Journal Sherborne Old Girls
No. 50 – 2016
No. 50 – 2016
Editorial Team Fiona James
Contents From the Editorial Team
1
From the Chairman
2
Anna Anthony
From the President
2
Tim Gibson
2016 SOG AGM
3
SOG charity 2015/18 – Achievement for All
4
Design and print
Congratulations
5
Shelleys the Printers
From the Headmistress
6
Development Review
8
Obituaries
9
Susie Suter Fiona Clapp
Executive Committee
Journal enclosures Two sheets of paper are enclosed with your Journal: a donation form for the charity of the year (on the back of the address sheet), and details of the 2017 Old Girls Day & AGM, together with a tear-off reply slip.
The Old Girls Office Sherborne Girls Bradford Road Sherborne Dorset DT9 3QN T: 01935 818329 F: 01935 818310 E: oldgirls@sherborne.com
New SOG members 2016
15
Daughters and Granddaughters of OGs
15
Golf
16
Births, Marriages & Deaths
18
Circle News
20
Careers Networking Service
25
Features
30
Peer Group News
35
News from Honorary Members
48
Sherborne Old Girls
IBC
www.sherborne.com/Sherborne-Old-Girls
Sherborne Girls Alumnae Sherborne Girls Young Alumnae Sherborne Girls
The cover photo is part of an archive collection depicting the Clock Tower at Sherborne School for Girls. Sadly there is no record of the date it was taken.
From THE EDITORIAL TEAM
Welcome to the 2016 edition of the Journal. As was the case last year, we have produced the Journal using an in-house editorial team, with the Executive Committee taking overall responsibility for the editorial content. We have received an incredible amount of news which we are delighted about and have tried to include as much as possible. Please do keep sending us your news; it is always
fascinating and inspiring to read about the achievements and roles undertaken by Old Girls. Fuller versions of the text we are unable to include are on our website. We hope you will enjoy reading the articles as much as we have. With all good wishes for 2017. Fiona James on behalf of the Editorial Team
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Journal 2016
From
THE CHAIRMAN Nicki Whiteman (Lewis) E’94 It was great to see so many faces at the AGM in May, and I was struck by the depth and breadth of experience and talent we have among our old girls. During my tenure as Chair I would like to make the most of that! I am keen to focus not just on the social aspect (although I never say no to a glass of wine and a catch-up) but also on the value we provide. I am keen to explore new ways of networking, mentoring and empowering our newest members as they head out into the workplace. In the globally uncertain times ahead, we must look for opportunity and I believe we have one at our fingertips with Sherborne Old Girls. I hope you will support me helping to create a vibrant, relevant, and really valuable organisation for alumnae of all ages.
We’re exploring a number of ways in which we might do this but we are very keen to hear your ideas, so please do drop me a line, if you would like to get involved. Starting as we mean to go on, we are making some exciting changes to next year’s AGM, being held on Saturday, 6 May. We have made this a family event and will be laying on entertainment for children and partners, including a performance of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, while we do the meeting bit! Every year we intend to invite a specific decade to come along as guest of the Old Girls, so look out for an invite coming soon. Lastly, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Joanna Carson, who has given terrific support as Treasurer in recent months.
From
THE PRESIDENT Louise Ellam (Hall) E’84 As a mother of teenage children, with the eldest not far away from applying for her first job, I am very aware of the high hurdles that those about to leave either Sherborne or university face as they launch into the working world. I am therefore delighted that the Old Girls are focusing even more closely on supporting these girls through mentoring, networking events and the newly launched E-bulletin. Aligned with this, I send out a plea to all in our Old Girls community to consider whether you can offer any
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kind of help to our younger members. Next year, we are changing the format of our annual gathering and holding a family day when Old Girls can get together to reminisce and more recent leavers can bring along their families to get a sense of their school days. The date is Saturday, 6 May; details are included with this Journal. We hope to see you there and hope that you will spread the word amongst your Sherborne friends.
2016 SOG AGM We were very fortunate to be able to hold our AGM at the House of Lords at the kind invitation of Anne Strutt (Jenkin) E’73. After passing through security, everyone made their way to a wood-panelled Committee Room where we held our meeting. President Louise Ellam (Hall) E’84 welcomed Old Girls and thanked Anne for enabling Old Girls to be in such an illustrious venue. Nicki Whiteman (Lewis) E’94 was elected as the new chairman, Joanna Cock (Carson) W’64 as Treasurer and Louise was elected to continue as President for one more year. Chairman, Sophie Stratton E’82, reported that following a review to the structure of SOG, changes were implemented. Sophie noted that the rise of social media impacts on how an organisation operates and that SOG should embrace these changes. The Headmistress, Jenny Dwyer, thanked all those involved with SOG over the last year for bringing the organisation into closer alignment with the school. Jenny highlighted the numerous successes within the school, including that of the lacrosse and hockey teams and the large numbers of girls involved in sport. A concert by the
Madrigal Society and String Orchestra was enjoyed by parents and Old Girls alike, with many commenting on the wonderful quality of music and singing. The standard of art remains high and a number of Old Girls attended an art exhibition held in March at the Menier Gallery, Southwark, London, which was testament to the talent of the girls and Old Girls who exhibited. After the meeting Old Girls were able to have a look around the House of Lords including the Upper Chamber. The fabulous architecture, paintings and traditions of such a historic venue added to the atmosphere and made for an unforgettable visit. The day ended with afternoon tea in the Cholmondeley Room overlooking the Thames. During tea the Door Marshall spoke about his role and the history behind it. Jane Reekie (Nicholson) E’59 thanked Sophie for her time and hard work as Chairman and wished her well for her future. Jane and all those present thanked Anne for hosting us and for such a special day.
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Journal 2016
SOG CHARITY 2015–18 Achievement for All
Nicki Whiteman (Lewis) E’94 sent us an update about the valuable work Achievement for All does before she stepped down as their Chief Communications Officer. The UK has one of the widest attainment gaps in education anywhere in the world with 1 in 5 children desperately underachieving at school compared to their peers. Educational inequality starts early, widens throughout school and the effects can last a lifetime in terms of job prospects, health and overall contribution to society. The majority of those worst affected come from a disadvantaged background or have a special educational need or disability. Over the last twelve months, Achievement for All has continued to address this inequality and has helped thousands of children do better at school. Thanks to our wide network of supporters, and to Sherborne Old Girls, we have been able to expand our work into more schools, reaching more pupils, and turning more lives around. Figures soon to be published independently by
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PwC show children on our programmes start in the lowest achieving 20% academically, but progress far beyond expectations. After two years our pupils have caught up and in many cases exceeded their classmates. What does this mean in real terms? Well, it means leaving primary schools able to read, write and add up
“”
...we have been able to expand our work into more schools, reaching more pupils, and turning more lives around.
properly; it means achieving those vital five A* – C grades at GCSE that open up the doors to the future; it means a happy, inclusive, rewarding school experience for all children. Since SOG made Achievement for All their chosen charity, 172,000 children and young people have been benefitting from our work. But that is a drop in the
very big ocean of need. Together we can give all children the gift that we were blessed with during our time at Sherborne: a great education. It costs around £6,000 to deliver our programme in one school for one whole year, but for too many that is beyond the reaches of their budgets. With your help we can drive down that cost. With your support we can ensure every child reaches their full potential, has choices to explore and is equipped to fulfil their role in society. This year government funding for our School Programme was reduced by over one million pounds, which leaves us with a big hole to fill. So if you share our vision of a world where every child is enabled to be the very best that they can be, regardless of their background, challenge or need, then please, donate via www.justgiving.com/3as or visit our website www.afaeducation.org for more details. Thank you. Nicki Whiteman Former Chief Communications Officer
Congratulations to... Anne Chisholm (Davie) AW’58 previously chair of the Royal Society of Literature, was awarded an OBE for services to Literature. Trudi Hubbard (Harris) DH’58 was awarded an MBE for services to children with special educational needs and disabilities. (See full article on p.29.) Kay Stewart Sandeman (Brock) W’70 was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for public service particularly to the Church of England. Melanie Wray (Blake) AW’78 Founder of Kamili Organisation, Nairobi, was awarded an MBE for services to mental health in Kenya. Kathryn Halliday AE’09 graduated from Oxford University with a First Class Honours degree in Human Sciences. Eleanor Edkins K’11 graduated from Falmouth University with a First Class degree in Interior Architecture. Emma Carrick Smith WD’12 graduated from Manchester University with a First Class Honours degree in Mathematics and has also graduated from UCL with a Masters in Mathematical Modelling with a Distinction. Camilla Fraser WD’12 graduated from Newcastle University with a First Class Combined Honours degree. Emma Pickup RH’12 graduated from Newcastle University with a First Class Honours degree (BA Hons) in Biology. Harriet Tennant WD’12 graduated from Newcastle University with a First Class Honours degree in Business Management.
Torchbearers News Torchbearers and potential legators gathered for lunch at Southwark Cathedral, London, in March. The Headmistress was delighted to welcome everyone and gave an update on the school and presented the plans for the new Arts Centre. For 2017, there will be a Torchbearers event in Dorset in the spring. We are always keen to hear from potential new legators and welcome enquiries from those who feel that they may be able to support the school in their Will. If you would like to know more, do please contact Laura Windsor in the Development Office. Jane Reekie (Nicholson) E’59 Leader, The Torchbearers Society 5
Journal 2016
Headmistress Jenny Dwyer explores the school theme for 2015 – 16: “Stronger Together”
From THE HEADMISTRESS
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One of the most striking features of Sherborne Girls is the profound sense of community that exists throughout the school. This is a place marked by a vibrant corporate spirit, in which each person pursues their own flourishing as part of a whole. It is a place of mutuality and co-operation, where personal growth is enabled and encouraged in and through committed relationships of respect, reciprocity and other regard. Such a culture was expressed in our theme for 2015 – 16: “Stronger Together”. This phrase speaks of the value of girls working together to fulfil their ambitions, understanding that they will achieve far more as part of a group than they ever will alone. This is witnessed in every aspect of school life. Whether it is the success of our teams competing on the sports field, the brilliance of our acting ensembles, the harmonious performances of our choirs, or the grit and determination of our Duke of Edinburgh’s Award participants, our pupils always achieve far more when they work together.
Even in those pursuits that are more readily characterised as individual activities, our pupils recognise the significance of being formed and supported by a community of friends. So when we celebrate the standout achievements of girls who have excelled in playing a musical instrument, or writing, or academic work, we know that we celebrate more than just a particular person’s brilliance. We celebrate our wonderful, compassionate community. And we
We celebrate our wonderful, “� compassionate community. take note that what any of us achieves is only possible by virtue of the companionship and support of those who walk alongside us. Of course, such companionship continues way beyond one’s time at school. As the wonderful reports on these pages attest, the Sherborne Girls community transcends place and time, binding people together across generations because they share the experience of being formed through their years at the school. For some, this experience happened decades ago, while for others it is a thing of very recent memory. And, thanks to the Old Girls network and this journal, the connective threads between you all are clear: shared dispositions that consistently prioritise the wellbeing of others ahead of your own; a deep commitment to public service; creativity and intellectual curiosity; and an innate understanding of the value of building relationships in every sphere of life. It is this capacity to build community that makes Sherborne Girls such a special place. It is one of the defining marks of a school that has at its heart a profound and exciting celebration of individual talent and achievement, set amid a deep-rooted commitment to corporate flourishing. That is the school I am proud of. That is the community that makes us all whole. I hope you enjoy reading all about it in the following pages, and finding out what your fellow community members have been doing over the last 12 months. 7
Journal 2016
Development Building a Future of Creativity The school was delighted to welcome Parents, Old Girls and Friends of Sherborne Girls to their drinks reception, ‘Building a Future of Creativity’, in November. The event, held in the stunning ‘speakeasy’ themed ‘The Deck’ at the National Theatre, was an opportunity for Headmistress, Jenny Dwyer, to share highlights of the school’s future plans, including the Arts Centre.
Arts Centre The new Arts Centre marks the end of the school’s previous strategy of development, but is also the foundation for the future vision. It will be a creative hub that will benefit the whole school and Sherborne community, and will include a new recital hall with capacity of 560 and new drama school. It will join the arts disciplines and provide space to exhibit the school’s talented artists, and with two large foyers it will provide multi-functional social space for a range of events from match teas and socials, to exhibitions and visiting speakers. Thanks to the generous support of donors, the Arts Centre Appeal has now raised over £1.7m, inching ever closer to the £2.5m target. With £700,000 to go, the fundraising continues in earnest.
Take a Seat Old Girls are invited to ‘Take a Seat’ in the new Recital Hall. Through supporting the project with a £1,000 donation, you can bring a seat to life with a named plaque or message of your choice.
The school values every donation and you may prefer to support the Arts Centre Appeal in another way:
Become a Benefactor A new and enduring group: The Sherborne Girls Benefactors – £10,000
Name a Room To give the Centre character and remind future generations of the importance of philanthropy – £20,000+
Celebrate a Legend The school is also raising funds in order to name a seat or room after much-loved members of staff – any amount
For more information on how to support this inspirational project, please visit www.sherborne.com/the-arts-centre
Together we can shape the future 8
Obituaries Valerie Richardson (Chandler) A’38 Valerie’s son, Mike, sent us this obituary about his mother. Valerie was born in 1920 in Palmers Green, north London. She joined SSG in 1933, and left in 1938 to attend a finishing school in Grindelwald, Switzerland. After a further year at a secretarial college, Valerie started her first job in London, working for the Ministry of Food. In 1941, Valerie’s office was evacuated to Colwyn Bay, North Wales – a move that would have a profound influence on her life. Here she shared a boarding house with a lady from south London, with whose son, John Chandler, Valerie eventually fell in love. John and Valerie married in April 1944. By this time, Valerie had been called up to the WAAF, where her role involved plotting aircraft on a huge map in the Ops Room in Stanmore. After the war, Valerie and John set up home in Petts Wood, Kent. Their first son, Michael, was born in 1947, and their second, Ian, in 1950. When both boys started boarding at Blundell’s School in Devon, Valerie became very active. She became an alto in the Crofton Choir, volunteered as a hospital driver, and took needlework classes. When Valerie and John moved to Chalfont St Peter, Bucks, in 1969, she continued these pursuits. She joined a large choir, whose performances took them to the Albert Hall and the South Bank, became a filing clerk and receptionist at the Family Planning Association, and stayed fit through the League of Health and Beauty. Valerie was widowed in 2001, but continued to lead an independent and active life until 2013. She had two grandchildren, Christopher and
Maya, and in 2015 became a great-grandmother to India. After being admitted to hospital with a chest infection, Valerie passed away on 26 January 2016, aged 95. Her memorial service was attended by more than 60 people, including family, god-daughters, friends and colleagues from her various pastimes.
Kathryn Rowswell Matron of Aldhelmsted East, 2007 – 2015 Obituary submitted by Liz Poraj-Wilczynska, Housemistress of Aldhelmsted East from 2003 – 2015. I had the pleasure of working with Kathryn for eight years, and during that time she became a very dear friend. Kathryn’s time in East was characterised by caring, kindness and boundless energy. She always went out of her way to help girls and staff alike – coming to the rescue when girls had laundry disasters, altering dresses for Sixth Form dinners, helping with prep, listening to the girls and giving them sound advice. Invariably, Kathryn stayed at work for longer than her hours dictated. She was always willing to cover for illness, and was a reassuring presence for the girls she accompanied to medical appointments Kathryn had such a sunny, positive personality and was the most courageous person you could meet. Despite bravely battling cancer three times she was still able to smile. Indeed, her optimism was infectious. Kathryn was dearly loved by all in East and her memory will live in our hearts forever.
