had lunch at Potsdammer Platz and gazed up at the Fernsehturm Berlin. After looking at what appeared to be a simple car park (which in fact concealed the bunker in which Hitler lived out his last few months) we moved on and walked through the Holocaust Memorial. It was a time to reflect and be silent for those who lost their lives because of their religion. Presently, we walked past the Brandenburg Gate though the snow on the way to the Reichstag building. We convened back at the hotel, ate dinner and went out to the station for a well-earned hot chocolate! Day Four (our last day) began with a visit to Bernauer Strasse to see the actual remains of what was left of the Berlin Wall. We then metroed to Potsdamer Platz for a taste of traditional German cuisine. The afternoon was spent between the Berlin Christmas Market and the fantastic Chocolate Shop, where we engaged in a good ol’ session of retail therapy, buying Christmas gifts and treats for friends and family. After a lovely last day we collected our bags and headed back to the airport. Everybody on the trip thoroughly enjoyed it as well as it being a great way of consolidating everything we have learnt during our GCSE History (and German) courses thus far. A huge thank you must go to Mr Lane who organized the trip and handled all the paperwork. Thanks also to Madame Basnett and Frau Dodwell for accompanying us! Annabel Roest, UV

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HOLLAND

HOCKEY TOUR TO HOLLAND Day 1 We arrived in Maastricht after a ten-hour bus journey, which was filled with games of ‘Heads Up’, sleep, TV programmes, and of course revision. We rushed to our rooms to unpack and change for our first meal. Despite the long day, the conversation was flowing and we were excited finally to be here. We ended the evening at the bowling alley. It was soon apparent that a few people were very rusty and needed some instruction by Miss Baker, much to the amusement of the team! Day 2 Everybody seemed to be rather tired from the journey, apart from Miss Baker who was bursting with energy! Wearing our bright green socks and new black hoodies, we were ready for some Hockey. At our hockey training venue, everyone was impressed with the number of pitches and thought the club must be a high ranking team. However, we were surprised to hear that it was just a small club! Phil, our coach for the week, focused mainly on our weaknesses: attacking the ball and creating and converting goal-scoring opportunities. He was patient with us, guiding us through the drills and kept the morale up even when people weren’t so confident with what they were doing. After training, it was time for a visit to the Pancake House before our first match, against HC Mierlo. The game was close, however we were not able to hold them off and their captain, who was incredible at distributing the ball, led her team to a 2-1 victory. The hospitality at the club was excellent and we all enjoyed even more pancakes and they invited us to go back onto the pitch for a hit around, which was fun.

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Day 3 We faced two training sessions as well as a match. The main focus of the training sessions was confidence with the ball and possession games. With Phil’s guidance we soon mastered short corner options, adding defenders once we were confident in what we were doing. We gained a huge amount from the practice and it has given us many options to think about next season. Our match was against HC Peel en Mass who were strong opposition, but we were equally determined to beat them. Our confidence grew as the game progressed. Phil, Mrs Hathaway and Miss Baker encouraged us to keep trying, to create goal-scoring opportunities and to communicate more. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the energy to go on to defeat them, and settled for a 1-1 draw.

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Day 4 We spent the morning exploring Maastricht as tourists, and there was much amusement playing with the panorama effect on Daisy’s iPhone as we tried to see how many times we could fit into one picture. Then it was time to change into our match kit for the last time and to head to HC Nuth with Phil coming with us to see our last match. When we arrived, we were told the history of the club and saw the names of prestigious players of their first team, who were mentoring younger players, engraved into the lockers. The opposition gave us a run for our money, as their goalkeeper refused to let our attackers sneak past her. At half time, we were given a morale boosting talk and we came back fighting with newfound energy. Finally, the ball passed the goalkeeper’s legs on two occasions, giving us the lead of 2-1. The final whistle came with the realisation that we had won! A procession of photos began, including ones with the opposition. We enjoyed a wonderful last meal with everyone together and afterwards when Phil arrived, awards were given out ranging from ‘The Best Player of the Tournament’ to ‘The Best Comment’, along with a personalized photo montage, which is a great momento of the time we spent in Holland. Early the next morning we set off for home with lots of aches and bruises, but the memories and experiences we gained trumped all feelings of tiredness and pain. Without the help of Mrs Hathaway and Miss Baker, and of course Phil, the trip wouldn’t have been the same and so full of laughter! Rebecca Radford, LVI

NICE

MFL TRIP TO NICE

On 24 October, a bijoux group of 12 LV students, accompanied by Mme Reichardt and Mlle Maillard, set off for a cultural and linguistic visit to Nice. They enjoyed five days of excellent food and accommodation in host families in the city centre, whilst attending lessons at a language school for a three day intensive French course. They were able to get to know the city really well as they travelled to school either by foot or by tram, and each afternoon, after lessons, was filled with opportunities to explore Vieux-Nice and trips to the cinema to see the latest French films. The proximity of the language school to the main shopping district was an added bonus to combine French and retail therapy! Lessons were intensive - from 9am until 1pm on the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. So much French in such a short space of time sounds daunting, but the girls said that the lessons did, in fact, fly by with their teacher, Boris, who made lessons lively, fun and tailored to helping them prepare for GCSE Controlled Assessment speaking exams. Particular highlights of the trip were a visit to Antibes on the Sunday, with a guided tour of the fascinating Picasso Museum, and an excursion to the stunning hill town of Eze on the Tuesday, which concluded with a visit to the Fragonard factory to learn, in French, about how perfume is made. The girls excelled themselves with their ability to communicate in French as much as possible and impressed both Mlle Maillard and I, as well as their teacher at the language school, with their enthusiasm, commitment and willingness to use their French at any opportunity. Mrs Maria Reichardt, Head of French

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ICELAND

ICELANDIC ADVENTURE On 13 February Miss Rawlinson and Miss Emeny from the Geography Department along with Mrs Barnard from Tedworth, took 34 of our Lower Fifth and Upper Fifth girls on an Icelandic Adventure. We arrived at Reykavik airport at 4pm in the afternoon. It was already dark as we set off for our hotel making it difficult for us to see what Iceland looked like, this added to our excitement about the Super Jeeps tour that was to happen the next morning. We got picked up very early the next morning in three modified super trucks which thankfully had professional drivers at the wheel! These jeeps transported us north from Reykavik on the start of our Golden Circle Tour. We headed across a huge glacier, the students had to jump in and out of the jeeps while tyres were inflated and deflated to allow us to cross this amazing wilderness.

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This full-day tour round SW Iceland included three of the best known attractions that Iceland has to offer. Gulfoss (The Golden Waterfall), one of the most impressive waterfalls in Europe; the Geysir area, with numerous hot springs, fumeroles and geysers, including Strokkur which spouts boiling hot water 30m into the air and Þingvellir which is one of the places where the dividing faultline between the North Atlantic and Eurasian plate can be seen above the earth’s surface. Game of Thrones fans were excited to hear that this was the location of ‘The Wall’. It was a stunning day with azure blue skies and amazing views over snow covered volcanic landscapes. We moved to our accommodation at Helliosholar on the south shore of Iceland where the weather was nice enough for us to be able to sit out and look at the stars in hope of seeing the Aurora Borealis also known as the Northern Lights. Miss Rawlinson was lucky enough to catch a little glimpse of them, unfortunately after the girls had gone to bed! The next morning the weather had turned and the beautiful skies had been replaced with 60mph winds and rain. We got to see just how severe the weather conditions in Iceland can be. The waves along the coastline were incredible and the girls had the chance to see just how powerful the forces of marine erosion and weathering could be along this stretch of coastline. We stopped at spectacular waterfalls along the way, where apparently someone called Justin Bieber had just filmed his latest single! The weather was beautiful again for our final full day on Iceland. We headed inland to Hveragerði, which is a village

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where locals use geothermal hot springs to cook and heat their houses. One of the guides showed the girls how they boiled eggs in their local river. The girls enjoyed eating the eggs along with samples of rye bread that had been cooked under the earth in special ovens. We then headed to Hellisheiði geothermal power plant where the girls learnt how Iceland generates the majority of its power and finally a quick tour of Reykjavik, where the girls got to visit the National Museum. On our last morning we headed to the Blue Lagoon Spa for a quick pamper session before we headed back home. The girls loved the mud masks and having a swim in the naturally heated pools that make up the lagoon. The visit was enjoyed immensely by the staff and students and we are hoping to run this trip again in the future, for students taking Geography at GCSE. Miss Kathryn Rawlinson, Head of Geography

MALAWI

TO MALAWI WITH ‘OPEN ARMS’ Volunteering at Holcombe House Charity On 7 July, 10 girls and three staff members from Holcombe House embarked on a trip of a lifetime to Malawi for 12 days to volunteer with the charity we had been supporting over the past year, Open Arms. The charity helps look after children who cannot be brought up properly by their families in Malawi. This could be due to such things as family death, the mother being too young and needing to continue her education, or from a lack of money. Throughout the school year we held many fundraising events to raise money for the charity, such as our Venetian themed charity ball which raised over £10,000! For the first six days of our adventure we helped with Open Arms doing various things like painting murals in a village school in Chilobwe. We looked after and played with the children, played netball with the local girls and many more amazing things. These days were so inspiring for all of us and we met many amazing people, especially Fatima who is the Director of the school we painted in Chilobwe. The whole village graced us all with their huge hearts and hopefulness. We all especially loved meeting and playing with the children, they were so joyful and grateful for everything we did, even down to the chalk we handed out to draw pictures on the ground. It was fantastic to paint the rooms they would learn in as it is such an important part of their lives.

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After leaving the charity part of the trip we took a journey to Mvuu Camp, where we went on safari for three days. This was truly an incredible experience. We saw many beautiful animals during our time there and enjoyed some breathtaking sunsets. My favourite moment was on a boat safari on our second day and we came across some elephants drinking from the lake and they were only about 10 metres from us. It was like something from a film, we watched them for a long time because this was truly an incredible moment. Such a highlight and something I will never forget. The final part of our adventure was at an island, in the middle of Lake Malawi, called Domwe where we spent a day and a half relaxing in the sun reading and kayaking in the cool waters. The weather was just perfect, something we had been hoping for since we arrived in Malawi, and it was just the perfect end to a phenomenal trip. I have been on several Downe House school trips, but this was by far my favourite. Everyone who went to Malawi came back with a different perspective on life and culture because, being out of our comfort zones, in a foreign place taught us all about a different way of life. We experienced so many different aspects of life on this journey. Everyone who came on this trip made it what it was and I’m sure this is an experience we will recall with the fondest of memories. Ilaria Bevan, UV DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

MYANMAR

AGS TRIP TO MYANMAR HOPEASIA’S HOSANNA CHILDREN’S HOME After two long connecting flights, 12 girls from AGS House accompanied by Mrs McClymont and Mrs Ford were all exhausted but excited to have arrived in Mayanmar. Our trip was in two parts. The first week we spent volunteering at Hopeasia’a Hosanna Children’s Home, AGS House charity, and the second was spent touring and enjoying the beautiful countryside and culture of Myanmar. We were so excited finally to visit the children and as we arrived a crowd of waving children warmly greeted us. After introducing ourselves, the children welcomed us with a special song and we spent the afternoon making Loom Bands bracelets and playing clapping games. The next day we took the children to the shopping mall, where they had never been before; it was very humbling to witness their happiness when going on their first escalator ride. We spent the next few days with the children painting murals on the new classroom walls, as well as designing and signing each other’s t-shirts. The week whizzed by really quickly and it was soon time for an emotional farewell. There were many tears, but we left realising the profound impact both the children and Downe House girls had on each other’s lives. It was time for us to head to the Yangon train station to embark on our 19-hour long journey to Bagan, our first destination. We were split into carriages of four, and as we later found out, we would not be able to leave those carriages for the entire ride. We spent the majority of the rickety journey looking out of the windows, admiring the landscape and waving at locals. It was agreed that it was one of the quickest 19 hours we had ever experienced!

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After such a long journey, it was great to get out into the fresh air and explore magical Bagan by bike. As we pedalled through the heat we really began to appreciate the early morning fitness sessions that we had been attending since the Lent Term! Led by our tour guide, Nyi Nyi, we visited lots of beautiful pagodas and relished the opportunity to take in the surroundings. A particular highlight was visiting a rural village, admiring both the amazing craftsmanship and the friendliness of the locals. After another delicious lunch we returned to our hotel for some R&R as lots of us were rather saddle sore, before heading out to enjoy dinner in Bagan. The next day, we departed for Heho. We marvelled at the green hills, farms and mountain ranges of the Shan State, waving at the friendly locals on the way to our hotel. During the following days, we visited Heho monastery and we crossed the idyllic Inle lake by boat to reach a local market. The ride was so peaceful that some of us even fell asleep! However, the highlight of our Heho stay was certainly the Khaung Daing hot springs. It was such a rewarding experience to sit in the warm, calming waters before our journey continued on to Yangon. When we arrived at our hotel in Yangon we were surprised and delighted to hear that the next day was Martyrs’ Day and we were going to see the children again, at the park the next morning. It was fantastic to be reunited with the children and we all headed over to the lake to ride the swan boats. The morning was over all too quickly, and we soon had to say goodbye, but Mrs Ford then treated us to a trip to the Shangri-La for afternoon tea and an afternoon swim at the hotel. The next day, after a quick stop at a market, we headed to the airport and started our journey home – sad to be leaving, but having created some wonderful memories of our time in the beautiful country of Myanmar. Deena Bhanarai, Henrietta Allen, Olivia Harrison, Emma Barrett-Fish and Charlotte Simpson, all LVI

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INDIA

INCREDIBLE INDIA Aisholt House Charity Trip – Reality Gives “I can honestly say that I learnt some very valuable lessons from India, its amazing people and gained an insight into a different world” Hebe Ide, UV On 5 August, 18 girls and Mrs Boswell, Miss Myers and Mrs Rigby made their way to Heathrow to start our seven-hour flight to Mumbai to visit our House charity ‘Reality Gives’. Reality Gives runs educational programs, such as the Local School Support Program and the Youth Empowerment Program, and shares resources with other NGOs working within Dharavi, the largest slum in India. They also raise awareness about issues in Dharavi and give tours of Dharavi to people who want to visit to see issues that need to be tackled. The charity provides support for the ‘Royal City School’ by funding teachers, resources and staff training. We visited the school one day and taught games and songs to all the children with a classic hit being ‘The Hokey Cokey’. At the end of the day, all the teachers at the school performed a show for us with many cultural dances and Headmistress Lakshmi even sang ‘The Hills are Alive’ from The Sound of Music. We were also lucky enough to play football with the girls’ football club that ‘Reality Gives’ funds and attend one of their community dance lessons where our ‘Gangnam Style’ was outshone by backflips and more. As well as dance and football we also arranged some drama and art classes for the children where we painted masks, made loom bands creations and acted out some fairy tales, from ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ to ‘The Three Little Pigs’. It was amazing to see how even painting a mask or making a bracelet can completely brighten up their day; showing that even a small amount of money can raise the quality of a child’s life.

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After an incredible week working with the charity we took a short internal flight to Udaipur to begin our tour of India. We met our amazing tour guide Chandra at the airport before going to see a dance show where an elderly lady danced on glass with thirteen pots on her head, all whilst being spun around! We had stunning tours, from Palaces to lakes and breathtaking hand-carved temples. Our many long bus rides between locations were filled with either sleep or Miss Myers’ playlist on full volume with the bus singing along. We embraced the Indian transport system and took tuk-tuk rides to train rides which were a little hair raising at times but worthwhile in the end. The camel and elephant rides taken in Pushkar and Jaipur were unforgettable experiences. We visited lots of amazing markets with spices and beautiful paintings and jewelry, where we were all able to satisfy our shopping needs! On one morning we met at five to see sunrise at the Taj Mahal. However, the British weather caught us up and there was a monsoon rainstorm leaving all of us soaked but making the memories even stronger. Delhi was the final destination of our tour, and we had high tea at the Imperial and collected our final items of shopping before returning home just over a fortnight later, completely shattered and amazed from our trip, and all curried out. I am sure that none of us will ever forget the lifelong memories created during our visit to India; it really was, in every way, the trip of a lifetime. Emily Crowston, LVI DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

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18TH ANNUAL GCSE ITALIAN STUDY TRIP TO FLORENCE The 18th annual study trip to Florence – but a number of firsts! In February, Mrs Alussi and Mrs Richardson accompanied 13 UV Italian GCSE students for a welcome return to the hugely appreciated, and recently refurbished, Hotel Esperanza in Florence. Within minutes of arriving in Florence, delicious food was enjoyed at the renowned Casalinga, and the following day the mood was buoyant as we left to explore the city and were greeted by ... RAIN! The instructions for comfortable walking shoes, rain gear, umbrellas, never before required, came into play and with undimmed good humour Giotto’s Campanile [AD 1334, 414 steps and the most beautiful in Italy], was scaled and the breathtaking view over the Duomo admired. Fortified by the first visit to Grom and cioccolata calda/affogato for refreshments, we made for the Spedale degli Innocenti and the Accademia and Michelangelo’s David. There followed, pizza in Eataly, rated first class and then over to the Brancacci Chapel and the use of the newly available earphones which delivered fascinating information – a great success.

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Beatrice worked her magic in class at the British Institute, and the girls hand-made pasta which was cooked for supper and eaten with relish at Intavola. There were also visits to Santa Maria Novella and Santa Croce, and superb guided visits to the Uffizi, with rooms newly re-opened, and Palazzo Vecchio. Vivoli provided yet more ice cream and, as is now tradition, the Art Bar fruit cocktails and the paninoteca, only a few steps from the hotel, provided fresh individual choices. The annual away fixture with Dulwich College (28 boys) in the Ghibellini Pizzeria was not a first, but nevertheless was still memorable! Although for some this was a first visit to Florence, all agreed that we hoped it would be the first of many! Mrs Maggie Richardson, i/c Italian

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“I loved going to the British Institute where we learnt a lot about Florentine culture and it was super fun being able to navigate ourselves around the streets in groups.” Isabella Muir, UV “The Brancacci Chapel was beautiful and made even more so by its hidden location.” Grace Cornish, UV “I absolutely loved the Uffizi, and it was so amazing to soak up Italian culture by exploring the city streets. I can’t wait to go back!” Araminta Swallow, UV

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DRAMA

DIRECTOR OF PERFORMING ARTS’ INTRODUCTION

HEAD OF DRAMA REVIEW

My first experience of Drama at Downe House was the House Drama Competition in October 2015 and I was truly amazed by the talent on show. When I arrived in January, it soon became clear that this was not a one-off, as proven by excellent productions of ‘Oliver! with a Twist’ by the Lower School, directed by Mrs Emily Parker-Barrett, and ‘London Road’ by Upper Fifth, directed by Mrs Sarah Hannibal-White, alongside highly impressive examination results in Speech and Drama, GCSE and A-Level Drama – as an A-Level examiner for four years I can certainly vouch for the high quality of this work.

I am writing this as I start my acting foundation course at the Guildford School of Acting - something I could never have done if I had not had the grounding of a Drama education at Downe. Last year was a memorable year for the Drama Department for many reasons. Lara-Lily Hurd (UVI) and I wanted to raise the profile of Drama in all of the year groups to make sure it was taken seriously as a subject. It was important for us that Drama was seen as an integral part of the fabric of Downe House and I feel that we have successfully achieved this.

A particular highlight of the examination performance work was ‘Second Person Narrative’ by the Lower Sixth, directed by Miss Anger and supported by Mrs Hannibal-White, I am so pleased that this was revived for Founder’s Weekend. More congratulations are due to several girls who have been selected for the highly competitive National Youth Theatre. The year ended with the wonderful spectacle of ‘West Side Story’, an ambitious production that the girls performed with impressive energy and skill. The spirit underpinning all of the Drama performances at Founder’s Weekend was most inspiring, and is the spirit that Lynette Gridley, who very sadly passed away earlier this year, always instilled in the girls and she would have been incredibly proud of them. Lynette is greatly missed and I’m really pleased that we will continue to remember her with the introduction of the ‘Gridders Cup’ for excellence in Drama for girls in Remove, LIV and UIV, one of many areas across the Drama Department that Lynette was passionate about.

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At the end of this year, we are sad to say goodbye to Mrs Emily ParkerBarrett, who I know the girls have great respect and fondness for and she has given so much to the Drama Department, including directing the Lower School musical ‘Oliver! with a Twist’. Meanwhile, Mrs Sarah Hannibal-White and Mrs Rebecca Watson will both be missed whilst on their maternity leave after their significant contributions this year, including their direction of ‘London Road’ (SHW) and ‘West Side Story’ (RW). In their absence, we are delighted to introduce Georgia Leigh and Catherine Lambert to the Drama Department, both have exciting backgrounds and will offer a great deal to the school, whilst we are lucky to be able to welcome back Miss Kyia Grandi and Rhiannon Bland, two excellent teachers who know Downe House very well indeed; I know that all four of the new team are excited about being involved in the many Drama Department events, including House Drama in October. Looking through the following pages just shows how much there is to look back on from across the year and feel a great pride in, with fantastic dramatic achievements from girls of all ages. They have worked together as effective ensembles, produced highly creative and brave performances, and been a lot of fun to work with along the way. There is certainly much to look forward to next year – bring on September 2016 and beyond! Mr Sam Brassington, Director of Performing Arts

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We also wanted to give the girls as many opportunities as possible to contribute throughout the academic year. Lara and I organised lectures in which girls could learn more about the performing arts and how they could pursue careers in any area they want. We called these the ‘Stage Door Lectures’ and they turned out to be a huge success. We had some wonderful guests from all aspects of the performing arts, from actors, to directors to musical theatre performers. House Drama 2015 was particularly exciting as we were lucky enough to have Sir Tim Rice adjudicate the performances. Despite the compulsory nature of the performances, all the students were very enthusiastic about the shows and I believe they were some of the highest calibre House Drama plays we’ve seen. Holcombe was the well-deserved winner with a fabulous performance of ‘Oliver!’ directed by Florence Elliott (LVI). Overall the past year has been very successful, wonderfully topped off with the GCSE and A Level results which were outstanding across the board. I have been honoured to be Head of Drama and I am sure that Eliza Downes (LVI) will continue to push the Drama Department to be the best version of itself. Anouska Royle, Head of Drama UVI

On 23 September, the Upper Sixth went to see ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time’ at the Gielgud Theatre. Most of us had read the book and had heard the hype surrounding the play and it did not disappoint! Not only was the acting from lead Sion Daniel Young, who played Christopher, phenomenal but the use of lighting, sound and set was incredible to say the least. The combination of all these factors meant that the production successfully achieved the external representation of the internal side to autism with a subtlety that left the play in your thoughts long after the performance. Overall, it was a fantastic night and one I will not forget for a long time! Miranda Shaw, Head Senior UVI

THE GREAT GATSBY GCSE and A-Level Drama Trip On 3 February, the girls studying Drama for GCSE and A-Level took a trip to the Corn Exchange in Newbury to see the ‘The Great Gatsby,’ performed by the Blackeyed Theatre. The performance was enjoyed by everyone who attended and it was very interesting to see the director’s interpretation of the play through the innovative use of their minimalistic set. I found the performance very captivating and I thought that the use of live music helped immerse the audience in the performance and the actors multi-roling in the play was very effective since it showed a variety of different characters who were all very different. The costumes and liveliness of the play corresponded with America in the 1920s and successfully portrayed the glamorous and exciting parties hosted by Mr Gatsby as depicted in the book by F Scott Fitzgerald.

HAMLET

Grace Devereux, UV

On 12 November, all Sixth Form Drama students were taken on a trip with Mrs Hannibal-White to the Newbury Corn Exchange to watch an NT Live screening of ‘Hamlet’, which was performed at the Barbican, London, and featured celebrated actors including Benedict Cumberbatch.

THE ENCOUNTER LVI Theatre Trip

The overall production was phenomenal, especially the direction, and we were all thoroughly impressed by the use of unique non-naturalistic aspects in the wellknown play. The individual performances were also highly commendable and inspiring. Cumberbatch’s ability to hold the audience transfixed through his long monologues was amazing and he wonderfully acted the emotionally complex and desperate Hamlet through his effective facial expressions and gestures. Ophelia, played by Sian Brooke, was another inspirational performance and her mental deterioration was beautifully portrayed, leaving many of the audience members rather emotional. It was truly an incredible outing and we were so lucky to get the opportunity to see the fully booked, critically acclaimed production. Henrietta Allen, Geraldine James Scholar LVI

REBECCA Kneehigh Theatre Company

On 2 March, the Lower Sixth Drama students, along with Mrs Hannibal-White and Miss Anger, went to the Barbican Theatre in London to see ‘The Encounter’. The play has received extremely positive reviews and the tickets for it sold out almost instantly so we were extremely lucky to be able to go! ‘The Encounter’ is a one man show, in which Simon McBurney, founder of Complicité Theatre Company, manages to transport the audience into the humid depths of the Amazon through the use of binaural technology. The play is based on a true story about a National Geographic photographer, Loren McIntyre, and his involvement with the Mayoruna people in the rainforest in 1969. It was absolutely incredible to see how one man in just jeans and a t-shirt, on a completely bare stage with a microphone was able to captivate our attention for two hours. Wearing headphones for a production was a completely new experience for all of us and the show’s ground-breaking sound design really plugged into our imaginations, allowing us to question our own perceptions of time and communication. Florence Elliott, Geraldine James Award Holder LVI

On 16 November, all GCSE and A-Level Drama students went on a theatre trip to the Oxford Playhouse to watch the Kneehigh Theatre Company’s performance of ‘Rebecca’. This play is based on Daphne du Maurier’s novel, set in the 1930s, which tells the story of the young, new Mrs de Winter who feels that she is constantly in the shadow of her glamorous predecessor, Rebecca. Emma Rice, the director, has managed to adapt this book into a thrilling and captivating stage version, which also has some comical moments. I thought that the chosen set was particularly effective and the many techniques used, such as slow motion and thought tracking, added to the mystery of the play. There was a diverse range of skills and performance techniques used which created a fantastic ensemble production. The use of live music and a simple yet effective set enabled a captivating and thought provoking performance to be created. Matilda Pope, Drama Scholar UV

THEATRE TRIPS

CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME

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A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE NT Live In our final year of A-Level Drama we study two plays, one of which is Arthur Miller’s tragic masterpiece ‘A View from a Bridge’. To help us, as students, get a visual idea of the play, we went to see an NT Live screening of Ivo van Hove’s stunning adaptation of Miller’s work at the Vue Cinema in Newbury. The in-theround set created an intriguing intimacy, and it was interesting watching this play in cinema as it got us close and personal to the characters, seeing expressive emotions in detail so we had a better understanding of the action and interaction which we may not have seen if sitting, for example, on stage left of the actual performance. The cast notably included Mark Strong, who played the tragic hero Eddie Carbone. His stellar performance made the play even more compelling, and astonishingly bold. We found that the issues raised within the piece, such as immigration, related to societal problems of our time such as Syrian refugees trying to gain refuge in places safer than their own. It’s interesting how those events resonate within society today, only increasing our emotional response towards Marco, whose sole purpose in moving to America was to send money home for his children in Italy. Arthur Miller’s work not only confronts the American Dream in its darkest form, but touches upon important aspects of life such as love, loyalty and family. His play is a must see and I know this production will greatly help me form ideas for my written A2 exam. Lara-Lily Hurd, Geraldine James Award Holder UVI

NELL GWYNN Apollo Theatre, London On 16 April, the Lower Sixth Drama students and Mr Brassington headed to the Apollo Theatre in London to see one of the newest West End shows, ‘Nell Gwynn’, written by Jessica Swale. The play has recently received an Olivier Award for the Best New Comedy, so we were all extremely excited to see the play, which definitely lived up to expectations! The play is a true story that follows the life of Nell Gwynn, one of the first English actresses, and her affair with King Charles II. Gemma Arterton played the leading role and was extremely convincing as one of the first female actresses in the Restoration period. It was great to see her on the stage, having seen her in many films previously, and she was absolutely fantastic with a great cockney accent, impressive comic timing and singing voice in the bawdy songs. Seeing the play was also really helpful for the written side of our AS examination as we are studying Playhouse Creatures, a play all about female actresses in the Restoration period, giving the amazing costumes and set relevance for us. As a side note, we were also lucky enough to meet David Walliams which was very exciting and we were delighted to take a selfie with him!! Florence Elliott, Geraldine James Award Holder LVI

CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME The production is staged in a versatile black box UIV Scholars’ Trip I am one of the lucky girls that got to see ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time’, on 14 May at the Gielgud Theatre in the West End. The play is based on Mark Haddon’s award-winning novel, adapted by Simon Stephens and directed by Marianne Elliott. The production won seven Olivier Awards in 2013 and five Tony awards in 2015, including Best Play. The story concerns a mystery surrounding the death of a neighbour’s dog, called Wellington, which is stabbed by a garden fork. The incident is investigated by young Christopher Boone, who suffers from autism. The play explores his relationships with his parents and school mentor. Parts of the play were read from Christopher’s own account of what happened which helps the audience connect with Christopher’s internal emotions. Rather than present the story in the first-person narrative as the original novel did, the play is presented as a reading of Boone’s own writing, read aloud in segments by his teacher. The result of this is that the play is presented as a play-within-aplay. One way in which the director, Marianne Elliott, connects the audience and Christopher is through physical theatre, and she uses multi-role playing which gives playfulness to the piece. Members of the cast are often used as tables and chairs in addition to their main role. This is an interesting element of the play, which makes it more spontaneous instead of sounding scripted. The director also uses slow motion in the piece, this helps to capture an important moment in the play and exaggerate it. DRAMA

with clever use of projections to create different locations and key images. These range from the mathematical formulae in which Christopher excels, to his terrifying experiences aboard a train and then the London underground as he goes in search of his mother. The scene in which he jumps down onto the tube tracks to try to rescue his beloved pet rat Toby is also almost unbearably suspenseful. To exaggerate this moment, the director added loud sound effects which helped build the suspense of the outcome. I thoroughly enjoyed the production because it was unique and different to anything I have ever seen before. I really felt like I could connect with Christopher due to the devices used like slow-motion and the play-within-a-play effect. Thank you Drama Department for such a fun and exciting day out! Jessica Chapman, Drama Scholar UIV

On Wednesday 15 June the Drama Scholars from across the School travelled together to watch Mary Poppins at the Mayflower Theatre, Southampton. Sitting in the top balcony, we were astounded at the theatrical talent of the actors and actresses as they sang the timeless classics we all know today such as ‘A spoonful of sugar’ and ‘Feed the Birds’. My personal favourite had to be ‘Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’, especially with its extremely difficult dance, which was performed with such amazing energy that I was compelled to sing along from my seat! It took my breath away at how every single character, including the children, knew exactly what to do at all times and I thoroughly enjoyed it the whole performance. I especially enjoyed the chimney dance ‘Step in time’ and the incredible tap-dancing ensemble. As a dancer myself, it was amazing to see the levels that I could aspire to as tap dancing is very hard to perfect. From the terrifying Nanny Andrews to Mary Poppins (practically perfect in every way, of course), each scene was jam-packed with songs, dances and sheer acting talent. I’m sure the Downe House girls left truly inspired and have learned a lot about musical theatre. I certainly did! Alice Pernthaller, Remove Drama Scholar

MY YEAR AS A LV DRAMA SCHOLAR Over the course of this year I have been very lucky to take part in lots of amazing workshops and see some incredible performances.

Georgia Hewitson, Drama Scholar LV

On 8 November, I was fortunate enough to see a production entitled ‘The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk’ about a young couple, Marc and Bella Chagal, as they navigated through the Russian Revolution and other challenges, using theatrical language and music inspired by Russian Jewish tradition. I saw this along with my fellow GCSE Drama students and some A-Level Drama students as well. It was truly an incredible production. We travelled by coach to Bristol and there was a lot of excited chatter about what we thought the production would be like. After we arrived, and bought some refreshments, we found our seats to be very close to the front of the stage on a raised balcony, giving us a very good view of the set. The performance space was very intricate with pieces of wood stuck together; creating a house structure that had ropes hanging off it which the actors held once in a while. There were also some unusual but interesting features such as a phone hanging down from the ceiling where phone calls on stage were made, and funny props such as bird figurines which were sometimes worn on the actors’ heads. I found it incredibly impressive how the actors used live music and physical theatre to successfully communicate the story to the audience, as there were only four actors. At that time, we were preparing for our third practical GCSE performance and we certainly picked up a lot of new skills that we could use to develop our pieces. Out of all the Drama theatre trips we have been on, this was definitely my favourite. Esther Bolodeoku, LV

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DRAMA SCHOLARS

In the Michaelmas Term, the highlight for me was House Drama, where I played the part of Glinda in ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and it was so enjoyable to be involved with a play that the LVI directed – the overall winners were Holcombe, they put on a fabulous production of Oliver! As well as this, the Drama Scholars in LIV, UIV and LV were all lucky enough to go to London to watch ‘Matilda the Musical’ and enjoy a workshop at the theatre where we explored the different statuses in the musical and it was amazing to work in such a professional environment. In the Lent Term, the LV, UV and LVI were invited to take part in a workshop from the well-known company Complicite. We explored different areas of physical theatre, incorporating different objects into this. Experiencing the methods that the professional actors at Complicite use was very interesting and enjoyable. In the Summer Term, we enjoyed a brilliant workshop from Inel Tomlinson, looking at comedy and creating sketches and it was hilarious. Everyone really enjoyed themselves and learned a lot. Additionally, I really loved being part of West Side Story. It was incredible to be part of a production that was so professionally put together. As I am studying Drama GCSE I have been privileged to watch a series of plays including Rebecca, The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk and The Great Gatsby, all of which were so different but each one very well put together and interesting to study. All in all, I have had the best year of Drama yet and offer my thanks to the Drama Department for making it all happen.

THE FLYING LOVERS OF VITEBSK

CURRICULUM & SCHOLARS’ TRIPS

MARY POPPINS

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MY YEAR AS A UV DRAMA SCHOLAR than ever, from physical theatre with Complicite, to NYT Anna Hewitt preparations and directing with the Watermill. These are one I was thrilled when I was awarded a Drama Scholarship at the end of my Lower Fourth year. However, I don’t think I knew just how significant it would be right through to the end of Upper Fifth. This year I received more opportunities than ever before in Drama at Downe. From day one in Michaelmas Term, my wonderful Drama Mentor, Mrs Gridley, had big plans for us. As a mentor group, we carefully planned and set up an improvised comedy club, inspired by the show ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway’. The club really forced me to think on my feet which was particularly helpful when it came to taking my RADA exam at the end of the term. Furthermore, the improvisational skills I developed led to a deeper exploration and understanding of comedy in general. This was hugely useful for someone like myself who has aspirations of being in the Cambridge Footlights, for example. Mrs Gridley also had the fabulous idea of making Drama Scholar t-shirts and she set us to work on designing those. These were especially great for workshops as it meant there was less of a divide between the age groups. I’ve always felt that doing activities with Scholars in other years is really important as it teaches you to act with all kinds of people, not just your classmates. Workshops are also a wonderful feature of Drama Scholarship opportunities. This year saw more workshops

DRAMA MENTOR PROGRAMME Being a Drama Scholar Mentor Being involved with the mentoring of Downe House Drama Scholars is possibly one of the most rewarding experiences in my teaching career. Our students are supremely gifted, therefore, being offered the opportunity to further their skills was extremely enticing. I was delighted to be assigned to the present Upper Fifth whom I first encountered, and have held in high esteem, when they were in Remove. True to their natural focus and abundant enthusiasm, our first meeting was indeed fruitful. Their exuberance and creativity helped me to see that aside from performing the expected duties of a mentor; encouraging greater commitment, listening to their needs, guiding them to make the most of networking with fellow scholars and generally encouraging lasting personal growth, I realised I was going to have immense fun with my mentees. In our first year together we presented an abridged performance of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ at Founder’s Weekend. The next year the girls decided that their favourite activity in drama is the games we play to warm up, so we started meeting on a weekly basis to create a book of games. By the summer the girls had produced the book, led by Saskia Wormsley (UV) with contributions from everyone. This year the group have been busier than ever, researching (UV) Anna Hewitt’s idea of a t-shirt for all the scholars, which they have now designed, had produced and circulated - much to the joy of all the scholars. They also introduced a lunch time comedy club, where they perform skits and songs based along the lines of the improvised show ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway’. DRAMA

of my favourite aspects of the Award because they introduce you to new ideas, styles and ways of thinking about drama. A particular favourite was the Complicité, workshop that developed the idea of ensemble. The workshop furthered our understanding of how fundamental teamwork is within performance. We practiced synchronising movement by holding two bamboo sticks with a partner and were therefore forced to move as one. We also looked at how being unified as actors does not necessarily mean everything has to be done in unison. Utilising this wider insight into drama is what being a Drama Scholar in the Upper Fifth is all about and I would like to think that I was successful in that. Anna Hewitt, Drama Scholar UV

As with any activity which comes to its natural conclusion (as this year group progress to the Sixth Form), one should evaluate the activity, study the outcome, however, it is quite tricky to sum up the three wonderful years that I have shared with this amazing group. The Drama Scholar’s Mentor Programme at Downe House was introduced in 2013 and Mrs Hannibal-White’s vision has been well implemented to support the girls in the precious early stages of their dramatic careers. A fantastic opportunity for all! Mrs Lynette Gridley, Teacher of Drama and Speech & Drama

IN MEMORY OF LYNETTE GRIDLEY Enthusiasm, commitment and a love of life are some of the most frequently used descriptions of Lynette. She was quite simply someone who brightened every room. Lynette joined the teaching profession later in life and when she came to Downe in 2011 she was in the process of completing her formal qualifications which she did with flying colours. Her appreciation of the importance of the impact that teachers can have on young people and her love of Drama, which she wanted to share, were what drove her to accept nothing less than the best from herself. Her pupils were never in any doubt than she cared for them as individuals, believed in them and would encourage them to the highest standards. She would give up any amount of time to support girls outside lessons and, as a Tutor, was exceptional. She loved working with the Lower School girls and their families, helping them to adapt to boarding school life, prosper academically and she was always there for them at all their events, not because she had to be but because she wanted to be.

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Dearest Lynette, For your generosity of spirit. For your care and commitment. For your dedication to your students. For your support and understanding. For your wonderful stories. For your magnificent calligraphy. For your bright and joyous clothing. For your “Jilly Cooper” inspired outfits. For your fabulous performances. For your beautiful props. For your sheer hard work and determination. For your twinkling eyes. For your wicked sense of humour. For your kindness and empathy. For your warm heart and wonderful hugs. For your courage. For your beautiful smile. For every day that you gave to us. You won a place in all of our hearts and it just won’t be the same without you. Sleep tight, the sweetest of dreams, we will never forget you. With all our love, The Downe House Drama Department

As a colleague, the picture was the same. Lynette was warm, kind, thoughtful and fiercely proud of both Downe and the profession that she had joined. Her quiet wisdom, sense of fun (her expert direction of the Butterfly Lecture, no mean feat, still brings back a smile to ‘actors’ and audience alike) and her ability to find a positive in all situations mean that she is sorely missed by members of her Department and all her colleagues alike. Her illness was short but the bravery with which she fought it was inspirational to us all. There was not an iota of self-pity, just great courage and a determination to make the most of the time she had for the sake of her daughter, Kate, of whom she was so proud, her wider family and friends. Lynette’s passing has left a huge hole in the Downe House community but how blessed and privileged we have been to know her; her legacy will live on in the lives of all those whom she touched. Mrs Emma McKendrick, Headmistress

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LV GCSE PRACTICAL EXAM REVIEWS The Lower Fifth started their GCSE Drama course in September and worked hard to be ready for their first practical controlled assessment which took place during the last week of November. Mrs Hannibal-White’s class explored scenes from ‘Constellations’ by Nick Payne; a play about the complex portrayal of one relationship, the boundless connections and infinite possibilities. Miss Brown’s class performed scenes from Charlotte Keatley’s ‘My Mother said I Never Should’, a play about the difficult relationships between mothers and daughters and which explores the themes of independence, growing up and secrets. Both classes achieved excellent marks, including several girls who received full marks and A*s which is a wonderful achievement this early in in the course. Congratulations girls. Miss Annabel Brown, Housemistress (Hill) and Teacher of Drama

UV GCSE PRACTICAL EXAMS Scripted, Devised and Improvisation Following an outstanding Lower Fifth Year, the Upper Fifth were ready and raring to go with their final practical performance work in September. As curious and independent students, they were keen to choose varied and demanding material to challenge themselves and develop their skills. This year, students had the option of choosing Acting, Devising or Improvisation and so their first challenge was to find and discuss possible stimuli and scripts. It was certainly a privilege as a teacher to have the opportunity to discuss so many different and varied styles, genres and playwrights with the girls, as well as to observe the thorough research they had undertaken. The groups worked extremely hard throughout the year to incorporate ideas gained when watching live theatre productions over their course and to utilise concepts explored in various workshops they had undertaken as part of the GCSE course. The final performance work included scripted scenes from ‘Five Kinds of Silence’ by Shelagh Stephenson, which demanded a high level of maturity and a well-developed and varied skill set from performers due to the sensitive nature of the text, alongside ‘The Glass Menagerie’ by Tennessee Williams which is always challenging as a well-known script. The devised work covered various stimuli such as extracts from ‘Gone Girl’ by Gillian Flynn and excerpts from ‘4.48 Psychosis’ by Sarah Kane; both hard hitting and demanding concepts to deliver and portray as an actor. We saw a variety of styles covered including, Physical Theatre, Naturalism, Epic Theatre and Theatre of Cruelty. This is certainly a testament to the students’ intellectual curiosity and determination to develop and deliver as actresses. I was thrilled that the determination and hard work of the Upper Fifth students fully paid off in their final practical exam at the end of the Lent Term, where all girls achieved A – A* grades. This is a huge achievement for the girls and for the Drama Department, and we are tremendously proud of the success of this year’s cohort. A particular mention must go to Cecilia Hughes and Eliza Horn, both of whom have achieved full marks for the practical component of the course this year. Well done girls! Miss Kayleigh Anger, Housemistress AGN and Teacher of Drama

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EXAMINATIONS

SECOND PERSON NARRATIVE AS Practical Examination This year, the AS Drama and Theatre studies class opted to perform ‘Second Person Narrative’ for their examination piece. The play was made up of several scenes which captured fragments of a single character’s life, starting at her birth and ending at her death more than 80 years later. In between we saw her grow up, make friends, get jobs, form relationships, win awards, buy clothes, make mistakes, discover herself and enjoy a good laugh all cleverly multirole acted by the seven strong cast. She is simultaneously an extraordinary and entirely ordinary person. As she journeys through her life, the central character is always surrounded by a group of voices who shape her and her narrative. Through their study of the theatre company ‘Complicité’, the physical nature of the ensemble performance demonstrated extraordinary control and talent in the performance. The examiner was mesmerised from start to finish and commented on the exceptional performance work the girls had created, he commented that he had never seen such a professional performance at AS level in his entire career. All girls were awarded full marks for their performance and should be immensely proud of everything they have achieved. This is a remarkable accomplishment and endorses the hard work and commitment our girls have to drama and performing. Mrs Sarah Hannibal-White, Head of Drama (Academic)

CREATIVE ADAPTATION: BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP A2 Practical Exam

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This year the Upper Sixth adopted a challenging approach to their final devised performance. Working as a three, they chose the novel ‘Before I Go To Sleep’ by S J Watson to adapt into a 20 minute performance for the examiner. Utilising their experience of Frantic Assembly’s performance style, the girls started by extracting the key characters and plot line from the 358-page book and reducing it to three key roles, Claire, her husband Ben and Dr Nash. The story is told from the perspective of Claire, who every night when she goes to sleep has the distressing experience of her memory being completely erased. Supported by her husband Ben and psychiatrist Dr Nash, the audience discover how she copes with day to day life and are faced with interesting plot twists and revelations throughout the story. After scripting their piece, the group set to work creating complex physical sequences and advanced movement work to communicate the content of this psychological thriller. The day of the exam was exceedingly successful with the examiner commenting on the ‘complex and ambitious nature’ of the piece the group produced. All three girls, Hannah Simpson-Orlebar, Lara-Lily Hurd and Anouska Royle, achieved an A* for their final practical performance. This was an outstanding way for them to finish their Drama education at Downe House and it is a truly impressive achievement. Mrs Sarah Hannibal-White, Head of Drama (Academic) DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

DRAMA SCHOLARS’ WORKSHOPS

WORKING WITH COMPLICITE Drama Scholars’ Workshop On 5 February, we were lucky enough to have a member of the prestigious drama company Complicité visit Downe House and teach us the techniques of the company. Joyce Henderson is a valued member of Complicité and has directed and acted in many of their productions. The workshop focused on the exploration of ensemble work, which was especially helpful for the students studying AS Drama as Complicité was their chosen theatre company to study . The workshop commenced with a game of grandmother’s footsteps which successfully broke the ice and engaged us in a theatrical mood. We went on to use bamboo sticks which Complicité uses as a rehearsal technique, to focus on spatial awareness, whilst incorporating a moment of stillness, enabling us to gain composure and focus. This helped us develop and understand the importance of performance space and those around us. Using the bamboo sticks, we created sequences of movement in small groups and then joined together in a bigger group which challenged us, as we had to work as an ensemble, and hold a moment of stillness. Overall, Joyce effectively informed us about the skills and techniques of Complicité and inspired us to consider theatrical approaches in our own creative performances. We are very grateful for such an amazing opportunity. Lucy Grace, LVI

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COMEDY WORKSHOP WITH INEL TOMLINSON Drama Scholars’ Workshop On 18 May, Drama Scholars from LIV to LVI took part in a comedy workshop led by Inel Tomlinson. Inel is a successful comedic actor in the British television industry. The workshop started with some warm-up exercises, standing in a circle each person went round and introduced themselves with a memorable action. Shortly after the warm up we stood in two lines, each pair would be given one word and they would have to improvise on the spot to create a three lined short performance. This was a very useful exercise as it taught us the spontaneity of comedy and to have confidence in our ability. We were then asked to think of an eccentric, stimulating character which we had come across before. Inel then encouraged us to walk

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around the room impersonating the individual character we had chosen, using our gait, facial expressions and vocal and physical skills to make ourselves as convincing as possible. Following this exercise we were arranged into groups of five and were given exactly two minutes to come up with a short scene; in this scene we had to highlight where we were, why we were there and who our characters were. Each group created a humorous and innovative short sketch; incorporating the new techniques which Inel had taught us. All the Scholars really appreciated the help of Inel and I am sure that we will see his methods included in various Downe House Drama productions yet to come. Araminta Moore, LVI

DRAMA SCHOLARS’ WORKSHOPS

STAGE COMBAT WORKSHOP The Watermill Theatre In December, the Drama Scholars were invited to attend a ‘Stage Combat’ workshop run by Jeremy Barlow BADC & APC Certified Stage Combat Teacher, Fight Choreographer and Action performer. This was a totally new concept to almost all of us so was very much enjoyed by all. We were taught a number of individual ‘moves’ including a slap, punch, hair pull and bite which we then combined to create a sequence in pairs, resulting in the death of one of our characters. It was really interesting being taught the multiple ways of reacting to these moves as this was key to creating a believable stage combat routine. We were in the midst of rehearsing the production of West Side Story for the performance at Founder’s Weekend at the end of term and we could see we would be able to use many of the skills we learnt in the play. Florence Elliott, Geraldine James Award Holder LVI

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MATILDA WORKSHOP AND PERFORMANCE On 7 October, Drama Scholars from LIV, UIV AND LV went to the Cambridge Theatre in London for a drama workshop on the brilliant musical Matilda. We started with a quick warm up to get our minds and bodies working and then moved on to learning about characterisation techniques such as imagining certain body parts in different ways e.g. imagining our shoulders as big heavy boulders. Also closing our eyes and imagining a situation in our heads and noting how it made us feel. As a group we put together a repetitive dance piece using a collection of images portraying bullies and victims. This was very effective because of its simplicity however it looked very powerful when performed. We then went for a quick shop in Covent Garden and later watched the show. It was so interesting watching the show after learning some of the rehearsal techniques. Overall it was an extremely fun and fascinating day, which we all benefited from hugely. Sophie Elliot, Drama Scholar LV On 7 October, a group of girls went to London for a Matilda workshop and performance. When we arrived at the Cambridge Theatre we were able to take part in a workshop lead by an experienced worker for the Royal Shakespeare Company who had previously studied at RADA. She was truly inspiring and very enthusiastic. She encouraged us to look at some different methods in order to develop your character and swift actions that you can use to express your emotions when playing a specific role. We looked very closely at the character from Matilda, Miss Trunchball and how she would walk, talk, stand, etc. I really enjoyed our time with her. After that we were able to walk down to Covent Garden and watch lots of street performances and busking until we returned in time for Matilda the Musical. This is one of my favourite musicals because it is so inspiring and full of colour. It involves people of all ages and music that you will never be able to get out of your head. It was an amazing day and a wonderful experience! Emma Bracken, Drama Scholar UIV

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

PREP SCHOOLS’ DAY OF MUSICAL THEATRE

ANNUAL PREP SCHOOLS’ DAY OF MUSICAL THEATRE Matilda the Musical On 26 April, we welcomed a record number of 100 girls aged between 9 and 11 from Winchester House, Ravenscourt Park, Godstowe, Feltonfleet, Chandlings and Eaton House The Manor to the Prep Schools’ Day of Musical Theatre. A thrilling day of singing, acting and dancing awaited! Coloured Downe House T-shirts were used to help organise our visitors into mixed groups, which would allow the girls to collaborate with those from different schools throughout the day. Each group was introduced to a member of Drama Department staff, who played a variety of fun warm-up games and exercises to help break the ice with their new peers for the day. The atmosphere was almost partylike, with Musical Theatre songs providing an energising background to the buzz of bustling activity.

Despite the demands of the day, the focus and enthusiasm from our young visitors was extraordinary. They rose to the challenge and, after a well-deserved lunch, they put on an excellent show! Every girl left Downe House having experienced the superb production standards that can be achieved with the expertise of our fabulous Drama staff. The prep school teachers were amazed at how much the girls achieved and produced in so little time – it was a true success! Many thanks and well done to those involved. Mrs Natalie Warde, Teacher of Speech and Drama

The theme this year was ‘Matilda the Musical’, with each group learning two songs, with choreography, and staging a scene from the very popular musical. The biggest challenge was that the groups would be performing a reduced version of the whole show – without the help of scripts or written lyrics – at the end of the day to an audience of parents and prep school staff. There was also an impressive amount of sound and lighting being used this year, including animations on projector screens, mood lighting and underscore to help emphasise the tension and emotion of the scenes.

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NATIONAL YOUTH THEATRE

NATIONAL YOUTH THEATRE WORKSHOP On 25 January, a group of girls from UIV to UVI went to a National Youth Theatre workshop with Mrs Parker-Barratt for tips and advice on how to prepare for auditions. Our teacher for the day started by showing us ways we could warm up and relax ourselves while in the waiting room for our audition, and they were really helpful to prevent us getting too tense and effect our performance. Thanks to continued promotion of the National Youth Theatre through the Drama Department and older girls at the School, many of us have chosen to audition this year. It sounds like a wonderful experience and a fantastic opportunity to gain more awareness and understanding of audition technique. We were shown how to independently block and create a monologue in the first instance, without the need to go to a teacher for guidance before we had looked at the text. It was a great workshop and I felt very well supported in advance of my audition. Florence Fanshawe, Drama Scholar LV

NYT AUDITION SUCCESS Every year the National Youth Theatre auditions 5,000 youngsters across 30 towns and cities in the UK. Only 300 gain a place, which is exactly why huge congratulations are in order for Cosima Davies, and Ella Scott (both LV), Eliza Downes and Rose Galbraith (both LVI) for winning coveted places. The audition process was a day-long affair involving a morning of activities and workshops, followed by an afternoon audition and interview. Cosima Davies explained, “The morning sessions were very collaborative with an emphasis on ensemble work. For the afternoon audition I had prepared a comic monologue from Steven Bloomer’s play ‘You Were After Poetry’ and I was asked to do a second reading in a different performance style to test my range and adaptability. I was really thrilled to hear that I’d won a place which means that I can attend a two week course with in the summer and I become a member of the NYT, which opens up opportunities for auditions, castings and theatre trips.” Ms Kate Raines, Communications Manager DRAMA

Cosima Davies with her tutor, Mrs Alexandra Barlow.

This year marked the introduction of a new series of lectures aptly named ‘The Stage Door Lectures’. This was the brain child of the Head and Deputy of Drama; Anouska Royle and Lara-Lily Hurd (both UVI). Four guest speakers have visited and the first was held just two weeks into the beginning of the Michaelmas Term with actor Nick Barclay, currently touring in ‘The Mousetrap’, who spoke to the girls about the ups and downs of life as a jobbing actor. This was followed by director Bruce Guthrie, who had just finished a production of ‘The Last Mermaid’ staring Charlotte Church before directing the 20th anniversary production of ‘Rent’. In the Lent Term we had musical theatre performer George Olney talk about training and specialising in musical theatre and we concluded with Michael Brazier, Director and CEO of the National Student Drama Festival. The girls have been able to ask very pertinent questions and learnt more about the many facets of the industry from people currently in the profession, and they have proved to be very popular. I look forward to seeing them continue next year under the watchful eye of the new Head of Drama, Eliza Downes (LVI) and Head of Speech and Drama, Rose Galbraith (LVI). Miss Sophie Leigh, Teacher of Speech and Drama

Bruce Guthrie Bruce Guthrie is a professional theatre and film director from Scotland now based in London, who trained as a director at the National Theatre studio and has worked with some of the finest multi award-winning artists in the UK and internationally since 2005. We were very lucky to have Bruce come and give a lecture at Downe House to all the Drama Students about his fascinating career in the industry. We were all very interested to hear about him being the associate director in the production of Richard III, directed by Sam Mendes and featuring Kevin Spacey. It was a very relaxed and entertaining evening, in which we discovered lots about Drama Schools and what it takes to make it in the theatre business.

STAGE DOOR LECTURES

INTRODUCING... THE STAGE DOOR LECTURES

Lara-Lily Hurd, Geraldine James Award Holder UVI

Nick Barclay For our first Stage Door Lecture we were very lucky to have Nick Barclay, an actor/ director as our first guest speaker. Mr Barclay has over 20 years professional experience with over 220 productions to his credit, and he had so much energy that kept us all completely engaged throughout. He really inspired all us young actresses but also gave us a realistic insight into the industry. It was much appreciated to be educated about the harshness of the dramatic world and to get advice from someone with so much experience. The passion with which Mr Barclay spoke and the fulfilment that he described have certainly inspired me and I am sure everyone else present. I look forward to the Stage Door Lectures to come!

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Henrietta Ryan, Drama Scholar UV

George Olney In January, I attended an amazing Stage Door Lecture given by George Olney. George is a graduate of Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts, where I attended Summer Schools before I came to Downe House, so it was great to see someone so successful from a theatre school I have attended. He has been in many musicals, touring across the UK with ‘Top Hat’ and ‘White Christmas’. The lecture was extremely informative as well as inspiring. His presentation showed us many aspects of the Musical Theatre industry and had a very good balance, including photographs, stories of his experience and information that sparked plenty of discussion. The information about insurance, taxes and agencies that we can apply to was very interesting as it helped me to see the challenges but also the resources to help me pursue Musical Theatre as a career choice. I would like to say a big thank you to Mrs Gridley and the Drama Department for organising it and answering our questions alongside George, who was a captivating speaker and gave a wonderful insight into the Musical Theatre industry.

Michael Brazier

Jameliah Adekunle, Drama Student UV

In April, our speaker for the Stage Door Lecture was Michael Brazier, an experienced actor and casting director, who now runs the National Student Drama Festival – a week-long festival that selects and showcases the ten best performances from schools, theatre companies and drama schools. During his talk, he described what his team look for in a performance, such as a good plot, informative context and leaving the audience thinking at the end. This was very useful for devising pieces in the future. Having produced the festival and trained as an actor at The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School he gave us all a very useful insight into the theatre world. He shared some of the most important things he learnt at drama school, including thinking in the moment when saying your lines so the emotion is not rehearsed, taking pauses and being true to yourself when auditioning. The evening ended with a number of us sight-reading a piece and being re-directed by Michael, which was really fun as he coached us to put these ideas into practice. Eliza Downes, Head of Drama LVI DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

PRODUCTIONS AND PERFORMANCES

LONDON ROAD UV Production, February 2016 ‘London Road’ is a verbatim play, written by Alecky Blythe, using the words of the residents of London Road in Ipswich as they were interviewed during a time of community crisis. In 2006, five prostitutes who were known to frequent London Road were murdered, and Blythe’s script captures the public’s reactions and responses in the short time before the killer (also a resident of the street) was caught by police. The result is a dialogue that explores the sudden disruption of a community through shock and fear, moments of touching comedy, and ultimately a neighbourhood’s unified spirit overcoming the media circus and local tragedy. First performed to great success as a musical at the National Theatre, the Downe House Upper Fifth production of the play-text was an exciting evening of modern theatre, performed with maturity and physical invention. The audience were invited to take their seats amongst a softly lit pre-show sequence of several couples going about their hum-drum lives in their living rooms. The set, intricately designed by Rod Nash and Alex Boswell, delineated the street of London Road and its inhabitants, with variously decorated living spaces, from lounge sofas and smart coffee tables, to snug armchairs and television sets. Mugs of tea were being sipped and newspaper pages turned, adding to the gentle nattering of the couples on stage; immediately we were aware of a community before us. The play’s action flitted between one couple and the next, steering the audience’s attention constantly through a kaleidoscope of perspectives. A real success of the verbatim text was felt through the cast’s wholly convincing intonation of each character, from busybody Julie (played by Eliza Horn, UV) the spirited Neighbourhood Watch Organiser to the gentle solitary, Dodge (played by Saskia Wormsley, UV). Further to this, there were groups of gossiping couples, men after work talking over a pint, patrolling policemen – all utilised subtlety and detail in their voice and physicality, cleverly avoiding stereotype. For a moment their lives become centre stage, as reporters and their camera crews move in to London Road. The costume, designed skilfully by Maggi Garfield, captured the various personalities and occupations of the residents, creating a sense of a large and diverse group of people beyond the numbers of those on stage, particularly effective in the ensemble physical sequences. These moments were choreographed to time with characters’ monologues, emphasising a word with a gesture or look, successfully highlighting the sense of underlying suspicion and edginess growing amongst the community as the killer remained at large. The symbol of police tape, which remained in the space throughout the second act, slowly unravelled by the ensemble and suspended from ordinary domestic objects such as lamps and table legs, was a poignant visual reminder of how this event was disrupting everyday lives. This made it feel all the more significant that community members were persisting in having their traditional annual flower show culminating in the final scenes of the play at the same time as the courthouse ruling.