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Journal 2016
Mary Southcombe (Tyler) AW’39 Adapted from an obituary submitted by Mary’s daughter, Caroline. Mary was born on 6 September 1921, the youngest of Bernard and Edith Southcombe’s four children. She was raised in Milborne Port, near Sherborne, and became a boarder at SSG in 1934. On leaving school in 1939, Mary was sent to Paris to broaden her education. Falling in love with a young Hungarian diplomat, she ignored instructions from her mother to return to Milborne – eventually getting out of France just before war broke out and the ports were closed. In September 1939, Mary registered as a Philosophy undergraduate at Bedford College, which was evacuated to Cambridge for the duration of the war. On graduation, she was recruited as a codebreaker at Bletchley Park. Mary’s work involved decoding Italian Diplomatic Naval signals, which led to her breaking a message about an imminent attack on Malta. After Italy’s defeat, she became one of only two women to train to decode Japanese signals. For almost 40 years, Mary’s family and friends believed that she was simply carrying out wartime work. It was only in the late 1970s, when Alan Turing’s story was broadcast on the radio, that she revealed the true nature of her endeavours. At the end of the war, Mary returned to Cambridge to work as a research assistant to historian David Thompson, and for the International Students Society. It was during the course of that work that she met a Selwyn College Law undergraduate, Pat Tyler, whom she married in 1947 while working as a psychiatric social worker. While raising her four children, Mary campaigned for home responsibility payments for new mothers – her ideas eventually leading to the implementation of Working Tax Credits. In the early 1980s, she also carried out a large survey of the families of those suffering from schizophrenia. Through this pioneering work she proposed that there were at least two different
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forms of the disease, a discovery that gained her a place in the Debrett’s Distinguished People of Today. Mary devotedly cared for her beloved Pat until his death. She died on 30 September 2016, and is survived by four children, nine grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
Jenny Drury (Weigall) AE’49 Obituary submitted by her niece, Elizabeth. Jenny was born on 14 April 1932 and joined SSG in 1945. During her time at the school, she proved herself to be a gifted musician. As a pupil during the war/post-war years, she clearly recalled having to divide the House’s weekly butter ration into specific weighed portions for each pupil. On leaving SSG, Jenny trained as a teacher at the Froebel Institute in London. She taught for many years in towns and cities including Oxford, Cambridge and London, with a year’s exchange in the USA in the early 1960s. In 1974 Jenny became Headmistress of Redcliffe School in London, where she was admired by staff and pupils alike. In her spare time she enjoyed walking all over England, mountaineering in Europe and travelling. In 1987 Jenny married John Weigall and moved to Rotherfield, East Sussex. Here, she enjoyed gardening, walking, visiting art galleries and stately homes, and volunteering for many different organisations. Jenny coped with old age and different illnesses with great stoicism. She was a very generous and kind person who was loved by many, including her sister Anne (also Aldhelmsted East), nephew, niece, their families, and many friends. Jenny died on 11 July 2016, and will be greatly missed by all.
Hilary Rogers
Heather Bell (Pittar)
AW’45
A’53
Obituary compiled from memories submitted by the Rogers family and the Dohnavur Fellowship. Born on Palm Sunday in 1927, Hilary grew up in Laleham, Surrey. From an early age she was an enthusiastic swimmer – first in the Thames, then as a surfer in Cornwall. Hilary started boarding at SSG during the war and recalls hiding under a table when the town was unexpectedly bombed. After the war she trained as a dentist in London, where she also attended Bible College and took part in the Billy Graham crusade. In 1955, Hilary was called to India’s Dohnavur Fellowship, where she became their first dentist. Whilst there, she worked in the Fellowship’s hospital, trained one of its sisters to assist her in the dental lab, and took her expertise to many local villages. As a result of her ministry in one village, Vadukatchimathil, a new church has been built and services held there every Sunday. During her time in India, Hilary learned to speak Tamil – a not insignificant achievement, given the complexity of the language. She also continued her swimming in the forest pools, took the girls from the Fellowship on hiking trips, and arranged their marriages. She formed close friendships with the Indian sisters, and a close attachment to the country that she came to regard as her own. Hilary continued working with the Fellowship until 1992, when she returned to the UK. During her retirement, Hilary was a regular participant in the Dohnavur prayer meetings and the Christian Dental Fellowship. She continued to be an enthusiastic traveller, on deputation work, on return trips to India, and latterly on cruises. Living on her own, Hilary was fiercely independent. She remained adamant that she would not go into sheltered accommodation, and enjoyed playing Bridge and Scrabble right up until her death on 20 July 2016. Hilary’s cousins from India, Cheryl and Linda, and her nieces from Sherborne, Ann and Patricia, followed her as pupils at SSG.
Obituary submitted by Heather’s close friend Janet MacPherson (Richardson) W’53. Heather was born in Kenya in 1935. Her Scottish father was a District Commissioner in Uganda, and the family returned to England in 1945 to stay with grandparents in Bristol before moving to Scotland. Heather joined SSG in 1947. She excelled at games, and played in all the House and School teams. Together with her partner, Sue Fisher (Bird) T’55, she won the Queen’s Schoolgirls Tennis Doubles in 1952 and 1953 and the Aberdare Cup in December 1951. Heather also twice reached the quarter-finals of Junior Wimbledon, and in the 1950s was ranked number one in Scotland for squash. None of this was particularly surprising, given her family’s athletic background: her mother captained England for hockey and her great aunt won two Olympic Gold medals for tennis in 1912. After leaving the school, Heather trained and qualified as an orthoptist in the Oxford/Reading area. She started working at London’s Royal Eye Hospital, where she met Graham – an Australian registrar studying for the Fellowship in Ophthalmology. They were a great couple with many mutual interests and in 1964 they married and returned to live in Sydney. Graham and Heather worked together for a while and had a daughter and two sons together. They spent many happy holidays travelling, camping in the Outback, studying birds and playing golf and tennis. When Graham and Heather’s youngest son, James, started losing his sight at an early age, Heather saw it as a 11
Journal 2016 challenge. Thanks to her encouragement and strength of character, James not only learnt to cope with his condition, but also excelled at swimming. He became the only blind swimmer to have swum the English Channel, and features in the American Hall of Fame as a marathon swimmer. Heather was very proud of all her children, and was delighted with her five grandchildren who adored her and enjoyed listening to the wonderful stories of her life. Heather died peacefully and unexpectedly on 11 February 2015 after a happy evening with Graham. As her son, Tony, said at her funeral: “How nice for her to take that final vision with her and to finish her life in a home she dearly loved and with her favourite person in the world.”
Diana Howitt (Helme)
of the National Magistrates Association. She supported the Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges Association along with other good causes and was much involved in the church and community of Binfield, where she lived happily for 50 years. A widow for 36 years, Diana enjoyed the role of family matriarch, and was keen to help shape the development of subsequent generations. By the time she died, she had 15 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. She demanded high standards of herself and expected them of others. She had a strong sense of duty, but also a merry twinkle. The last three years of Diana’s life were challenging, but she didn’t complain. She will be remembered as highly intelligent, bookish, loyal and dutiful, but with a strong personality, and prepared to speak out decisively when necessary. Diana died on 14 April 2016, and is survived by her younger sister, Anne (Lady White) – also a former Wingfield pupil.
W’41 Obituary submitted by Diana’s daughter, Nicola. Born in February 1923, Diana was Head Girl at SSG during the early years of the war. She went on to study History at UCL when it was evacuated to Bangor and on graduation joined the Ministry of Supply. Following this, she taught History to trainee teachers at the Maria Grey Teacher Training College in Isleworth (now part of Brunel University). In 1950, Diana married Squadron Leader Michael Helme. Soon afterwards, she followed him to Hong Kong, then to Singapore, Pembroke Dock and Bracknell. The couple had four children together: Elizabeth, Tim, Nicola and Philippa. All three girls attended SSG in Wingfield and Philippa followed in her mother’s footsteps by becoming Head Girl. Michael left the RAF in 1959 and worked in London until his death in 1980. In 1972, Diana became a Magistrate – serving as Chair of the Forest Bench for several years and on the Council 12
Barbara Traill (Kirk) DH’42 Adapted from an obituary submitted by Barbara’s niece Diana Traill. Born on 19 June 1923, Barbara joined SSG in 1930. She became very involved in sport – playing tennis, hockey, lacrosse and netball for the school, and captaining Dun Holme’s House tennis team for two years. In her final year, Barbara was Head of Dun Holme, and throughout her time at the school she received many prizes and commendations for her artwork. When the Second World War broke out, Barbara was 16 and still at SSG. Her exceptional drawing talent saw her recruited to Cowbridge House in Malmesbury – the top secret ‘shadow factory’ that produced radar equipment for the RAF. As draughtsman’s tracer, Barbara drew up blueprints for the engineers. She loved the work, long bike rides in the Wiltshire countryside, and political discussions late into the night. She also
joined the Communist party at this time, reflecting a lifelong concern for social justice. After the war Barbara took up her place at London’s Central School of Art, where the artist and teacher Bernard Meninsky predicted a professional art career for her. Inspired particularly by Matisse and Picasso, she had a wonderful eye and an extraordinary ability to paint from life. She brought her talents to bear on her many interests, in architecture, history, literature, landscape and horticulture. On leaving art college, Barbara worked as a stage and costume designer for the Unity Theatre in London. In 1950 she married the Cambridge classicist Geoffrey Kirk, and threw herself into the
life of a university wife. She travelled with Geoffrey to Yale and Berkeley, and accompanied him on many sailing trips. In her 50s, after her divorce, Barbara worked at Cambridge University library, was an active member of the Labour party, gave guided tours of Cambridge colleges and gardened avidly. She revived her interest in sport, and again took great pleasure in playing tennis, at which she had excelled. She continued painting until her eyesight deteriorated, well into her 80s. Barbara died on 5 April 2016. She is survived by her daughter, Lydia, her sister, Mavis, and her extended family.
Tessa Waterhouse (John)
also set up the now-flourishing Oxford Academic Health Science Network, which supports the care of children in the Thames Valley. Professionally, Tessa excelled. She was a brilliant research nurse – popular with co-workers, and trusted by the children and families with whom she interacted. The studies she worked on during her early years at Oxford University have underpinned some major policy changes in the UK and further afield that have had a substantial impact on child health. As manager of the Oxford Vaccine Group, Tessa oversaw trials involving some 10,000 children, and spent about £20 million of grant money. She valued people, encouraged and guided them, and delighted in others’ success. She was an adviser, confidante, counsellor and friend to so many of her colleagues, and had no time for status or ego. In recognition of her substantial achievements, Tessa became the first recipient of the Thames Valley Award for Outstanding Contribution to Children’s Research – an award that will now be continued in her memory. During the seven months of her illness, Tess fought hard to be there for her much-loved family for as long as possible. Through it all, she remained, brave, strong and determined; she smiled, laughed, advised and supported. Her natural warmth, sparkle and love shone through, and will not be forgotten.
AE’97 Obituary compiled from memories submitted by Tessa’s sisters, Charlotte (AE’96) and Sarah, and former colleague, Professor Andrew Pollard. Caring, thoughtful, hardworking and creative: these are just some of the adjectives that describe Tessa – a much-loved mother, daughter, wife, aunt, sister, friend and colleague. Tess always had a great love for children, a trait that shone through in both her family and professional life. In her younger years, she looked after her sisters and babysat other children – becoming an important part of their lives, and a godmother to many. In 2008, Tess and her husband, Owain, had their first son, Alfie. Three siblings soon followed in the shape of Tris, Isaac and Rosie, and Tess proved herself to be an exceptional mother: loving, calm, patient and fun. It was perhaps natural, then, that Tess should pursue a career in paediatric medicine: first as a paediatric nurse at Great Ormond Street Hospital, then at the Oxford Vaccine Group and the Thames Valley Clinical Research Network. She
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Journal 2016
Phyllis Lindsay White History of Art, Art and Craft teacher Obituary compiled from memories submitted by Old Girls Elisabeth Light (Constable) AE’55, and Caroline Shaw (MacDonaldHaig) W’62. Phyllis taught History of Art, Art and Craft at SSG from 1937 to 1963. Her strict, no-frills teaching style, clear love of her subject, and deep underlying kindness and care earned her the affection and respect of those in her charge. In the late 1920s, when there was still a strong spirit in the Arts and Crafts movement, Phyllis studied at the Royal College of Art. She was taught by Edward Johnstone: the father of modern calligraphy, and designer of the typeface for the London Underground. As a result, her
Rosamond Rosenbaum (Bernier) (Russell) A’28 Inside the world of a writer, art lecturer and fashion icon – Rosamond Bernier died in 2016 at the age of 100. Jenny Newman, former Head of Art & Design remembers taking students to meet this extraordinary SOG at home in New York. In April 2014, a small group of Sherborne Girls Art and History of Art students met Rosamond Bernier at her New York apartment, during a visit to the city. After a busy day, we arrived from different locations with sketchbooks, cameras and bags in hand. Rosamond was sitting in her chair, dressed in a fuchsia pink Chinese silk jacket with mandarin collar and emerald green silk trousers. Small and neat, with her hair beautifully coiffured, she seemed frail and bird-like, yet at 97 years old full 14
own calligraphy was beautiful, and she passed this skill on to the girls she taught at the school. Phyllis loved everything to do with craftwork, which was reflected in her teaching. Her students learned how to weave, make stuffed toys and leather gloves, and dye wool with cochineal beetle shells. She was also passionate about architecture, and taught girls how to read a building using the plentiful local examples – from Sherborne’s magnificent Abbey to Dorset’s many beautiful village churches. Outside of work, Phyllis had a multitude of interests and a huge energy for her church, which was central to her life. Indeed, in retirement, she worked for some years on the vestments at Salisbury Cathedral – keeping them perfectly repaired, and adding to the store. She also made clothes for African children on behalf of Oxfam, and vestments for African priests. Even at the age of 100, Phyllis remained clear, wise and stoical.
of vivacity, even though she had not been very well. Rosamond invited the students to sit in the very comfortable sofas and chairs in her living room. She was curious about what we had seen and done in New York. She reminisced about the artists she knew and the stories behind the various works of art she owned, most of which had been given to her by the artists themselves. My jaw dropped when I realised that a photograph of her with Matisse had a pencil drawing by him paperclipped onto the album page, with her name in his handwriting. Drinks had thoughtfully been provided, along with neat sandwiches. Wandering over to the table where they were laid out, we could just see into her small kitchen and the small Braque above the fridge, passing a superb print by Miro. It truly was a wonderful experience. As we were walking back down Lexington Avenue, I asked one of our Art scholars if she had enjoyed meeting Rosamond, worrying that she might have preferred to spend the time with the rest of her friends. “I think it’s been one of the best days of my life,” she replied, without hesitation.