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‘London Road’ was a highly impressive ensemble effort by the Upper Fifth, under the detailed direction of Mrs Sarah Hannibal-White, and is deserving of praise across the large cast for their dedication, conviction of performances and dramatic innovation, it was fully deserving of receiving a Distinction for the ‘Plays in Production’ Grade 5 award from Trinity College. The real and tragic subject-matter was fully felt in impacting moments of expressive movement, but so were there lovely moments of light humour and joyous community spirit where the audience understood fully that we were witnessing an ordinary community going through an extraordinary situation. Written by Mr Sam Brassington, Director of Performing Arts DRAMA

PRODUCTIONS AND PERFORMANCES

REHEARSING LONDON ROAD Playing the part of ‘Julie’

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Being a part of ‘London Road’ has been a wonderful experience and opportunity for me in my Upper Fifth year. Following the success of ‘Our Country’s Good’, I was really looking forward to being involved in another challenging and thought-provoking piece of theatre. The play is written using the verbatim performance style, meaning all of the dialogue and lines have been taken from real interviews from the residents of London Road, the epicentre of the Ipswich murders which occurred in 2006. This for me was a difficult style to approach as I had never experienced it before. It was challenging, I had to try and keep all of the emotion and meaning of the lines from the original character within the speech, whilst expressing her exact utterances and speech patterns. Our director, Mrs Hannibal-White, definitely provided us with a challenging performance opportunity which has developed a wide range of vocal skills and she helped us all to overcome these hurdles and explore our characters in great detail. Her hard work and dedication to our year group has allowed us to achieve more than we ever thought possible! Within this production, I was lucky enough to be able to play the character of ‘Julie’, who is one of the main residents that lived on London Road. She helps to bring all of the residents in the community together after the incident, by creating the ‘London Road in Bloom’ competition. She has been a brilliant part to play and I have thoroughly enjoyed working with my friends in the Upper Fifth to create this performance. It truly is a wonderful opportunity to showcase our work as a year group and have the experience of working on such a demanding piece of theatre. Eliza Horn, Drama Scholar UV

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

PRODUCTIONS AND PERFORMANCES

BEHIND THE SCENES OF ‘WEST SIDE STORY’

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DRAMA

PRODUCTIONS AND PERFORMANCES 135

REHEARSING WEST SIDE STORY This year, we were excited to perform in the musical production of ‘West Side Story’. It has won many awards including 10 Academy Awards, an Olivier Award and has been recently ranked as the third top musical of all time, so we were all very excited when it was announced. It is based on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, a romantic tragedy portraying the conflict between the Puerto Rican Sharks and the Manhattan Jets. When Lucy and I were cast as Tony and Maria, the two protagonists of the play, we were so eager to start working together, and were obviously anticipating our kissing scenes; where we can safely say there was a lot of laughter and red faces. All the rehearsals have been so entertaining and we have all learnt so much, both musically and also with improving our acting abilities. ‘West Side Story’ is one of the most challenging musicals to perform and we are appreciative to be a part of this superb production. So watch out!... ‘Something’s Coming’… ‘Tonight’... in ‘Amerrrica’! Rose Galbraith and Lucy Grace, LVI

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

PRODUCTIONS AND PERFORMANCES

WEST SIDE STORY Founder’s Weekend – 2016 Staging a production of Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story is not for the fainthearted. The music is extremely challenging and the opening sequence, part-ballet and part-mine, demands a strong cast of dancers. Rebecca Watson once again managed a coup de thêatre in this lively and vibrant production headed by a strong group of principal actors and backed by an impressive chorus of singers and dancers. The back streets of New York are the setting for a story based on Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’, updating the sixteenth century Capulets and Montagues to 1950s gang warfare between the Jets and the Sharks. Tensions are heightened when ex-Jet Tony falls in love with Maria, newly arrived in America, and sister of the Shark leader, Bernardo. Rose Galbraith (LVI) and Lucy Grace (LVI) played Maria and Tony with great sensitivity and timelessness. Their burgeoning relationship was beautifully portrayed, and there were so many lovely moments that created the sense of tenderness and impending tragedy. Just one example was the scene in the wedding dress store when the ‘makebelieve’ marriage suddenly became so very real to them. The emotional connection between them was very well-played. Rose’s wonderful voice is already renowned throughout the school, but it was lovely to see how vocally well-matched she and Lucy were in this production.

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DRAMA

PRODUCTIONS AND PERFORMANCES

Proving again that she has such talent and versatility was Esther Bolodeoku (LV) as Anita. I find this one of the show’s most challenging roles: Anita is strong, confident and sassy in the first act, but as things become rapidly darker after the rumble in which Riff and Bernardo are killed she is faced with a threatening and violent atmosphere that her feistiness cannot match. It is easy to see her as rather one-dimensional, but Esther played Anita’s emotional journey with great maturity, and I am confident we are going to see a great deal more of this talented performer. Musical Director, Natalie Warde, and Choreographer, Rachel Vallance, had undertaken a huge task in preparing the musical numbers for this production and it is testament to both of them that the musicality and physicality of the cast were so well executed. Of particular note were the opening sequence that so beautifully captured the moody unpredictability of the New York streets, the vibrant sequence of the ‘Dance at the Gym’, and ‘America’. ‘Cool’ from Riff and the Jets was also wonderfully staged and sung, with Cecelia Kane (LV) skilfully portraying Riff’s zany unconventionality. Knowing well the limitations of the PAC stage in terms of depth and size, the staging of the ‘Dance at the Gym’ was superbly achieved to show all the individual characters and their stories whilst moving the action on to show the meeting of Tony and Maria. Henrietta Allen (LVI) as Bernardo, really came into her own during this sequence, expertly capturing Bernardo’s sardonic temperament and fierce pride.

I always watch the chorus numbers avidly; many girls will tell you that they are ‘just’ in the chorus, without realising that en masse any deviation or error is instantly visible to the audience; there is no ‘just’ about being part of the chorus as it is the lifeblood of a production. This chorus was no exception. There are so many little cameos to remember: (LV) Olivia Kirkby’s wonderful facial expression that showed that she was completely ‘in’ every moment; (LVI) Isabelle Smith’s lovely stage presence as Juano; (LVI) Eliza Downes with the powerful physicality of Pepe; (LV) Miranda Woodruff as the ever-soslightly ditsy Rosalia that brought such life to the ‘America’ number; (LVI) Katharine Garvin as the buoyant but volatile A-rab; and (LV) Ella Scott’s comically inept Glad Hand vainly trying to mix the dancers and create some positive interaction between the rival gangs. The ‘look’ of a production is key to bringing the audience into the world of the play. The hired set created the range of different locations and was very effectively ‘dressed’ by Marguerite Garfield’s costumes, particularly the wonderful fifties dresses for the ‘Dance at the Gym’. It is the small details that contribute so much to mood and atmosphere and there were plenty of these, from the grim drabness of Doc’s bar, to the gang colour schemes, to the wigs that precluded the need for the ubiquitous French plaits for the male characters. The only thing absent from this production was the presence of the much-missed Lynette Gridley. Lynette was a stalwart behind every Drama Department production; whether managing props or the backstage crew, drilling younger cast members, assisting at rehearsals or creating the wonderful make-up and hair creations at which she was so talented, she is sorely missed. ‘West Side Story’ would have made her proud! Ms Anna Renton-Green, Teacher of Learning Skills DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

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SPEECH AND DRAMA 138

SPEECH AND DRAMA 2015/16 It has been an extremely busy year for the Speech and Drama department with many exam successes to be celebrated. This year we had more students enrolled than ever before, with just over half of all the students in the school electing to have lessons. For the first time ever we moved the RADA Shakespeare examinations to the Michaelmas term. Although this ran the risk of giving our students less time to prepare, in fact it focused their preparations very effectively and the results showed a clear improvement. The RADA examinations are notoriously tough, with most students normally struggling to gain more than a pass. Rather than a reflection of the girls’ ability, this is simply due to the incredibly high standards of RADA. However this year just under fifty percent of the cohort achieved a merit, and one student, Eleanor Bishop (UV), wwas awarded a rare distinction. In the Lent term, preparations began in earnest for the first round of the Trinity Guildhall examinations. These examinations allow for a very diverse range of material and the girls really enjoy rehearsing all of the different pieces and acting styles involved. It is an intense week of examinations, taken right at the end of term when everyone is tired and ready for the holidays. Nevertheless, the atmosphere over in Lovelock, where the examinations take place, is always one of quiet excitement and anticipation. The girls take a great deal of pride in performing their best work and the vast majority are richly rewarded for their commitment and dedication. The full list of results are on pages 143 and 144, however special mention must go to Eliza Horn (UV), who achieved 94/100 for her Grade 6 Acting in Pairs, Honor Pattisson (LVI), who achieved 93/100 for her Grade 7 Individual Acting Skills and Jaice Wing Tung Kwong (LVI), who achieved 93/100 for her Grade 7 Musical Theatre Pairs. In addition to these three outstanding performance results, our Communication Skills students also achieved some of the highest marks across the board. An increasingly popular subject, Communication Skills takes a step away from performing and focuses instead on developing presentation skills, interview techniques and generally coaching students to keep calm under pressure and present themselves in their best light. Nina Bugeja and Sabrina Sambhi (both LV) both achieved 93/100 for their Grade 5, Daisy ShepherdCross and Georgina Anastassopoulos Tubby (both UV) were awarded 93/100 and Grace Cornish (UV) 94/100 for their Grade 6, Georgina Fenn (LVI) achieved 93/100 and Ola Milne (LVI) 94/100 for their Grade 7 and finally, Clare Maunder (UVI) was awarded 93/100 for her Grade 8; an absolutely stunning result for an extremely rigorous examination. In the Summer Term the focus shifts to our Lower School and Upper eight students who all take their group examinations just before half term. There is a real emphasis on teamwork for these examinations and it is always a real delight seeing just how many groups get together for their own rehearsals in the final weeks leading up to the examination days. For many of these students, this is their first Speech and Drama examination and it is of the utmost importance to us as a department that they have a positive and rewarding experience. I am delighted to report that our girls did very well again in these examinations, with too many distinctions to mention them all. The two outstanding results that do deserve special mention are Wan DRAMA

Hei (Victoria) Cho, Florence Hack, Lavinia Geddes and Olivia Jackson (all LIV) for their Grade 3 performance of “Alice in Wonderland” and Abriella (Abby) Dolbear, Emma Bracken and Alina Erkulova (all UIV) for their Grade 4 devised piece called “Blink”. Both groups were awarded 92/100. When I think back over the last year for the Speech and Drama Department, I am struck by just how much has been achieved by our students and staff. It has undeniably been a difficult year and it is impossible to reflect upon everything that has happened without mentioning the wonderful Lynette Gridley, who tragically lost her life at the beginning of the Easter holiday. One of my greatest pleasures was sharing with Lynette the tremendous achievements of her students in their Lent examinations, despite having had a change of teacher in the last few weeks of preparations. I know that she was extremely proud of each and every one of her students and it meant so much to her to know that they had done well. Great thanks must also go to the other Speech and Drama teachers who selflessly gave their time to look after Lynette’s students during the final stages of their examination preparation. As the new year approaches, we still all feel the loss of Lynette very deeply, however her legacy will live on through the work of her students. She was a wonderful woman and a caring and dedicated teacher who loved her job and was totally devoted to Downe House and the Speech and Drama Department. I will never forget the time that she came into the office after a very busy day, turned to me and said with excitement in her eyes, “I just love my job, I must be the luckiest person in the world”. Rebecca Watson, Head of Extra-Curricular Drama

On the Sunday of Founder’s Weekend, a wealth of Speech and Drama talent was presented in the Performing Arts Centre. This event is proving to be very popular with the support of parents, teachers and girls growing in number each year. The morning is dedicated to the Lower School. The Remove and Lower Fourth girls get the chance to present a five-minute highlight of their exam piece. This is an excellent opportunity for the girls to showcase the considerable amount of hard work and commitment that has gone into preparing for their exams. The parents, teachers and their peers get to see the imaginative and varied work the girls create. We saw Musical Theatre performances including ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and ‘Which Annie?’, devised pieces including ‘The Flower Shop’ and ‘The Game’ and scripted work including ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’ and ‘Alice in Wonderland’. With 70% of our girls getting awarded a Distinction and 30% a Merit, this is truly something to be celebrated. After lunch, selected members of the Upper Fourth, Lower Fifth and Lower Sixth presented a selection of their examination pieces. The afternoon started with Kirsty Depledge (LV) singing ‘Electricity’ which Isabelle Smith (LVI) simultaneously danced to. This electrifying start was a true reflection of what was to follow. ‘The Big Question’ performed by Eliza Downes and Florence Elliott (both LVI) asked, rather comically, what would we do if Zombies attacked? This was followed by Rose Galbraith (LVI) singing ‘I know it’s today’ from Shrek, playing the part of a very hopeful Princess Fiona waiting for her prince to come. Elizabeth Bolodeoku and Jaira Vazquez Sanchez (both LV) concluded the afternoon’s extravaganza by singing a song about ‘Friendship’. What an apt way to end an amazing display of talent! The Showcase was thoroughly entertaining, thoughtprovoking, moving and at times utterly hilarious. The pieces provided a very enjoyable insight into the diversity and high quality of work covered this year. Mrs Sophie Leigh-Barclay, Teacher of Speech and Drama

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

SPEECH AND DRAMA

SPEECH AND DRAMA SHOWCASES Founder’s Weekend 2016

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SPEECH AND DRAMA 140

PREPARING FOR A TRINITY MUSICAL THEATRE EXAM

PREPARING FOR A TRINITY COMMUNICATION SKILLS EXAM

In Musical Theatre, you have the option to take part as a solo or as a duo and the Trinity exams reflect this. For those who love drama, Musical Theatre is a great combination of all aspects of acting and I’ve really enjoyed my first year.

I must start by saying that Communication Skills is far more exciting than it may sound and the exam itself is fun to prepare for. In my first Communication Skills exam I presented a speech on behalf of a charity I represented, addressed to a person of my choice, in my case, David Cameron, who would have the decision of whether to invest or not. Following on from that, I summarised an unseen passage that the examiner read aloud. Luckily, much practice was done beforehand to help me tackle this. The final task was to talk for six minutes about something that interested me. This was great fun to prepare for as I was talking about things that I found fun and interesting.

The Trinity exam board runs Musical Theatre exams from Grade 5 to Grade 8 and the exams are only taken once a year. For an exam you must perform two contrasting songs, a monologue and a dance. I chose to do Musical Theatre on my own and this year I’ve sung songs from Cabaret and Billy Elliot, danced to Naughty from Matilda and performed a monologue from DNA. Although the exam is the main focus of the extra-curricular lessons, we have also practised various acting techniques and when not working towards the exam, we’ve branched out and learnt songs and performances from musicals of our choice. My first year of Musical Theatre has been amazing and I’ve had so much fun. It has also helped to boost my confidence as well as taking me out of my comfort zone. As an alternative or partner to Speech and Drama, Musical Theatre is a great way to enjoy drama outside of the school timetable. Kirsty Depledge, Drama Scholar LV DRAMA

Communication Skills contains certain elements of Drama but at the same time, isn’t only acting. In my lessons, I had the chance to act and imitate people and also to speak about my own interests and things that I enjoy. Learning is done in a very fun and exciting way with very little written work. Right now, my teacher and I are studying and working on what makes a persuasive speech. We have read some speeches by Napoleon, Martin Luther King and President Obama, and I have moved on to writing my own persuasive speech. This subject has helped me to formulate better arguments and be a more confident speaker. I look forward to the year ahead and many more! Nina Bugeja, LV

UPPER FIFTH - BRONZE

Exam Type

Grade

Mark

Grade Band

Ilaria Bevan

Duo

Bronze

71%

MERIT

Eleanor Bishop

Duo

Bronze

89%

DISTINCTION

Claudine Collins

Duo

Bronze

64%

MERIT

Jennifer Darko

Solo

Bronze

50%

PASS

Sarah Darko

Duo

Bronze

65%

MERIT

Grace Devereux

Duo

Bronze

73%

MERIT

Holly Evans

Duo

Bronze

64%

MERIT

Katherine Garnett

Duo

Bronze

62%

MERIT

Eliza Gibbons-West

Solo

Bronze

60%

PASS

Anna Hewitt

Duo

Bronze

86%

MERIT

Eliza Horn

Duo

Bronze

47%

PASS

Verity Hornby

Duo

Bronze

51%

PASS

Isabella Huber

Duo

Bronze

65%

MERIT

Rose Hughes

Duo

Bronze

50%

PASS

Cecilia Hughes

Duo

Bronze

54%

PASS

Alexia Milliken

Duo

Bronze

50%

PASS

Eloise Percy-Davis

Duo

Bronze

50%

PASS

Matilda Pope

Duo

Bronze

68%

MERIT

Henrietta Ryan

Duo

Bronze

67%

MERIT

Clara Silcock

Duo

Bronze

72%

MERIT

Olivia Stakem

Solo

Bronze

63%

MERIT

Araminta Swallow

Duo

Bronze

48%

PASS

Saskia Wormsley

Duo

Bronze

46%

PASS

LOWER SIXTH - BRONZE Exam Type

Grade

Mark

Grade Band

Henrietta Allen

Duo

Bronze

67%

MERIT

Miranda Bird

Duo

Bronze

60%

PASS

India Burney

Duo

Bronze

59%

PASS

Jasmine Coulson

Duo

Bronze

57%

PASS

Eliza Downes

Duo

Bronze

56%

PASS

Florence Elliott

Duo

Bronze

54%

PASS

Rose Galbraith

Duo

Bronze

63%

MERIT

Katharine Garvin

Duo

Bronze

59%

PASS

Kirstin Gray

Duo

Bronze

59%

PASS

Araminta Moore

Duo

Bronze

68%

MERIT

Gemma Mountain

Duo

Bronze

67%

MERIT

Jemima Oliver

Duo

Bronze

51%

PASS

Daisy Padovan

Solo

Bronze

54%

PASS

Honor Pattisson

Solo

Bronze

65%

MERIT

Isabelle Smith

Duo

Bronze

50%

PASS

Caroline Watkinson

Duo

Bronze

60%

PASS

Exam Type

Grade

Mark

Grade Band

Lucy Mortlock

Solo

Silver

56%

PASS

Anouska Royle

Duo

Silver

62%

MERIT

Miranda Shaw

Duo

Silver

62%

MERIT

Hannah Simpson-Orlebar

Solo

Silver

50%

PASS

UPPER SIXTH - SILVER

SPEECH AND DRAMA

RADA SHAKESPEARE CERTIFICATES - RESULTS

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DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

SPEECH AND DRAMA 142

TRINITY SPEECH AND DRAMA EXAM RESULTS REMOVE - GRADE 2

Names

Exam Type

Mark Grade Band

Creative Writing

Alice Pernthaller, Margot Ridley, Scarlett Storie, Poppy Wessely, Matilda (Tilly) Wilkinson

Group Devised

Distinction

My Little Ghost

Ayanfeoluwa Adedeji, Georgia Dunkerley, Louisa Healey, Group Devised Alethea Ings-Chambers, Amelia Maughan

Distinction

One Eyed Jack

Harriet Boucher, Honor Mathews, Antonia McClintock, Olivia Monckton, Honor Neville, Hannah Perkins

Group Devised

Merit

The Game

Madeleine (Maddi) Hales, Celine Ibori, Ashley Iguh, Madelaina Lavelle & Yasmine McLennan

Group Devised

Distinction

The Wizard of Oz

Cosima Curzon, Tara Dyer, Lyla Elichaoff & Heloise Friedlander

Musical Theatre

Merit

Which Annie?

Charlotte Pearson, Mathilda Singer, Lucinda Slack, Phoebe Whiting

Musical Theatre

Merit

LOWER FOURTH - GRADE 3 Names

Exam Type

Mark Grade Band

The Body Snatchers

Faridah Are, Gardiner Hunt, Priya Kooros

Group Devised

Merit

The Flower Shop

Romilly Cox, Chioma Emenike, Morgan Kandrac, Rosanna Love, Saskia Mactaggart

Group Devised

Merit

Trio Magnifique

Poppy Penney, Kate Rollo, Daisy Williams

Group Devised

Distinction

Alice in Wonderland

Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho, Lavinia Geddes, Florence Hack, Olivia Jackson

Group Scripted

Distinction

Arbeit Macht Frei

Lily Mathews, Constance Pope, Francesca Rhodes, Poppy Group Scripted Scales

Distinction

Invisible Friends

Lucia Bugeja, Lara Coppen-Gardner, Annabella Horsfield, Group Scripted Florence McNair Scott

Distinction

Journey to X

Lara Kabir Jennings, Jemima Landale, Clementine McNair Group Scripted Scott, Imogen Ridley, Rosalind Wippell

Distinction

The Happy Prince

Toluwase Agusto, Sophie Armitage, Christina Elliot, Jemima Harrison, Matilda McDougall

Group Scripted

Merit

Matilda

Francesca Horton, Phoebe Hughes, Tabitha Kendall, Olivia Lamb, Ayobami Razak-Shittu

Musical Theatre

Distinction

UPPER FOURTH - GRADE 4 Names

Exam Type

Blink

Emma Bracken, Abriella (Abby) Dolbear, Alina Erkulova

Group Devised 92

Distinction

Hauntingly Beautiful

Emily Carpmael, Miranda Drummond, Eliza Inglis

Group Devised 85

Distinction

Lucky Numbers

Eniayo Teniola Adenji, Molly Dewar, Eliza Farquharson, Charlotte Field

Group Devised 80

Merit

The Winter of 1917

Holly Fenn, Jade Jacomb, Motolani Oladitan

Group Devised 75

Merit

Anne of Green Gables

Annie Hazlitt, Elodie Hersee, Mathilde Hughes

Group Scripted 89

Distinction

Blithe Spirit 1

Sasha Percy-Davis, Beatrice Phillips, Ruyao Xu

Group Scripted 81

Merit

Blithe Spirit 2

Zoe Carruthers, Oluwanifemi (Nifemi) Olawuni, Daisy West

Group Scripted 73

Pass

Blithe Spirit 3

Anna Neville, Alessandra Pidgeon, Kitty Shepherd-Cross

Group Scripted 85

Distinction

Cards, Cups and Crystal Ball

Tara Farquhar, Mili Haywood, Charlotte Nicholson, Imogen Webber

Group Scripted 82

Merit

DNA

Eva Bartlett, Oluwatamilore Bolodeoku, Alice Tanner

Group Scripted 82

Merit

Girls Like That

Sophie Dickson, Georgina Marchand, Alice Peters

Group Scripted 90

Distinction

Mine

Anna Hall, Annabel Le Grice, Alice Weldon

Group Scripted 76

Merit

Mother Figure

Imogen Fowler, Lucy McCreery, Camilla Read

Group Scripted 82

Merit

Pygmalion

Lorelei Jackson, Sarah Park, Nina Paterson, Lucy Sneader

Group Scripted 75

Merit

Relics

Madison James, Alexandra Kiy, Grace Soltero

Group Scripted 73

Pass

Shakers

Natalia Cremin, Emily Manners, Safiya Shamji, Helena Wormsley

Group Scripted 82

Merit

The SÃ©ance

Jessica Chapman, Julia Kennerley, Alice Lloyd-Evans, Gabriella Nelson

Group Scripted 90

Distinction

DRAMA

Mark Grade Band

LOWER FIFTH - GRADE 5 Acting in Pairs Charlotte Berry Esther Bolodeoku Lettice Cornell Calypso Cox Jemima Cremin Cosima Davies Kirsty Depledge Davina Drummond Lucinda Dunlop Lucy Dyer Sophie Elliot Oluchi Emenike Florence Fanshawe Imogen Gregory Jessica Hayward-Cole Milly Hine Amelia Hughes Cecelia Kane Iman Khalil Olivia Kirkby Celeste Percy Eva Percy Georgina Pollock Alexandra Russell Harriet Sasson Ella Scott Honor Sells Holly Skinner Honor Stephens You-Oceane Wang Miranda Woodruff Charlotte (Lottie) Zeal Communication Skills Nina Bugeja Naomi Egoh Hye Lim Park Sabrina Sambhi Phannaphat (Aommy) Totup Individual Acting Skills Isabel Fincham Isabella Jones Musical Theatre Pairs Rosie Blackburn Elizabeth Bolodeoku Minna Crewdson Lauren Dunn Katie Hackman Georgia Hewitson Trinity Hill Chee Sum (Tiffany) Lai Andreja Mirosevic-Sorgo Lara Mountain Celeste Percy Lucy Phillips Faith Pitchford Imogen Simpson-Orlebar Jaira Vazquez Sanchez Miranda Woodruff Kirsty Depledge Cecelia Kane Ella Scott

Mark

Grade Band

81 89 85 87 85 89 88 81 82 87 82 78 90 87 80 81 77 86 82 91 83 85 87 86 89 90 83 81 80 85 88 86

Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Merit Distinction Merit Distinction Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction

93 82 82 93 78

Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Merit

Merit

80 81 88 88 88 79 79 79 85 83 81 89 85 83 82 90 79 83 71

Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Merit Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Merit Merit Pass

UPPER FIFTH - GRADE 6 Acting in Pairs

Mark

Josephine Adams Eloise Bartlett Amelia Bentley Ilaria Bevan Eleanor Bishop Claudine Collins Grace Cornish Sasha Coulson Sarah Darko Grace Devereux Holly Evans Katherine Garnett Eliza Gibbons-West Sapphire Graham Anna Hewitt Eliza Horn Verity Hornby Isabella Huber Cecilia Hughes Rose Hughes Poppy Huntington Hebe Ide Georgia Lavelle Georgina Lloyd Yorke Alexia Milliken Lara Mun-Gavin Faith Norman Eloise Percy-Davis Matilda Pope Serena Richards Henrietta Ryan Victoria Scobie Clara Silcock Daisy Spurrier Araminta Swallow Georgina Tarling Eloise Tucker Sasha Villiers-Smith Isabel Wood Saskia Wormsley Communication Skills Georgina Anastassopoulos Tubby Grace Cornish Omotara Edu Sarah Palmer Daisy Shepherd-Cross Jennifer Darko Holly Halestrap Olivia Stakem Rebecca Topping Musical Theatre Pairs

77 78 72 86 90 82 82 89 91 85 91 82 82 92 90 94 78 82 78 78 85 86 75 78 76 77 85 78 80 75 79 85 91 80 80 88 87 80 79 92

Merit Merit Pass Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Merit Merit Distinction Merit Merit Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Distinction

93 94 82 92 93 80 85 85 82

Distinction Distinction Merit Distinction Distinction Merit Distinction Distinction Merit

80 83 78 82 78 83 82 79 82 82

Merit Merit Merit Merit Merit Merit Merit Merit Merit Merit

86 83 92 85

Distinction Merit Distinction Distinction

Rosanna Craig Anna Hewitt Verity Hornby Sacha Martin Annabel Roest Victoria Scobie Clara Silcock Jane Tung Skye Wilson Catharine Wippell Musical Theatre Solo Emilie Cheung Laura Douglas-Hamilton Anna Hewitt Catharine Wippell

Grade Band

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

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TRINITY SPEECH AND DRAMA EXAM RESULTS

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SPEECH AND DRAMA 144

TRINITY SPEECH AND DRAMA EXAM RESULTS LOWER SIXTH - GRADE 7 Acting in Pairs

Mark

Grade Band

Henrietta Allen Emma Barrett-Fish Miranda Bird Roseanna Bromley India Burney Huen Tung (Angela) Chan Jasmine Coulson Georgina Dick Eliza Downes Florence Elliott Rose Galbraith Katharine Garvin Kirstin Gray Sophia Hill Hebe Meredith Araminta Moore Gemma Mountain Jemima Oliver Caroline Quillen Charlotte Simpson Isabelle Smith Caroline Watkinson Communication Skills

91 85 88 90 85 79 86 85 85 86 90 90 90 82 82 91 92 85 82 91 87 88

Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction Merit Distinction Distinction Distinction

Georgina Fenn Alexandra Milne Individual Acting Skills

93 94

Distinction Distinction

Celine Harborne Polina Parr Honor Pattisson Musical Theatre Pairs Violet Crawfurd Eliza Downes Janice Wing Tung Kwong

90 82 93

Distinction Merit Distinction

89 81 93

Distinction Merit Distinction

Scene from West Side Story at Founderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Weekend 2016

DRAMA

India Laidlaw Jemima Oliver Poppy Winsor Musical Theatre Solo

79 80 79

Merit Merit Merit

Charlotte Aldrich Henrietta Allen Miranda Bird India Burney Rose Galbraith Celine Harborne Isabelle Smith Lydia Stonehill Shakespeare Solo Daisy Padovan

82 87 83 80 95 77 87 77

Merit Distinction Merit Merit Distinction Merit Distinction Merit

Merit

UPPER SIXTH - GRADE 8 Acting in Pairs

Mark

Grade Band

Flora Camps-Harris Louisa Henry Daisy Huntington Hattie Muncey Emma Poole Anouska Royle Miranda Shaw Clare Turton Communication Skills Hannah Goodyear Clare Maunder

81 82 73 85 72 85 80 82

Merit Merit Pass Distinction Pass Distinction Merit Merit

89 93

Distinction Distinction

78 81 88 88

Merit Merit Distinction Distinction

Individual Acting Skills Lucy Mortlock Hannah Simpson-Orlebar Poppy Wilson Amelia Yerburgh

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INTRODUCTION It is our aim to ensure that Downe House moves forward and remains at the forefront of boarding education. Our girls are preparing for an increasingly demanding future and we want them to have the very best preparation for life and the maximum range of opportunities, so that they can develop as rounded individuals and leave us ready to make a significant contribution to society. This year has been an incredible musical voyage of achievement, involvement and exploration. From the magic of our concerts and carol services through to the competitions of the Young Musician of the Year and ‘Bring The House Downe’. From samba, reggae and song-writing through to girls taking up an instrument for the first time through our Minority Instrument Scheme. The girls have explored a wide spectrum of music and had the opportunity to take part in a wealth of different musical experiences, achieving great musical things! The involvement of girls in the musical life of the school throughout the year has been wonderful to see. Indeed, our celebration of music over Founder’s Weekend is testament to this with a sparkling series of musical events including the Founder’s Concert, ‘Bring the House Downe’ Finals, Music Showcase and Buskers’ Corner. With the largest number of entries on record, it has been super to see over 150 girls taking part in our Young Musician of the Year competition in March, displaying a rich breadth of musical talent across the School. We continue to be proud of girls involved in music at a county and national level, including the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain, National Children’s Orchestra,

Berkshire Youth Orchestra and the Junior Department of the Royal College of Music. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Livia Russell, (Head of Music), Matilda Bentley (Deputy Head of Music), Lucinda Penney (Head of Choral) and Lucy Mortlock (Deputy Head of Choral), all from UVI, for their outstanding contribution to the Music Department this year. We also have twenty-three very talented Music Award Holders and I would like to thank them all for their exceptional contribution and commitment to the musical life of the School this year. Now with over 1,700 followers, our Twitter site continues to capture all our exciting news, live updates and inspiring moments from the Music Department. Please do follow us @DowneHouseMusic. The Music Department continues to transform musical lives and to equip girls with lifelong musical skills and understanding, encouraging all girls to explore and experience the significant power of music! Dr Charlotte Exon, Director of Music

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HEADS OF MUSIC REPORT This year has been a busy year full of many different highlights for the Music Department. The Michaelmas Concert was once again a major highlight, seeing inspiring performances from a large number of our ensembles. The annual Carol Service at St Nicholas’ Church is always a particularly memorable event and was enjoyed by everyone. The Lent Term was filled with a variety of events, including the Charity Concert at St John’s Church in Newbury, which raised over £1,000 for Christian Aid. This gave some of the smaller ensembles a chance to perform along with Symphony Orchestra and a range of our choirs. The Young Musician of the Year Competition gives girls from across the whole school the opportunity to perform in a range of different categories. Special congratulations go to the girls who came top in their category; Antonia Holloway (Virtuoso, LIV), Luoyi (Sunny) Li (Maestro, UIV), Kyara Uchida (Music Maker, UV) and Kitty Dodd-Noble (Rock n’ Pop, LIV), and were awarded the opportunity of performing in the Prize Winner’s Concert. Founder’s Weekend was a huge celebration of the year’s work within the Music Department, featuring numerous musical events. The ‘Bring the House Downe’ competition featured the performances of many different ensembles including duets, small ensembles and choirs. Ad Astra, an a capella group from AGN, won the competition. The Founder’s Concert was a major highlight, with performances from all of our orchestras and choirs, involving a huge number of girls from all across the School. None of this would be possible without the help and support of the music staff and we would like to thank them for all the time they have spent on teaching and rehearsals to give all of us the opportunity to perform in such amazing events. Anna Chalmers (Head of Music) and Charlotte Aldrich (Deputy Head of Music), both LVI MUSIC

The concert got off to a fantastic start with performances from two of our Award Holders who were preparing to take their Grade 7 ABRSM exams the following week. (LV) Hye Lim Park’s exuberant and accomplished Rondo from Mozart’s Violin Concerto in D major contrasted (LV) Lucy Cunningham’s atmospheric and lilting performance of Gondollied by Felix Mendelssohn. Both performances left us in no doubt at all about their future exam success. (LIV) Antonia Holloway’s first performance was on cello, a Hebrew melody (Hamabdil) composed by Granville Bantock. Antonia made the cello sing through the lyrical, cantabile and improvisatory melodic lines. (LV) Katharine Furse’s performed Poulenc’s Cantilena from his Sonata for Flute and Piano, with another song like piece with soaring range and shimmering timbre. A rousing performance of Purcell’s Abdelazer by Amelia Hughes (LV) on trombone and (Remove) Antonia McClintock’s mastery of the folk inspired Dance Rustique by William Squire brought the first half of the concert to a foot tapping close. In the second half, Molly Dewar (UIV) and Emma Talbot Rice (LV) demonstrated the incredible range and versatility of two minority instruments, the bassoon and French Horn. The bubbling scale and arpeggio patterns of Schrenk’s Bassoon Sonata op. 9 were expertly handed by Molly and the continuous octave leaps of Beethoven’s Septet in E flat Major, op. 20, arranged for French Horn and piano, sounded effortless in Emma’s capable musicianship. (LV) Anna Riley’s performance of Faure’s Elegie outlined the rich sonorities of the cello and a fantastic partnership with her accompanist, Mr Brayne.

We were treated to a Mozartian masterclass by Eliza Inglis (UIV), expertly accompanied by Mrs Couser. Her nimble finger work and crisp articulation emphasised the contrasting sections of the Allegro from Mozart’s Flute Quartet in D major. Amelia Hughes’ second performance of the evening, this time on voice, perfectly captured the romantic mood and theme of Tu Lo Sai by Torelli. The final concert was brought to a close by two very contrasting styles of the 20th Century. (UIV) Georgia Allison’s piano performance of September in the Rain stylistically highlighted the jazzy chords and sonorities, while Antonia Holloway’s virtuosic and highly accomplished performance of Sonata for Oboe and Piano by Henry Dutilleux demonstrated the exploration of instrument range, experimental tonality and clashing harmonies. The Concert demonstrated what incredible musical potential we have at Downe House. The standard of pieces performed by many were post Grade 8 and Diploma standard; many of the works would not look out of place on University recital programmes. One thing is for certain, the musical future looks very bright indeed. Mrs Amy McPherson, Assistant Director of Music

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SENIOR MUSIC AWARD HOLDERS’ CONCERT On Sunday 15 November, an audience packed full of family and friends were treated to an exceptional evening of music making. 12 of our Music Award Holders, from LIV-UVI, presented solo performances ranging from Bach Suites on the Keyboard to Brahms’ clarinet sonatas and Monti’s Czardas on Marimba. The evening began with our Head of Music, Livia Russell (UVI), performing the first movement of Poulenc’s Flute Sonata. In the wake of the Paris attacks and, following Livia’s dedication of this performance to victims of the attack, this performance of a French masterpiece was particularly poignant. Amelie Furse’s (LIV) first Music Award Holder performance was certainly an impressive one. She played an arrangement of the third movement of Mendelssohn’s Symphony no. 5 with a fantastic developing sound. Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan and Katherine Maloney (both LVI) both presented accomplished performances of Brahms’ Clarinet Sonata and Elegie by Glazumov respectively. The first half of the concert ended with two contrasting solos by Rose Galbraith (LVI); the anguished Ophelia’s Song by Elizabeth Maconchy, juxtaposed against Jerome Kern’s jazz classic, ‘Can’t Help Lovin Dat Man.’

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LOWER SCHOOL MUSIC AWARD HOLDERS’ CONCERT Music Award Holders from Remove to Lower Fifth

by Lucia Bugeja (LIV) and a captivating performance of Brahms’ Intermezzo op. 118 for piano by Man I (Melissa) Chang (UV). Violet Crawfurd (LVI) presented a further French flute composition, Ganne’s Andante, with a rich tone and nimble technique. Monti’s Czardas concluded the solo performances of the evening. The work’s allegro virtuoso passages and tremolo rolls were captured effortlessly by Jane Tung (UV) in this marimba arrangement. The finale of the concert fell to some special guests, the Holcombe Singers, who performed Pentatonic’s Run to You with a fantastic blend of voices and harmonies. Many thanks must go to our wonderful accompanists, Mr Brayne and Mrs Couser, for supporting and accompanying all of our performers so well, particularly with such challenging and demanding repertoire. Mrs Amy McPherson, Assistant Director of Music

Oi Ka (Natalie) Lam (LVI) began the second half of the concert with the Praeludium and Gigue of Bach’s Partita No. 1. This was followed with a dramatic performance of Reinecke’s Ballade for flute by Janice Wing Tung Kwong (LVI), an atmospheric setting of Bach’s Ave Maria on the harp DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

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MICHAELMAS CONCERT 2015 The Michaelmas School Concert 2015 was deeply impressive, entertaining and inspiring for so many reasons: the sheer variety of musical repertoire on offer, the amount of talented musicians playing with such enthusiasm and joy (and playing so well together), not to mention the audacious scope of the forces on stage at some points. It was indeed fitting that we also saw the first presentation of Downe House Music Colours toward the close of the evening, awarded by Mrs McKendrick to students from Lower School, Upper School and Sixth Form in acknowledgment of their enthusiasm for music and invaluable contributions to music making at Downe. The concert opened with Symphony Orchestra’s confident and stirring renditions of ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ and ‘Apollo 13’, after which the audience was treated to a fabulous selection of choral and instrumental pieces: Once Removed gave a beautiful performance of ‘I am a small part of the world’, (when the School’s youngest singers are this good, you know our choirs are in safe hands!), and Choral gave two lovely performances – Fauré’s ‘Cantique de Jean Racine’ and Todd’s ‘An Earthly Blessing’. From Junior Choral we heard Rutter’s ‘For the beauty of the earth’ and an excellent performance of ‘Electricity’ (from Billy Elliot The Musical); and In Harmony sounded as vibrant and enjoyable as ever in ‘Anthem’ (from the musical Chess) and an utterly gorgeous version of Bert Bacharach’s ‘I say a little prayer’, which got everyone’s feet tapping. Interspersed with this array of choral delights were Chamber Orchestra (who played two spell-binding movements from Grieg’s evocative Peer Gynt Suite No.1), performing with such panache and commitment to the music; Big Band who gave us a delightfully funky version of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’ and a stunning rendition of Van Morrison’s ‘Have I told you lately’, featuring a wonderful lead vocal from Anna Hewitt (UV); and Symphonic Wind Ensemble, with another foot-tapping marvel – Arnold’s ‘The Pre-Goodman Rag’, in which (LVI) Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan’s flawless clarinet playing gave this tribute to the golden age of big bands a real musical swagger.

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Whilst the many stage set-ups were being organised the audience listened to a recording of (LVI) Charlotte Aldrich’s ‘Electronic Jungle’ (with the score moving in time on the big screen), which she composed last year for her GCSE Music, and watched two very witty and utterly professional short films produced and directed by Emilie Cheung (UV) starring many of the Upper Fifth musicians. And as if this wasn’t more than enough, to round off the concert every member of every instrumental ensemble in the School took to the stage (augmented by twenty Lower Fourth djembe players!), to perform ‘Circle of Life’ (from The Lion King). It was a fitting end to a fantastic evening of music; brimming with musicality, flair and enthusiasm, the palpable sense of young people enjoying making music together was a joy to behold. Dr Christian Alexander, Teacher of Music and Head of Composition MUSIC

From the opening solo voice of Katie Hackman (LV), the Junior Carol Service offered us an exquisite insight into the Christmas story in the cavernous Farr Centre. With a rolling snowflake backdrop on the screen and subdued lighting the atmosphere was created for a wonderful collage of words and music.

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JUNIOR CAROL SERVICE

Once Removed delivered an impressive version of ‘Adam lay y bounden’ followed by Junior Choral and In-Harmony singing an energetic arrangement of ‘Angels from the realms of glory’ by Howard Goodall, which gave the opportunity for a number of group and individual solos. The traditional carols were sung with great enthusiasm by the large congregation and supported by dazzling brass and organ playing from the Shead Brass and Mr Brayne. The end of the Michaelmas Term certainly prepared us for the joy of Christmas. Mr Christopher Brayne, Organist and Staff Accompanist

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UPPER SCHOOL CAROL SERVICE The Upper School Carol Service is one of the musical highlights of the academic year and also provides the opportunity for members of the UVI to offer various solos both instrumental and vocal. The large congregation were treated to some delightful performances before the service by Lucinda Penney, Livia Russell (both UVI) and Man I (Melissa) Chang (UV), with music by Vivaldi, JS Bach, Poulenc and Gigout. The service opened with the transparent solo singing from the Head of Choral, Lucinda Penney. During the course of the service Lucy Mortlock (UVI), Violet Crawfurd, Janice Wing Tung Kwong, Rose Galbraith and Olivia Harrison (all LVI) all contributed splendid individual solos. From Elizabeth Poston’s setting of ‘Jesus Christ the Apple Tree’ to Mack Wilberg’s arrangement of ‘Ding Dong Merrily on High’ with its virtuosic organ part brilliantly played by Mr Brayne interspersed with the first movement of Vivaldi’s ‘Gloria’, the choral forces delivered some memorable moments under the direction of Mr Treadaway and Dr Exon. For members of the Upper Sixth, their last Carol Service at Downe House is a fitting occasion for our community to give thanks for their contribution to the musical life of the School. Mr Christopher Brayne, Organist and Staff Accompanist DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

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MY FIRST YEAR AS A REMOVE MUSIC SCHOLAR My first year as a Music Scholar has been amazing. The year started with an invitation to join the Symphony Orchestra. I turned up to my first rehearsal and I was amazed. I had never played in any ensemble this large or this talented and I felt honoured and thrilled to be part of it. The Music Scholars’ dinner was also fantastic as it was a chance to meet all of the other Scholars and we spent an enjoyable evening getting to know each other. The ‘band’ we put together at the end was really fun as well. This first year has been great as I would never have dreamed of being able to play in such a large ensemble or work with such talented people. Antonia McClintock, Remove

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LUNCHTIME CONCERTS We have had a bumper crop of performers this year joining us for the Lunchtime Concert Series. The concerts are a fabulous opportunity for the girls at Downe House to gain performing experience regardless of their level. The majority of girls will use these as an informal setting to practice for the formality of their ABRSM examinations during the same term, though the number of girls taking part purely for fun is happily growing. There is everything from solo singing to Samba, with the staff and student audience being whisked away on a musical interlude during Thursday lunchtimes. The concerts are growing in popularity and are seen as a safe and supportive environment for students to develop their confidence in performance. They are a wonderful addition to the School day and have given us many magical moments. Long may they continue. Mr Adam Treadaway, Teacher of Music, Percussion and Voice, and Resident Tutor (AGS) MUSIC

On Thursday 15 October, over 120 musicians were welcomed from ten prep schools for the annual Orchestral Fun Day. The theme ‘A Day at the Musicals’ would transport musicians from the West End to Broadway through performances of familiar show tunes across four different ensembles. Once arrived and settled with invaluable help from our own Remove and LIV music ambassadors, the day began with a physical warm up. The West End Prep Schools’ Orchestra then found their seats in each instrument section which almost spanned the Farr Centre lengthways. Rehearsals kicked off all together with the ‘Circle of Life’ which would be our grand finale in the afternoon concert. The difficult dotted melody was quickly mastered particularly when aided by an ample percussion section complete with djembes. Next was a brief sight-read through ‘The Magic of Mary Poppins’, a Mary Poppins medley ahead of instrument sectionals later on in the day. After a short break the first division of the orchestra occurred, moving the entire string section to the Concert Room in preparation for Spotlight Strings. The school golf carts whizzed around ensuring that all music, instruments and musicians smoothly made it across. Here the strings rehearsed ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’ from the Lion King whilst the remaining instruments (woodwind, brass and percussion) united in the Farr Centre to form the Broadway Concert Band. The extensive percussion section was again put to good use playing ‘Big Spender’, accentuating every iconic triangle beat. Smaller sectionals were next on the schedule to recap the repertoire and then a well-earned lunch.

Seats quickly filled and the concert began with the West End Prep Schools’ Orchestra performance of ‘The Magic of Mary Poppins’. The flutes and clarinets soared with the supercalifragilisticexpialidocious melody leaving the audience tapping their feet along. The energy continued as the Broadway Concert Band performed the glamorous ‘Big Spender’ with wonderful moments of musical conversation between woodwind and brass and ending with a spectacular drum kit solo. Spotlight Strings eased the tempo with their moving rendition of ‘Can you feel the love tonight’, featuring shimmering violins well supported by the rich cellos. Next was The Shaftesbury Avenue Ensemble who demonstrated excellent musicianship in their lively performance of ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ reinforced by a staff percussion section. A performance by the Downe House Symphony Orchestra followed, the dramatic start to ‘Phantom of the Opera’ ringing throughout the Farr Centre. It was then time to reward the outstanding performers of the day within each instrument section with the coveted Music Star Awards (and glow in the dark wristbands!). Decisions were tough as exceptional talent had clearly been on display. To conclude the programme, the Downe House Symphony Orchestra joined the West End Prep Schools’ Orchestra for a monumental performance of the ‘Circle of Life’, receiving rapturous applause by a stunned audience.

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A DAY AT THE MUSICALS Orchestral Fun Day for Prep Schools

With thanks to Dr Exon and the Music Department for such a successful day. Miss Fiona Muir, Graduate Music Assistant

The afternoon continued with the same energy as the morning, a full rehearsal followed by separate Spotlight Strings and Broadway Concert Band rehearsals. Throughout the day members of the Downe House Symphony Orchestra dropped by to assist and inspire the younger musicians ahead of their own performance in the concert. There was also a masterclass run by Dr Exon for the advanced prep school musicians, The Shaftesbury Avenue Ensemble, who learned ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ and developed their small ensemble skills. After refuelling with squash and doughnuts, final rehearsals commenced with a full run through prior to the highly anticipated afternoon concert. Notes were grasped, rhythms were tight, dynamics and articulation were added across all instrument sections and ensembles. Showtime!

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MY YEAR AS AN UPPER FOURTH MUSIC AWARD HOLDER I have really enjoyed this year as a Music Exhibitioner. It has widened the musical opportunities open to me and my highlight was the Scholars’ Concert. Performing in a high calibre concert gave me something to work towards between my work on Grade 8 Flute and Piano. Writing programme notes was a new skill that I acquired for it and I was glad to work on them in my weekly mentoring sessions. I have liked touching base each week with a member of Music Department staff, who ensured that I was factoring in practice and my lessons were going well alongside working on my listening and musicianship skills. Across the year I have listened to a range of music and am now developing interest in certain genres and styles of music. Being a Music Award Holder has really benefitted my musical life at Downe. Eliza Inglis, UIV

EVENING OF LIGHT MUSIC

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Downe House Music’s inaugural Evening of Light Music was held toward the end of January on a Sunday evening in the Concert Room. This was an informal evening of music making ranging from soloists to large ensembles, which was directed by Mrs McPherson, Miss Muir and Dr Alexander. Although it was indeed relaxed and informal with a palpable air of fun, enthusiasm and enjoyment, the audience was treated to performances of an impressively high standard and a wide range of musical styles. The concert commenced with Sinfonia Strings playing two pieces: ‘Danza’ by Ruiz-Pipo, and ‘Can you feel the love tonight’ by Elton John. The energetic dance rhythms and instantly accessible flair of ‘Danza’ complemented perfectly the musical lyricism of The Lion King hit, all played with confidence and impressive musicianship. Throughout the evening we were given solo performances on the oboe, cello, clarinet, bassoon and trumpet (by Matilda Bentley (UVI), Emilie Cheung (UV), Phoebe Whiting (Remove), Alexandra Kiy (UIV) and Jaira Vazquez Sanchez (LV), all of which provided beautiful and intimate contrasts to the ensemble music, and were perfectly suited to the Concert Room’s warm acoustic. As well as instrumental music, the fabulous Once Removed sang their distinctly up-beat and joyous version of Arlen and Koehler’s ‘Get Happy’; clearly a hit with the audience! The instrumental performances continued with the recently formed Sirocco Flute Choir’s rendition of Mozart’s well-known ‘A Musical Joke’, and the traditional tune ‘Phil The Fluter’, arranged for them by Miss Muir. Wind Band, having given us a memorably atmospheric and well-coloured arrangement of ‘Greensleeves’ and a wonderful instrumental version of Taylor Swift’s ‘Shake It Off’, joined forces with Sinfonia Strings to perform two very contrasting pieces with which to close the concert: John Adam’s minimalist classic ‘A Short Ride In A Fast Machine’ and Ben E King’s rock’n’roll standard ‘Stand By Me’ – this was an exuberant and very wellexecuted conclusion to the evening’s concert, which had attracted a large audience. All in all, a great start to the Lent Term’s music season. Dr Christian Alexander, Teacher of Music and Head of Composition MUSIC

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MINORITY INSTRUMENT SCHEME The Music Departmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Minority Instrument Scheme continues to be a wonderfully positive experience for all students in Remove. It is an opportunity for the girls to explore instruments they may never have thought about learning - of course this is extremely beneficial to the girls as well as the Department as a whole. The graduates learning Low Strings, Low Brass, Low Woodwind and Percussion will become highly specialised musicians within the Department, arguably giving them more opportunities to be part of ensemble music making at Downe House. All of the girls who are chosen to take instrumental lessons are given one termâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s worth of lessons as a free trial. The percentage of girls continuing is getting better year on year and it is exciting to see these instruments flourish within our school. Mr Adam Treadaway, Teacher of Music, Percussion and Voice, and Resident Tutor (AGS)

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EAST MEETS WEST

MUSIC TECHNOLOGY

On 8 February, our UV musicians experienced an inspirational day of music workshops with fellow GCSE musicians from around the county, put on by the Berkshire Maestros. The day was built and planned around the works our musicians were studying for their GCSEs and aimed to provide live demonstrations and activities to enhance their understanding of the works.

I started my Music Technology A Level course in the Lower Sixth and really enjoyed the first year.

On arrival our musicians were split into two groups to experience the two musical styles of the East and the West. The East group were taken to an Indian music ensemble, where they watched and listened to a live performance of Rag Desh on the sitar, tabla and tambura before learning about how Indian music is learnt and how musical patterns develop through improvisation. In the meantime, the West group were taken to a live performance of a Baroque ensemble and experienced the exact sound of authentic Baroque instruments, as well as exploring and revising the musical features that contributed to the Baroque style. Following a pizza lunch our musicians were once more divided up into a number of smaller groups and were asked to compose a piece of music which incorporated features of both the Indian and Baroque musical styles. The results of the compositions were incredibly varied and different, with some entirely percussive and vocal performances that built their works on talas (Indian rhythmic cycles), to a multi-instrumental ensemble who built their work on the Indian three layer texture, with drones, percussive ostinati and improvised melodies with Baroque ornamentation.

We studied the development of popular music from the 1920s to present day and learnt about how culture influenced music and how many styles of popular music branched out from key genres such as Blues, Gospel and Country. Our two main areas of study were the artists and forces used in Electronic Dance Music and Punk Rock. The coursework projects were wide ranging and included rewriting a song from one genre to another and producing a song of our own choice. Charlotte Aldrich, LVI

The day provided an excellent opportunity for our musicians to revise their set works in an enjoyable, relaxed and interactive way and certainly deepened their understanding of the works in preparation for the upcoming exam. Mrs Amy McPherson, Assistant Director of Music

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

MUSIC

YOUNG MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR 2016 Our Young Musician of the Year competition is a jewel in our musical crown, promoting music-making at the highest level as well as a healthy sense of competition. Most importantly, it gives all of our musicians the opportunity to perform to an encouraging and supportive audience and receive feedback from an external adjudicator. This year’s competition was certainly a year to remember which radiated exceptional talent, a thriving department and an insatiable appetite for all things musical. With 15 rounds, 39 classes, 6 adjudicators and 230 individual performances taking place over a four week period, the competition culminated with a breath-taking Finals and Prize Winners’ Concert on Sunday 20 March. Our Young Musician of the Year Competition promotes music making at all levels, encouraging our musicians of the future as well as celebrating the advanced musicianship of girls. As such there are three separate classes: Music Maker (Grades 1-3), Maestro (Grades 4-6) and Virtuoso (Grade 7+). All girls enter one of the classes above and are placed into one of four preliminary rounds: vocal; wind, brass and percussion; strings; keyboard. A small number of girls are then selected to go through to the semi-finals where the overall winner for each instrumental/vocal round is selected to become our finalists. These girls compete at the Prize Winners’ Concert for the coveted title of Young Musician of the Year. This year the Young Musician titles were awarded to Antonia Holloway (LIV) oboe (Virtuoso), Luoyi (Sunny) Li (UIV) piano (Maestro), Kitty DoddNoble (LIV) vocals and piano (Rock ‘n’ Pop) and Kyara Uchida (UV) harp (Music Maker). It was a breath-taking Final with incredible flourishes of musicianship displayed from all competitors. Special mention must be made to a stunning performance given by Antonia Holloway, our Virtuoso winner, that would have been at home in any undergraduate finals recital programme.

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However, the winners were given a run for their money by their fellow finalists. There was a string of captivating performances in the Virtuoso category given by Rose Galbraith (LVI) vocal, Anna Riley (LV) strings and Man I (Melissa) Chang (UV) keyboard. Stylish and highly characterful performances were given by finalists in the Maestro category who were Emilie Cheung (UV) and Katie Hackman (LV) vocal, Lucy Harley (LVI) wind, brass and percussion and Catharine Wippell (UV) strings. The Rock ‘n’ Pop Finalists, Jennifer Standbrook (UV) and Lauren Dunn (LV), performed a series of moving songs bringing a refreshing dimension to the Prize Winners’ Concert. In the Music Maker category, the Finalists were Daisy Williams (LIV) vocal, Holly Skinner (LV) wind, brass and percussion and Polly Cecil (Remove) keyboard who all performed with confidence and a sense of panache – our virtuosos of the future! We were incredibly privileged to have welcomed the concert pianist Alisdair Hogarth to adjudicate the Finals of our competition. He was himself a high achieving young musician, giving his concert debut at the age of 15 as soloist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra which was broadcasted live on Classic FM. Mr Hogarth gave an excellent adjudication with incredible insights into the girls’ performances, drawing upon his extensive performing and broadcasting experiences with the BBC and Classic FM. Our Young Musician of the Year Competition is one of the favourite musical events of the year, giving the opportunity for girls to give such a dazzling array of performances and to development their musicianship. Congratulations to everybody who took part – I, for one, can’t wait for next year’s competition! Dr Charlotte Exon, Director of Music

MUSIC

DOWNE HOUSE MUSIC SHOWCASE Sunday 28 February 2016 at St John’s Church, Newbury This was an aptly-named concert, which really DID showcase the wide-ranging talents of about 100 music students from Downe House School, and delighted a very enthusiastic and appreciative audience. Through excellent and slick stage- and performance- management, a diversity of items were presented in the well-chosen acoustic of St John’s Church. The resulting sum of over £1,000 was raised for the School’s chosen charity Christian Aid, directed through the charity’s Newbury Committee. From the massive orchestral opening by the Symphony Orchestra of music from ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ to the concluding prayerfulness of John Rutter’s setting of ‘For the Beauty of the Earth’, sung by In Harmony and Senior Choral members, the audience was assailed by varying styles and sounds in a programme which had so much to delight. One of the most daring orchestral choices was, I felt, the Finale from the Trumpet Concerto in E flat by Joseph Haydn for orchestra without soloist. This was taken at a dignified pace, and courageously tackled, if somewhat unfamiliar to me in this arrangement. Many musicians played instruments or sang, others did both, and all so well-rehearsed and presented. An organ opening set the majestic scene for Senior Choral’s ‘O Sing Unto the Lord’, and unaccompanied ‘Ubi Caritas’ by Ola Gjeilo was well-balanced and maintained. With a further genre change, Holcombe Singers, performing from the choir gallery, gave a skilful close harmony performance of ‘Run To You’ by Pentatonix – with the excellent diction and inspired voices, I found this “groovy”! Still the talent flowed, this time into the liquid sounds of ‘Oblivion’ by Fauré played by Downe House Flutes – deceptively clever and engaging. As adjectives flowed from my brain, we were then treated to the romantic and sad folk-song-like ‘And So It Goes’, a poignantly portrayed arrangement of an unaccompanied Billy Joel piece, with some lovely close harmonies from The Robinson Singers.