NEW SOG MEMBERS 6Welcome
to the following ‘new’ Old Girls, who left school in summer 2016
Oluwakemi AdedotunSulaiman Tomisin Ajayi Imogen Andrews Annabelle Blackshear Olivia Bourne Tatiana Bridge Arabella Burles Eliza Carr Victoria Chambers Lara Chance Natacha Chapman Man Yan Cheung Flora Dakin Feyikemi Delano Tayla Dhyll Iman Dikko Abigail Dillon Scarlett Emmanuel-Jones Hannah Eschweiler
Katharine Evelegh Charlotte Ewins Teresa Feng Lottie Frome Mairi Galbraith Alice Goodearl Sophie Gould Amelia Harbottle Nicola Harris Annabel Haswell Lucy Hatherell Victoria Haydn Taylor Olivia Hetherington Kate Hon Lexie Humphrey Tilly Humphreys Amelia Hunt Sophia Hutchinson Charlotte Hyde Georgina James
Madeleine Jannoe Lisa Kirsten Akari Kwok Georgina Lane Wynnie Law Catherine Leach Hannah Lee Cordelia Legge Ka Sin Leung Clara Lindsay Rosie Livingstone Alice Lloyd Grace Longman Michelle Ma Flora Morse Constance Mountain Sienna Newton Rebecca Orton Alexa Palmer Mary Phipps
Alexandra Porter Lily Purbrick Cordelia Royds Georgia Scott Holy Serukenya Alice Shelton-Agar Katherine Smith Georgina St Pier Lily Sun Taryn Wan Emily Westlake Alice Wharton Charlotte Wiltshire Bethany Winslow Chloe Wong Cheuk Ying Wu Yuen Lam Wu Dorothee Wurttemberg Xinyue Xu Angie Yeung
Daughters and Granddaughters of Old Girls in the school ALDHELMSTED WEST Matilda Massey Katherine Prideaux-Brune, Mother Artemis McMaster-Christie Sarah Tory, Mother Diana Hamblin, Grandmother Jemma Craig-Cooper Catharine Simpson, Mother KENELM Petra Deacon Alexandra Dickson Leach, Mother Joanna Osmond, Grandmother Isobel Ellis George Hardy, Mother Lucy Knott Jane Royston, Mother Agatha Palmer Zoë Phayre-Mudge, Mother
READER HARRIS Christa Cripwell Emma Pocock, Mother Cecilia Darwall Diana McWatters, Mother Sophie Hall Louise Ellam, Mother Emma Kitson Caroline Jones, Mother Anna Schwinge Clare Matthews, Mother
Emily and Sacha Nokes Anthea Ottaway, Grandmother Lily Sebag-Montefiore Santa Palmer-Tomkinson, Mother Poppy Weldon Clare Hedges, Mother DUN HOLME Olivia Manson Caroline Wilson, Grandmother
WINGFIELD DIGBY
MULLINER Mary Butler Dione Ellison, Grandmother
Tilly Cripwell Emma Pocock, Mother
Grace Palmer Zoë Phayre-Mudge, Mother
Cecilia George Cristina Brodie Cooper, Mother
Josephine Marshall Kate Gregor, Mother Christine White, Grandmother
Lucy Holcroft Anthea Malim, Grandmother Rosie Kitson Caroline Jones, Mother
If you know of other mothers and grandmothers with daughters currently at SG please let us know by sending an email to: fmj@sherborne.com
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Journal 2016 On Monday, 16 May we took on the Old Shirburnians (this is the 5th year), playing at Long Sutton in Somerset. Always a very lighthearted occasion and a good lunch! Our team was victorious despite mutterings from the men over choice of format.
The first outing this year was our match against Cheltenham Ladies College on Thursday, 21 April. We had a lovely day at Sunningdale Ladies – a first visit for some of us and for those who don’t know it, it is a charming shorter course nestling alongside the renowned Sunningdale Golf Course. This year we played 4 ball better ball and I am pleased to report a victory for the SOGs! Next year’s venue will be Cheltenham’s choice. Playing in the winning team were left to right: Valerie Worth (Thomas) E’73, Trudi Harris, Hilary Peterkin (Younger) W’64, Susie Pym (King) DH’68, Anne Agnew, Hilary Dennes, Hilary Tuckett (Ward) W’58, Gilly SteelePerkins (ffrench-Blake) A’60
L to r: ‘Bob the Cat’ Valerie Thomas and Josie Mather
Playing for SOGs were left to right: Mary Chalmers (Beard) AE’58, Anne WhatelySmith (Agnew) K’70, Candida Harris (Woolley) E’70, Ali Preston (Aldred) A’81, Hilary Park (Dennes) E’65, Trudi Hubbard (Harris) DH’58, Mary Monro (O’Dwyer) A’59, Janice Buswell T’54
Please make a note in your diaries for two future matches. The next autumn meeting will be on Wednesday, 27 September 2017 at the Northamptonshire County Golf Club. The date for our annual match v Cheltenham Ladies College will be Wednesday, 29 March 2017 at Moor Park Golf Course. Details for all next year’s events to follow.
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The Tassie was played on a beautiful day in June at The Berkshire. We fielded two teams again but sadly this year was not to be ‘our’ year, however, it is always good fun and a chance to meet up with old friends from other schools. This competition is mainly for silver players and I am always grateful to hear from SOGs who want to participate.
Left to right: Hilary Dennes, Hilary Younger, Janice Buswell, Ali Aldred, Vicki Pett, Susie King, Sarah Kinnersley (Stonehouse) K’65, Anne Agnew
Our autumn meeting took place at the North Hants Golf Club. This is the home of Justin Rose, and now proudly displays his Olympic gold medal in its trophy room! We played there last year and all enjoyed it so much we decided to repeat the experience. Despite last-minute hitches (fractured ankle), 19 players and one roving reporter (Susie King in a buggy) played a bowmaker – we were even joined by Bob the Cat (see photo opposite), he apparently has his own Facebook page and obviously took a liking to Josie Mather’s trolley! The winning team was Hilary Younger, Hilary Glynn (Thomas) DH’67, Kenah Cryer DH’80 and Anne Agnew, with Louise Tucker (Devlin) W’78, Mary Beard and Katharine Martin (Stringer) DH’78 coming second. Nearest the pin was won by Sarah Stonehouse and Longest Drive Mary Elliot (Troughton) T’76. It was really good to see many familiar faces and to welcome three relative ‘newcomers’ to the SOG outings. Next year’s venue is possibly the Northamptonshire Golf Club where Jane Jefferson (Shearer) E’68 is Captain – we do hope this will attract more players from north of the home counties.
Left to right: Louise Devlin, Trudi Harris, Sarah Stonehouse,Valerie Thomas, Ash Puckle (Coke) A’64, Anne Agnew, Fiona Stern (Corben) E’62, Kenah Cryer, Buzz Blandy (Francis) E’62, Hilary Dennes, Hilary Younger, Hilary Thomas, Gill Buzzard (Blenkinsop) DH’62, Tiggy Dewey (Sutton) A’73, Susie King, Jane Kinnersley (Ellen) K’69, Katharine Stringer, Mary Troughton and Mary Beard. (Sadly Josie Kemp (Mather) DH’62 was not present as she had to race back to Cornwall.)
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Journal 2016
Births, Marriages & Deaths Births Deborah Henley (Henely Daniels) AW’87 and Adam had a son, James, on 19 March 2014
Louisa White (Huntington) A’02 and Benjamin had a son, Robin, on 4 October 2015
Victoria Cook (Kingston) AE’93 and Simon had a son, Rory, on 2 July 2015, a brother for Constance
Louisa Kayll (Robson) A’03 and Richard had a daughter, Sofia, on 23 August 2016
Charlotte Howe (Lindsay) W’94 and Philip had a son, Harry, on 4 August 2015, a brother for Emily
Gee Woods A’04 and her husband Tom Lakeman had a daughter, Edie, on 23 November 2016
Belinda Rearden (Raymond) W’95 and Mark had a son, Maximilian, on 10 November 2015, a brother to Freddie and Eleanor
Lucy Stewart-Richardson (Lukas) K’05 and Simon had a daughter, Amelia, on 31 August 2016
Abbie Le Hardy (Brown) AE’96 and Dan had a daughter, Emilia, on 15 October 2016, youngest sister to Tilly, Isabella and Jemima Daisy Brook (Poole) W’97 and Christopher had a son, Percy, on 21 September 2016 Georgina Rearden (Law) W’98 and James had a son, Barnaby, on 5 May 2016, a brother to Clemmie Betty Chan DH’99 and Henry had a daughter, Jaime, on 28 January 2016 Jenny Wheeler (Cooper) W’99 and Diccon had a daughter, Eleri, on 13 June 2016 Olivia Scarborough (Hopkins) E’01 and Chris had a son, Montgomery, on 22 September 2016 Mary Gandell (Porter) W’02 and Giles had a son, Henry, on 3 September 2016 Camilla Lofts (Gosling) AW’02 and Robert had a daughter, Rosanna, on 18 June 2016 Connie Jackman (Anderson) A’02 and Ross had a son, Fergus, on 4 October 2016 Annabel Tucker (Chow) T’02 and Garry had a daughter, Ada, on 18 April 2016 Yuko Yabe (Burrows) E’02 and Rupert had a daughter, Ottilie, on 2 May 2016 18
Marriages Deborah Henley AW’87 married Adam Daniels on 4 July 2015 Daisy Brook W’97 married Christopher Poole on 16 January 2016 Olivia Scarborough E’01 married Chris Hopkins on 12 February 2016 Henny Cumming W’01 married Richard Potts on 23 July 2016 Jessica Gibbs A’02 married Josh Allen-Back on 9 July 2016 Rose Kingscote K’02 married Oliver Hicks on 5 November 2016 Penelope Kirby-Johnson K’03 married Thomas Story on 4 July 2015 Sophie Mann K’08 married Timothy Bliss on 1 August 2015 Rebecca Hannam K’11 married Joshua Sutton on 3 September 2016 Hilary Wiggins, Honorary Old Girl married Charles James Peirson Ambler on 2 November 2015
Deaths Rosamond Rosenbaum (Bernier) (Russell) A’28 died on 8 November 2016
Heather Bell (Pittar) A’53 died on 11 February 2015
Rosemary McClure (Watkins) DH’36 died in 2015 (date unknown)
Maureen Andrews (Gibson) AW’54 died on 9 April 2016
Valerie Richardson (Chandler) A’38 died on 26 January 2016
Julia Turpin (Moss) AW’58 died on 26 January 2016
Katharine Charlewood (Highman) DH’38 died on 21 May 2016
Johanna Firbank DH’63 died in September 2015
Mary Southcombe (Tyler) AW’39 died on 30 September 2016 Diana Howitt (Helme) W’41 died on 14 April 2016
Coral Cardew (Poolman) K’64 died on 24 May 2016 Lesley Phibbs (Palmer) AE’64 died in 2004 (date unknown)
Barbara Traill (Kirk) DH’42 died on 5 April 2016
Myrcine Sherratt T’64 died on 17 December 2015
Janet Brock (Mothersill) E’45 died on 12 May 2016
Judith Mothersill (Pottle) E’68 died on 26 July 2016
Rosemary Earle (Jakubowicz) A’45 died in 2016 (date unknown)
Jacqui Goddard AW’72 died on 27 March 2016
Hilary Rogers AW’45 died on 20 July 2016 Patricia Stevens W’46 died on 27 July 2016 Elspeth McIntosh (Beckett) K’47 died on 17 August 2016 Jenny Drury (Weigall) AE’49 died on 11 July 2016 Hilary Johnston (Sweet-Escott) AE’50 died on 22 June 2016 Sally Slaughter E’52 died in 2015 (date unknown)
Tara Palmer-Tomkinson A’90 died on 8 February 2017 Tessa Waterhouse (John) AE’97 died on 29 June 2016 Phyllis Lindsay White, History of Art, Art & Craft teacher 1937 – 1963, died on 19 January 2016 Kathryn Rowswell, Matron of Aldhelmsted East 2007 – 2015, died on 31 January 2016 Derek Willis OBE RN, Bursar and Clerk to the Governors, died on 1 March 2016
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Journal 2016
Circle News 1A Devon &
1B
Cornwall
Joint secretaries: Liz Whitley (Pybus) AW’58 and Sarah Pybus (Moody) AW’80 The Devon Circle Old Girls’ reunion was held on 22 September at Riverford Farm Kitchen, Buckfastleigh. We met on a gloriously sunny autumnal day, and were given a delicious three-course lunch that included an abundance of fresh organic seasonal vegetables and a lovely selection of homemade puddings. As ever, we shared many memories of life at Sherborne Girls. We were very pleased to be joined by Mrs Fiona Clapp (Deputy Head, External Affairs), plus Old Girls from the Kent Circle, Sarah Butler (Howell) A’58, Somerset Circle, Christine Owen (Pratt) AW’59 and Cornwall Circle, Josie Mather (Kemp) DH’62. Also attending from the Devon Circle were: Helen Barry (Preston) T’61, Jane Butler (BrowneClayton) A’54, Lizzie Casement (Craig) K’75, Heather Caverhill (White) E’57, Judy Holder A’72, Roseanne Smith (Hooper) AW’58, Jane Knocker (Youle) AE’51, Jackie Kerr (Little) A’53, Barbara Mudge (Thomas) T’55, Hilary Plumptre (Churcher) AE’52, Margaret Smith (Barnett) E’50, Caroline Trahair (Thomas) AW’60 and her husband Bruce Thomas, Pip White (Cartmell) DH’94, Clare Whitley (Rendle) AW’60. Several Old Girls expressed regret at being unable to attend this year’s reunion, so I am proposing to hold next year’s reunion at Riverford again. If anyone has any thoughts on this, I should be very grateful if they would contact me via the SOG office.
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2A Dorset Secretary: Anne Walsh (Colquhoun) E’69 I’ve had another busy year juggling grandchildren with work commitments, but I did manage two trips to the Ionian Sea for some wonderful sailing on my brother’s yacht. I much enjoyed the visit to the House of Lords in May, and meeting up with many friends. During the year I have been in touch with Old Girls including Georgina May (Bullock) E’69, Anne Bond (Kendrick) E’69, Christine Cree (Gabbarelli) K’68, Rosemary Gibb (Johnson) AW’66, and Rosemary Young (Stephenson) E’70. We had a most enjoyable reunion at Sherborne in October, where Sarah Williams gave a fascinating talk about her experience working as a doctor in Sierra Leone during the Ebola
crisis. Sarah spoke about the devastating effects this disease had on the population, and the training all medical staff undertook before they could start work. Although it was very hard work and at times distressing, Sarah was delighted to be able to nurse patients back to health and see families reunited. If you have any ideas for our reunion next year, please let me know.
2B Somerset Secretary: Katharine Martin (Stringer) DH’78 I was delighted to be able to help get the Somerset reunion back up and running after a number of years. We met at the Crown Hotel in Wells market square and, although small in number, we enjoyed a delicious two-course meal preceded by aperitifs and canapés. There was continuous talking and laughing while we reminisced about old times, but it was also good to hear how well the school is doing now. We all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Attending the lunch were Elizabeth Dolman A’54, Sara Whitehouse W’55, Phillipa Peel
(Boyd) AE’75 and Honorary Old Girls Angela Pitt, Gill Oliver, Lindsey Spears, and Old Girls Secretary Fiona James. Yvonne Bell had planned to come, but was unwell. Thanks to all who came and to Fiona James for sending out the letters and emails. The next Somerset reunion will be held at the Crown Hotel on 13 June 2017 – here’s hoping that we have even more attendees! 21
Journal 2016
6 4
Buckinghamshire & Berkshire
Wiltshire
Secretary: Vacant We would like to take this opportunity to thank Penny Faulks (Austin) AW’56 for all her hard work Secretary: Jane Reekie (Nicholson) and support over the last 10 years as Circle Secretary. E’59 Penny arranged annual lunches which were a great I met Ailsa Morris (McLeod) success. Penny writes: As a result of meeting up E’56 at the centenary tea for Ealhstan each year, a number of us have formed new and Thurstan last year, and she friendships with Old Girls that we did not know generously offered a repeat of the very when we were at school but who live close by. successful reunion we had at her lovely It has given me pleasure bringing everyone together farm on the Wiltshire/Hampshire/ each year and being aware of how much they have Dorset border in 2014. enjoyed it. I will take this forward, and let I really do hope that you will be able to find you know the details of a 2018 someone else to take over the Circle so that others can reunion in next year’s Journal. experience the enjoyment we have had. If you would be interested in finding out more, please contact Fiona in the office.
10B Essex Secretary: Marian Birch (Griggs) K’58 After five years without a reunion, a group of Essex Old Girls met at the Fox Inn, Finchingfield, on 29 September. We usually hold our reunions in someone’s house or garden, but this year it was decided to hold it in a pub. The get-together was very well attended by 15 Old Girls, most of whom live in Essex. However, it was so nice to see Anne Forrest (Askew) K’58 who lives in London, my cousin Belinda Dupont (Price) E’57 who lives in Bristol and Jill Simpson (Crampton) W’52 from Hertfordshire. As it was a fine day, we were able to wander around the pretty village of Finchingfield – admiring the fine bridge and river, which is overlooked by pretty houses, and avoiding the tame geese. As always, there was plenty of chat, and all in attendance enjoyed catching up. Pictured from left to right: Sarah Nott (Frost) A’56, Jennifer Nott (Nicholls) T’55, Nicola Tiernay (Nicholson) DH’56, Marion Griggs, Frances Thompson (Readman) W’66, Prudence Butterworth (Dauris) A’57, Caroline Foot (Stranack) E’59, Jill Crampton, Morwenna Simpson (Marks) W’50, Belinda Price, Ruth Startin (Marshall) E’58, Sally Dufty (SandysRenton) A’56, Pauline Hargreaves (Hordern) A’53, Anne Askew and Alice Nanney-Wynn (Cato) T’56
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12A Norfolk & Suffolk Secretary: Gillie Bryson (Scoular) E’73
SAVE THE DATE 12.30pm – Wednesday, 1 March 2017 As we did not have a Circle lunch in 2016, the next Norfolk & Suffolk lunch will be earlier in the year, on Wednesday, 1 March 2017, and will be at Pump Corner Barn, Southgate, Cawston, Norwich, Norfolk, NR10 4JB. Gillie would like to step down after this next reunion. We would like to thank Gillie for all that she has done for Sherborne Old Girls over the years. If you would be interested in becoming the next Circle Secretary, please let Fiona in the office know.
Leicestershire, Rutland, Nottinghamshire 13B and Lincolnshire Secretary: Josephine Hepburn (Blake) A’69 I hosted our annual lunch in May, and although we were few in number, we very much enjoyed getting together. Our Circle covers a large area, with Old Girls thin on the ground. I was delighted, though, that both Sally Jones (Saunders) E’84 and Judith Hoare (Sweny) A’61 travelled across Lincolnshire to join us – especially Sally, who has not been able to come along in the past. Next year, our Circle lunch moves back to Nottinghamshire. Pru Nahum (Tatham) A’63 has very kindly offered to hold it on 25 May 2017 at her new house, which has been built in the garden of her old home in Willoughby on the Wolds. We look forward to seeing it, and hope you can join us – please make a note of the date in your diaries. Pictured from left to right: Sally Saunders, Pru Tatham, Jo Blake and Judith Sweny
14B Yorkshire, Durham and Northumberland Secretary: Teresa Huntley (Hepworth) K’63 Our reunion this year was on 1 June – a wet and rather chilly day! We met at the Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle, which is full of wonderful ‘stuff ’. The museum’s exhibition, entitled ‘English Rose’, contained some quite beautiful paintings. Pictured from left to right: Gail Preston (Taylor) DH’67, Jane Pople (Adley) A’55, Marilyn Graham (Gordon) DH’52, Teresa Huntley (Hepworth) K’63, Kate Kinnersley (McKenzie Johnston) K’72 and Ursula Housman (Simpson) AE’69 23
Journal 2016
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Channel Islands
Secretary: Emma Campbell (Le Maistre) T’89 It was lovely to see some Old Girls and Old Shirburnians together on 27 April at the Banjo Restaurant, Jersey. Then, the following day, the Guernsey Old Girls’ reunion was held at the home of Susan Lloyd AE’59. Susan hosted a wonderful drinks reception, where we enjoyed reminiscing about old times and catching up on each other’s news.
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Hong Kong and China
Secretary: Auberta Lui AW’98 Headmistress Jenny Dwyer and Director of Music John Jenkins were delighted to meet Old Girls, Old Shirburnians, former, current and prospective parents and their guests for a Joint Schools Reception on Thursday, 13 October at the Executive Suite Grand Hyatt Hong Kong. Meanwhile, Deputy Head Fiona Clapp and Director of Marketing and Development Katherine Prideaux-Brune (Massey) A’91 attended a Reception in Singapore on Monday, 17 October at 6 Raffles Boulevard, Marina Square, Marina Bay, Singapore.
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It is always a real pleasure to meet Old Girls at events and hear about both their career plans and, for those who are established in the workplace, their professional achievements to date. The breadth and diversity of sectors represented is very impressive, and a wonderful testament to the preparation for life provided by Sherborne Girls. It is also a real pleasure to assist younger Old Girls as they start out on their chosen career path. We are enormously grateful to everyone who has helped with our careers service. We are now offering a careers mentoring programme for Old Girls and current students, which will be officially launched in 2017. We continue to work closely with the Old Shirburnian Society to provide a wide and varied programme of careers events and will be jointly catching up with our respective alumni at a series of university events. Fiona James Old Girls Secretary
Harriet Howarth WD’11
CAREERS Networking Service
Alumnae Profiles
After leaving Sherborne Girls, Harriet spent four years studying at Camberwell College of Arts. “I couldn’t have loved this experience more,” she says. “It was the most fantastic, diverse and engaging environment to be in.” One of the features of the College that Harriet especially appreciated was its location amid the ‘buzz’ of the Peckham arts scene. “This gave rise to so many varied and valuable opportunities,” she explains, “including art projects, exhibitions and lots of curatorial work all over London.” Harriet has curated projects at the British Museum, non-profit arts organisations and at reputable galleries throughout the capital. She is also part of an artist collective, along with contemporaries who studied on the BA Drawing Programme at Camberwell. After graduating, Harriet travelled to Paris in search of adventure in the city’s many galleries, before returning to London for a summer of exhibitions. Now, she has moved to Edinburgh University, where she is studying for an MSc in Modern and Contemporary Art: History, Curating and Criticism. “My hope is to pursue a career in the notoriously tough, but invariably exciting, art world,” she concludes. 25
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There are all manner of ways to celebrate finishing school and embarking upon a new chapter in life. For actor Georgina James, the option of performing at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival provided a real-world taste of life in a touring theatre company. A group of former students from Sherborne Girls and Sherborne School took Oliver Lansley’s dark comedy Immaculate to the festival. The production was directed by two Old Shirburnians, and Georgina played a leading role. “After the serious pressure of A Levels, the play was not only an incredible experience but also some light relief,” Georgina reports. “The Fringe itself was also a remarkable experience, and one I would delight in doing again.” The production was reviewed on the Broadway Baby website, and the company’s energetic marketing throughout the show’s run enabled it to sell out on more than one occasion. “In each of our nine shows we had a strong audience, and moved from strength to strength,” says Georgina. “We each learnt so much about the industry, as we had to direct, devise, market, plan and perform, just with help from each other.”
Tamsin Cairns DH’06, Graphic Designer
Georgina James DH’16
Journal 2016
After Sherborne I went on to do a Foundation year at Wimbledon Art College and then on to Leeds University to study graphic design. When I left university I got a job at Burberry as a graphic designer on their Talent team. In this role I designed material to support internal training; this included presentation design, e-learning and lots of illustration which I particularly enjoyed! In September this year I wanted a new challenge and joined the Graphics team at Selfridges as an artworker. My main focus is presentation design and I am currently designing for a big event in January to launch Selfridges’s vision for 2017. Presentations at Selfridges are far from the corporate style one might imagine and so preparation for this event includes creating a whole brand identity behind it, then photoshoots for the backdrops of our slides, creating collateral for the day such as a manifesto style handout, animations, selfie boards, coffee cups and much more… Our inspiration comes from art, fashion, other cities and we are constantly researching for the next project. My highlights this year have been designing the Christmas launch presentation, Christmas Comes Early vouchers and the Chinese New Year gift cards.
MEDIA EVENT OFFERS CHANCE TO NETWORK On Thursday, 7 April 2016 the Old Shirburnian Society and Sherborne Old Girls held a joint careers event focusing on all areas of the media. The event was an opportunity for existing media professionals to build their networks and reestablish friendships. Meanwhile, for those with an interest in a media career, it was a perfect chance to make contacts and learn more about the industry. Here are some photographs from the event, which was hailed as a great success.
Best foot forward, as Catri heads to Germany Catri Foot was one of the Old Girls who went to the recent media event. She was hoping to gain insights into the industry before heading out to Berlin in search of work experience. “The workshop gave me lots of good advice to set me up for Berlin,” she reports. “Since arriving here, I’ve been working as a freelance, but am looking for a more full-time opportunity. I have recently started an Improv Theatre course in German, to get some fluidity into my speaking. You can read about my time here on my blog: https://curiositykilledthecatweb.wordpress.com.”
Catri (pictured centre)
Property Networking Event A property networking event was held on Tuesday, 13 September 2016 at Forsters LLP in London. Organised by the Old Shirburnian Society and Sherborne Old Girls, it provided an opportunity for alumni from both schools to meet up, build contacts, and share experiences of the property industry.
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Journal 2016
Networking event at Sherborne Girls Girls in the Lower 6th at Sherborne Girls had a chance to refine their interview techniques during a careers event held at school on Monday, 27 June 2016. The event involved former and current parents, members of staff, students and Old Girls. It was held in a small marquee in the school grounds, and gave the girls first-hand experience of a professional networking environment.
Gillman and Soame
Oxford Alumnae Reception, Sunday, 20 November 2016
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Charity worker Trudi Hubbard (Harris) DH’58 received an MBE for services to children with special educational needs in the 2016 New Year’s Honours List. Trudi is a former chairman of trustees at Cherry Trees Respite Care in East Clandon, Surrey. It provides respite care for children and young people with disabilities, including learning, sensory and physical impairments. The idea behind the short breaks offered at Cherry Trees is to give parents and families some time off, while providing a caring and stimulating residential experience for children between the ages of zero and 19. Trudi received her MBE in recognition of her 35-year Trudi Harris association with the charity, including appointments as honorary Photo by David Harland secretary and director of fundraising. “When I received the letter about the MBE it took a few days to sink in,” she told her local newspaper. “This award is really a reflection of the good work of Cherry Trees.” Trudi got involved with the charity in 1980 after the death of her fourth son, Benjamin, who had Down’s Syndrome. She continued: “Working with Cherry Trees has been a truly challenging journey. Watching it grow and flourish over the years has been very rewarding. It’s a real privilege to see the hard work and dedication of so many people recognised in this way.”
Celebrating 60 in style
Pictured, from left to right (above): Sarah Roberts (Crosse) AE’74, Diana Youle (Pring) AE’74, Kate Wood (Landau) AE’74, Ann Fortescue (Simon) AE’74, Vicky Cook (Keith) AE’74, Rowena Deacon (Curchod) AE’74 and seated Sarah Bayley (Gadsden) AE’74
Ann Fortescue (Simon) AE’74 sent this photograph, which shows seven Old Girls celebrating their 60th birthdays together during a special reunion in Norfolk. The four-day gathering included husbands and other halves, and was a lovely way to mark what Ann describes as “special friendships”. “Our school days gave us a shared history which we have never forgotten,” she reflects. “During a very formative time in our lives we lived and breathed each other’s company from rising in the morning until going to bed at night. We shared highs and lows, challenges and tears, fun and laughter. We all loved one another and hated one another depending on the day of the week. Looking back now there was always a sense of loyalty within the group.” The group has kept in touch over the last 42 years, meeting in twos and threes and enjoying shared holidays. The 60th birthday reunion was planned over two years, and the photos bear witness to the fun and camaraderie enjoyed by all. To read Ann’s full report of the celebration, please visit our website.
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Features COMING TOGETHER IN CONFLICT 1916 CONTINUED FROM LAST ISSUE Honorary Old Girl Gill Oliver reports on the voluntary efforts of Sherborne Old Girls during the War, especially their contribution to the work of the British Red Cross. The 1916 Old Girls Journal reflects the tremendous wave of voluntarism that had, by now, gathered momentum across the UK. Making sandbags, producing posters, sorting and despatching war supplies and running appeals for everything from the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Dental Aid Fund to Belgian Refugees: these types of work come as no surprise to Sherborne Old Girls. Many joined the Women’s Volunteer Reserve, while others helped in more unusual ways. We find HM Lawrance and Miss Perry giving French lessons to recruits and nurses stationed in Sherborne, Miss Taylor giving daily massage treatment to wounded men in the Yeatman and R Phayre ‘helping in a YMCA Hut’. There is a telling glimpse, too, of the way in which women were taking on the roles of men who had gone off to fight, with Dorothea Carr (Wingfield 1912) ‘acting as chauffeur to her father’. Many Old Girls also became involved in the work of the Red Cross: an organisation whose work was so significant that it merited its own section in the Journal. The wartime records of the British Red Cross tell us more about the Sherborne Old Girls who became ‘VADs’, as members of the Voluntary Aid Detachments became known. Set up on a county basis, the organisation of these Detachments became increasingly important as the war progressed and women were called upon to take up a variety of roles. The impulse to volunteer was strong from 30
the start of the conflict and the Red Cross had been swift to set up auxiliary hospitals and convalescent homes all over England. There were several in Sherborne, including one at Sherborne Castle. The scale of casualties, however, had not been foreseen. By 1915, VADs were increasingly called upon to work alongside the Royal Army Medical Corps and many were sent abroad. So what were our Old Girls doing? They were ready to turn their hand to anything and sometimes engaged in very menial tasks. Some were cleaners, while others helped with laundry – extremely heavy work at that time. Some were cooks and Christine Jesson and Grace Jesson (Wingfield 1911) were among several assigned to ‘pantry duties’. But nursing was, of course, a prime occupation – and one that might lead a capable young woman into a lifetime’s vocation. The record of Maud Rushworth (Aldhelmsted 1913), for example, shows that she joined the Red Cross in 1915 and gained two War service Bars. She worked in a series of New Zealand hospitals situated in the south of England, and then left to train professionally at King’s College Hospital. We can only imagine the mix of excitement and apprehension that Doris Robinson’s (day girl 1913) school friends would have felt on reading in the Old Girls Journal that her Detachment: “…has been working under the War Office at the Military Hospital, White City, London, for seven months. They have been given a month’s
leave and have been told that they are to be sent to France shortly, to run a rest station out there for the wounded.” By December 1918, Doris was in France. She was based at Mauberge: a border town that had been retaken the previous month after being in German hands since 1914. Doris was still serving when her pink VAD record card was filled out in 1919. Frustratingly for us, the vast majority of these women did not have their ‘age on enrolment’ recorded. The cards reveal that length of service varied, but of the large numbers recruited in 1915, a significant proportion remained through to the armistice. Illness or marriage commonly appear as reasons for leaving the Red Cross.