Malcolm Arnold has produced music of huge fun, ideally illustrated by Symphonic Wind Ensemble in The PreGoodman Rag featured in his Clarinet Concerto No. 2. This was delivered with humour and panache by the wind players who entered fully into the jollity. Giving the world première of a setting of ‘The Lord is My Shepherd, I Shall Not Want’ by the School’s Director of Music, Dr Charlotte Exon, In Harmony were truly named, in their sensitive and reverent part-singing, which they followed by contrasting items from Billy Elliot and Chess, with mood changes and thrilling crescendos. As the church returned to a prayerful atmosphere with the Rutter item, the feeling of excitement remained. This had been a challenging evening’s work for all concerned, which was met with exuberance, skill, and with many hours’ previous hard work between staff and students to bring off such an exhilarating concert. It was obvious that they, and we in the audience, thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Mrs Carolyn Greenwood, Newbury and District Organists Association, St John’s Church Newbury

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MUSIC

MY YEAR AS A LOWER FIFTH MUSIC SCHOLAR Life as a Music Scholar has kept me very busy and on my feet throughout the year. I have strengthened my performance skills by performing as a soloist and in an orchestra. I enjoyed playing in the Music Scholarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s concert and was really happy when I got through to the finals of the Downe House Young Musician of the Year competition. I also participated in our House Music choir and I was overjoyed when I won the prize of best soloist for my performance, bringing home the award for Aisholt House. During my music mentor sessions with Mr Brayne we have tried to explore a wide range of classical music and sometimes as a treat, we would take the Disney song quiz which was great fun and something that I feel sure both of us really enjoyed! Lastly, I would like to thank Mr Brayne for being a great music mentor, and the all the staff in the Music Department for making this year extremely exciting and eventful. I have thoroughly enjoyed myself this year and hope to continue next year. Anna Riley, LV

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CELEBRATING DIPLOMA SUCCESS It is with great pride that we are able to congratulate three of our Music Award Holders for successfully gaining their ATCL advanced performance diplomas through Trinity College London. Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan (clarinet, LVI), Wai-Ping (Sarah) Kwok (clarinet, UV) and Janice Wing Tung Kwong (flute, LVI) all took a rigorous performance exam during this academic year, which required a recital programme of at least 32 minutes, supported by independently researched and written programme notes. These diplomas are not awarded lightly and Tiffany, Sarah and Janice worked incredibly hard to prepare performances well beyond the technical and expressive requirements of grade 8. They were assessed on their musical technique, communication, making musical sense of their repertoire and on their overall performance presentation. Some particular congratulations must go to Tiffany and Janice, who not only passed their exam, but were also awarded highly coveted Distinction marks. Dr Charlotte Exon, Director of Music

MUSIC

FOUNDER’S WEEKEND

BRING THE HOUSE DOWNE The highly anticipated Bring the House Downe competition kicked off just before Founder’s Weekend with an exciting Preliminary Round. The evening saw a healthy mix of instrumental and choral ensembles from across the School vying for a place in the finals during Founder’s weekend.

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Each ensemble, organised predominantly by the students, performed to a packed audience as well as a judging panel consisting of Mrs McPherson, Mrs Bizior and Head Senior, Florence Elliott (LVI). There was no end to the variety on display; from intricate acapella pop song mash ups to two tubas and a flute playing ‘Postman Pat’. It was a real celebration of the music making at Downe and showcased all levels. Once Removed took the audience by surprise with their striking opening to ‘Shosholoza’ and City Swingers impressed with their jazzy instrumental arrangement of ‘Chicago’ to all gain a place in the final. Ad Astra’s powerful acapella version of ‘Sound of Silence’ and The Robinson Singers effortless performance of ‘Under the Sea’ assured their places in the final. Founder’s Ensemble, Holcombe Singers, In Harmony, Indian Rose, North of Tomorrow, The Happy Hermites and The Project were also successful in reaching the final. The final took place on the Saturday of Founder’s Weekend in the Farr Centre and welcomed Miss Caroline Woodhouse from Berkshire Maestros to join Mrs Bizior and Florence Elliott on the panel. All ensembles elevated their

performances to suit the big stage and took responsibility, right down to what to wear! The Project captivated the audience with a cover of Birdy’s ‘Wings’ and was praised by the panel for adding originality to the well-known song. Indian Rose’s well-choreographed and comical take on Lakmé’s ‘Flower duet’ earned them the coveted Audience Cup for the Most Entertaining Performance, and North of Tomorrow’s carefully crafted and excellently executed pop song mash up won them the Director of Music Cup for the Most Promising Performance. The Glass Trophy for the Most Outstanding Individual Contribution was awarded to Anna Chalmers (LVI) for conducting the Founder’s Ensemble, and The Happy Hermites secured the Parry Cup for the Most Inspirational Choral Performance for their heart-warming version of ‘Flashlight’. Huge congratulations are due to Ad Astra for triumphing and winning the Bring the House Downe Cup (1st prize), to Holcombe Singers for coming second and the Founder’s Ensemble for coming in third. Well done to all involved for such an exceptional and enjoyable competition. Miss Fiona Muir, Graduate Music Assistant DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

FOUNDER’S WEEKEND

FOUNDER’S CONCERT 2016

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A triumphant orchestral fanfare heralded the opening of the Founder’s Concert 2016 with Sheldon’s ‘Resurgences’ performed by the Founder’s Orchestra. The Orchestra ably coled by Anna Chalmers and Rose Galbraith (both LVI) dazzled the audience with their rhythmic precision, energy and impressive orchestral colour. There were a number of solos, specifically by Janice Wing Tung Kwong (LVI) principal flute, Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan (LVI) principal clarinet and Emma Talbot-Rice (LV) principal French horn. Most notably, principal oboist, Clementine Lewins (LV), played a beautifully stylish and lyrical solo. The finale demonstrated the strength and vibrancy of the orchestra, bringing the piece to an authoritative and exhilarating conclusion conducted by Dr Exon. The training ensembles presented a programme of music that would have kept you guessing as to whether they were really training or part of the Symphony Orchestra! Sinfonia Strings led by Olivia Jackson (LIV), performed ‘A Thousand Years’ followed by the Wind Band’s performance of the Main Theme from Star Wars. The ensembles came together to perform the ‘Habanera’ and ‘Toreador’s Song’ from Bizet’s Carmen Suite No.2 with a confident solo by the leader of the Wind Band, Jaira Vazquez Sanchez (LV), conducted by Mrs McPherson. A real musical gem at the heart of the Founder’s Concert was a captivating and intimate performance of Debussy’s Rêverie by the Founder’s Ensemble. This was stylishly conducted by Anna Chalmers, Head Senior of Music, and dexterously led by Rose Galbraith. If you ever needed convincing that the choral tradition of the School continues to go from strength to strength, the choirs of Downe House were on flying form. Once Removed gave a charming performance singing a comical pastiche Mozartian MUSIC

performance with Watson’s ‘A La Carte’ complete with actions. Choral gave a stylish performance of ‘Humba Lulu’ painting the vibrant colours of the African landscape with tight a capella ensemble. There was a moving performance of ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ by Junior Choral followed by some energetic singing of ‘Saints go Marchin’’ with a fiendish accompaniment impressively executed by Mrs Gilpin-Jones. Onwards on our choral journey saw In Harmony giving a captivating performance of Chilcott’s ‘Like A Singing Bird’ together with an enchanting performance of ‘Half The World Away’ arranged specially for the choir. Last but by no means east, the student led choir, Ad Astra, ably led by the Lower Fifth of AGN performed as winners of ‘Bring The House Downe’ Competition with their song ‘Sound of Silence’. With a dazzling display of virtuosity, Janice Wing Tung Kwong, one of our Music Scholars, gave a breath-taking performance of Chaminade’s Concertino pour Flûte with its impressive runs and flourishes accompanied by Mrs Couser. This was also the perfect opportunity for us to celebrate and recognise Mrs Couser’s 35 years’ service to the School. And then to the Finale! Foreshadowing the Rio Olympic Games, the concert closed with the explosive, infectious and colourful rhythms of Samba Evolution, comprising all of the Lower Fourth in one large impressive samba band. Indeed, the solos of Olivia Jackson and Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho (LIV) captured the character of South America. What a way to finish a concert – and when you thought it couldn’t get any better! Bravissimo to all girls who took part in this fantastic concert. Dr Charlotte Exon, Director of Music

The Music Showcase provided an hour of superb solo and ensemble performances on the Saturday afternoon of Founder’s Weekend. An eclectic and well-polished mix of music was presented, from the Double Reed Group’s stylish performance of ‘La Rejouissance’ and ‘Menuets I and II’ from Handel’s Music for the Royal Fireworks, to an incredibly atmospheric and musical performance of ‘Losing my Mind’ by Stephen Sondheim, sung expertly by our Deputy Head of Music, Charlotte Aldrich (LVI), accompanied by the House Band. Both of the School’s flute ensembles took to the stage during this event. DH Flutes opened the concert with their performance of Piazolla’s ‘Oblivion’. The subtle flute timbres of this ensemble certainly emphasised and expressed the kaleidoscopic effects of the work. Later in the concert, the Sirocco Flute Choir also impressed with their lively performance of an arrangement of Mozart’s ‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’. A number of highly impressive solo performances were also showcased, including two excellent vocal performances by our Head of Music, Anna Chalmers (LVI) and one of our Music Award Holders, Amelie Furse (LIV). Anna’s accomplished performance of Handel’s ‘Where’er you walk’ demonstrated great vocal technique and stylish decorations, while Amelie captured the mood of Gilbert and Sullivan’s ‘Love is a Plaintive Song’ perfectly. Louyi (Sunny) Li (UIV),

our Maestro Young Musician of the Year, took to the Concert Room stage once more with a virtuosic performance of ‘Embroidering a Portrait in Gold’ by Wang Jian Zhong on the piano and Katherine Maloney (LVI) performed Chopin’s Waltz no. 2 in B minor, demonstrating great affinity with the Romantic musical style. (UIV) Molly Dewar’s presentation of the bassoon as a virtuosic solo instrument was greatly enjoyed by all, with a performance of Weber’s Bassoon Concerto in F major, while (LIV) Lucia Bugeja’s performance of Dussek’s Sonatina no. 2 in F major for harp certainly captured the audience’s imagination with subtle dynamic contrast and musical expression. Hye Lim Park (LV) closed the concert with a superb performance of ‘Rondo’ from Mozart’s Violin Concerto no. 2 in D major, which provided an impressive and cheerful end to the afternoon’s events

FOUNDER’S WEEKEND

MUSIC SHOWCASE AT FOUNDER’S WEEKEND

Mrs Amy McPherson, Assistant Director of Music

BUSKERS’ CORNER Buskers’ Corner, an event now established on the Sunday of Founder’s Weekend, took place again under blue skies and warming summer sunshine (rather surprisingly if the weather forecast had been believed). Fresh from the successes of that afternoon’s Founder’s Concert, groups of girls got together to entertain the gathering crowd on the Greek Steps in the relaxed and genial atmosphere that our musicians always create for Buskers’ Corner.

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Robinson Singers kicked off the event with a vibrant and fun rendition of ‘Under The Sea’ from Disney’s film The Little Mermaid, which was followed by Sirocco Flutes directed by Miss Muir, who performed a beautiful medley of the songs ‘Danny Boy’ and ‘The Parting Glass’, arranged for them by Miss Muir. North Of Tomorrow, one of the many thriving a cappella groups at Downe, performed four songs from their ever-expanding repertoire, all arranged and sung with typical elan and musicality: ‘House Of Gold’, ‘Faded’, ‘Feelin’ Good’ (for which Mr Treadaway and Dr Alexander joined them on ukulele and guitar), and ‘Oh Africa’, which provided an up-beat finish to their set and demonstrated the group’s growing confidence as entertainers. Sarah Park (UIV) performed an unaccompanied Korean folk song, which had in its music a tranquil beauty and was sung with assured confidence and intensity. The rapt stillness that spread throughout the audience as she drew them into her performance was testimony to the persuasiveness of Sarah’s singing. One of the Upper Fourth ukulele groups (with percussion and singing too), taught and directed by Mrs McPherson, then gave us a lively and fun version of The Lumineers’ song ‘Ho Hey’, which had everyone tapping their feet as they sipped drinks and ate ice cream. To round off the 2016 Buskers’ Corner Downe’s Double Reed Group (now a fixture at this annual event), directed by Mrs Ashworth (and accompanied by Mr Treadaway on snare drum), performed two movements from Handel’s Music for the Royal Fireworks. As this lovely sound pervaded the centre of the Downe campus and we readied ourselves for the BBQ and Big Band, the crowd’s enjoyment of our in-house buskers was quite palapable. Dr Christian Alexander, Teacher of Music and Head of Composition DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

FOUNDER’S WEEKEND

BIG BAND BBQ Founder’s Weekend this year was, as usual, full of music, dance and merriment. It culminated in a fantastic performance by Downe House Big Band, playing Jazz Standards and more popular tunes. The girls played with great enthusiasm and felt privileged to play along-side some of their instrumental teachers. Performing on the Greek Steps with audience members relaxing whilst enjoying the BBQ was a most exhilarating experience. Michael Jackson’s Bad was most definitely a highlight of the event, creating the biggest buzz around the Cloisters. All in all, both the performers and audience were delighted with the weather, food and of course the music!

ABRSM RESULTS Grade 1 Pass

Tara Dyer (Singing), Louisa Healey (Singing)

Merit

Mia Viventi (Singing)

Distinction

Harriet Boucher (Singing), Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho (Violin), Tabitha Kendall (Singing), Alice Pernthaller (Singing), Alice Pernthaller (Flute)

Grade 2 Pass

Saskia Dale (Piano), Honor Hamwee (Singing), Jemima Harrison (Piano), Jade Jacomb (Piano), Annabel Le Grice (Singing), Nosa Ogiemwonyi (Singing), Hannah Perkins (Flute), Safiya Shamji (Piano)

Merit

Oluwatamilore Bolodeoku (Singing), Jessica Bracken (Piano), Chioma Emenike (Singing), Olivia Pockney (Piano), Georgina Pollock (Piano), Imogen Webber (Singing)

Distinction

Polly Cecil (Piano), Morgan Kandrac (Piano)

Grade 3 Pass

Tosin Adepoju (Singing), Chioma Emenike (Violin), Julia Kennerley (Singing), Alexandra Kiy (Bassoon), Alexandra Kiy (Piano), Charlotte Pearson (Singing), Alice Peters (Singing), Kate Rollo (Piano), Imogen Simpson-Orlebar (Oboe), Lucy Skrine (Singing), Imogen Webber (Alto Saxophone)

Merit

Zoe Carruthers (Singing), Natalia Cremin (Singing), Saskia Dale (Singing), Oluchi Emenike (Violin), Jocasta Ferrigno (Singing), Annie Hazlitt (Singing), Annie Hazlitt (Alto Saxophone), Gardiner Hunt (Flute), Clementine McNair Scott (Singing), Motolani Oladitan (Singing), Mathilda Singer (Oboe), You-Oceane Wang (Singing), Beatrice Weaver (Singing)

Distinction

Jaira Vazquez Sanchez (Singing)

160 Grade 4 Pass

Jameliah Adekunle (Cello), Shalayna Assani (Alto Saxophone), Lucy Bergstrom (Singing), Emily Carpmael (Piano), Lettice Cornell (Singing), Chioma Emenike (Piano), Oluchi Emenike (Piano), Florence Fanshawe (Singing), Tara Farquhar (Singing), Imogen Gregory (Piano), Annie Hazlitt (Piano), Francesca Horton (Piano), Francesca Horton (Flute), Matilda McDougall (Piano), Poppy Penney (Clarinet), Celeste Percy (Singing), Sasha Percy-Davis (Singing), Margot Ridley (Singing), Mathilda Singer (Piano), Lucy Skrine (Piano), Jennifer Standbrook (Piano), Helena Wormsley (Clarinet)

Merit

Maya Huby (Singing), Gardiner Hunt (Singing), Sumin Kim (Piano), Yan Jing (Amy) Tse (Harp), Poppy Wessely (Cello)

Distinction

Evelyn Graham (Singing)

Grade 5 Pass

Ilaria Bevan (Singing), Emily Carpmael (Clarinet), Huen Tung (Angela) Chan (Theory), Laura Douglas-Hamilton (Singing), Lucy Dyer (Singing), Oluchi Emenike (Theory), Phoebe Evans (Singing), Katherine Garnett (Singing), Alexandra Hamilton (Violin), Milly Hine (Singing), Amelia Hughes (Theory), Luoyi (Sunny) Li (Piano), Florence McNair Scott (Theory), Amelia Milne (Singing), Elizabeth Reynard (Theory), Victoria Scobie (Singing), Araminta Swallow (Singing), Sasha Villiers-Smith (Piano), Alexa Wiggin (Theory), Poppy Wilson (Singing), Rosalind Wippell (Cello)

Merit

Amelia Bentley (Violin), Deena Bhanarai (Piano), Lucia Bugeja (Piano), Emily Carpmael (Theory), Anna Chalmers (Singing), Tae-Chan Ellis (Theory), Imogen Fowler (Theory), Christabel Graham (Singing), Monique Leong (Singing), Charlotte Nicholson (Theory), Catherine Nicol (Violin), Sarah Park (Theory), Eloise Percy-Davis (Theory), Jennifer Standbrook (Theory), Jennifer Standbrook (Singing), Araminta Swallow (Theory), You-Oceane Wang (Theory), Poppy Winsor (Theory), Rosalind Wippell (Piano)

Distinction

Lucia Bugeja (Harp), Kitty Dodd-Noble (Singing), Gabriella Nelson (Classical Guitar), Grace Soltero (Singing), Arabella Woo (Theory)

Grade 6 Pass

Isabella Evans (Violin), Olivia Harrison (Piano), Charlotte Nicholson (Alto Saxophone), You-Oceane Wang (Piano), Rosalind Wippell (Singing)

Merit

Cecelia Kane (Singing), Alice Wills (Violin), Catharine Wippell (Singing)

Distinction

Lauren Dunn (Singing), Isabelle Smith (Singing)

Grade 7 Pass

Anna Chalmers (Violin), Lucy Cunningham (Piano), Ngozi Emenike (Alto Saxophone), Georgia Hewitson (Piano), Eliza Inglis (Piano), Chee Sum (Tiffany) Lai (Piano), Elizabeth Tatham (Piano)

Distinction

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho (Piano), Chee Sum (Tiffany) Lai (Singing), Hye Lim Park (Violin)

Grade 8 Pass

Georgina Galbraith (Singing), Lucinda Penney (Singing), Clementine Swallow (Singing)

Merit

India Burney (Singing), Olivia Harrison (Singing), Harriet Henry (Singing), Oi Ka (Natalie) Lam (Flute)

Distinction

Rose Galbraith (Singing)

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SPORT

SPORTS DAY

Sports Day ran smoothly this year without a single drop of rain! This is the first time in five years so it was set to be a successful day. Notable performances in the field events included Poppy Wessely (Remove) with her Javelin throw of 24.47m, which narrowly missed the school record. She went on to win the ‘Best Throw’ award in the presentations. Florence Stringer (LIV) ran a fantastic 1500m race with a very tense sprint finish, only to be beaten by Claudia Kandel (LV) by just one second. Her impressive time won her the ‘Best Junior Athlete’ award.

SPORTS DAY

An exciting part of the day is always the 800m race that concludes the closely fought Pentathlon competition that the top athletes from each House are selected to compete in. The Junior prize went to Clementine Black (LIV) with the intermediate event being won by Amelia Hughes (LV). Captain of Athletics, Daisy Padovan (LVI), set a fantastic example to all the aspiring athletes in the school and was named as ‘Best Senior Athlete’. She won the Senior 100m, Senior Long Jump, Senior Triple Jump and was a part of the winning open relay team. The whole day saw victories from various Houses but the overall winners were AGN (again). Can any House beat them next year? Mrs Elizabeth Hathaway, Head of PE

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DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

LACROSSE

LACROSSE REPORT The lacrosse season kicked off with a successful two days of pre-season training where we saw some new players shine, particularly after the exciting tour to the USA. It looked to be a promising season ahead. The Michaelmas Term started well and as the tournaments began, the successes were building and trophies were being won. The 1st and U15 teams took on the local rivals and were winners of the Berkshire Schools Tournament with the U14A team coming close runners up. This set the ball rolling and the 1st team went on to win the South West Schools’ tournament as well. The 3rd team had been entered into the 2nd team tournament as an extra team and did extremely well, managing to reach the semi-final. The Five Schools’ Tournament is always a tough competition and this year the 2nd and U15 teams were victorious again with fantastic wins against Queen Anne’s, Wycombe Abbey, Berkhamsted and St Helen’s and St Katherine’s. On the back of these successes, Downe House had over 30 girls representing Berkshire at the County Championship held later in the term. The Lent Term is an important one for all teams in the build up to the National Schools’ Tournament. The 1st team started the tournament well, finishing top of their group and went through to the premier division on the Saturday. They had some success on Saturday but were knocked out in the afternoon by one of the finalists. The 2nd team faired much the same with both teams finishing in the top 16 schools in the country. The U15 team, having had such a fantastic season so far, went into the tournament with confidence. They had an unbelievable five wins in a row which put them through to the last 16. They had a convincing win in the quarter finals against St Catherine’s Bramley and then beat St Paul’s in extra time putting them through to the final. After a nail biting final against Godolphin School, the U15A team were silver medallists, ranking them 2nd in the country. A fantastic achievement.

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The lacrosse season always finishes with the Junior South West Rally where this year, a heavily depleted U13A team fought their socks off to become runners up of the tournament which is a rarity at this age-group. They managed to get the same amount of points as St Swithun’s but ended up narrowly losing out on goal difference. Overall, the season was very promising and we saw some incredible performances. Downe House had three girls in the South West Regional Team; Florence Elliott, Georgina Witter and Sophie Manners (all LVI). Georgina Witter also represented the Junior England B team at the Home Internationals held at Surrey Sports Park in April where her team was victorious in both of their matches against the home nations. From there, Georgina was chosen to represent the A Team against Sweden. We also would like to wish Amelia Hughes (LV) luck in her upcoming England development tour to the USA! Miss Rebecca Thomas, Teacher of PE and House Tutor (Hill)

SPORT

HOCKEY

HOCKEY REPORT The 2015-16 season has been one of the most exciting yet for Downe House hockey. Teams across all age groups have brought back some fantastic results in both regional and county leagues. It kicked off with the addition of a new coach, Mr Mahmood, who has been helping us to improve our stick skills and the technical aspects of the game through individual sessions which have been popular with many. From the word go, the senior teams have been taking part in Monday morning fitness sessions with Mrs Hathaway and the results have really started to show in the games, so the early mornings have been worth it! The U14s have had a successful first year as they were the West Berkshire League winners and they were also the runners up in the Berkshire Plate Competition, which they narrowly lost on penalty flicks. This is a very exciting team and definitely one to watch as the players progress through the school. The U15s managed to secure fourth place in the Berkshire Tournament and the U16s became the West Berkshire League winners which is a huge achievement on both levels. Additionally, the 1st team also won the West Berkshire League and reached the semi final stage of the Berkshire Tournament. All teams took part in the indoor tournaments during the Michaelmas Term which are always great fun and are a great experience for the younger players.

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This season also marked a landmark achievement for the 1st team as the girls finally won a staff v. student match! Two matches were played with the staff, with Miss Baker leading the staff team, the staff won the first match but only to be beaten by the girls in the re match 3-2. We have been delighted to introduce some new awards for the girls this season too. At the end of each term, each girl votes for a ‘players’ player’ and the coaches also select a player of the term. Individually, this season has been very exciting for Rebecca Radford (LVI), who has been playing for Berkshire (U17) and she was part of the team who became the South Champions. Rebecca has also been selected for the Junior Regional Performance Centre which is a huge achievement in itself. Off the pitch we were also so lucky to go and watch Reading Hockey Club in their final game of the season, and afterwards to meet some of the players who will be going to Rio this summer! A brilliant but very cold day out! Jessica Ledger, UVI DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

NETBALL

NETBALL 1ST TEAM REPORT Netball fans held their breath as the 2015/16 season got underway and the Downe House 1st Team did not disappoint. The team went from strength to strength crushing any school in the Thames Valley standing in the way of their quest for netballing greatness! The pinnacle of the season was undoubtedly the South West Berkshire U18 tournament, where Downe House showcased their skill and raw athleticism to cruise to victory, winning all six of their games. The Bradfield tournament hosted some of the finest netball teams in the land and the crisp morning air was ripe for a day of giant-killing. But alas, it was not to be. In the wake of defeat, the team began an intense early morning training regimen with Miss Quarterman and before long our form was rediscovered. The comeback began and victories flowed against Tudor Hall, Pangbourne and Lord Wandsworth College. We have said goodbye to some of the finest netballers that have ever graced the Downe House 1st team as the Upper Sixth fly the nest, but their netballing careers do not stop here. Felicia Tchen, Hannah Beck, Esther Adebajo and Sarah Orpen will surely play for their various university teams. Emma Peddie, Ngozi Emenike, Eleanor Leeves and Ione Sandberg also need a particular mention for their savvy play, which will be sorely missed. Isobel Wild, UVI Captain of Netball

REPORT FROM HEAD OF NETBALL 166

In January we took a full minibus to watch the England vs Australia game at the Copper Box. England was out to impress and demonstrate how the new rules will influence the game. Full of hot dogs and brimming with inspiration we all returned ready to work hard and become the next Jo Harten! The Lower School family netball tournament brought the season to a close with the usual morning of laughs and appreciation for all the work the girls put into training. We are already looking forward to next season which we hope will be even bigger and better than this year. Miss Laura Vickery, Head of Netball and Resident Tutor (Willis)

2015/16 saw a full fixture list with an impressive percentage of the girls opting into competitive netball. Highlights included the C and D teams’ domination of the block fixture against Cheltenham Ladies College; the U14 team’s never ending potential when stretched in lessons; a Remove year group repeatedly proving their depth of talent and a senior squad keen to work together as a long squad to raise achievement. For the first time in recent history we entered the School Sport Magazine National Schools’ Cup, a knockout competition which saw the U15A and newly formed U12A teams competing all over the region. The U12 team did fantastically well reaching the South West England semi-finals. Outstanding performances continued throughout the year leading to Downe House winning the U12, U13, U14, U15 and U18 South West Berkshire tournaments. Continuing the winning streak, the U15A and U15C teams both competed in the South West England GSA tournament, the U15A team proudly retaining the trophy.

There have been some fantastic individual achievements too as we look to support local clubs and provide opportunities to challenge our girls. The Scholars received additional guidance from their mentors and the benefits of fitness sessions with Miss Huxtable showed on the court. Honor Neville (Remove), Jemima Landale (LIV) and Anna Neville (UIV) were all selected to represent Newbury Juniors Netball Club. Anna was offered a Satellite 1 Academy training place and a spot in Eagles Netball Club’s U14 Team that later qualified for the national finals and placed 3rd in England. Melissa McAlpine (LVI) continues to play for Woodley, now in the U19 team which won the ‘Get Berkshire Active Team of the Year Award’ in February, an outstanding achievement. Several girls have been working towards their umpiring qualification. Well done to Isabelle Brown, Sasha Coulson, Jennifer Tett, Rebecca Topping, Alexa Feather (all UV), Olivia Holden and Hebe Meredith (both LVI), we hope to see you qualified and umpiring school matches next season.