It is interesting, too, to see how many of the Old Girls on the VAD records lived at The Vicarage or The Rectory – telling us something about the make-up of the student body in the years leading up to the Great War. One such was Dorothy Maud Sweet, from Symondsbury Rectory, Bridport, who saw active service with the British Expeditionary Force. Dorothy earned ‘two Scarlet Efficiency Stripes’ and was mentioned in despatches. However distinguished or humdrum their individual service, there is no doubt that a whole generation of Sherborne Girls was mobilised by the war effort. Like many others, they made a tangible difference to the wellbeing of wounded soldiers and to the nation as a whole.
MARKING TIME
THE RED CROSS
Sarah West has been in touch to say that wartime diaries written by her great aunt, Sherborne Old Girl Gabrielle West (Aldhelmsted House 1907), have been published by Pen & Sword Books. Edited by novelist Avalon Weston, the hardback volume tells the story of Gabrielle West’s war, including her work at a variety of convalescent hospitals throughout the country, and in the canteen at the Woolwich Arsenal. For lovers of period detail who want to enjoy the adventure of the First World War through the eyes of a Sherborne Old Girl, Menus, Munitions & Keeping the Peace is likely to become a much-treasured classic. Order it on Amazon today.
To this day, the British Red Cross makes a huge difference to communities throughout the world. It supports refugees and those living in conflict zones, as well as providing emergency relief in disaster zones. In the UK, the charity provides First Aid training, support at events and care for the vulnerable in their homes. To make a donation to the Red Cross, please visit www.redcross.org.uk/en/Donate-Now. Remember, your contribution keeps the legacy of people like Gabrielle West alive.
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Features School Marks Passing of Time This year saw Sherborne Girls celebrate the 90th anniversary of its iconic clock tower. It stands as a beacon in Sherborne and is recognised as an important local landmark. The tower was designed by renowned architect Alban Caroe and built in November 1926. A formal opening ceremony took place on 4 November 1926, where Home Secretary Sir William Joynson-Hicks was on hand to cut the ribbon on both the clock tower and the newly extended Science Block. The ceremony did not get off to an auspicious start, with many guests struggling to get to Sherborne. A Southern Railway engine carrying the government minister ran into a milk train and caused a blockage on the line. Despite the disruption, Sir William arrived in a calm and cheerful mood. After the buildings were dedicated by the Archdeacon of Sherborne, Bishop Albert Joscelyne, the politician formally declared the clock tower open. The opening ceremony was relished by all in attendance, including Old Girls, current girls and a variety of VIP guests. Particular thanks went to the Founders and Benefactors who funded the new structure and congratulations were recorded for the architect on the fine execution of his vision. The facsimiles on this page show first-hand reports of the opening ceremony from 1926.
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It stands as a beacon in Sherborne and is recognised as an important local landmark
The women who invented electro: inside the BBC Radiophonic Workshop Sherborne Old Girl Daphne Oram K’43 was a visionary in the world of electronic music, as these extracts from a Daily Telegraph article explain. By Ivan Hewett, Classical Music Critic, The Daily Telegraph. First published on 22 June 2016 in The Daily Telegraph. For decades women were systematically sidelined at the BBC. The female voice was thought to lack the necessary gravitas for newsreading – being a discreet and efficient PA to a busy male director or producer was the best that could be hoped for. Nowhere was this exclusion more rigidly enforced than in the technical aspects of programme-making where the hands-on world of studios, microphones and cameras was believed to be a man’s domain. Yet from an unexpected corner came a quiet revolution. The BBC Radiophonic Workshop was a pioneering studio for electronic music which flourished from 1958 until 1998. Its function was to provide incidental music and soundtracks for television and radio drama and documentaries. Despite its rigidly utilitarian brief, it produced music of astonishing originality. The soundtracks the Workshop produced became part of the soundtrack of people’s lives in the Fifties and Sixties. Who could forget the uncanny electronic score of the classic sci-fi series Quatermass and the Pit, or the stomach gurglings of Major Bloodnok, a stock character in the comedy series The Goon Show? Among the composer/technicians working there was a remarkable visionary woman, Sherborne Old Girl Daphne Oram. In her childhood she showed a flair for inventing ingenious mechanical devices, and was also fascinated by electronic sound and by the microphone, which she declared had vast potential as a musical instrument. These two passions came together in Still Point, scored for ‘double orchestra and five microphones’, which Oram composed in the late
Forties. This has gone down in history as the first piece ever to combine live orchestral musicians with electronic transformations of the orchestral sound, recorded on to disc to be played live during performances. It was, however, never performed and only a fragmentary score survives. The composer and ‘turntablist’ Shiva Feshareki has fashioned it into a performing version, which receives its premiere as part of the Southbank Centre’s Deep Minimalism series this month (June 2016). Oram had to pursue her passion for electronic music late at night and at weekends, when the BBC studios were not in use. Thanks in large part to her tireless campaigning, the Radiophonic Workshop was finally set up in 1958, in the teeth of much scepticism from the BBC management. Oram was appointed codirector, but she soon lost patience with the studio’s limited brief and the patronising attitude of the male managers. “They wanted my ideas,” she recalled later, “they didn’t want me.” She took herself off in disgust to create her own studio in a remote village in Kent. For decades she worked on her own system of soundsynthesis called Oramics, lectured on the joys of electronic music in schools and colleges and wrote visionary essays about the nature of sound and its potential to lead to higher states of consciousness. Were it not for Oram, there would arguably be no Human League or Aphex Twin. The world premiere of Daphne Oram’s Still Point was given by the London Contemporary Orchestra and Shiva Feshareki at St John’s Smith Square, London SW1 on 24 June, as part of the Southbank Centre’s Deep Minimalism weekend. 33
Features Ealhstan and Thurstan (Reader Harris) Centenary Afternoon Tea A wonderful celebratory tea was enjoyed on Saturday, 25 June 2016. Here are some of the highlights...
We were delighted to welcome Old Girls, current parents, past parents, friends and former and current members of staff to celebrate the centenary of Ealhstan and Thurstan, (Reader Harris) on Saturday, 25 June 2016, for Afternoon Tea. It was a fantastic event with lots of familiar faces and inspiring speeches. Everyone enjoyed delicious sandwiches and cake while catching up with old friends and reminiscing about their schooldays. Priscilla Wilkie (Leach) T’45, the oldest Old Girl present, very kindly cut the cake with the youngest pupil from RH Alice Price. Music was provided by the school’s string quartet and wind ensemble – providing a fitting accompaniment to a memorable day.
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Peer Group
NEWS 1925 – 1955 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Jenyth Worsley AW’52 My Parkinson’s is treading water, but after a recent attempt at a mindfulness meditation, I found it impossible to get up from the floor. That could, however, have been the result of a hip operation! Next spring, I am organising a poetry and music event at the university church in aid of the Endeavour fund and Parkinson’s Oxford. Alison Lansdown (Copeman) DH’53 reports that she had a wonderful visit to England from Australia this year, catching up with some very special Dun Holme friends. She says, “Bridgett Greenhough (Wilson) DH’51 invited us to lunch in Sherborne, where I was able to show my grandson the school and the Abbey. I stayed in London with Tricia Bell (Rawson) DH’54 and caught up with Frances Boas (Bouchier) DH’53. In my last week staying outside Oxford I also saw Elaine Maliphant (Ledingham) DH’54. How blessed I am that I can still keep in touch, although I live so far away! I am lucky to have Judy Lowe (Ernst) T’52 living in Sydney.” Ailsa Verity (Williamson) K’53 is still living near Canterbury, where she enjoys her garden, singing with the local choral society, and monthly visits to her local NADFAS. “Earlier this year I was with a small group of friends visiting Palestine again, which meant I could see friends at the St John Eye Hospital in Jerusalem,” she says. “I meet Jan Cockburn (Pahl) K’55 fairly often as she lives locally, and recently I also met up with Judith Mew (Hammer) K’53, who now lives in the county.” Jennifer Warrington (Bell) AW’52 writes, “In March I attended a Reception at Canada House at the
invitation of Branksome Hall. I had a very good evening, meeting people with connections to the school and hearing about the school in the present day. Then, in July, I went to the Annual General Meeting of Sherborne Old Girls at the House of Lords with Frances Podmore (Berrill) A’48. I also keep up with Juliet Moody (Wheeler) W’50 and Fiona Lynch (Hughes) DH’76, who both live locally, and enjoyed meeting Minty Parker (Sparrow) AW’50 and Shirley Down (Gladman) AW’52.” Wendy Nash (Bloomer) AE’51 writes, “I attended a celebration party for my friend Una Harris (Rankin)’s AE’51 Diamond Wedding; I was her bridesmaid together with her late sister Phillipa Harris (Gunningham) AE’45. I also had an enjoyable visit to Sheila Cowan (Hayward) AE’51, who has a delightful house in Old Amersham. My niece Juliet Hare (Hardwicke) AE’82 is living in New York, where her husband Adrian is a director of the Whitney Gallery – visitors of which include Michelle and Barack Obama.” Elisabeth Light (Constable) AE’55 attended the funeral of Honorary Old Girl, Phyllis White, who had been her former teacher. “It was on 9 February, which would have been her 109th birthday,” she writes. “She taught me at school and was responsible for my italic handwriting! I often went to see her in her last years, usually with Eleanor Phillips AE’55 – who has recently had a knee replacement and is recovering amazingly well. Eleanor is about to go to Kefalonia for a week’s holiday with Jane Zeal (Pegram) AE’54. This summer, I have looked after a Jack Russell, a greyhound and two cats. It used to be grandchildren, now it’s grandanimals!” Mary Hocken E’55 is still living in Amherst, Massachusetts. She is in
touch with Muirne Mathieson (van Wyk) E’55 and Jenna Forward (Holmes) E’55, and in a busy life (see below) is Chair of three committees: “Our summer chamber music festival, my church’s 150th year-long celebration and a Haiti school partnership, from where I have just returned, and where finally, after eight years in partnership, a new school has been dedicated. I travelled to Ethiopia and am going to hike in Bhutan at the end of October. I still enjoy playing singles tennis and am an avid exerciser! Love the Red Sox baseball team and Federer! I enjoy playing the cello in a quartet twice a month and sing in two choirs. I lost my partner of 23 years in March. Anyone is welcome to stay in this very rich valley culturally and geographically.” Elizabeth Watts (McCabe) AW’55 writes: “During my married life I worked in Rehabilitation with Spinal Injuries and then Paediatrics lecturing for a few years at Trinity College Dublin, a career I absolutely loved. I am still working and now I am in my daughter’s firm in the PR sector, a fascinating change. Thanks to Sherborne I have enjoyed playing sport, meeting and having fun with family and friends all my life. I enjoy meeting up with Brenda Plaistowe (Weir) W’53 who was in Wingfield and now lives in Dublin. My sister Diana Watts (Andrews) AW’51 lives on the beautiful Gower Peninsular, sadly last year losing her husband David. Sandy Sinclair (Morfey) AW’56 was my greatest friend at school and I am still in contact with her.” Pamela Watney (Sheldon) T’47 says, “I’ve had a very exciting year with visits from my two Australian daughters and their families this summer. My granddaughter, Charlotte Sutherland, represented Australia in the Olympic rowing team
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– something I’ve been boasting about ever since, as I never got further than the school squash team!” Jenifer Weston (Wates) K’50 has downsized and is living happily in Oxfordshire and would be delighted to see any Old Girls. Dorothy Byrt (Ahrens) K’55 writes, “After leaving Sherborne, I trained in Orthopaedics in Oxford, then worked at St Thomas’ in London for four years. At the age of 20, I met my future husband: a German shipbroker from Hamburg. We had three children, and my daughter Susan Ahrens was in Kenelm from 1979 to 1985. Our two sons went to Clifton College and eventually worked in the family shipping firm. We also have eight grandchildren. Sadly, my husband died four years ago and I now live in Schleswig Holstein (north of Hamburg) where we moved when he retired. I keep in close contact with Sally Johnson (Kühl) K’51 who lives nearby.”
I had the happy job of accompanying him up the aisle as, in America, they allow the groom to wait with family until the bride arrives and then join the procession with his entourage. I have resumed weekly visits to the stroke ward in my local hospital to encourage the patients to understand that in seeing me there is life after stroke, or that some semblance of normality can be attained.” Janet McIntosh (Mathewson) K’48 reports the sad news that her sister Elspeth McIntosh (Beckett) K’47 died on 17 August 2016, at the age of 87. Elspeth was for many years a GP in Oxford, and also a gifted artist and passionate botanist, responsible for the Illustrated Flora of Mallorca (1993). She was married to the late Philip Beckett, and had four children and 10 grandchildren. Elizabeth Skyrme (Rowbotham) DH’55 writes, “We are still managing to keep going, although we take longer to do things, and have to have breaks in-between! Sadly this year we have decided to give up our two shares in a narrow boat, after 17 fantastic years, where we discovered some beautiful parts of Britain.”
1956 – 1960 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Daphne MaGuire (Thomson) T’59
Dorothy with Gussie Miller Jean Lynden-Bell (Grieve) DH’49 writes, “I still live in Oakville, Ontario and enjoy teaching cello, violin and Early Childhood Music by the Suzuki method. I escaped a scorching August heat in Ontario to visit my daughter in Calgary, Alberta and then had a wonderful week at the Banff School of Fine Arts listening to the International String Quartet competitions. Hikes in the mountains completed a great holiday.”
In the autumn my elder daughter gave me a Cockapoo that she had bred. Rooster’s training takes much of my time. Hilary Tuckett (Ward)’s W’58 husband died in January and had a lovely memorial service in Sherborne Abbey. Honorary Old Girl
The Thurstan/Ealhstan reunion, for which Judith Atkinson (Towill) T’59 stayed, was an enjoyable occasion. Ruth Startin (Marshall) E’58 was also in attendance. I regularly see Liz Honnywill (Lindsay-Rea) A’59 and also saw her at the Dorset Opera’s Eugene Onegin and on a NDFAS visit to Delph featuring C17th art and music. I am staying with Mary Bond (Bowman) T’59, on the way there and back. While there we will meet Jenny Basset (Holland) T’57 and Jonathan for dinner. Anne Batten (Pender) AE’58 and Joan Bond T’60 both wrote to say that they had nothing in particular to contribute. I thank them for contacting me. Jennifer Selby (Jeffrey) T’56 wrote that she was just off to China and Mongolia for a couple of weeks. Sue Childs (Davis) T’57 really enjoyed the Thurstan/Ealhstan tea party and was so impressed with the new House. In February, she went to stay in the Grenadines with Tina Everett (Bowie) E’54 whose husband sadly died there last year. Tina has decided to sell the house there, which they built in 1999. Rosia Pasteur A’57 has now retired from the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra but keeps busy playing the viola with other groups. She met Caroline Wilson (Manson) AE’58 in late June when a choir in which she sings gave a performance in Inverness: it was lovely to revisit her beautiful property on Loch Awe. Rosia is lucky to have four grandchildren living nearby in Melbourne and she enjoys sometimes doing the school run. She’d be happy to hear from any OGs who are visiting. Anne Zeal (Lavruckine) AE’57 flew to the UK from Germany for her brother’s funeral. Since January, she has been working as a volunteer with local refugees from Eritrea and
Anne Davies (Watson) A’49 reports, “I have no news really as am creaking along at the age of 85! I did manage a long-haul journey this summer as my grandson got married in Carmel, CA.