U13A South West Berkshire Winners

U14A South West Berkshire Winners

U15A GSA South West England Winners

U18 South West Berkshire Winners

AWARDS Senior Player of the Season

Isobel Wild (UVI)

Junior Player of the Season

Anna Neville (UIV)

Sarah Sutton Cup for the most improved Felicia Tchen (UVI) senior player of the year Full School Colours awarded to Isobel Wild, Felicia Tchen, Esther Adebajo, Hannah Beck, Sarah Orpen (all UVI), Georgina Fenn, Hebe Meredith, Melissa McAlpine, Olivia Holden (all LVI) U15 Colours awarded to Sophie Bott, Katherine O’Shea, Imogen Dundas, Hoi Laam (Karis) Cheung, Amelia Hughes, Milly Hine, Lucinda Hammond, Zara Karoly, Amelia Smith, Lauren Dunn, Claudia Kandel, Gabriella Franklin (all LV) SPORT

TENNIS & SQUASH

TENNIS CAPTAIN’S REPORT Last year was very successful for Downe House Tennis. Having played at the National Schools’ Finals in 2015, members of the 1st team were keen to win their round-robin matches again and return to Bolton. We won some tough and extremely close matches against schools such as Queen Anne’s, Peter Symonds College and St Mary’s Ascot in Michaelmas and Lent Terms and were delighted to reach the Finals again in February. The finals team, consisting of Lara Wigan (UVI), Lucy Harley, Georgina Witter, Melissa McAlpine (all LVI) and I, played singles and doubles matches against Framlingham College, Beauchamp College and Benenden School, the eventual tournament winners. We performed well in the matches with some very tight singles rubbers and beat competitive and talented players. I very much appreciated the support from Mr Allen, Mr Goodall, Mrs Rayne and our parents throughout the tournament, especially during my long singles matches which all lasted well over an hour. Overall Downe House came 7th in the country, a massive achievement, and we gained some great experience at such a competitive tournament.

Aegon Tennis Team

In the Summer Term I ran an extra training session on Thursday evenings and we had match practice and tactics with Mr Allen and Mr Goodall during Wednesday lunchtime. We started the term playing Wycombe Abbey and went on to win against other schools such as St Mary’s Calne and Cheltenham Ladies College. Lara Wigan, the previous tennis captain and my tennis-partner for two years, played her last match against Marlborough College, where we played very well as a doubles team and won all three rubbers convincingly. It was such a pleasure to play with Lara and we were both happy to finish her season in such a positive way. Towards the end of the term, three pairs participated in the Eton Tennis Championships, Melissa McAlpine and Hebe Meredith (LVI), Claudia Kandel and Zara Karoly (both LV), and Lucy Harley (LVI) and I. Claudia and Zara were very successful winning the U15 plate competition after being knocked out of the main tournament. Lucy and I had a rather tough group, including Eastbourne College and St Mary’s Calne. We came second in the group to make it through to finals day. Although Lucy and I lost on the last day of the tournament against Sevenoaks, who were a very tactically and technically good pair, we played very well during the competition, taking plenty away from it. We all look forward to playing there again next year. Overall Downe House Tennis had a triumphant year and I look forward to leading the team to more victories and back to Bolton this year.

167 Claudia Kandel and Zara Karoly

Camilla Farrell, Tennis Captain LVI

Wonderful Wimbledon 2016 We are very fortunate at Downe House to boast a fantastic team of tennis coaches that work incredibly hard with the girls, and are still dedicated to playing at the very highest level.

Marcus Willis at Wimbledon

We were thrilled to see Marcus Willis, one of our ATP tour playing coaches, on Centre Court of Wimbledon this year in his 2nd Round match with Roger Federer. It was a thoroughly entertaining match, in which Marcus’s character shone through to win over the crowd. Marcus reached the 2nd round after winning six matches to progress through pre-qualifying then qualifying! Marcus was joined at Wimbledon by fellow DH coaches Dan Cox and Neil Pauffley who both also qualified this year. Well done team!

SQUASH REPORT It’s been a good year for squash with both the U15A and B teams progressing through to the National Finals in Nottingham where they came 6th and 8th respectively. This was a huge achievement given they were competing against schools from across the whole country. They also won 9 of 11 friendly matches so we are excited that both teams are clearly exciting prospects for the future! The U19 1st and 2nd teams reached the last 16 but sadly didn’t qualify for the Nationals in Nottingham, but again both teams had success in friendlies and we look forward to future success for these teams too. Team practices have taken place on Thursday evenings and these have proved both popular in proving vital practice and an opportunity to enhance girls’ skills and game as an addition to the weekly lessons that are available. We look forward with great interest to next year and I wish my successor India Burney (LVI) much success as our new Squash Captain. Molly Adams, Squash Captain UVI DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

TENNIS FEATURE

TENNIS AT THE TOP Downe House is a new force to be reckoned with on the school tennis circuit and it is no accident that the sport has come to the fore over recent years, rising in popularity and gaining some notable achievements in tournaments. Head of Tennis, Tim Allen, has pursued his vision to make it a top flight sport and the results are clear to see. His first step was to recruit a coach from the world of competitive tennis and success came in the shape of Josh Goodall, British number two, second only to Andy Murray, and ranked 184 in the world. Mr Goodall’s decision to retire and elude the constant travel yoked to international playing and coaching, brought an opportunity for Downe to bring him to a permanent base on the courts at School. Their shared mission has been to improve Downe’s ranking in UK schools tennis, increase participation in the sport at all levels and produce a competitive first team to bring home the bacon. In just a few years, more pro coaches have joined the team and the School delivers 300 sessions per week including over 50 individual lessons plus options to take lessons in pairs or in a group. Neil Pauffley, Stephen Brackley, Luke Gojnic, Damian Lane and Chris Llewellyn have worked with Mr Allen and Mr Goodall to instill a ‘want to win’ ethos in the players. Now girls compete with each other for selection in the first and second team as well as with other schools. Mr Allen comments, “Our senior players are such a great inspiration to the younger girls and the outgoing Captain Lara Wigan was a great ambassador for the sport as well as being an amazing player. Thanks to the dedicated coaching team, tennis is a real strength at Downe.” Josh Goodall joined Downe House in 2014 straight from the competitive world of tennis. He has represented Britain, playing at Wimbledon eight times and competing in the Davis Cup alongside Andy Murray.

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Tim Allen’s invitation to join the permanent coaching staff at Downe House proved irresistible. He comments, “Now I can enjoy the atmosphere of something akin to a big tennis club, delivering lessons, attending tournaments, taking the girls on tour and witnessing tangible progress in our players. In a few years I’ve been able to inject a real competitive spirit into the girls’ practice and match play and we’ve seen incredible progression. We have every angle covered: mental attitude, fitness, tactics, technique and team work. The girls are keen to learn and we’ve been lucky enough to nurture some talented individuals.” Results have borne testament to all the hard work put in by coaches and girls. For the last two years Downe has made it to the finals of the Aegon National Schools Tennis in Bolton, last year placing 7th and the year before 3rd with a firm place in the top 20 schools in the country for tennis. Mr Goodall comments, “We are regularly beating teams that we used to lose to and there is a new found confidence in all our players.” His ultimate dream for tennis at Downe is threefold: some floodlit courts, some indoor courts and that one day a pupil will choose Downe House on the basis of its reputation for tennis. Hopefully that day is not far off. Ms Kate Raines, Communications Manager

SPORT

TENNIS FEATURE

Camilla Farrell, Captain of Tennis, gives her perspective I’ve been playing since I was four or five years old and I remember when I joined Downe in Remove, there was only one lesson per week. Thanks to help from Mr Allen, Melissa McAlpine (LVI) and I were able to change this to two and I’ve never looked back. It was not a main sport back then. Now it is incredibly popular amongst all age groups and it is very inclusive. With the appointment of the pro coaches such as Mr Goodall and Mr Pauffley there are more opportunities for girls to have lessons. The positive approach from Mr Allen and the rest of the team has improved the confidence of players to a such a point that they believe that they can win every match. There are so many girls contending to win a place in the first team and there are people playing year round every evening for pleasure and the social aspect as well as to improve their game. I teach six Remove and six LIV girls on Monday nights, plus I have team practice on a Friday in preparation for Saturday matches. Downe House has contributed significantly to my development as a player and helped me to realise my potential. Mr Goodall has been a great mentor and Mr Allen works so hard both on and off the court, improving the standard of tennis and the morale of the players. My greatest achievement is that I’ve been able to overcome my weaknesses, improve my tennis and see tennis become so highly regarded at School.

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I’m honoured to take over the captaincy from Lara Wigan (UVI). She has shown great leadership and I hope I can follow her example and be just as helpful to the younger year groups. I’m keen to introduce more evening practice sessions so that all the players can get used to working with different partners and work on tactics and confidence. My tennis journey at Downe has been incredibly exciting and I hope others can have the same experience. Camilla Farrell, LVI

Camilla Farrell, Tennis Captain

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

ATHLETICS & CROSS COUNTRY

ATHLETICS REPORT It has been another successful year for the Athletics team starting with our first athletics meet of the term at Marlborough. All teams were victorious with several athletes coming out of retirement to perform brilliantly for the Senior team. More matches against St.Mary’s Calne and Queen Anne’s allowed for special performances, particularly the U14 relay team of Eva Bartlett, Cecilia Boscawen, Anna Neville and Arah Elombi (all UIV). The U15 and U14 teams each won the Newbury Schools’ competition to reach the Regional Final of the Schools’ Cup at Millfield. Many athletes were selected to represent Newbury in the Berkshire Schools’ Championship, and congratulations go to Kitty Shepherd-Cross (UIV) for her victory in the U15 1500m. Always a strength is our performance in the multi events and three girls were selected to represent Berkshire in the South East Championships. Well done to all who have been part of the School team and thank you to everybody for giving 100% effort.

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Mrs Lydia Rayne, Director of Sport

CROSS COUNTRY REPORT Downe House hosted the 1st round of the Schools’ Cup in October and it was good to see some talented new Remove girls take part in this. The winner of the Inter-House age group competitions were Honor Neville (Remove), Olivia Lamb (LIV), Kitty Shepherd-Cross (UIV) and Charlotte Clover (LVI). The U15 and U17 teams both won the Newbury Schools’ and Kitty Shepherd-Cross won both the U15 Newbury Schools’ and Berkshire Schools’ competitions, as well as the Knole Run in Sevenoaks. Kitty and Georgina Marchand (UIV) both performed well for Berkshire in the Inter-Counties in Sussex. On the back of their successes, Kitty and Charlotte Clover were both selected to compete in the English Schools in March this year. The final team event was the Radley Relays where each girl in a team of four runs 3km over rough terrain, especially mud! We were delighted that the U15 team came 1st and the U17 team 2nd. It was a great way to end such a successful year of cross country at Downe House. Mrs Lydia Rayne, Director of Sport

SPORT

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SWIMMING TO SUCCESS Swimming this academic year has been extremely successful with an unbeaten season for the U12, U13 and 1st teams. The U14 and U15 teams were also successful, only narrowly losing one and two matches respectively. Extra squad training sessions were introduced in the mornings and evenings almost every day of the week with external coaches, Mrs Jackman and Mrs Cockar, along with stroke specific masterclasses by Mrs Stoddart and Mrs Machin. These have raised the swimming standards at Downe, which is reflected in the match stats and the following school records broken: U13 50m Backstroke

Madeleine (Maddi) Hales (Remove)

U15 25m & 50m Front Crawl

Claudia Kandel (LV)

U13 Medley Relay

Madeleine (Maddi) Hales,, Florence Hack (LIV), India Hinds (Remove) and Morgan Kandrac (LIV)

SWIMMING & BIATHLON

Charlotte Clover at the British Modern Biathlon Championships

U13 Freestyle Relay Gwyneth Choi, Madeleine (Maddi) Hales, Omolade Pearse and Morgan Kandrac Not only did the teams compete in friendly matches, but this year we were able to take part in more tournaments than in previous years, including the Girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; School Association South Central Championship where the 1st team won and overall we came 2nd out of nine teams - a tremendous achievement. In the annual winter swim meet for U12s and U14s both teams competed against three other schools and swam away with the trophies. In November, two of our swimmers took part in the British Modern Biathlon Championships. The biathlon consisted of a swim and a run and both Charlotte Clover (LVI) and Kitty ShepherdCross (UIV) did not disappoint, coming 4th and 33rd in the country respectively. It was great to end the season on a high at the Independent Schools Relays Gala where we placed 2nd out of 14 teams to huge cheers from pool side. Overall, with the increased support and training that has been put in place, the year has gone swimmingly for all the teams and I am honoured to have been captain. Felicia Tchen, UVI, Swimming Captain DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

WINTER SPORTS 172

SKI REPORT It has been a very exciting ski season for Downe House this year. We have such a keen group of girls we entered two sets of races. The first was the British Schoolgirlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Races in Flaine, where we have had the most successful year yet with four of our six girls winning prizes! Miranda Drummond and Catherine Nicol (both UIV) both won Bronze Medals amongst fierce competition in the section for Registered Skiers. In the non-registered U16 category, Storm Halestrap (LV) did fantastically well, winning the Club des Sports Cup for Combined, the McLeod Cup for Giant Slalom and a silver medal for 2nd in the Slalom. Clementine Black (LIV) won a Bronze medal in the U14 Slalom. Lulu Halestrap (LIV) only just missed the medals, placing 4th in the Slalom, and Anastasia Reinl (UVI), who was a novice racer, acquitted herself very well indeed to help bring team success. The A Team came 7th overall and the B Team placed 6th in the B team competition and 27th overall. In addition to this we took our development squad to The Artemis Inter Schools Championship in Les Houches in March. The Team was ably captained by Catherine Nicol with Miranda Drummond, Lulu Halestrap, Beatrice Phillips (UIV), Emily Glover (LIV), Kate Mulvany and Georgia Dunkerley (both Remove). Once again the girls skied very well with several medals. Catherine Nicol was 9th and Miranda Drummond placed 10th in the U14 Slalom. Miranda Drummond came 6th in the U14 Giant Slalom and Kate Mulvany 10th in the U12 Giant Slalom races. Well done to all our fantastic skiers for such a wonderful year! A big thank you must also go to Ms Henson and Miss Huxtable who helped with everything. Mrs Frances Capps, Housemistress (Darwin) and Teacher of PE

SPORT

U15A Lacrosse National Silver Medalists

1st XI Hockey Squad

U15A Hockey Squad

THE TEAMS

1st Lacrosse Squad

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1st Netball Squad

U15A Netball Squad

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

THE TEAMS

1st Tennis Squad

U15A Tennis Squad

Aegon Tennis Team

Aegon 2nd Tennis Team

1st Squash Squad

Senior Swimming Squad

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SPORT

U15A Athletics Squad

U15 Schoolsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Cup Athletics Squad

U14 & U15 Cross Country Squads

THE TEAMS

Senior Athletics Team

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These photographs have been reproduced by kind permission of Gillman & Soame photographers and can be ordered online at www.gsimagebank.co.uk/downe-house/?t=downehouse2016. DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

Awards

176

Year

Subject

Award

Nominee

History

Top Performer

Ayanfeoluwa Adedeji

Music

Progress and Effort Prize

Ayanfeoluwa Adedeji

Excellence in Examinations

Ayanfeoluwa Adedeji

R R

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Lucy Barrie

Modern Languages

Excellence and High Achievement

Lucy Barrie

Excellence in Examinations

Lucy Barrie

Independent Learner

Lucy Barrie

Progress and Effort Prize

Georgia Biggs

Independent Learner

Georgia Biggs

Music

R R

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Resistant Materials)

Harriet Boucher

ICT

Excellence and High Achievement

Gwyneth Choi

Excellence in Examinations

Gwyneth Choi

R R

Art

Progress and Effort Prize

Chiara De Sa Subiotto

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Food)

Georgia Dunkerley

Geography

Progress and Effort Prize

Georgia Dunkerley

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Textiles)

Heloise Friedlander

Music

Excellence and High Achievement

Heloise Friedlander

Excellence in Examinations

Heloise Friedlander

R R

ICT

Progress and Effort Prize

Madeleine (Maddi) Hales

Music

Excellence and High Achievement

Lara Harries

Maths

Progress and Effort Prize

Louisa Healey

Physics

Excellence and High Achievement

Louisa Healey

Excellence in Examinations

Louisa Healey

Drama

Progress and Effort Prize

Celine Ibori

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Ashley Iguh

Classics

Progress and Effort Prize

Alethea Ings-Chambers

History

Progress and Effort Prize

Alethea Ings-Chambers

History

Top Performer

Madelaina Lavelle

Modern Languages

Progress and Effort Prize

Honor Mathews

Excellence in Examinations

Honor Mathews

R R

Physics

Progress and Effort Prize

Amelia Maughan

Art

Excellence and High Achievement

Antonia McClintock

Chemistry

Progress and Effort Prize

Antonia McClintock

Religious Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Antonia McClintock

Excellence in Examinations

Antonia McClintock

Progress and Effort Prize

Yasmine McLennan

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Kate Mulvany

Excellence in Examinations

Kate Mulvany

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Pernthaller

Chemistry

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Pernthaller

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Pernthaller

English

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Pernthaller

French

Top Performer

Alice Pernthaller

Geography

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Pernthaller

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Pernthaller

Maths

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Pernthaller

Religious Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Pernthaller

Excellence in Examinations

Alice Pernthaller

R R

Physics

Top Performer

Lucinda Slack

Design & Technology

Progress and Effort Prize

Mia Viventi

Drama

Excellence and High Achievement

Mia Viventi

Excellence and High Achievement

Poppy Wessely

Excellence in Examinations

Poppy Wessely

Design & Technology

Excellence and High Achievement

Phoebe Whiting

LIV

Modern Languages

Progress and Effort Prize

Toluwase Agusto

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Toluwase Agusto DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

PRIZE GIVING

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OUR PRIZE WINNERS

177

PRIZE GIVING

Year

Subject

Award

Nominee

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Clementine Black

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Lucia Bugeja

LIV

Art

Excellence and High Achievement

Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho

LIV

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Food)

Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho

LIV

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho

LIV

Music

Excellence and High Achievement

Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho

LIV

Excellence in Examinations

Wan Hei (Victoria) Cho

LIV

Independent Learner

Lara Coppen-Gardner

LIV

Physics

Progress and Effort Prize

Imogen Dale

LIV

Drama

Progress and Effort Prize

Christina Elliot

LIV

Geography

Excellence and High Achievement

Christina Elliot

Excellence in Examinations

Christina Elliot

LIV LIV

Chemistry

Progress and Effort Prize

Chioma Emenike

LIV

ICT

Progress and Effort Prize

Chioma Emenike

Excellence in Examinations

Chioma Emenike

LIV LIV

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Louisa Fiertz

LIV

Darwin

The Berwick Cup

Amelie Furse

LIV

English

Top Performer

Amelie Furse

LIV

Music

Whitehouse-Vaux Cup (Most Promising Musician in the Lower School)

Amelie Furse

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Amelie Furse

Independent Learner

Amelie Furse

LIV

178

LIV

Religious Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Florence Hack

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Lulu Halestrap

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Alexandra Hamilton

LIV

Classics

Progress and Effort Prize

Jemima Harrison

LIV

Hermitage

The Lunn Cup

Jemima Harrison

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Jemima Harrison

LIV

Excellence in Examinations

Jemima Harrison

LIV

History

Progress and Effort Prize

Francesca Horton

LIV

Music

Progress and Effort Prize

Francesca Horton

LIV

Progress and Effort Prize

Morgan Kandrac

LIV

Design & Technology

Top Performer (CAD/CAM)

Tabitha Kendall

LIV

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Textiles)

Yoo-Jeong Kim

LIV

Maths

Excellence and High Achievement

Yoo-Jeong Kim

LIV

Chemistry

Excellence and High Achievement

Priya Kooros

LIV

English

Top Performer

Priya Kooros

LIV

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Priya Kooros

LIV

ICT

Excellence and High Achievement

Priya Kooros

Excellence in Examinations

Priya Kooros

LIV LIV

Hill

The Moore Cup

Jemima Landale

LIV

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Resistant Materials)

Lily Mathews

LIV

Drama

Excellence and High Achievement

Clementine McNair Scott

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Clementine McNair Scott

LIV

Wakefield Award

Gold

Poppy Penney

LIV

Physics

Excellence and High Achievement

Constance Pope

LIV

Excellence in Examinations

Constance Pope

LIV

Independent Learner

Constance Pope

LIV

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Francesca Rhodes

LIV

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Poppy Scales

LIV

Geography

Progress and Effort Prize

Poppy Scales

LIV

Excellence and High Achievement

Emelia Shippey

LIV

Maths

Progress and Effort Prize

Lúa Vázquez Sánchez

LIV

Maths

Top Performer

Lúa Vázquez Sánchez

LIV

Physics

Top Performer

Lúa Vázquez Sánchez

LIV

Design & Technology

Progress and Effort Prize

Daisy Williams

LIV

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Daisy Williams

AWARDS

Subject

Award

Nominee

LIV

Modern Languages

Excellence and High Achievement

Daisy Williams

LIV

Religious Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Daisy Williams

Excellence in Examinations

Daisy Williams

LIV LIV

Art

Progress and Effort Prize

Rosalind Wippell

LIV

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Rosalind Wippell

LIV

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Rosalind Wippell

LIV

English

Excellence and High Achievement

Rosalind Wippell

LIV

ICT

Excellence and High Achievement

Rosalind Wippell

Excellence in Examinations

Rosalind Wippell

LIV UIV

Geography

Progress and Effort Prize

Alexandra Adderley

UIV

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Eniayo Teniola Adeniji

Independent Learner

Eniayo Teniola Adeniji

Excellence and High Achievement

Georgia Allison

Excellence in Examinations

Georgia Allison

UIV UIV

Physics

UIV UIV

Physics

Top Performer

Fenella Bowlby

UIV

Drama

Progress and Effort Prize

Zoe Carruthers

UIV

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Molly Dewar

UIV

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (French)

Molly Dewar

UIV

Design & Technology

Progress and Effort Prize

Abriella (Abby) Dolbear

UIV

History

Progress and Effort Prize

Abriella (Abby) Dolbear

UIV

Geography

Top Performer

Arah Elombi

UIV

Religious Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Arah Elombi

Excellence in Examinations

Arah Elombi

UIV UIV

Speech & Drama

The Lynette Gridley Memorial Trophy

Alina Erkulova

UIV

Design & Technology

Excellence and High Achievement

Charlotte Field

UIV

Art

Progress and Effort Prize

Imogen Fowler

UIV

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Resistant Materials)

Imogen Fowler

UIV

ICT

Excellence and High Achievement

Imogen Fowler

UIV

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (Chinese)

Imogen Fowler

Excellence in Examinations

Imogen Fowler

UIV UIV

Modern Languages

Progress and Effort Prize

Anna Hall

UIV

Music

Excellence and High Achievement

Anna Hall

UIV

ICT

Progress and Effort Prize

Annie Hazlitt

UIV

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (Italian)

Annie Hazlitt

Excellence in Examinations

Annie Hazlitt

UIV UIV

Chemistry

Top Performer

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho

UIV

Design & Technology

Food Technology Prize

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho

UIV

Drama

Top Performer

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho

UIV

Geography

Top Performer

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho

UIV

Maths

Excellence and High Achievement

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho

UIV

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (Spanish)

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho

Excellence in Examinations

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho

UIV UIV

Chemistry

Progress and Effort Prize

Eliza Inglis

UIV

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Eliza Inglis

UIV

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (French)

Eliza Inglis

UIV

English

Excellence and High Achievement

Lorelei Jackson

UIV

Geography

Excellence and High Achievement

Lorelei Jackson

UIV

Classics

Progress and Effort Prize

Jade Jacomb

Independent Learner

Jade Jacomb

UIV UIV

Excellence in Examinations

Alexandra Kiy

UIV

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Resistant Materials)

Annabel Le Grice

UIV

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Annabel Le Grice

UIV

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Luoyi (Sunny) Li

UIV

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Textiles)

Luoyi (Sunny) Li

UIV

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Luoyi (Sunny) Li

UIV

Physics

Top Performer

Luoyi (Sunny) Li

Excellence in Examinations

Luoyi (Sunny) Li

UIV

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

PRIZE GIVING

Year

179

PRIZE GIVING

Year

Subject

Award

Nominee

UIV

Chemistry

Excellence and High Achievement

Olivia Lopes

Independent Learner

Emily Manners

UIV UIV

Geography

Top Performer

Georgina Marchand

UIV

Progress and Effort Prize

Georgina Marchand

UIV

Drama

Excellence and High Achievement

Lucy McCreery

UIV

Maths

Progress and Effort Prize

Henrietta Miles

UIV

Music

Progress and Effort Prize

Gabriella Nelson

UIV

Excellence and High Achievement

Anna Neville

Independent Learner

Anna Neville

UIV UIV

Excellence in Examinations

Catherine Nicol

UIV

Religious Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Motolani Oladitan

UIV

Physics

Progress and Effort Prize

Nina Paterson

UIV

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (Chinese)

Clementine Pemberton

UIV

Art

Excellence and High Achievement

Yi Wei (Lily) Peng

UIV

Modern Languages

Excellence and High Achievement

Alessandra Pidgeon

UIV

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (German)

Imogen Webber

UIV

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Textiles)

Ottilie Whitbread

Independent Learner

Arabella Woo

UIV LV

Art

Excellence and High Achievement

Catharina Benigni

Design & Technology

Top Performer

Catharina Benigni

Junior Olive Willis Prize

Elizabeth Bolodeoku

LV LV

Design & Technology

Progress and Effort Prize

Sophie Bott

Foote Essay

Highly Commended

Sophie Bott

English

The Gosse LV English Prize

Nina Bugeja

Independent Learner

Nina Bugeja

Excellence and High Achievement

Calypso Carter

Excellence in Examinations

Calypso Carter

LV LV

Design & Technology

180

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Hoi Laam (Karis) Cheung

Geography

Excellence and High Achievement

Calypso Cox

Art

Progress and Effort Prize

Jemima Cremin

Independent Learner

Minna Crewdson

Junior Olive Willis Prize

Minna Crewdson

Second Prize

Lucy Cunningham

Foote Essay

Junior Olive Willis Prize

Cosima Davies

Music

Progress and Effort Prize

Lauren Dunn

Business and Communications Systems

Progress and Effort Prize

Naomi Egoh

Chemistry

Top Performer

Sophie Elliot

Drama

Excellence and High Achievement

Sophie Elliot

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Sophie Elliot

Religious Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Sophie Elliot

Excellence in Examinations

Sophie Elliot

Excellence and High Achievement

Tae-Chan Ellis

LV LV

Religious Studies

Excellence in Examinations

Tae-Chan Ellis

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (Spanish)

Isabella Evans

Progress and Effort Prize

Isabella Evans

Foote Essay

Third Prize

Melissa Farquhar

History

Progress and Effort Prize

Melissa Farquhar

Junior Olive Willis Prize

Melissa Farquhar

Excellence and High Achievement

Isabel Fincham

Excellence in Examinations

Isabel Fincham

Independent Learner

Isabel Fincham

Junior Olive Willis Prize

Isabel Fincham

LV LV

English

Maths

Progress and Effort Prize

Gabriella Franklin

Drama

Top Performer

Christabel Graham

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Christabel Graham

Excellence in Examinations

Christabel Graham

LV AWARDS

Subject

Award

Nominee

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (French)

Imogen Gregory

Junior Olive Willis Prize

Imogen Gregory

Lucasta Partridge-Hicks (Highly Commended)

Katie Hackman

Foote Essay

First Prize

Charlotte Harrabin

Classics

Progress and Effort Prize

Jessica Hayward-Cole

Junior Olive Willis Prize

Georgia Hewitson

LV LV

Excellence and High Achievement

Amelia Hughes

Junior Victor Ludorum Sports Cup

Amelia Hughes

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Isabella Jones

Maths

Top Performer

Isabella Jones

Excellence in Examinations

Isabella Jones

Priestley Cup for Most Promising Young Performer

Cecelia Kane

LV LV

Drama

Junior Olive Willis Prize

Iman Khalil

Maths

Excellence and High Achievement

Sumin Kim

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (Chinese)

Sumin Kim

Independent Learner

Olivia King

Progress and Effort Prize

Minna Leatham

Independent Learner

Minna Leatham

LV LV

Geography

LV LV

Music

The Elizabeth Pickering Prize

Clementine Lewins

Business and Communications Systems

Excellence and High Achievement

Alisia McKay

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (Italian)

Andreja Mirosevic-Sorgo

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Hye Lim Park

Physics

Progress and Effort Prize

Lucy Phillips

Music

Excellence and High Achievement

Anna Riley

Music

The Julia Dowson Cup

Anna Riley

Business and Communications Systems

Progress and Effort Prize

Torpad (Yok) Rungjerdfa

Drama

Progress and Effort Prize

Martha Rutherford

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Sabrina Sambhi

Chemistry

Excellence and High Achievement

Sabrina Sambhi

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Sabrina Sambhi

Foote Essay

Highly Commended

Sabrina Sambhi

Physics

Top Performer

Sabrina Sambhi

Religious Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Sabrina Sambhi

Excellence in Examinations

Sabrina Sambhi

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Textiles)

Ella Scott

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (Italian)

Imogen Simpson-Orlebar

Lucasta Partridge-Hicks Cup

Amelia Smith

Physics

Progress and Effort Prize

Honor Stephens

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (German)

Tsz Ki (Serena) Tong

Physics

Excellence and High Achievement

Tsz Ki (Serena) Tong

Music

Excellence and High Achievement

Charlotte Toogood

Outstanding Commitment and Motivation

Phannaphat (Aommy) Totup

Excellence and High Achievement

You-Oceane Wang

Excellence in Examinations

You-Oceane Wang

LV LV

Modern Languages

LV LV

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (French)