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Augusta Miller starred in her own Desert Island Discs and had a celebration concert, both in the Stuart Centre, with superb selections of music by the girls, Old Girls and friends.
Daphne and Rooster
Afghanistan. She also enjoyed three weeks in St Petersburg with her husband and took part in the Summer Academy of Painting in Rheinau in July. Anne plans to catch up with Anne Batten (Pender) AE’58 when over in the UK. Marian Birch (Griggs) K’58 held a reunion for Essex Old Girls in September. Morag Hadfield (MacDougall Morley) E’58 was unable to attend the Ealhstan celebration tea in June as her husband was ill. However, Ruth Startin (Marshall) E’58 kindly kept her in the picture in more ways than one! She sent photos of those who attended and labelled them. At the end of July, Morag and her husband celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in Oban with friends and relatives. She lives in Herefordshire, and loves visits with their granddaughters, now aged eight and five, who live in Brighton. In August, she visited Jean Graham Kerr (Kirby) E’58 in Pitlochry. Diana Lentaigne (Prain) E’58 wrote that for the last two summers they have taken a house for a week at Trebetherick in Cornwall, where they have been joined by both children and all of their grandchildren. While there, Victoria Nanney-Wynn (Grand) T’59 came to lunch. Diana and David have just celebrated their Golden Wedding with a surprise meal organised by their children. She also says that her daughter, Lucinda Prain (Fidgen) E’95, and husband Robert have three sons aged five, three and 20 months.
Rosemary Hoysted (Fraser) A’56 enjoyed a year of great celebration in 2015, with the family congregating in Brazil for her son’s wedding to a Brazilian ballerina. In June they attended her Gala farewell at Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle. In contrast, 2016 has been spent in the hands of the NHS: Rosemary’s husband had bypass surgery at Papworth but is now on the way to a full recovery. Joan Bond T’60 wrote that she and Antonia Peck (Mayhew) T’60 had a lovely day together at Salisbury Cathedral on 3 August. She also enjoyed meeting Virigina Warren (Tidmarsh) T’60, Cynthia Courtney (Chignell) T’59, Rosemary White (Edwards) T’60, Sheila Vanrenen (Ellis) T’60, Diana Bell (Kruger) T’60 and Elizabeth Barry (Tyzack) T’60 for a pub lunch near Marlborough on Wednesday, 22 June 2016.
1961 – 1965 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Rosie Cox (Highfield) DH’63 Johanna Johnston (HalfordMacLeod) T’65 and her husband, Guy, live in Philadelphia, where she has been senior director of publications at the Barnes Foundation for the past six years. Johanna says she would love to hear from old friends and classmates. Ann Streatfeild (Crawford) A’62 had a wonderful four weeks in Peru,
during which she spotted about 550 different species of birds, of which 350 were new to her. She now lives in Beaminster and does a lot of birding in the area, as well as enjoying fence judging at horse trials. Stephanie Surridge (Trotter) DH’65 finished a new eco- and age-friendly house in the Isle of Wight and had a house-warming party. They are now officially living there but still have a flat in Guildford. Stephanie is still running the charity CO-Gas Safety, aimed at preventing death and injury from carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning (see www.co-gassafety.co.uk). She enjoys her theatrical interests, including tours of Peppa Pig on stage in England, the USA and Australia. Rosie Cox (Highfield) DH’63 is living in St Germans and about to move back to Downderry. She has had a busy year making jewellery, taking workshops and volunteering at nearby Port Eliot. She enjoyed stewarding at the Port Eliot Festival in July and continues to keep busy with the Downderry and Seaton WI. Jane Seaford AW’65 has published two books this year: a novel, The Insides of Banana Skins, looking at life in London in the 1960s, and a collection of short stories, Dead is Dead and Other Stories. You can read more about them on Jane’s website: janeseaford.com. Diana Holding-Parsons (Blair) DH’62 met up with Hilary Chew (Stock) DH’62 in Christchurch on a wonderful visit to New Zealand (see picture below).
Anthea Ottaway (Shaw) T’58 was hoping to move from Westleton to Walpole Cottage, Alde House Drive, Aldeburgh, Suffolk IP15 5EE in October. Cheryl Rogers (Poutier) E’60 has lived near Paris for 47 years. Married to a Frenchman, they have three children and six grandchildren. She continues to teach English to adults and children, most often as a volunteer. Other activities include visiting elderly people, twinning, parish work, language learning and walking.
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1966 – 1970 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Currently vacant Kay Stewart Sandeman (Brock) W’70 writes, “After a wonderfully varied four decades of work, which took me from the Ministry of Agriculture via business school to economic aid in post-communist countries, and then jobs with The Queen, six Lord Mayors and two Archbishops of Canterbury, I have retired! I’m now concentrating on learning German as rapidly as possible to keep ahead of my halfGerman baby granddaughter.”
Kay Stewart Sandeman Tiggy Bucknill (Hooper) AE’68 sent photos from the weddings of two of her children, in April and June respectively. The picture below shows Tiggy at her daughter Susanna’s wedding, with Jill Todd (Bishop) AE’68, Caroline Dallas (Cullinan) DH’68 and Verity Vickers (Coleman) DH’68.
The photo below shows the same Sherborne Old Girls plus Angela Bluett (Ross) DH’68. It was taken at Tiggy’s son Tom’s wedding to Alexandra Knatchbull.
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Tiggy’s elder sister Caroline Bucknill (Groves) AE’65 was at both weddings and has just retired from teaching at a special needs school in Surrey. Liz Poulson (Smith) AW’66 says, “Since last being in touch, life has changed dramatically. Geoff, my husband, died suddenly in February 2015 which meant that many things had to alter. The charity that we founded together 25 years ago was run from a rented holding and the work was beyond one person. Happily our son Roger and his wife and children have now moved in, purchased the holding and are running the practical side of the charity, Ewe & You. The charity works with disadvantaged children in the West Midlands and I remain as Chairman of the Trustees. I now live in Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire and am still very much part of the church where Geoff was one of the retired Assistant Clergy. Do look me up if you are coming this way – I should love to see friends again and still keep in touch with Penelope Brain (Webster-Smith) W’66, Philippa Pearce (Galloway) AW’66 and Patricia Blower (Scott Bolton) AW’66. Fifty years on, Kenelm’s class of 1966 had a reunion in Sherborne on a very sunny August weekend. Many of us hadn’t seen each other for all those years and we were happy to find how easy it was to bring back to life the deep and warm friendships we formed as teenagers. Although we all look very different now, it wasn’t difficult to recognise each other and memories came flooding back. We were given a very warm welcome by the school and invited to stay in the new Kenelm, which seemed the height of luxury to us, compared to the austerity of our time: “Carpets!” we all said on walking along the main school corridor. The school seemed a very warm and welcoming place and we were delighted to come back to recapture our schoolgirl past. The photo top right shows Kenelm’s class of 1966, who came to the new Kenelm for a reunion in August. Pictured, from the left, are: Sue Berey (Burrows) K’66, Catriona Mundle K’66, Philippa Downing K’66, Susie Lewis (Dearden) K’66,
Marilla Benedek (Satterwhite) K’66 Jane (Minette) Marrin (Hislop) K’66, Caroline Rosoman (Newton) K’66, Jeni Trythall, in front of Minette – Sarah Williams (Maxwell-Lyte) K’66, in the wheelchair and Felicity Duder K’66.
1971 – 1975 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Jocelyn Passey (Humfrey) K’73 The highlight of the SG calendar was the SOG AGM hosted by The Baroness Jenkin of Kennington, Anne Strutt (Jenkin) E’73 at the House of Lords in May. In amongst the throng of attendees were Jenifer Ball E’72, Karin Hyde AW’73, Mary Rogers (Symes) E’72, and Helen Strong (Talbot Baker) AW’74. My Sherborne sisters continue with busy working lives: Gay Passey (Cheyne) K’70, Miranda Passey (Chalk) K’77 and Jill Passey (Eyre) K’80. Thank you to all of you who responded to my email and for those who wanted the following news to be put in print. It is always really nice to hear from you, even if you do not have any news for the Journal.
Sara Foot (Allen) E’73 writes, “We are still shuttling between London and Northumberland, where I met up recently with Marylyn Winchester (McCormack) A’73, who keeps busy with her husband’s three parishes outside Belfast. I also frequently see Alice Eccles (Ward) A’75, who is enjoying theological college at Durham. Mary Metters (Crawley) E’50 gave her god-daughter – my sister Bella – and me wonderful hospitality on her birthday in their beautiful walled garden near Tadcaster. My sister Caroline Foot (Stranack) E’59 is kept busy supporting her elder daughter in her long-term peace venture, helping local Colombian farmers find UK outlets for their top-grade exotic fruit products. In London Jocelyn Passey (Humfrey) K’73 and I met for lunch before she headed off for the 2016 AGM. A couple of years back, I found myself standing next to Jane Harbottle (Krammer) T’83 at a prayer vigil outside Parliament, who gave me recent news of Philippa Dudgeon (Savile) A’77 whom I occasionally saw when her children were at Dolphin College nearby. I also see Kate Bungey W’80 who works with Freya, mother of Eloïse Newman AE’17, who has settled into Marlborough for her A level years. On a recent trip to Vancouver Island, I discovered that my cousin’s lifelong friend lunching with us in Brentwood Bay was Valerie Hayward Harkins T’43, who although now widowed still loves life in BC. She would be interested to hear from any Old Girls of her vintage.” Trish Melvin (Le Flufy) DH’73 writes, “I have been back to work in Uganda for the second year, to work at our partner hospital in Hoima. Meanwhile, the Le Flufy household has been pretty hectic over the last year. All the girls have been living abroad, so Mike and I have had a busy year visiting Charlotte who is working for P&G in Geneva and Rebecca who has been in Hong Kong working as a solicitor. Georgina continues to live in Vancouver working as a primary school teacher and hoping to get Canadian residency. Edward holds the fort in
the UK. Mike now works parttime while I continue to manage the acute and community paediatric and neonatal services in North Hampshire. Celia Macpherson (Hill) W’72 sent the photo below, showing a group of four OGs who met in April in West Vancouver. She says, “We had a very enjoyable meal and many laughs over an old Clothes List from the late 60s.” From left to right: Jenny Benedict DH’78, Merrill Fearon A’66 Branksome Hall exchange student), Celia Macpherson and Lizzie Norman (Byrd) E’58. Celia continues, “For the last two years I have been one of the trustees for Canadian Friends of Sherborne, which exists to allow Canadian residents to make tax-deductible gifts to the school. It has been rewarding making contact with people who were at Sherborne over the years. If anyone wants to be in touch, please email me at bchills@telus.net.”
Valerie Worth (Thomas) E’73 sent the photo (right), taken at the wedding of her daughter Rachel Thomas (Davis) DH’02 to Tim Davis. She writes, “I grew loads of flowers and made apple jelly and chutney from our apples; we ate hog roast from the farm shop a mile away, the wind band in which I play clarinet performed during the afternoon, and all in all we had a wonderful day. The joy, however, was mingled with sorrow, as my father (aged 90) died just before, and his funeral took place only days before the wedding. He had been in a care home with dementia since April. We felt wonderfully supported, though, and my mother (aged 91), read magnificently at the marriage service.”
Marion Stirling (Leeper) AW’73 writes, “It’s been a productive 12 months for me: a second granddaughter (DeeDee Leeper), a book published on using storytelling in early years education with the world’s most boring title (Developing Early Maths through Story), and Arts Council funding for a new storytelling show, Stories in the Dark. Cathy Peake (Midgin) K’72 says, “About a month ago I realised it is 50 years since I went to SSG. I dug out a photo that my father took of me in my new school uniform – ‘jibber’ or ‘dijbah’ we wore for the Upper IV and Lower V, as shown in the photo below.
Photo by Oscar May
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1976 – 1980 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Jane Digby (Auer) AW’80 We still live in London, but after 30 years we’re beginning to seriously consider a move to the country. I am in regular contact with Leonie FoxPitt (Gibbs) AW’80, Anna Green (Anthony) T’77, Victoria Holland (Elvidge) A’80, Bel Hunter W’80, Jill Passey (Eyre) K’80, Vicky Talbot Rice K’80 and Angelica Von Hase (Laird Clowes) AW’80. I recently had lunch with Vicky Talbot-Rice and Judy Zannetos AW’80 who had made contact through Facebook. It was fun to meet up with Judy, who was on my LOGs list until Vicky found her – we hadn’t seen each other since 1978. Please, please may I ask you to make sure you have added my SOG email address to your e-address book so that my emails make it through your spam-traps and keep me informed should you change your email address. Kate Bott (Longworth) A’76 writes, “Can it really be 40 years since I left Sherborne? What have I done since then? A brief résumé: after glandular fever in the VIth form, I took two years out, exploring the beauties of North Yorkshire, did a degree in Applied Education at a fabulous college in the Lake District, which has stood me in good stead ever since, and ended up as a sailing instructor and partner in a dinghy sailing school in the Lakes. I’ve been living in the Trossachs in Central Scotland for the last 22 years. Although I’m not currently working, I’m involved in many community activities, including editing the village magazine and running a Scottish Country Dance group. I am lucky enough to have a son I can be proud of, Peter Longworth, a London-based composer, and a wonderful Italian daughter-in-law.” Nikki Livingstone-Learmonth (Knox) K’76 has been living in Hong Kong with her husband for the past 24 years. She commutes between the UK and HK as all their children are based in the UK. She trained as a teacher after leaving school and taught at Garden House School in London for eight years prior to marrying John in 1992. They have three sons: Charles
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(23) William (21) and Sebastian (20). She is still in touch with Corinne Gueterbock (Van Rensselaer) K’76, Susie Stocker (Boissier) K’75 and Sally Kempsey (Cockcroft) E’75, but rarely sees them as she lives so far away. She loves hearing about old friends she hasn’t seen for years. Melanie Wray (Blake) AW’78 says, “With our children having flown the nest a while ago, my husband and I have been a bit more adventurous this year. We had a great trip to India at Easter and then went to British Columbia in the summer. I continue to be the school counsellor at Peponi House Preparatory School in Nairobi and run the Kamili Organisation, which provides mental-health care throughout Kenya.” To find out more about this charity, please visit: www.kamilimentalhealth.org
The photograph above shows the Kamili Nairobi Team, with whom Melanie works. Anne Francis DH’79 of Toronto was fortunate enough to take her three children (22, 18 and 14) on a wonderful trip to Oxford, London and Oslo this summer, and to reconnect with Bridget Taylor E’79, for whose generous hospitality she is deeply grateful. This autumn she has resumed piano studies, added a second weekly fiddle class and is taking voice lessons as well. She is also in touch with Jane Williams (Wilson) E’79, Caroline Palmer AW’67, Louisa Sosnkowski (McCormack) E’79, Nicky Carroll (Rogers) DH’77 and several others via Facebook. Louise White (O’Flynn) W’79 moved from Fulham to Putney three years ago and is settling into life south of the river. She says she is kept busy by her two teenage daughters, husband Giles, Lottie the dog, a big garden and her hopeless golf. She recently passed her RHS Level 2 gardening
exams and is trying to put some of what she has learnt to good practice. Ros Smith (Neely) W’79 stayed a week in the summer with her in France and she is also in regular contact with Michele Nicholson (Jordan) DH’79, who is living in Australia but comes to London at least once a year. Jane Williams (Wilson) E’79 writes, “Life continues as I plan my retirement in three years. As well as being in my last year as Chairman of City of Peterborough Hockey Club, I am also Chair of Governors at the Thomas Deacon Academy – the largest academy in England. I still enjoy my work as UK pensions & payroll manager for Caterpillar. We had a glorious holiday in the Caribbean on the beautiful island of Grenada for my husband’s 60th this year, and I continue to find Facebook a tremendous way to catch up and keep up with Old Girls. My father Barry (Head of History 1972 – 1992) is ever more frail but still keeps track of some of his former pupils and friends among the staff. Catherine Davis (Cook) T’80 writes: “I’m winding down my corporate communications work to study and start my counselling business in the New Year. Inspired by an older neighbour, I’m going to join an adult ballet class!” Kenah Cryer DH’80 is still working as an estate agent in central London in a tricky market post-Brexit. She attended an Old Girls’ Golf Day at North Hants Golf Club, brilliantly organised by Anne Whately-Smith (Agnew) K’70. She is taking a sabbatical in 2017 and plans to play golf in South Africa. She is a member of Worplesdon Golf Club in Surrey, if anyone wants a game. Kathy Horniblow AW’80 moved back to Somerset at the end of last year and is renovating a house in Wincanton. She is back working as a photographer (www.kathyhorniblow.co.uk) and is in touch with Charlotte Vale (Young) AW’80, Caroline Dack (Beer) AW’80, and Fiona Hughes (Geradin) W’78. One of Kathy’s self-portraits can be seen on the next page.