Alexa Wiggin

Art

Bathurst LV Art Award

Audrey Wong

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Audrey Wong

Chemistry

Progress and Effort Prize

Audrey Wong

Modern Languages

Progress and Effort Prize

Hoi Lam (Jacqueline) Wong

Design & Technology

Top Performer (Resistant Materials)

Jennifer Wai Luen Yung

Modern Foreign Languages

Top Performer (French)

Jennifer Wai Luen Yung

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Georgina Anastassopoulos Tubby

Holcombe

The Barnes Cup

Ilaria Bevan

Religious Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Eleanor Bishop

Speech & Drama

The Speech and Drama RADA Award

Eleanor Bishop DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

PRIZE GIVING

Year

181

PRIZE GIVING 182

Year

Subject

Award

Nominee

History

Progress and Effort Prize

Eleanor Campbell

Modern Languages

Progress and Effort Prize

Man I (Melissa) Chang

Music

Excellence and High Achievement

Man I (Melissa) Chang

Religious Studies

Overall Prize at GCSE

Gwendoline Choi

Business and Communications Systems

Progress and Effort Prize

Grace Cornish

Classics

Progress and Effort Prize

Grace Cornish

Maths

The Elizabeth Anne Beel Memorial Trophy for Mathematical Endeavour

Grace Cornish

Art

Progress and Effort Prize

Sasha Coulson

Tedworth

The Gwatkin Cup

Rosanna Craig

Business and Communications Systems

Excellence and High Achievement

Jennifer Darko

Business and Communications Systems

Progress and Effort Prize

Sarah Darko

Excellence and High Achievement

Alexa Feather

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Evelyn Graham

Art

Excellence and High Achievement

Lauren Griffith

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Lauren Griffith

Geography

GCSE Investigation

Lauren Griffith

Maths

Excellence and High Achievement

Clarissa Hahn

Physics

Progress and Effort Prize

Holly Halestrap

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Kitty Henry

Speech & Drama

The Speech and Drama RADA Award

Anna Hewitt

Drama

Excellence and High Achievement

Eliza Horn

Progress and Effort Prize

Poppy Huntington

AGN

The Austin Cup

Beatrix Jackson

Religious Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Alexia Milliken

Chemistry

Excellence and High Achievement

Jessica Pemberton

Physics

Excellence and High Achievement

Jessica Pemberton

Modern Languages

The Maitland French Prize

Eloise Percy-Davis

Design & Technology

Excellence and High Achievement

Nutthapit Poolworaluk

Geography

Progress and Effort Prize

Nutthapit Poolworaluk

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Matilda Pope

Chemistry

Progress and Effort Prize

Serena Richards

Drama

Progress and Effort Prize

Annabel Roest

Design & Technology

Progress and Effort Prize

Natasha Somerville-Cotton

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Elizabeth Tatham

Maths

Progress and Effort Prize

Katelyn Taylor

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Wills

English

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Wills

Geography

Excellence and High Achievement

Alice Wills

Music

Progress and Effort Prize

Catharine Wippell

Modern Languages

Excellence and High Achievement

Tabonga Yangailo

LVI

English

The Rich LVI English Prize

Deena Bhanarai

Independent Learner

Roseanna Bromley

LVI LVI

Maths

Top Performer

Anna Chalmers

LVI

Physics

Excellence and High Achievement

Anna Chalmers

Excellence in Examinations

Anna Chalmers

LVI LVI

Business Studies

Top Performer

Ling Yee (Lindley) Chan

LVI

Chemistry

Excellence and High Achievement

Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan

LVI

Economics

Top Performer

Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan

LVI

History

Progress and Effort Prize

Ling Yee (Lindley) Chan

LVI

Music

The Evelyn Barbirolli Woodwind Prize

Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan

LVI

Religious Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Huen Tung (Angela) Chan

LVI

Religious Studies

Top Performer (Philosopy and Theology)

Huen Tung (Angela) Chan

LVI

Art

Julia Newton Photography Award

Olivia Clark

AWARDS

Subject

Award

Nominee

LVI

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Olivia Clark

LVI

Sports Science

Progress and Effort Prize

Olivia Clark

LVI

Excellence and High Achievement

Charlotte Clover

LVI

Business Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Laura Conneely

LVI

Religious Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Georgina Dick

LVI

Art

The Power Carlier Prize for Artistic Endeavour in the LVI

Eliza Downes

LVI

Politics

Progress and Effort Prize

Eliza Downes

LVI

Drama

Excellence and High Achievement

Florence Elliott

LVI

Politics

Excellence and High Achievement

Florence Elliott

LVI

Business Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Lavinia Falck

LVI

Design & Technology

B & Q Book Prize

Lavinia Falck

LVI

Economics

Excellence and High Achievement

Camilla Farrell

LVI

Modern Languages

Excellence and High Achievement

Camilla Farrell

LVI

Music

Excellence and High Achievement

Rose Galbraith

LVI

Music

The Marjorie Gunn Bow

Rose Galbraith

LVI

Speech & Drama

The Speech and Drama Musical Theatre Award

Rose Galbraith

LVI

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Anna Goodman

LVI

Drama

Progress and Effort Prize

Lucy Grace

LVI

Design & Technology

Progress and Effort Prize

Kirstin Gray

LVI

Politics

Progress and Effort Prize

Kirstin Gray

LVI

History

LVI History Prize

Celine Harborne

LVI

Modern Foreign Languages

Excellence and High Achievement

Olivia Harrison

Excellence in Examinations

Olivia Harrison

LVI LVI

Physics

Progress and Effort Prize

Sandrine Heller

LVI

Maths

Progress and Effort Prize

Harriet Henry

LVI

Economics

Progress and Effort Prize

Olivia Holden

LVI

Geography

The Natasha Butcher Cup for Geographical Research

Olivia Holden

LVI

Geography

Excellence and High Achievement

Lara Kary

Excellence in Examinations

Lara Kary

LVI LVI

Classics

Progress and Effort Prize

Si Yoon (Rebecca) Kim

LVI

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Janice Wing Tung Kwong

LVI

History

Excellence and High Achievement

India Laidlaw

LVI

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Oi Ka (Natalie) Lam

LVI

Maths

Excellence and High Achievement

Oi Ka (Natalie) Lam

LVI

EPQ

Progress and Effort Prize

Octavia Leahy

LVI

Music

Progress and Effort Prize

Katherine Maloney

LVI

Music

The Jo Butcher Prize

Katherine Maloney

LVI

Aisholt

The Houghton Cup

Sophie Manners

LVI

Sports Science

Excellence and High Achievement

Sophie Manners

LVI

Geography

Progress and Effort Prize

Melissa McAlpine

LVI

Modern Languages

Progress and Effort Prize

Hebe Meredith

LVI

History of Art

Excellence and High Achievement

Alexandra Milne

LVI

Speech & Drama

The Speech and Drama Communication Skills Award

Alexandra Milne

LVI

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Gemma Mountain

Independent Learner

Gemma Mountain

LVI LVI

Art

Progress and Effort Prize

Jemima Oliver

LVI

Art

Excellence and High Achievement

Florence Palmer

LVI

Design & Technology

Excellence and High Achievement

Florence Palmer

LVI

Speech & Drama

The Speech and Drama Trinity Award

Honor Pattisson

LVI

History of Art

Progress and Effort Prize

Caroline Quillen

Independent Learner

Minnie Royden

LVI LVI

Chemistry

Progress and Effort Prize

Charlotte Simpson

LVI

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Sereena Singh

LVI

AGS

The Doherty Cup

Lydia Stonehill

Independent Learner

Chidimma Umeh

Top Performer (German)

Meryem Uzunay

Excellence in Examinations

Meryem Uzunay

LVI LVI LVI

Modern Foreign Languages

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

PRIZE GIVING

Year

183

PRIZE GIVING

Year

Subject

Award

Nominee

LVI

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Alyx Van der Vorm

LVI

Chemistry

Top Performer

Alyx Van der Vorm

LVI

English

Excellence and High Achievement

Alyx Van der Vorm

LVI

Maths

Top Performer

Alyx Van der Vorm

Excellence in Examinations

Alyx Van der Vorm

LVI LVI

History

Progress and Effort Prize

Georgiana Ward

LVI

Progress and Effort Prize

Rumbidzai Wasterfall

LVI

Excellence and High Achievement

Georgina Witter

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Molly Adams

UVI

Geography

UVI Prize

Molly Adams

UVI

Victor Ludorum Sports Cup

Molly Adams

UVI

Politics

Excellence and High Achievement

Molly Adams

UVI

Chemistry

Excellence and High Achievement

Esther Adebajo

UVI

Maths

Excellence and High Achievement

Esther Adebajo

UVI

Physics

Progress and Effort Prize

Esther Adebajo

UVI

Liliana Heather Prize

Esther Adebajo

UVI

The Olive Willis Prize

Esther Adebajo

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Lucy Astor

UVI

Music

The Glanville Prize

Lucy Astor

UVI

Music

The Eileen Fairbank Cup

Matilda Bentley

UVI

Progress and Effort Prize

Sarah Bergstrom

Independent Learner

Lauren Brolly

The Russell Photography Award

Flora Camps-Harris

Independent Learner

Flora Camps-Harris

UVI UVI

Art

UVI

184

UVI

Design & Technology

Excellence and High Achievement

Sophia Donald

UVI

Design & Technology

Textiles Prize

Sophia Donald

UVI

Music

Jennifer Davies Music Prize

Ngozi Emenike

UVI

Biology

Progress and Effort Prize

Freya Esam

Stuart Alexander Charity Cup (Joint Award)

Freya Esam

UVI UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Georgia Findlay

UVI

Geography

Excellence and High Achievement

Georgia Findlay

Independent Learner

Georgia Findlay

UVI UVI

Maths

Sixth Form Prize

Victoria Fleming

UVI

Physics

Top Performer

Victoria Fleming

UVI

Religious Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Hannah Goodyear

UVI

Chemistry

Rippon Chemistry Prize

Isabella Hancock

UVI

Physics

Excellence and High Achievement

Isabella Hancock

UVI

Business Studies

Excellence and High Achievement

Louisa Henry

UVI

Design & Technology

Leiths Award

Louisa Henry

UVI

Geography

Progress and Effort Prize

Louisa Henry

UVI

Modern Languages

Progress and Effort Prize

Louisa Henry

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Emilia Hill

UVI

Design & Technology

Elizabeth Palmer Cup for Technology

Lara-Lily Hurd

UVI

Drama

Excellence and High Achievement

Lara-Lily Hurd

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Henrietta Johnston

UVI

Economics

Progress and Effort Prize

Eleanor Leeves

Independent Learner

Eleanor Leeves

UVI UVI

Classics

Progress and Effort Prize

Lucy Leventhorpe

UVI

Classics

Excellence and High Achievement

Clare Maunder

UVI

Religious Studies

The Mary Midgley Prize

Clare Maunder

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Lucy Mortlock

UVI

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Lucy Mortlock

UVI

Music

The Steen Cup

Lucy Mortlock

UVI

Politics

Progress and Effort Prize

Hattie Muncey

UVI

Religious Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Hattie Muncey

UVI

Speech & Drama

Outstanding Improvement

Hattie Muncey

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Sophie Ordish

AWARDS

Subject

Award

Nominee

UVI

Business Studies

Progress and Effort Prize

Sarah Orpen

UVI

Music

The Maclean Prize

Sarah Orpen

UVI

Chemistry

Progress and Effort Prize

Emma Peddie

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Emma Peddie

UVI

Maths

Progress and Effort Prize

Emma Peddie

UVI

Modern Languages

Progress and Effort Prize

Emma Peddie

UVI

Music

The Bedwell Singing Prize

Lucinda Penney

UVI

Economics

Excellence and High Achievement

Keshya Rana

UVI

English

Progress and Effort Prize

Keshya Rana

UVI

Drama

Head of Drama Award

Anouska Royle

UVI

English

Excellence and High Achievement

Livia Russell

UVI

History

Excellence and High Achievement

Livia Russell

UVI

Modern Languages

Excellence and High Achievement

Livia Russell

UVI

Modern Languages

Owen Sixth Form Prize

Livia Russell

UVI

Music

The Marjorie Gunn Music Prize

Livia Russell

UVI

Physics

Physics Prize

Ione Sandberg

UVI

Stuart Alexander Charity Cup (Joint Award)

Ione Sandberg

UVI

Head Senior Prize

Miranda Shaw

UVI

Drama

Progress and Effort Prize

Hannah Simpson-Orlebar

UVI

Modern Languages

The Salter Prize

Matilda Smeeton

UVI

Excellence and High Achievement

Alexandra Somerville-Cotton

Stuart Alexander Charity Cup (Joint Award)

Emma Stonebridge

Progress and Effort Prize

Cordelia Tahany

The Parsons Chapel Cup

Felicia Tchen

UVI UVI

History

UVI UVI

Biology

Excellence and High Achievement

Rosie Thistlethwayte

UVI

Biology

The Margaret Gill Biology Prize

Rosie Thistlethwayte

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Rosie Thistlethwayte

UVI

Speech & Drama

Outstanding Improvement

Victoria (Clare) Turton

UVI

Design & Technology

Progress and Effort Prize

Laura Vaughan-Johnson

UVI

Design & Technology

Resistant Materials Prize

Laura Vaughan-Johnson

UVI

Duke of Edinburgh

Gold Award

Sasha Wendin

UVI

Excellence and High Achievement

Lara Wigan

UVI

Speech & Drama

The Speech and Drama Cup for Overall Excellence

Amelia Yerburgh

Congratulations to everyone that achieved their Awards from 1 April ‘15 - 31 March ‘16

BRONZE AWARDS – UPPER FIFTH Josephine Adams, Jameliah Adekunle, Louisa Ansell, Charlotte Benigni, Mariella (Ella) Bennett, Amelia Bentley, Ilaria Bevan, Eleanor Bishop, Clementine Blackett-Ord, Isabelle Brown, Eleanor Campbell, Man I (Melissa) Chang, Emilie Cheung, Gwendoline Choi, Claudine Collins, Grace Cornish, Sasha Coulson, Isabella Craig, Rosanna Craig, Sarah Darko, Jennifer Darko, Grace Devereux, Emma Dobby, Laura Douglas-Hamilton, Omotara Edu, Phoebe Evans, Holly Evans, Alexa Feather, Katherine Garnett, Eliza Gibbons-West, Christabel Gilmour, Molly Grafftey-Smith, Evelyn Graham, Lauren Griffith, Clarissa Hahn, Holly Halestrap, Kitty Henry, Anna Hewitt, Jasmine Holland, Eliza Horn, Verity Hornby, Ella Houston, Isabella Huber, Rose Hughes, Cecilia Hughes, Poppy Huntington, Hebe Ide, Beatrix Jackson, Sophie Kelisky, Wai-Ping (Sarah) Kwok, Francesca Lahiri, Kei Kwan (Kate) Lau, Georgia Lavelle, Monique Leong, Flora Lindsay, Daisy Little, Rachael Litton, Georgina Lloyd Yorke, Sacha Martin, Elizabeth Michaelson, Alexia Milliken, Isabella Muir, Lara Mun-Gavin, Faith Norman, Alexandra O’Kane, Sarah Palmer, Jenna Parkinson, Jessica Pemberton, Eloise Percy-Davis, Bethany Perry, Nutthapit Poolworaluk, Matilda Pope, Serena Richards, Annabel Roest, Henrietta Ryan, Victoria Scobie, Daisy Shepherd-Cross, Clara Silcock, Natasha Somerville-Cotton, Daisy Spurrier, Olivia Stakem, Jennifer Standbrook, Araminta Swallow, Georgina Tarling, Elizabeth Tatham, Katelyn Taylor, Jennifer Tett, Rebecca Topping, Jane Tung, Kyara Uchida, Sasha Villiers-Smith, Isabella West, Alice Wills, Skye Wilson, Catharine Wippell, Isabel Wood

GOLD AWARDS – UPPER SIXTH AND DOWNE HOUSE ALUMNA Molly Adams (UVI), Lucy Astor (UVI), Catherine (Katie) Clover (DH 2014), Annabel Clover (DH 2015), Eleanor Dewhurst (DH 2014), Victoria Falck (DH 2015), Laura Findlay (DH 2014), Georgie Findlay (UVI), Niamh Gibson (DH 2013), Emilia Hill (UVI), Adetoun Karunwi (DH 2015), Anastasia Law (DH 2015), Vanessa Leung (DH 2013), Florence Li (DH 2015), Lucy Mortlock (UVI), Arabella Newton (DH 2015), Charlotte Whitehead (DH 2015) DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

185

D of E

DUKE OF EDINBURGH’S AWARDS

PRIZE GIVING

Year

WELCOME NEW GIRLS 186

NEW GIRLS 2015/16 We were delighted to welcome the following girls into the Downe House community during the year. REMOVE

Charlotte Pearson

Garden House School

Ayanfeoluwa Adedeji

Windlesham House School

Hannah Perkins

The Priory Primary School, Tadley

Lucy Barrie

Leaden Hall School

Alice Pernthaller

Francis Holland, SW1

Ceara Bastin

Thomas's (Fulham)

Margot Ridley

Thomas's (Fulham)

Georgia Biggs

Brambletye School

Mathilda Singer

Bedford Girls School

Harriet Boucher

Thomas's (Fulham)

Lucinda Slack

Hurlingham School

Polly Cecil

Notting Hill Preparatory School

Scarlett Storie

Harrow International - Hong Kong

Gwyneth Choi

German Swiss International School

Mia Viventi

Hill House International

Poppy Wessely

Thomas's (Fulham)

Katerina Christova

Doris Tenedi Private Language School

Phoebe Whiting

Warwick Preparatory School

Cosima Curzon

Foremarke Hall

Matilda (Tilly) Wilkinson

Queen Mary's School

Alicia de BroëFerguson

Norland Place School

Chiara De Sa Subiotto

Cayman Prep and High School

LOWER FOURTH

Georgia Dunkerley

St Christopher's, Bahrain

Kellett School

Tara Dyer

Thomas's (Fulham)

Saskia Abou-Khater Robbiati

Lyla Elichaoff

Pembridge Hall

Tosin Adepoju

Day Waterman College

Sophie Armitage

Dubai English Speaking School (DESS)

Astrid Ashdown

Francis Holland, Clarence Gate

Lara Coppen-Gardner

Daneshill School

Georgia Duckworth

Broomwood Hall

Amelie Furse

Queen Mary's School

Jemima Harrison

GraceDieu Manor School

Emily Rose Harrow

Headington School

Annabella Horsfield

Daneshill School

Phoebe Huntington

Hanford School

Yoo-Jeong Kim

Cottesmore School

Olivia Lamb

Marlston House School

Heloise Friedlander

Thomas's (Battersea)

Eleanor Gibbs

Garden House School

Madeleine (Maddi) Hales

Lambrook

Lara Harries

Thomas's (Battersea)

Théa Hawtin

Garden House School

Louisa Healey

Falkner House

India Hinds

Leaden Hall School

Celine Ibori

Windlesham House School

Ashley Iguh

Lagos Preparatory School

Alethea IngsChambers

Chandlings

Madelaina Lavelle

Unicorn School

Maria Manduca

Lambrook

Honor Mathews

Norland Place School

Clemmie Parr

Stoneygate School

Amelia Maughan

Thomas's (Battersea)

Ayobami Razak-Shittu

Antonia McClintock

St Hilda’s School

The British International School (Lagos)

Yasmine McLennan

Canadian International School of Hong Kong

Torrung (Mook) Rungjerdfa

The Royal High School, Bath

Olivia Monckton

Marlston House School

Emelia Shippey

Wimbledon High School

Kate Mulvany

Pre Fleuri Ecole Alpine Internationale

Honor Neville

Pembridge Hall

AWARDS

LOWER FIFTH

Eniayo Teniola Adeniji

Day Waterman College

United World College of S.E.A.

St Andrew's School, Pangbourne

Amelia (Millie) Bennett

Georgia Allison Emily Barber

Eagle House School

Naomi Egoh

James Allen's Girls School

Eva Bartlett

Farleigh School

Sumin Kim

Cecilia Boscawen

Port Regis School

Sookmyung Girls' Middle School, Seoul

Fenella Bowlby

Twyford Preparatory School

Soraya Koshoni

Princess Helena College, Hitchin, Herts

Jessica Chapman

Thomas's (Clapham) Broomwood Hall

Torpad (Yok) Rungjerdfa

The Royal High School, Bath

Sophie Dickson Miranda Drummond

Francis Holland, SW1

Arah Elombi

Godstowe Preparatory School

Phannaphat (Aommy) Totup

Harrow International School Bangkok

Alina Erkulova

Westonbirt School

Audrey Wong

The ISF Academy, Hong Kong

Jocasta Ferrigno

Beaudesert Park Preparatory School

Hoi Lam (Jacqueline) Wong

Marymount Secondary School

Anna Hall

Exeter Cathedral School

St Paul's Convent School (Primary)

Emily Hannis

St Georgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s School Ascot

Jennifer Wai Luen Yung

Elodie Hersee

Godstowe Preparatory School

Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho

Chinese International School

Anchisa (Pim) Ittiphakorn

Shrewsbury International School

Lorelei Jackson

Sir William Borlase's Grammar School

Madison James

WELCOME NEW GIRLS

UPPER FOURTH

LOWER SIXTH Chiamaka Attuh

The Regent Secondary School, Abuja

Ling Yee (Lindley) Chan

Queen Ethelberga's College

St Francis School

Uchechukwuka (Sandra) Etuokwu

The British International School (Lagos)

Luoyi (Sunny) Li

Wellesley House

Harriet Henry

Headington School

Alice Lloyd-Evans

Farleigh School

Ashton Hunt

St Paul's Girls School

Enekole Mark

Junior Kings School

Yiting Jin

Zi Yin (Ariel) Mo

Godstowe Preparatory School

Suzhaou High School of Jiangsu Province

Motolani Oladitan

Windlesham House School

Olivia Rosengarten

Oluwanifemi (Nifemi) Olawuni

Grange Secondary School, Lagos

Palmers Green High School, London

Yan Jing (Amy) Tse

Diocesan Girls' Junior School

Sarah Park

Dulwich College Seoul

Meryem Uzunay

Eberhard-Zudwigs-Gymnasium

Clementine Pemberton

United World College of S.E.A.

Yu (Sophia) Wang

International College, Hong Kong

Georgina Witter

St Swithun's School

Yi Wei (Lily) Peng

Windlesham House School

Ming Yang

Roedean School

Beatrice Phillips

Marlston House School

Safiya Shamji

Francis Holland, SW1

Lucy Sneader

Canadian International School of Hong Kong

Amber Spencer

Marlston House School

Arella Szlapak

Kenton College Preparatory School

Alice Tanner

Marlborough College Malaysia

Daisy West

Marlston House School

Ottilie Whitbread

Sandroyd

Arabella Woo

Old Buckenham Hall

Ruyao Xu

Godstowe Preparatory School DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

187

GENERATIONS

DOWNE THROUGH THE GENERATIONS LOWER FIFTH

REMOVE Georgia Biggs

Mother

Rosemary Harrison

Grandmother Aunt Great Aunt

Sylvia Willoughby

Lara Harries

Mother

Sophy Maclean

Honor Neville

Mother

Pippa Gilbert

Aunt

Emily Gilbert

Emily Biggs

Mother

Rosemary Harrison

Audrey Hird

Grandmother

Audrey Hird

Sheila Harrison

Aunt

Sheila Harrison

Great Aunt

Sylvia Willoughby

Mother

Serena Bailey

Grandmother

Patricia Gordon

Aunt

Fiona Bailey

Mother

Janet Murray

Great Aunts

Ann, Frances & Rosemary Murray

Rosie Blackburn

Katherine Cochrane LOWER FOURTH Clementine Black

Mother

Mary Hancock

Katharine Corbett

Mother

Annabel Pilling

Emily Duckworth

Mother

Iona Ballantine

Victoria Pilling

Amelia Hughes

Mother

Camilla Brooks

Great Aunt

Susan Birch

Aunt Kitty Dodd-Noble

Grandmother

Diana Lewis

Zara Karoly

Georgia Duckworth

Mother

Iona Ballantine

Olivia King

Aunt

Natasha King

Imogen SimpsonOrlebar

Mother

Julia Dopheide

Aunt

Patricia Dopheide

Aunt

Selena Robertson

Clementine Blackett-Ord

Aunt

Nicola Blackett-Ord

Rosanna Craig

Mother

Joanna Gardner

Mother

Camilla Brooks

Alexandra Hamilton

Mother

Charlotte Purchas

Phoebe Hughes

Mother

Camilla Brooks

Elsa Karoly

Great Aunt

Susan Birch

Jemima Landale

Gt Grandmother

Heather Wood

Clementine McNair Scott

Grandmother

Anna Colquhoun

Gt Grandmother

Ruth Greenwell

Grandmother

Anna Colquhoun

Florence McNair Scott Kate Rollo

188

Alana Robertson UPPER FIFTH

Gt Grandmother

Ruth Greenwell

Cecilia Hughes

Grandmother

Jill Macrae

Elizabeth Tatham

Grandmother

Elizabeth Colby

Skye Wilson

Aunts

Victoria, Alice, Beatrice & Henrietta Lynne

Catharine Wippell

Mother

Emma Wirgman

Georgina Galbraith

Aunt

Ghislaine Galbraith

Rose Galbraith

Aunt

Ghislaine Galbraith

Katharine Garvin

Grandmother

Clare McLeod

Honor Pattisson

Aunt

Jennie Every

Grandmother

Elizabeth Farrer

Aunts

Corty, Jane & Sarah Culverwell

Minna ConybeareCross

Mother

Camilla Robb

Emily Dodd-Noble

Grandmother

Diana Lewis

Georgina Hughes

Mother

Camilla Brooks

Lara-Lily Hurd

Aunt

Jessica Hurd

Lucinda Penney

Grandmother

Christine Porter

Ione Sandberg

Grandmother

Aline Duncan

Hannah SimpsonOrlebar

Mother

Julia Dopheide

Aunt

Patricia Dopheide

Aunts

Victoria, Alice, Beatrice & Henrietta Lynne

Poppy Scales

Aunt

Emma Scales

Rosalind Wippell

Mother

Emma Wirgman

UPPER FOURTH Cecilia Boscawen

Georgina Day

Mother

Katherine VivianNeal

Grandmother

Daphne Bacon

Aunts

Lucia & Alice VivianNeal

LOWER SIXTH

Mother

Henrietta Church

Aunt

Carolyn Church

Mother

Fru Hazlitt

UPPER SIXTH

Aunt

Gillian Hazlitt

Molly Adams

Mother

Ghislaine Galbraith

Sister

Sarah Kennerley

Great Aunt

Heather Galbraith

Alice Lloyd-Evans

Grandmother

Susan Hampton

Olivia Lopes

Aunt

Melinda Lopes

Henrietta Miles

Aunt

Sara Miles

Anna Neville

Mother

Pippa Gilbert

Aunt

Emily Gilbert

Annie Hazlitt Julia Kennerley

Poppy Wilson

AWARDS

REMOVE Ceara Bastin Harriet Boucher Alicia de BroëFerguson Honor Mathews Antonia McClintock

Honor Neville Alice Pernthaller Lucinda Slack

Scholar

UPPER FOURTH Victoria Aarons Alexandra Adderley Georgia Allison

Headmistress's Exhibition Sport Exhibition Scholar Drama Scholarship

Molly Dewar Sophie Dickson Tara Farquhar Imogen Fowler Anna Hall Emily Hannis Chao Heng (Gemma) Ho Mathilde Hughes Eliza Inglis Alexandra Kiy Luoyi (Sunny) Li Lucy McCreery Zi Yin (Ariel) Mo Anna Neville Camilla Read Daisy West Ottilie Whitbread Arabella Woo Ruyao Xu

Exhibitioner Art Exhibition

Music Scholarship Drama Scholarship Drama Scholarship Drama Scholarship

Scholar

Exhibitioner Drama Exhibition Academic Exhibition

Academic Scholarship and Music Scholarship Sport Exhibition Academic Exhibition and Sport Exhibition Drama Scholarship Sport Scholarship and Drama Scholarship Drama Scholarship Drama Scholarship

Drama Scholarship Drama Scholarship Drama Exhibition Drama Exhibition

Headmistress's Scholarship Award Academic Scholarship Academic Scholarship Drama Exhibition Music Exhibition Academic Exhibition Art Scholarship Drama Scholarship Art Exhibition Sport Scholarship Drama Scholarship Headmistress's Scholarship Award Academic Exhibition

Academic Scholarship Academic Exhibition Sports Scholarship Sports Scholarship Drama Exhibition Academic Scholarship and Drama Scholarship