Luci de Nordwall (de Nordwall Cornish) E’80 writes, “I am still living in Bedford Park in West London. I have been organising events for my husband’s City firm and also as part of the parents’ committee at Westminster School while my son Theo was there (I still sing in the parents’ choir). Now this has finished I have more time for my singing. After a long search I found a wonderful teacher 18 months ago and gave my first recital last summer. I keep in touch with Sarah Pulman (Graham) AE’80.
Emma Pope (Farquharson) T’82 writes that she still lives in Fulham but spends plenty of time in Dorset. Her daughters are now 16 and 13 and she has her own Interior Design practice. She sees her sisters Flora Pope T’85 and Alice Pope (Hall) T’84, and Caroline Bowyer T’90, Claudia James (Wright) T’02 and Venetia James DH’04, and regularly hears from Jody Douglas (Wallington) T’82, Nichola Martin (Luck) T’81, Pippa Chick (James) T’81, Sarah Chick (Sclater) T’85, Laura Wood Homer (Mason) K’78, Ann McNairWilson T’82, Clare Morgan (Jenne) W’82, Emma Young (Rose) K’81, Vicky Sheed (Prescot) T’82 and Francine van Rooij AW’82. Louise Bishop (Cluness) AE’83 has sent this photograph, taken at a 50th birthday celebration beach BBQ hosted by Emma Burrows AE’83 and her husband Olivier in Alderney. Some of them hadn’t seen each other since 1981.
1981 – 1985 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Victoria Hunt (Dakin) E’85 Victoria would like to step down as your Peer Group Co-ordinator. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Victoria for her wonderful support and hard work for Sherborne Old Girls over the last 15 years. Emma Young (Rose) K’81 writes that 2016 has been an incredibly busy time with her developing her art. She is exhibiting permanently in Bath, then three times a year in London and working on an increasing number of commissions. She says it has been an honour to help spearhead one of the fundraising initiatives for the Sherborne Arts Centre Appeal. As a result, she has met lots of lovely Old Girls who are interested in helping. If any Old Girls would like to go to any of her exhibitions in Bath or in London, then just add your name under ‘contact’ on her website: www.emmaroseartworks.com
Clare Ferguson (Cotterell) E’87 sent the photograph below, which she took when a group of Old Girls met up in the Mendips. Pictured, from left to right: Caroline Symington (de Minvielle) A’87, Ginny Jory (Clover) A’87, Helen Stacey (Moriarty) E’87, Rebecca Courtenay (Wharton) A’87 and Toppy Wharton A’87
Liz Blandford (Carter) AE’89 is married to Brett and has two boys (Callum 19 and Max 12 – see the photograph below). She is taking time out in 2017 to do voluntary work for a Christian charity called the Waterlilly Project, who help vulnerable and abused women in her area. She still loves singing, achieving her Grade 8 with distinction in 2014, and sings in a choral group of 12 women called ‘La Nova Singers’. She is still in contact with Kate Parsons (Gollings) AW’89, Annabel O’Conner (Merrylees) AW’89, Jane Scott (Holmes) AW’88 and Heather Burns (Mayes) DH’88.
From left: Clare Macmichael (Martin) AW’83, Jane Welch (O Waller) AW’83, Juliet Dibben AW’83, Emma Burrows, Camilla A Court (Dobell) T’83 and Louise Cluness. Natalie Rae (Rucellai) W’84 writes that although she is mostly based in Italy, she is now running PRCO UK for about a year and would love to be in contact with any of her old friends who may live in London.
Peer Group Co-ordinator: Antonia Foster (Plant) AE’91
Louise Noel W’87 married James Troup in October 2015 and lives in the New Forest. She teaches English A level. Her daughter Anna is down for SG and sitting Common Entrance in summer 2018. She says she is still in touch with Laura Gascoigne-Pees W’87 and Tory Crowder (Waddel) W’87, who are well and happy in Australia and NZ respectively.
Ali Fisher (Moorby) K’90 is organising a reunion for her year in Kenelm, which left in 1990. If any Kenelm OGs would like to contact her about it, please email Fiona in the office on: fmj@sherborne.com
Fongyee Walker DH’87, co-founder and MD of Dragon Phoenix Wine Consulting (est. Beijing, 2007) has become the first Master of Wine resident in mainland China. She is one of 358 MWs in the world and has
1986 – 1990
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won the Errazurriz prize for best results in the global business of wine. Fongyee works across mainland China as a wine educator, presenter and consultant, and spearheads teaching for the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET). She would be pleased to hear from any OGs who visit Beijing. Fern Callister T’90 re-trained as Nutritional Therapist in 2009 and worked in London until December 2015. Sadly, she is now battling bone cancer. She is still in touch with Emily Orford (Ball) T’90. Melissa Hoey (Clarke) W’86 is married to Matthew, and has four children ranging from 18 to 10. She is a Circuit Judge based in Oxford. She is in touch with most of her year from Wingfield – Clare Ansell (Evans) W’86 and Ali Schoenfeld (Whitmore) W’85, who both live in Sussex, Rebecca Morgan (Eadie) W’86, who is also in Oxford, Felicity Essame (Lee) W’86, the last woman standing in London, and Lucy Exell (Coetzee) W’86, who is based in Bristol. She says they try to meet for a big dinner once a year or so, to catch up on news and the goings-on of the 17 children they have between them, reminisce about Sherborne, and feel about 14 again. Sharon Bouch (Allen) AW’87 writes “Having been an Officer in the Royal Navy for six years, and then working for the John Lewis Parternship for eighteen years, this year I have moved to Help for Heroes as Head of Career Recovery. I keep in touch with Alex Schmiegelow (Judd) K’87. Lizzie Hobbs (Mehta) E’86 writes, “After Edinburgh University (MA History of Art) and a few years working for the Bridgeman Art Library, I married Nic, retrained as a primary school teacher and moved to Hong Kong for six years, where I enjoyed tutoring Chinese children before having two children of my own (Harry, now 14, and Lucy, now 12). We then moved to rural Brittany for six years, but I’m happy to have been back in the UK since 2013, living near Thame, working as a Reception class teacher. I have caught up with Jane Wilkinson (Welch) K’86 and Jane Cray (Clayton) A’86 in the past year.”
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Sally Rendle (Baguley) AW’87 and Zarina Omar DH’87 met up in the autumn while Zarina was in the UK for her daughter’s graduation. Sally and her son are looking forward to attending Zarina’s daughter’s wedding in Malaysia.
1991 – 1995 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Alexandra White (Ballard) A’95 Thank you very much to everyone who contributed news this year. Nina Malone (Seed) DH’91 is married with two boys and living in Massachusetts. A reformed lawyer, she now owns an award-winning interior design business (Instagram: @nina_seed_interiors). She keeps in touch with Josephine Lytton (de Burgh Galwey) DH’91, Denise Ip DH’91, Julia Weston A’91, Sophie Kelly (Mills) A’91, Katrina Thompson (Campbell) AW’91, Abir Hamza (Hamza-Goodacre) AW’91, Paula Holder (Brown) W’91, Pippa Newbegin (Campbell) W’91, Charlotte Annesley (Hedger) AE’91, Alex Knapman (James) AE’91 and Nina-Maria Potts AE’91. Chania Paterson (Tundo) AE’93 writes, “I’ve won an award! Maybe the first thing I have ever won! I’ve won two awards actually: Kenya’s Most Influential Woman in Tourism and Leisure 2016 and East Africa’s Most Influential Woman in Tourism and Leisure 2016. I’m off to South Africa in November as have been entered for the all-Africa one!” We wish her the very best of luck. Betsy Bissell (Miller) M’94 married Zack Miller in 2000 and has a twoyear-old daughter, Nikki. They live in Columbia, Missouri, US. Currently she is home full time with her daughter and volunteers with local organisations. Odette Cann (Ovies) T’94 has lived in the US for 12 years. Having moved to Chicago in 2004, she relocated to Richmond, Virginia in 2015 with her husband, Marc, and two sons. She has worked in the reinsurance industry for 15 years. She keeps in contact with Nyree Harutunian (Craig) T’94, Alice Savage (Potvin) T’94, Jo Rook
(Kirkham) T’94, Jessica Anderson E’94, Clare Constable (Potts) AW’94 and Holly Joint (Bishop) AE’94. Lucinda Harding (Brown) A’94 has been married for more than 10 years to Nick Brown and they have two daughters, Tamara (8) and Jessica (5). She has been living and working overseas for 10 years now, including seven years in Sydney and just over two years in Singapore. She keeps in touch with lots of Sherborne Girls but mainly Kate Gutteridge (Henderson) A’94, Belinda Venning A’94, Sam Dumas (Hayward) A’94, and Emma Copper (Danby) AW’94. Louise Taylor (Drummond) DH’94 writes, “After years of army postings and more than 20 years of absenteeism from all things Sherborne Girls, I have found myself back in the fold and awaiting news of which house our eldest has been allocated! Annabel starts in September 2017 and will hopefully be followed by Jemima in 2019. Having come across some boxes of photographs of the 1988–1994 era, I hope our girls will have as much fun as we did!” Hetty Bright (Dawson) K’95, Georgia Hewetson (Beardsell) A’95, Jessica Bagot (Hattam) A’95, Naomi Woodger (King) W’95 and Tory Younger (Kargl) W’95 are climbing Mount Kilimanjaro to celebrate their 40th birthdays next spring. Lucinda Prain (Fidgen) E’95 is now living in Hampshire with her three young boys and still works as a literary agent, commuting a couple of days a week to London. There seems to be quite a big OG contingent in Hampshire and she also sees Katherine Phillips (Marsham) E’95, Alexandra Wilsey (Bellew) W’95 and Verena Enderby (Burn) E’95. Charlotte Pyke (Walter) W’95 lives in London where she works as an actor and Russian translator. She keeps in touch with Gemma Barnett T’95, Jemma Phipps W’95, Claire Hamilton A’95, Anna Heald T’95, Georgie Maw (Warner) T’95, Alexandra Wilsey, Ella Rice, Naomi Woodger, and Tory Younger (all W’95) among others.
Lucy Turner (Kelly) A’95 is living in southern France with her husband and three children. The last three years have been very busy with the move abroad and getting to grips with the French system. Now that the children are all settled in school she has started practising nutritional therapy again. She keeps in contact with Alexandra White (Ballard) A’95 and Melissa Ellis A’95, who have both made the most of having a friend on the Côte d’Azure and visited! Odette Cann (Ovies) T’94 sent the above picture, taken at a get-together with friends in August, while she visited the UK from her home in America. Pictured, from left to right, are: Nyree Harutunian (Craig) T’94, Jessica Anderson E’94, Alice Savage (Potvin) T’94, and Odette.
1996 – 2000 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Alexa Ramsay (Laryea) E’00 The leavers from 1996 held their 20-year reunion on Saturday, 12 November in the Tea Crate at Sherborne Girls. The event was organised by Louisa East E’96 and Abbie Le Hardy (Brown) AE’96. Abbie’s mother, Morag, very kindly made a delicious selection of canapés. It was a great evening and enjoyed by over 40 girls from the year, and babies! After the drinks reception Old Girls met up with their guests and OSs in Sherborne.
is limited, if any, mains power and the hospital can go many months with no supply at all. Electricity is required for providing oxygen to newborn babies and children with severe infections such as pneumonia and malaria. Electricity also provides essential lighting for staff to work by overnight to assess new admissions and insert intravenous lines for fluid and medication. We are currently raising funds for the installation of solar panels for the paediatric ward. The system we plan to use enables storage of electricity generated during the day to facilitate 24-hour lighting and oxygen provision. The system will be installed by Energy for Opportunity, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the promotion of solar energy across West Africa. We are hopeful the introduction of solar power and the increased availability of oxygen and light will lead to a significant improvement in the quality of care provided to the children of Kenema District. The picture below shows Sarah during her trip to Sierra Leone.
Sarah Williams (Waddington) A’00 writes, “In 2011, my husband and I worked as Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) doctors in Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone has one of the highest child mortality rates in the world, with one in five children dying before their fifth birthday. The 66-bed paediatric ward at Kenema Government Hospital provides essential medical care to children and newborn babies. The ward is staffed by a dedicated team of nurses and community health officers. One of the greatest challenges to healthcare provision in Kenema Government Hospital is the lack of a consistent supply of electricity. There
2001 – 2005 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Tess Cavendish A’02 Connie Jackman (Anderson) A’02 and her husband Ross welcomed a son, Fergus, on 4 October 2016, a brother for Eliza (now 18 months old). They are embracing the chaos and are now living in Bristol for two years. Connie is still in touch with lots of former Sherborne Girls and Boys, and much enjoyed catching up with plenty of them at Jessica Gibbs’ A’02 and Rose Kingscote’s K’02 recent weddings.
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Natasha Beach E’02 is now a consultant in Sports and Exercise Medicine based at Cranleigh School, and at Pure Sports Medicine in Threadneedle Street, London. She also works as a doctor for England and GB Hockey, Saracens and England Athletics, and is the Medical Director for Tough Mudder and Cancer Research (events), while also running her own company, SportsMedics Ltd.