Olivia Stakem

Anna Chalmers Wing Pui (Tiffany) Chan Olivia Clark Charlotte Clover

Jasmine Coulson Florence Elliott Lavinia Falck Camilla Farrell

Lucy Grace

Drama Exhibition Academic Exhibition

Headmistress's Scholarship Award Art Scholarship

UPPER FIFTH Georgina Anastassopoulos Tubby Jennifer Darko Alexa Feather Cecilia Hughes Hebe Ide Matilda Pope

LOWER SIXTH Henrietta Allen

Drama Scholarship Drama Scholarship Drama Scholarship

Eva Bartlett Fenella Bowlby Emma Bracken Jessica Chapman

LOWER FIFTH Florence Fanshawe Lara Mountain Celeste Percy Ella Scott

Academic Exhibition Headmistress’s Award and Music Scholarship Sport Scholarship Academic Scholar

Poppy Wessely LOWER FOURTH Annissa Baber Georgia Duckworth Amelie Furse Gardiner Hunt Olivia Jackson Clementine McNair Scott Constance Pope Imogen Ridley Poppy Scales

Exhibitioner Sport Exhibition Art Exhibition Academic Exhibition

AWARDS

SCHOLARSHIP & EXHIBITION AWARDS (AWARDED FOR SEPTEMBER 2015)

Celine Harborne Olivia Harrison Iona Jardine Lara Kary Janice Wing Tung Kwong Oi Ka (Natalie) Lam Octavia Leahy Sophie Manners Melissa McAlpine

Gemma Mountain Daisy Padovan Polina Parr Rebecca Radford Lamise Saber Sereena Singh Isabelle Smith Alyx Van der Vorm Georgiana Ward Rumbidzai Wasterfall Georgina Witter

Drama Exhibition

Geraldine James Drama Scholar and GCSE Scholar Academic Exhibition GCSE Scholar Hockey Exhibition Athletics and Swimming Scholarship Sports Exhibition Geraldine James Drama Scholar GCSE Scholar All Round Sports Scholarship and GCSE Scholar Head's Award for Combined Drama and Sport GCSE Scholar GCSE Scholar GCSE Scholar Academic Scholarship & GCSE Scholar Academic Scholarship

189 Academic Exhibition

Academic Exhibition Hockey Exhibition Academic Exhibition

Sports Exhibition Lacrosse Scholarship All Round Sports Scholarship & GCSE Scholar Academic Exhibition Sports Exhibition GCSE Scholar Hockey Scholarship Academic Exhibition GCSE Scholar GCSE Scholar Academic Scholarship & GCSE Scholar GCSE Scholar GCSE Scholar Lacrosse Scholarship

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

UNIVERSITY DESTINATIONS 190

CLASS OF 2016 UNIVERSITY DESTINATIONS This year we celebrated outstanding A level and Pre-U results achieved by our 2016 leavers. With more than 70% of grades achieved at the highest levels and outstanding university places secured in the UK and worldwide, our leavers of 2016 have exciting futures ahead. NAME

UNIVERSITY

COURSE

Molly Adams

DURHAM

Geography

Esther Adebajo

IMPERIAL

Chemical Engineering

Hannah Beck

OXFORD BROOKES

Film Studies

Matilda Bentley

YORK

History of Art

Sarah Bergstrom

MARQUETTE, USA

Liberal Arts

Cassiopeia Blackett-Ord

UCL

History, Politics and Economics BA

Charlotte Boughey

MANCHESTER METROPOLITAN

Fine Art

Matilda Burles

OXFORD MEDIA & BUSINESS SCHOOL

Media & Business

Flora Camps-Harris

LSE

Social Anthropology

Nataliia Chevska

LEEDS

German and International Business

Minna Conybeare-Cross

LEEDS

History of Art with Cultural Studies

Katharine Craig

LSE

Politics and International Relations

Autumn Davies

ROYAL HOLLOWAY

Management with Marketing

Emily Dodd-Noble

BRIGHTON & HOVE COLLEGE

Art Foundation

Sophia Donald

UAL

Bespoke Tailoring

Isabella Dubens

NYU, USA

Liberal Arts

Ngozi Emenike

YORK

Economics

June Eric-Udorie

EXETER

English

Hetty Fairbanks-Smith

EDINBURGH

French and Spanish

Georgia Findlay

EDINBURGH

Geography

Isobel Flack

LEEDS

Italian

Elinor Fleming

BRISTOL

Zoology

Victoria Fleming

OXFORD

Chemistry

Hannah Goodyear

MANCHESTER

Theological Studies in Philosophy and Ethics

Isabella Hancock

DURHAM

Chemistry

Louisa Henry

DURHAM

Anthropology and Sociology

Emilia Hewlett

EXETER

Modern Languages

Lauren Holmes

EDINBURGH

History of Art

Cecily Hornby

EDINBURGH

Economics with Management Science

Alexandra Howard

GLASGOW

English Literature/History of Art

Georgina Hughes

BRISTOL

Anthropology

Daisy Huntington

McGILL, CANADA

Liberal Arts

Katarina Huth

BROWN, USA

Liberal Arts

Lara-Lily Hurd

MANCHESTER METROPOLITAN

Art Foundation

Nurshat Izbassar

CITY

Cultural and Creative Industries

Henrietta Johnston

HARTPURY

Sport and Exercise Nutrition

Soyeon Kim

UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER, USA

Liberal Arts

Katy Lane

DURHAM

Natural Sciences

Sophie Larminie

DURHAM

Biological Anthropology

Jessica Ledger

EXETER

Politics and International Relations

Eleanor Leeves

CARDIFF

Geography

Lucy Leventhorpe

WESLEYAN, USA

Liberal Arts

Shuk Man (Sophia) Li

LEICESTER

Psychology

Clare Maunder

CAMBRIDGE

English

Iona Miller

SOAS

International Management

Amelia Milne

NYU, USA

Liberal Arts

Henrietta Montgomerie

EDINBURGH

History of Art

Lucy Mortlock

READING

Land Management

Hattie Muncey

DURHAM

Geography

Kate Ollerenshaw

CARDIFF

Ancient History

Sarah Orpen

OXFORD BROOKES

Art Foundation

AWARDS

COURSE

Alice Palmer

ST. ANDREWS

Medicine

Holly Parkinson

NEWCASTLE

Marketing

Louisa Pattisson

EXETER

Engineering

Emma Peddie

EDINBURGH

Linguistics

Zephyr Percy

BRISTOL

Biology

Emma Poole

MANCHESTER

Spanish and Business and Management

Amelia Porter

ELON, USA

Liberal Arts

Willa Prest

CAMBRIDGE

History

Keshya Rana

LSE

International Relations

Anouska Royle

NORTH EASTERN UNIVERSITY, USA

Liberal Arts

Livia Russell

CAMBRIDGE

Modern and Medieval Languages

Ione Sandberg

EDINBURGH

Engineering

Danagul Saulebayeva

READING

Italian and Management Studies

Olivia Scott

LEEDS

History of Art with Cultural Studies

Nicola Shi

TUFTS, USA

Liberal Arts

Hannah Simpson-Orlebar

LEEDS

English and Theology and Religious Studies

Matilda Smeeton

BRISTOL

French and Italian

Clementine Swallow

COURTAULD

History of Art

Cordelia Tahany

LSE

Economic History

Naomi Tan

IMPERIAL

Geology and Geophysics

Eleanor Tarling

LEEDS

History

Kwan Ee (Claire) Tay

LANCASTER

English Language and Creative Writing

Niamh Taylor

EXETER

Philosophy and Sociology

Rosie Thistlethwayte

CAMBRIDGE

Natural Sciences

Victoria (Clare) Turton

MANCHESTER

Archaeology and Anthropology

Laura Vaughan-Johnson

OXFORD BROOKES

Communications, Media and Culture/Film Studies

Lilac Watt

NOTTINGHAM

Modern Languages

Emily West

OXFORD

Experimental Psychology

Lara Wheeler

NEWCASTLE

Combined Honours

Lara Wigan

EDINBURGH

Spanish and Philosophy

Isobel Wild

EDINBURGH

History of Art

Charlotte Williams

BRISTOL

Spanish

Georgina Williams

NEWCASTLE

Agri-Business Management

Poppy Wilson

BRISTOL

Social Policy and Politics

Amelia Yerburgh

EDINBURGH

Geography

Wing Tung (Catherine) Yung

MANCHESTER

Materials Science and Engineering

Katherina (Kitty) Zeal

EXETER

Geography

PUBLIC EXAMINATION RESULTS 2015/16 When the UVI, LVI and UV received their public examination results I could not have been more proud of them. I am particularly delighted with the university entry record for the UVI who have gained an excellent range of places at top universities across the globe. Their results show that they can move on with confidence too (70% of the grades were at A*/A equivalent) and I have no doubt that they will be great assets as undergraduates. The UV have similarly achieved great things. They have an outstanding record of GCSE results with 77% of them gaining 8 A*/As and above and 86% of the grades being at A* and A. All the results are a credit to the girls’ hard work and the incredible support of the staff and of course parents. I particularly congratulate the following girls:

191

RESULTS

UNIVERSITY

UNIVERSITY DESTINATIONS

NAME

Girls who achieved 3 A*/A or D1 – D3 grades and above at A Level and/or Pre-U: Molly Adams, Esther Adebajo, Flora Camps-Harris, June Eric-Udorie, Isabella Hancock, Eleanor Leeves, Clare Maunder, Hattie Muncey, Zephyr Percy, Keysha Rana, Ione Sandberg, Clementine Swallow, Cordelia Tahany, Naomi Tan, Eleanor Tarling, Rosie Thistlethwayte, Emily West, Lara Wigan.

Girls who achieved 8 A* grades and above at GCSE: Georgina Anastassopoulos Tubby (11), Ilaria Bevan (10), Eleanor Bishop (8), Man I (Melissa) Chang (10), Emilie Cheung (9), Gwendoline Choi (12), Isabella Craig (9), Jennifer Darko (9), Sarah Darko (9), Laura Douglas-Hamilton (9), Omotara Edu (9), Alexa Feather (8), Eliza Gibbons-West (10), Lauren Griffith (11), Clarissa Hahn (8), Eliza Horn (9), Ella Houston (9), Beatrix Jackson (10), Wai-Ping (Sarah) Kwok (8), Francesca Lahiri (10), Lara Mun-Gavin (8), Sarah Palmer (10), Jessica Pemberton (9), Bethany Perry (8), Nutthapit Poolworaluk (10), Matilda Pope (10), Clara Silcock (8), Jennifer Standbrook (8), Georgina Tarling (9), Elizabeth Tatham (10), Alice Wills (10), Catharine Wippell (8), Saskia Wormsley (10). DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

192

MOVING ON

Monica and I joined Downe House at the same time back in September 2008 and it was clear from the beginning that she was calm and thoughtful, as well as an excellent teacher who had high expectations of all her pupils. She always had their best interests at heart and gave her time regularly to any pupil who needed extra help. Monica was employed to teach Italian but her language skills were excellent and she was quickly snapped up to teach some French too. The work she did with girls to get their oral work up to scratch was secondto-none and when moderating orals colleagues in the French Department marvelled at the standard of Monica’s pupils. Monica accompanied a number of trips over the years both to France and Italy. Monica was also a loyal and hardworking tutor and she always gave her tutees lots of time, support and the attention they needed. Over the years Monica worked very closely with Mrs Richardson, the Head of Italian, and they have built an excellent relationship. I know that Mrs Richardson will be very sad to see Monica leave the Department, as will I. Monica leaves to join her husband in his new role in Hertfordshire and to take on a role as an Italian teacher in a sixth form college. The pupils there do not know how lucky they are to gain Monica as their teacher as we all know how much she will do for them. We are sorry to lose Monica from our team but we wish her all the very best in her new role. Mrs Jane Basnett, Head of Modern Languages

Miss Laura Baker, Assistant Housemistress (Holcombe) and Teacher of PE From the moment Laura joined Downe House as Assistant Housemistress in Holcombe and a member of the PE Department, she has certainly been an energetic part of both teams: encouraging the girls to be involved in life at school and leading by example. Laura, often accompanied by her faithful sidekick Wispa (the very best cure for a homesick girl!), was always available for a baking session or a competitive, but fun, game of rounders. She has also taken great pleasure in developing her own Hockey team this year, and they have achieved great success in matches and developing the girls’ ability in this fast-paced sport. Her tutees have been fortunate enough to experience her dedication and care for the three years in mixed age and I know they have valued her hearty laugh as well as her academic support and encouragement. The staff and girls all wish her the most prosperous and blissful future, be it travelling the world or joining the police force. I am sure Holcombe will always hold a special place in Laura’s heart and we hope she will visit us, sporting her tasteful yellow jumper with pride at one of the many House competitions in the future. Mrs Beth Mears-Smith, Housemistress (Holcombe) and Teacher of English

Miss Rachel Black, Assistant Housemistress (Hill), Higher Education Administrator and Lower School Enrichment Coordinator Rachel has worked at Downe House for six years, five in the old Hill House and in the new boarding house for one. Her contribution to boarding has been as a home-maker and she has always kept the house wonderfully refreshed with flowers, pictures and little ornaments, always making sure the notice boards were up to date and helping the girls with anything they need. She is very discreet and often does lovely things that can go unnoticed.

MOVING ON

Mrs Monica Alussi, Teacher of Italian and Tutor

She has a very calm, steady approach to life and this has been very welcome in the frantic life we all lead at Downe House. She has enjoyed a lovely relationship with the girls who have always found it easy to talk to her. Rachel has conjured up some imaginative trips for the girls which have been beautifully organised, the most recent of these was the Adventure in Illustration. She also has a wonderful repertoire of ways to entertain the girls such as battleships in the common room in groups under a duvet, giant snakes and ladders in the Cloisters with 50 girls, buddy quizzes, human Cluedo and many others. Everything that Rachel has done for girls and colleagues alike has been done in a caring and loving manner and we wish her a wonderful future.

193

Miss Annabel Brown, Housemistress (Hill) and Teacher of Drama

Dr Michael Frampton, Teacher of Chemistry and Head of Oxbridge and Medical Applications Michael came to join the Chemistry Department straight from doing post-doctoral research and undergraduate teaching at Oxford. It very quickly became clear that the move into secondary teaching was absolutely the correct one and his colleagues would say he was a natural. Over his nine years at Downe House, he has made a huge contribution to the teaching in the Chemistry Department across all year groups, from enthusing girls in the Remove to stretching the GCSE candidates. His teaching of Pre-U to girls in the Sixth Form and support for those applying to university has been outstanding, and many girls owe their high grades and university places to him. Michael has also been in charge of the Oxbridge and Medical applications programmes and the comprehensive range of support that he has developed is superb; the girls could not ask for more. It is a mark of the respect that the girls have for Dr Frampton that I have had some of his tutees and students asking me to persuade him to stay! He will be sorely missed by all his colleagues in the Science Department but we understand that having more time to spend with his family and developing his teaching at Abingdon School is an important move for him. We all wish Michael and his family every success and happiness in the future. Mrs Yvonne Charlesworth, Director of Operations and Head of Science DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

MOVING ON

Miss Trine Jensen, Assistant Housemistress Mrs Laura Kent, Teacher (AGS) and Teacher of Classics of Learning Skills Trine has been a key part of the AGS team as Assistant Housemistress for the past two years. Working in the Classics Department, she has brought a sense of fun and warmth to everything she has done, whether helping girls or colleagues. Trine has been an excellent tutor to both UV and UIV tutees and the girls under her care have benefitted greatly from both her academic and pastoral involvement. She will be remembered amongst the AGS girls for her kind and caring nature. We will all miss her weekly ‘Book Club’ and ‘Storytelling Time’ on a Tuesday and her vast musical and literary knowledge! We wish her and Iris all the best for their future in London - Francis Holland is very lucky to have them both! We look forward to lots of visits from them when they can. Mrs Lydia Dakin, Head of Classics

Rev Robin Lapwood, Teacher of Religious Studies

194

From the outset, Robin approached his various roles with indefatigable enthusiasm. From filling in as Chaplain to working in Holcombe and Tedworth in the evenings, Robin was forever willing to go the biblical extra mile. What drove Robin? Robin loved being with and helping people, especially the young. Robin’s pastoral intuition never left him and his genuine care for others was his uppermost concern. In the classroom, Robin managed to fire up real interest in Religious Studies, whilst always promoting high academic standards. Robin’s gentle ‘tangential’ approach to learning enabled intellectual seeds to be sown in his pupils, seeds which he nurtured in the classroom which encouraged original and independent thinking. We are grateful to have had Robin’s experience and enthusiasm these last two years; to our loss Robin’s pastoral side craved one last chaplaincy post before his retirement. He will be missed at Downe House, and especially in the Religious Studies Department, where his legacy will live on a good while longer. Mr Phil Evans, Head of Religious Studies

MOVING ON

Laura came to Downe House in September 2006 and taught English for three years. In September 2009 she began to teach within the Learning Skills Department. As an avid reader, she has a passion for the written word and has enjoyed supporting the girls with their literacy and study skills. Her contribution to the life of Downe has been considerable and we wish her every success in the future. Mrs Paula Bell, Director of Pupil Progress

Miss Céline Maillard, Teacher of French Céline joined us just two years ago as a young teacher just through her NQT year but her classroom teaching was excellent – this was clear to see from the very start. Céline cared about every pupil, and made sure that she helped each pupil achieve their very best. To this end she worked hard to create resources that were engaging and challenging for all pupils. Her lessons were well thought out and certainly fun. Céline was well-known too for her generosity and regularly gave out Carambars and sweets as prizes. Out of the classroom Céline gave up time to help the Lower and Upper Sixth prepare for the French debating competition at Marlborough College and at the lower end of the school she ran a very successful film club for the Lower Fourth showing a variety of Disney films and French language films. The Lower Sixth French Ambassadors came along to these evenings too and gave the Lower Fourth opportunities to speak as much French as possible. Sadly, Céline has decided to move on to explore other avenues and opportunities. It is a loss for us in MFL but we all wish her the very best in this new phase of her life. Mrs Jane Basnett, Head of Modern Languages

Mrs Emily Parker-Barratt, Assistant Housemistress (Hermitage) and Teacher of Speech and Drama/Musical Theatre Emily came to Downe House in 2013 as a teacher of Speech and Drama and Musical Theatre. She was quickly recognised for her instinctive pastoral skills and the following year became Resident House Tutor in Tedworth. From September 2014, I was tremendously fortunate to have Emily join the Hermitage team as my Assistant Housemistress. It was not long before I realised what a valuable asset Emily was for the pastoral care of the girls. Her patience, composure, sensitivity and insight provided the girls with the security they needed. Emily was there unconditionally for them to listen, hear and offer valuable advice to help resolve conflict and personal problems. It was marvellous, too, to work with someone whose skills in Drama provided the distraction of games and activities at the beginnings of terms to blow away any homesickness blues that first nights can bring. Furthermore, the entire Lower School was the beneficiary of Emily’s

MOVING ON

expertise in Musical Theatre with her inspired writing, tireless directing and sheer professionalism to produce ‘Oliver! with a Twist’, which was simply a triumph! Selfishly, I will be sad to lose such an able colleague but I also know that the pull to return to the theatre is very real for Emily and she must pursue her dreams. I wish her every success for her future years treading the boards and sincerely hope to be able to take the Lower School girls to see Emily performing in London very soon. Mrs Anthea Nash, Housemistress (Hermitage)

Mrs Maria Reichardt, Head of French It seems unbelievable that Maria has only been with us for three years as she has achieved so much in such a short time. Maria joined us in 2013 as Head of French and immediately stamped her mark providing guidance for the French Department, starting up Debating Society, and leading by example in her lessons. The girls welcomed the model essays she provided for them and felt secure and confident under her teaching. Outside the classroom, she was very keen to provide opportunities for the girls that would allow them to use their French. Under Maria’s leadership girls entered, amongst other things, Oxford University’s French Essay Prize, the Linguistics’ Olympiad, debating competitions and it was Maria who instigated the French Ambassadors who were tasked with helping out with French across the year groups. As a teacher and a tutor Maria was always giving of her time to help girls individually and they benefitted from the enormous support she gave them on a regular basis. Before Maria came to us she was a successful Head of Modern Languages and it is to this role that Maria now returns. We are sure that she will make a success of her new job and we wish Maria, Ollie and the boys all the very best for the future. Mrs Jane Basnett, Head of Modern Languages

Ms Anna Renton-Green, Teacher of Learning Skills Anna started at Downe House as a Drama Teacher in September 2000 when the Drama Department was a great deal smaller than it is now. In 2006 she became Head of Speech and Drama, coaching girls for Trinity exams and introducing the RADA Shakespeare exam alongside teaching AS and A Level Drama. She has directed girls in a range of productions over the years including two memorable Summer Shakespeare productions that were staged on the Greek Steps. In 2012 she became Acting Director of Drama covering maternity leave for Mrs Deborah Fallon. Following that, she diversified into teaching Geography, Current Affairs and Learning Skills. Anna has been a tutor in Tedworth for many years, as well as tutoring in the Sixth Form. She is leaving Downe to emigrate with her family and her contribution to the School over the years has been outstanding. She will be sorely missed by the girls she has taught within the Learning Skills Department, where her skill, energy and enthusiasm as a teacher have been greatly appreciated. We wish her every success and happiness with her family in New Zealand. Mrs Paula Bell, Director of Pupil Progress

Mr John Sentance-Davis, Teacher of English, 2nd I/C English and Oxbridge Mentor John re-joined Downe House after an absence of some twenty years and has been an integral member of the English Department for the last three years. In his role as Second in Department, John worked tirelessly and he brought his wealth of experience to bear. He provided endless support to the new members of the Department and I have very much appreciated his friendship, help and patience. In his role as Oxbridge Coordinator for English John implemented a wonderful range of enrichment sessions; the most notable of these a ‘poetry analysis slam’ – a battle of wits against our very own Mr Atherton that proved very popular among the girls and was spoken of enthusiastically for some considerable time after. John approaches all he does with passion and a wonderful sense of humour. The girls within his care benefitted from and truly appreciated his inspirational and imaginative approach to teaching, and his irrepressible gusto. His passion for literature, especially texts from the Renaissance period, sparked lively debate both inside and outside of the classroom and he has an extraordinary capacity to bring Shakespeare’s plays to life – even if this does mean wearing yellow socks in true Malvolio style! John gives generously of his time and the girls speak of him with genuine respect, affection and appreciation for all that he has done to help them succeed in their studies. With his penchant for colourful clothes, shoes and literary ties, John is Downe’s very own twenty-first century dandy and the epitome of Wilde’s aphorism ‘one should always be a little improbable’. Downe will be a far duller place without him. John leaves Downe for Sherfield, where is to become Head of English. We wish him and his lovely family all the very best of luck for the future. Mrs Johanne Harrington, Head of English DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

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Mrs Emily Spivey, Teacher of PE (Lacrosse) Emily joined the PE Department in September 2013. From the very beginning she immersed herself fully in teaching and coaching a variety of sports. She has coached the 2nd Senior and U15B Lacrosse Teams to great success; in her first season the U15B team won the Nationals. She has enjoyed teaching a range of sports to the younger year groups including lacrosse, tennis and netball and has also taught the Psychology component of PE at AS and A Level; I know the pupils will miss her in the next academic year. Emily’s vast range of unique warm up tasks and challenges for the lower school always produced the most noise and activity, and she has been very thorough in preparing pupils for intense exercise. Emily’s knowledge and enthusiasm in fitness has been invaluable; she has promoted and developed the fitness of the pupils across all age groups and she has strived to ensure there is a programme in place to enable any injured pupils to return safely to full fitness. Between school and family commitments she somehow found time to organise and run lacrosse camps in the holidays for the younger year groups. Emily will be greatly missed as she has been a great teacher and colleague. She is always enthusiastic in her approach to teaching and willing to help out across the Department. We will certain miss her skill and organisation at putting up the large tents at lacrosse tournaments! Fortunately we will see her regularly at fixtures and tournaments as she and her family move to live and work at Sherborne Girls’ School. We wish Emily a happy, healthy and successful time ahead. Mrs Lydia Rayne, Director of Sport

Mr Christian Wilke, Head of Computing and ICT Christian has spent only one year at Downe House but his love of computing, photography and technology has been clearly apparent. A keen coder, Christian introduced the girls to a variety of online coding websites and encouraged them to work at an individual pace. Under his guidance, the girls produced wonderful programmes for the House Drama competition. Christian encouraged girls to create bespoke graphics for the programme covers and used innovative techniques to display these. Christian also introduced the girls to Lego Mindstorms, giving girls the opportunity to use Lego to create customisable, programmable Lego robots. Many girls have also benefitted from Christian’s support as a tutor in Aisholt House and from his company on the many school trips he attended. Christian leaves us to teach abroad and we wish him all the very best for the future. Mrs Areti Bizior, Deputy Headmistress

MOVING ON

Mrs Rebecca Wilson, Housemistress (Aisholt) and Teacher of Music Rebecca Wilson joined us in 2009 as Housemistress of Aisholt. Along with her husband Rory, Rebecca quickly embraced life at Downe House and it was clear to all that she thoroughly enjoyed spending time with her girls. The Aisholt girls warmed to Rebecca so quickly and knew she would be a staunch advocate for them, that she would listen when they needed advice and would be on hand for a hug when they needed reassuring. Rebecca’s infectious sense of fun and commitment to the Aisholt girls was unquestionable and the ethos she generated in the House was one of great warmth, security and laughter. Rebecca also inspired great loyalty in her team and her care and dedication was highly regarded by both girls and parents. Rebecca was also a key member of the Music Department; she was always happy to play her part, whether that was as part of the orchestra or in the classroom, and I know her contributions were valued by Anthony Cain and then Dr Charlotte Exon. Rebecca will certainly be missed by the girls and her colleagues and we wish her, Rory, Fraser and Autumn all the very best in the next exciting phase of their lives. Mrs Genevieve Ford, Boarding Deputy

Mrs Pam Barnett, House Matron (AGN) Pam joined Downe House in 1996 and for the vast majority of that time, she has been a loyal member of Ancren Gate North. Pam was known for her firm but fair attitude, warmth and the ability to deal with any problem, no matter how big or small. It was always a wonderful sight to enter the House Study after a full morning of teaching and see girls of all ages chatting with Pam on the sofa over a tub of biscuits and mug of tea. The family feel of the House was most important to her and I have heard many girls describe her as their ‘mum away from home’ on numerous occasions. However Pam was not a push-over in the slightest, as she most definitely confiscated more laptops during prep for ‘movie watching’ than any other member of Housestaff I know in her time! The girls will miss her Thursday cake baking enormously and her dry sense of humour. Pam was and always will be an AGN stalwart who has supported more girls and Housemistresses through the School than I could possibly count. We wish her the best of luck and fun in her retirement years. Miss Kayleigh Anger, Housemistress (AGN) and Teacher of Drama

AISHOLT

Miranda Shaw

Emily Dodd-Noble Georgia Findlay Isabella Hancock

DEPUTY HEAD SENIOR Esther Adebajo

TEDWORTH Head Deputy Head Deputy Head

AGN SENIORS Freya Esam Daisy Huntington Sophie Larminie Ione Sandberg Rosie Thistlethwayte Sasha Wendin Isobel Wild Amelia Yerburgh

Louisa Henry Sophia Donald Amelia Porter

Head Deputy Head Deputy Head

HOLCOMBE Lilac Watt Eleanor Tarling Wing Yun (Catherine) Yung

Head Deputy Head Deputy Head

HEAD CHAPEL SENIOR Head Deputy Head Deputy Head

AGS Emma Stonebridge Alexandra Kirk Autumn Davies

Jessica Ledger Katherina (Kitty) Zeal Hattie Muncey Felicia Tchen

DEPUTY HEAD CHAPEL SENIOR Ngozi Emenike

GLOBAL AMBASSADORS Lauren Brolly Shuk Man (Sophia) Li Alice Palmer Keshya Rana

Head Deputy Head Deputy Head

SCHOOL OFFICERS

HEAD SENIOR

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GAMES CAPTAIN

AMBASSADORS

LOWER SCHOOL SENIORS

Lara Wigan

Eleanor Armstrong Cecily Hornby Eleanor Leeves Lucy Leventhorpe Emma Poole Olivia Scott Matilda Smeeton Naomi Tan Niamh Taylor Emily West

Lucy Astor Isabella Dubens Lucy Mortlock Sarah Orpen Holly Parkinson Hannah Simpson-Orlebar Laura Vaughan-Johnson

HEAD OF DRAMA Anouska Royle

DEPUTY HEAD OF DRAMA Lara-Lily Hurd

HEAD OF MUSIC Livia Russell

DEPUTY HEAD OF MUSIC Matilda Bentley

HEAD AMBASSADORS Clare Maunder Cordelia Tahany

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LITERARY SENIOR Amelia Milne

HEADS OF LOWER SCHOOL Emma Peddie Hannah Goodyear

DOWNE HOUSE MAGAZINE

Downe House, Cold Ash, Thatcham, Berkshire, RG18 9JJ t: 01635 200286 f: 01635 202026 e: registrar@downehouse.net www.downehouse.net