(Poole) W’97 and Victoria Nicholson T’00. Claire Brown (Clarke) K’02, Claudia James (Wright) T’02 and Lindsay Lamb (Taylor) AW’02 also attended and their daughters were bridesmaids. Katie Hickmet (Prideaux) K’02 was there in spirit. Rose studied textiles and art at Sherborne and designed and made a lot of her wedding dress. She now works for Virgin Galactic and lives in London with her husband Olly.
Hopkins. Monty is thriving and his parents are over the moon with the latest addition to their family. Louisa White (Huntington) A’02 is now the mother of two boys: Theo (aged three) and Robin (aged one). She is living in Shropshire and working at Harper Adams University as a Lecturer in Veterinary Anatomy, Locomotion and Biomechanics.
Annabel Tucker (Chow) T’02 and her husband Garry had a little girl, Ada, on 18 April 2016, pictured below.
Above and bottom left: photographs from Rose’s wedding to Oliver Hicks on 5 November 2016.
Sharon Bosworth (Durant) W’02 says she has achieved new heights of eccentricity. After qualifying as an English teacher, she has just begun work as a Classics teacher at St Mary’s School, Calne. Rose Kingscote (Hicks) K’02 married Oliver Hicks on 5 November 2016. The congregation consisted of lots of old Sherborne Girls: Tess Cavendish A’02, Elizabeth Durnford (Leigh) AE’02, Kate ScottUnderdown W’02, Jessica Gibbs (Allen-Back) A’02, Florence Alexander (Hitchcock) K’02, Katherine Ferrier W’02, Connie Jackman (Anderson) A’02, Jessica Philips A’02, Sophie Holborow K’02, Suse Odgers A’02, George Philips (Weir) A’00, Christabel Blackburn (Grant Peterkin) AW’04, Clemmie Brook (Birtles) W’05, Daisy Brook
This year Charlotte Hilton E’02 was awarded her second master’s degree, this time in American Law, graduating magna cum laude from Loyola New Orleans College of Law. She also got engaged to Kelly (photo below), whom she will be marrying in April 2017. Charlotte has recently started work as an attorney at Capital Post-Conviction Project Louisiana and is living in New Orleans on St Charles Avenue, which she says is perfect for enjoying Mardi Gras parades. Charlotte and Kelly would love to show the sights to anyone who comes to town!
Olivia Scarborough (Hopkins) E’01 married Chris Hopkins (an Old Shirburnian, The Green) on 12 February 2016 in London (see the photograph top right). Among the guests were Ianthe Mackenzie-Beevor (McLeod) E’01 and Steph Myatt (Chubb) DH’01. More recently, on 22 September 2016, Olivia and Chris were thrilled with the birth of their son, Montgomery Oswald Percival
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Photo by Millar Cole
Olivia Scarborough (Hopkins) wedding
Mary Gandell (Porter) W’02 and her husband Giles welcomed the arrival of their son Henry in September. Mary is currently on maternity leave and enjoying a welcome break from teaching. Henny Cumming (Potts) W’01 married Richard Potts on 23 July 2016, and her bridesmaids were Milly Cumming A’01, Georgie Cumming A/RH’06, Samantha Jenkinson (Ross) T’01 and Ianthe Mackenzie-Beevor (McLeod) E’01 (see photograph below). Ianthe was the florist for the occasion, taking on her first wedding with her company, Corner of Grace. Other Sherborne guests included Gillian Thompson (Cumming) A’70 (the bride’s mother), Celia Thompson (Gilkes) A’77. Steph Myatt (Chubb) DH’01 and her husband Tom Chubb (OS), Kate Fearon (Edes) A’01, Bella Hussey A/RH’06, Henry Densham (OS), Lucy Goodhew T’98, Will Goodhew (OS), Jamie Thomas (OS) and Tor Keene AW’99.
Photo by www.katecowdrey.com
2006 – 2010 Jessica Thorpe A’03 continues to represent Great Britain for triathlon and aquathlon. In June she became European Champion. She also became British Open Water Champion (3.5km) in September. Jess won a bronze medal at the European Biathle Championships and came eighth at the World Biathle Championships, racing alongside a number of Rio 2016 Olympians. The photograph below shows her collecting her Bronze medal.
Katharine and her bridesmaids, with (left to right): Amy Lewis AE/E’04, Louisa Worskett AE/E’04, Rosie Adams (Carey) AE’04, Hattie Newman AE/E’04, Katharine, Hattie FitzGerald, Hattie Crabb AE/E’04, Philippa de Fonblanque, and (front) Robin Fegen SS. Hattie Newman AE’04 married Alex Ostrowski on 27 August 2016, and Amy Lewis AE/E’04 married Gareth Morris on 24 September 2016.
Peer Group Co-ordinator: Bella Hussey A/RH’06 The bottom picture was taken in May, when the leavers of 2006 held their 10-year reunion at the Admiral Codrington, London. Honorary Old Girls Jenny Hinks and Liz Poraj-Wilczynska really enjoyed catching up with old faces at the event. Jenny is now Registrar and Assistant Housemistress in Aldhelmsted East and Liz is enjoying her retirement in Wales.
Jess Thorpe Penelope Kirby-Johnson (JohnsonStory) K’03 married Thomas Story at Brympton House on 4 July 2015. Pictured below, left to right: Anna Patterson (Speake) K’03, Harriet Hutchinson (Byrne) AW’03, Anuska Gilbert M’04, Annika Tingay DH’03, Jessica Rowe K’05, Penelope KirbyJohnson (Johnson-Story) K’03, Josie Frosell E’03, Miranda Kraunsoe W’03, Lucy Gosling W’03, Rosanna McKenzie Johnston K’05, Elizabeth Kirby K’03 and Anna Hartwell (Farnell) W’03
Nikki Kirk Photography Katharine Jacob (Valentine) AE’04 married Max Valentine on 9 July 2016 at Minchinhampton Church in the Cotswolds, followed by a marquee reception at home. Her bridesmaids were Hattie FitzGerald AE/E’04 and Philippa de Fonblanque E/AE’04. Pictured middle right are
Leavers of 2006 10-year reunion
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Journal 2016
Julia Dodson (on the left) during her year out.
Rebecca Hannam (Sutton) K’11 married Joshua on 3 September in Sherborne (see photograph below). She qualifies as a nurse in the New Year and currently works at Southmead Hospital in Bristol.
Sophie Mann (Bliss) wedding Sophie Mann (Bliss) K’08 married Timothy Bliss on 1 August 2015. The photograph above shows Sophie with her Old Girls bridesmaids: Caroline Arden DH’08, Charlotte Diffey K’08, Alice Busby AE’08, Annie Bond K’08, Jessie Staley K’08, Siobhan Cowan K’08, Jess Timelin AE’08 and Charlie Trepess K’08.
Harriet Howarth WD’11 studied Fine Art at Camberwell College of Arts, and is now enrolled on an MSc at Edinburgh University. To find out more, read her profile on the careers pages of this issue of the Old Girls Journal.
2011 – 2015
Florence Wurfbain K’12 has completed a degree in Archaeology and Ancient Civilisations at Durham (see photograph right) and now works on the content side of museum consultancy, in what she describes as her ‘dream job’.
Peer Group Co-ordinator: Louise Moseley K’11 Georgie Kerridge AE’11 (pictured below) went to Oxford Brookes University to study Business and Marketing Management. After leaving in 2015 she interned at a start-up called ChicP, which makes healthy sweet and savoury hummus from surplus fruit and vegetables. She now works for a food and drink PR agency in London Bridge called Story PR, working on accounts such as Bounce energy balls, Sipsmith gin and Bill’s restaurants.
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Emma Carrick Smith WD’12 has accepted a place at Oxford University to study for a PhD in systems approaches to Biomedical Science.
Julia Dodson DH’15 writes, “Since leaving Sherborne in the summer of 2015, I have had a wonderful year out travelling and working. Two other Sherborne Girls and I went to South America for five months, travelling from Chile up the west coast and finally finishing in Cuba. Octavia Cooper RH’15 and I did a stint of volunteer work in Colombia in one of the most deprived slums of Cartagena. I am now studying History of Art at Manchester University.”
More than 80 leavers from 2011 held their five-year joint reunion with the Old Shirburnian Society on Saturday, 24 September 2016 at a pub owned by OS Cokey Sulkin (m 97).
climate, the North East of England, where I am now in my third year at Newcastle University studying Geography. I am working on my final-year dissertation, looking at selfworth, identity and progression within education, employability and independent living for young adults.” To read more about Issy’s research, please visit www.sherborne.com/ Extra-Journal-News.
Tsachila Tribe, located north of Quito in Ecuador. During this time, I took part in reforestation work, planting cocoa and yucca plants to feed local communities. “I would like to thank the Pilkington Trustees for funding my amazing trip. It gave me incredible experiences and life-changing skills, as well as an insight into life beyond the Western world.” To read Rachel’s full report, please visit www.sherborne.com/ Extra-Journal-News.
2016 – 2020 Peer Group Co-ordinator: Imo Andrews WD’16
Rachel Bucklow RH’15 writes about her recent gap year experience, for which she received a Pilkington Award: “My experience was split into two parts: first, I lived in a rural Hacienda on San Cristóbal Island (one of the Galapagos Islands) for three weeks. While there, I helped ensure the local community had access to clean drinking water. I also volunteered in a local school for children with special needs, supervising equine therapy and exercise classes. “For the second part of my adventure, I spent two weeks with the
We’re delighted to welcome Imo to her role as Peer Group Co-ordinator for 2016 – 2020. Please do get in touch with your news, and we’ll look forward to hearing all about your exploits in next year’s journal. Teresa Feng AE’16 and Tatiana Bridge WD’16 gave a talk about their adventures walking in the Himalayas to girls in the M5. Tatiana said she remembers being inspired by Old Girls who came back to school and spoke about their preparation, training and experience of running the Marathon des Sables. She is hoping to take part in this epic marathon across the Sahara Desert once she has completed the arduous training needed to compete.
Issy Plastow WD’13 (pictured middle centre) writes, “Since leaving Wingfield, Mulliner and Sherborne behind, I travelled to Australia for six months where I worked at a girls’ boarding school, teaching sport and looking after the girls. I also took the opportunity to exploit the outstanding beauty of Australia’s landscape by spending most of my days outside: walking, running and exploring. I decided to host and participate in a marathon for Breast Cancer Care and, with the help of the girls, I managed to raise £3,500. I then travelled to a very different
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News From
HONORARY MEMBERS Gill Oliver Director of Studies and French teacher So, as for me. I retired from teaching at Christmas 2014, very keen to take my writing up a level whilst I still had energy. My first novel came out in March 2016. A Backward Glance is the story of how a pupil inspires a teacher to get his life back on track after bereavement. It takes in digital technology, classical mythology and the next eruption of Vesuvius along the way and although the subject matter is serious it will make you smile too. In the next month I should have a set of short stories out on Kindle. On the go now is a comic novel, rom com meets misery memoir. People give you funny looks if you say you’re writing a comic novel about recovery from stroke, but every time I’ve read an extract, they’ve laughed their heads off and asked for more. It’s inspired by my husband and other stroke survivors, and I’m really hoping that this book will celebrate the humour and determination that gets you through illness and disability. Other than that I’m still singing with Sherborne Chamber Choir and at last enjoying guilt-free gardening, now there’s no marking to be done!
Other staff leavers: Damian Brown, Matthew Dibble, Michele Calle Drapala, Jonny Gammon, Bethan Jones, Rachel Knight, Marion Ling, Frank McMorrow, Emily Steel, John Symes, Harriet Bajorat, Violaine Ludwick, Jenny Moore, Katy Smith 48
Jenny Newman Head of Art & Design After 22 years at the helm of the Sherborne Girls Art Department, Jenny Newman retired in the summer of 2016. She has led the department with great panache and been a central figure within the school. Here are a few of her own words. “I will really miss the girls of course. And the whole department, the camaraderie with DT, History of Art and Photography colleagues as well as the other two Art staff and the technicians. Art trips to London and abroad, organising them and taking them and seeing the girls outside of the normal context. The creativity and the buzz. I will not be leaving Sherborne completely as I live in an old cottage in the town. I want to get back into doing my own work again – 40 years of teaching does rather get one out of the habit of making one’s own work matter. Mostly I will be taking a pause and deciding what I want to do. I have lots of friends and love cooking and walking. I also hope to do a bit of travelling.” Jenny has always been 100% committed to her students and it is testament to the esteem in which she is held that so many of her former Art students came to see her at the ‘Making Our Mark’ exhibition held in London in March 2016 and also at the final end-of-year exhibition in Sherborne. Many others who could not make it to see her in person wrote to thank her for all that she had done to support them. We wish Jenny all the best and a well-deserved rest. She is much missed by staff and students alike. And her advice to future Art students? Always take risks, look hard and think hard.
Sherborne Old Girls
Peer Group Co-ordinators
President Louise Ellam (Hall)
1925 – 1955
Jenyth Worsley
1956 – 1960
Daphne MaGuire (Thomson)
1961 – 1965
Rosie Cox (Highfield)
1966 – 1970
VACANT
1971 – 1975
Jocelyn Passey (Humfrey)
1976 – 1980
Jane Digby (Auer)
1981 – 1985
Victoria Hunt (Dakin)
1986 – 1990
Antonia Foster (Plant)
1991 – 1995
Alexandra White (Ballard)
1996 – 2000
Alexa Ramsay (Laryea)
2001 – 2005
Tess Cavendish
2006 – 2010
Bella Hussey
Presidents Emeritae Mrs Geraldine Kerton-Johnson Miss June Taylor Vice-Presidents Mrs Patricia Barker Miss Caro Macintosh Miss Augusta Miller Miss Sheila Powell Dr Hassan Qasrawi
Executive Committee
2011 – 2015
Louise Moseley
Chairman Nicki Whiteman (Lewis)
2016 – 2020
Imo Andrews
Treasurer Joanna Cock (Carson)
Trustees of Sherborne Old Girls Bursary Fund
Secretary Fiona James oldgirls@sherborne.com
June Taylor, Prudence Butterworth (Mrs Dauris), Joanna Gornall (Mrs Wright), Helen McLuskie (Mrs Garton)
Peer Group Co-ordinators’ Representative Alexandra White (Ballard) oldgirls@sherborne.com
All correspondence should be addressed to: Miss June Taylor, Flat 4 Palliser Court, Palliser Road, London W14 9ED
Circle Secretaries’ Co-ordinator Jane Reekie (Nicholson) oldgirls@sherborne.com
Development Officer Laura Windsor development@sherborne.com
Journal Co-ordinator Susie Brabner (Suter) oldgirls@sherborne.com Under 30s Representative Stephanie Hislop oldgirls@sherborne.com Headmistress Jenny Dwyer headmistress@sherborne.com Senior Management Team Representative Fiona Clapp fc@sherborne.com
Sherborne Old Girls Office, Bradford Road, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3QN Tel: 01935 818329 Email: oldgirls@sherborne.com www.sherborne.com/Sherborne-Old-Girls Main school tel: 01935 812245 Email: office@sherborne.com Sherborne Girls Alumnae Sherborne Young Girls Alumnae Sherborne Girls
www.sherborne.com/Sherborne-Old-Girls