Annual review 2011

Founded 1553

Founded 1553

KING EDWARD VI SCHOOL SOUTHAMPTON

ANNUAL REVIEW 2011

HIGHLIGHTS

Contents

25% A* at A level with 89% at A*, A and B

Head Master’s Report

grade

Julian Thould looks back on

73% of applicants

another successful year for

achieving places at the

King Edward’s

top 25 universities

Chairman’s Report

9 places at Oxford and

The Chairman of Governors,

Cambridge (12% of all

Brian Gay, gives an update

applications over past 5

on new faces and new

years)

buildings at King Edward’s

Excellent GCSE results

Culture

with 40% at A* and 76% at A* or A grade 11 refurbished classrooms for English and modern languages

KING EDWARD VI SCHOOL

The latest news surrounding drama, music and art at King Edward’s

Sport & Co-Curricular

SOUTHAMPTON

Activities and achievements in the past year

New landscaping on the Hill Lane site

Wilton Road Southampton SO15 5UQ

Charities, Trips & Visits At home and away

New spectator stand for the Wellington ground

Tel 023 8070 4561 Fax 023 8070 5937 Email enquiries@kes.hants.sch.uk www.kes.hants.sch.uk

ANNUAL REVIEW 2011

Staff

Welcomes, moves and farewells

Staff Internal changes / New Appointments

Head Master’s Report The academic year 2010/11 has seen a number of significant developments. We began the year with 963 students on the roll and the School remains a popular choice at every level. A major revision of our strategic development plan for the next 5 years has been completed linked to our regular surveys of parents, students and staff.

The School has sustained its facilities development programme with a number of new initiatives including refurbished English and Modern Languages classrooms, landscaping on Hill Lane and a range of smaller projects. Further detail is provided in the Chairman’s report.

Effective teaching and the studious nature of our students have resulted in another very good set of academic results, notably at A2 and GCSE. We were also particularly pleased with our Oxbridge admissions results. Nine students have been offered places this year and over the past five years 72 students have been offered places at the two universities, an average percentage of 12% of the year group.

We continue to send over two thirds of students to universities in the Russell Group. The School’s success in this area has been endorsed by the Sutton Trust which placed the School in the top 30 schools across the country in this regard.

It was a particular privilege to have Mr Nirj Deva MEP as our Chief Guest at Speech Day in 2010. Mr Deva has had a distinguished career as an MP and MEP and gave a particularly detailed insight into the workings of the European Community. We were very grateful that he subsequently organised for a group of students to visit the European parliament in Brussels where they met Mr Roger Helmer MEP, a former pupil who also recently visited his old school.

We have had a particularly good season in the School’s sport. We have conducted an external review of our provision, the first for five years, and a number of measures have been implemented to develop what we provide for our students. There have been some outstanding performances in a number of team games as well as some very impressive individual achievements to note. Our hockey teams, both male and female, have been particularly successful with arguably one of the strongest junior squads the School has had for many years. The boys’ hockey teams enjoyed

success at regional level in both the U14 and U16 age groups with the U14 team winning the Hampshire Cup. The senior girls’ hockey team had a good season while at junior levels there is real strength in depth. The senior netball squad has also had success at county level while the younger netball players won the Ballard Tournament and the St Swithun’s Tournament.

The U14 squad came third in the National Schools’ Netball Finals, a rare achievement. All enjoyed the netball tour of Holland. The U16 tennis teams had pairs in both of the Hampshire Schools’ Doubles Championships, winning the girls’ competition.

The rugby season began with the School’s annual hosting of the South Coast Tournament. With one of the largest squads we have had in recent years, with over a dozen fixtures, the Daily Mail competition and Wren County Cup it was a good season as a younger squad began to find its feet.

Our cricketers, under the leadership of Mr Eades in his first year in post as Head of Cricket, have also enjoyed some competitive play in spite of a number of interruptions from the weather, concluding with a demanding schedule of games in Sri Lanka on tour in which they won the plate competition. Other sports have kept our students active with Sports Day in June, a very competitive Swimming Gala in July and real success in basketball - the team were champions of their division and the Southampton and District U19 Men’s League. Our footballers have enjoyed their most successful season for a decade while sailing continues to be prominent with a number of students competing at a national level. Athletics, fencing, table tennis and rhythmic gymnastics and dance remain popular. The many individual achievements at county and national level are too many to mention here but these are regularly recorded in KonnEctionS and on the website.

Miss Matysiak joined the School with excellent references and was a very enthusiastic teacher of Classics. She demonstrated particular enthusiasm for accents used in Classical Greek in which she had a thorough Polish grounding. As well as teaching, she introduced the delights of Eastern Bloc cookery to KES and started the Polish Club most effectively. She also put her ICT skills to use with the development of aspects of the departmental web site. We wish her well in her new job in Basingstoke where she joins a panel assigned to interviewing potential pilots.

Dr Marsden became the Chemistry Technician in September 2010 and it did not take him long to establish himself as a very welcome addition to the team. He raised the standards of organisation and Health and Safety in the workplace and was prepared to make every effort to achieve desired results. He was always happy to take on new challenges which arose and to adapt to his new working environment. The Chemistry Department is extremely grateful for all that Dr Marsden has done over the last year and we all wish him and his family the very best for the future.

Mrs Ribi joined KES in 2005 as the School’s first music administrator and in this role organised and managed the team of twenty-six peripatetic instrumental teachers. She assisted countless pupils and she also accompanied pupils for music examinations. The Department was very grateful for her support at busy concert times when she was always willing to give up time to help in a whole range of ways. We wish her well as she moves on to spend more time with her family.

Mr Watts was the Junior Science technician at KES for ten years and worked under several different Heads of Junior Science. He made the role his own with his unique style and his enthusiasm for Science was clear for all to see. Having previously worked as Head of Science at another independent school, he frequently and willingly helped out within lessons when required.

He also contributed in other areas of the School, most notably the cycling proficiency training for First Years, which he will hopefully be continuing. We wish him well in his retirement.

Mr Curtis joined the School in 2003 bringing with him previous caretaking experience from a local school which he has put to good use at KES. He is looking forward to his retirement where he will be able to spend more time in his boat fishing and no doubt making trips back to the Mid-West where he can pursue his interest in photography. We all wish him well in his retirement.

Mr Townsend joined the School in November 2010 at very short notice.

As a former pupil, he took little time to settle into his new surroundings.

During the brief time that he has been on the staff he has made an impressive contribution seemingly undaunted by the various challenges that face a new teacher. He has used his impressive knowledge of Economics to good effect in the classroom taking great pains over the preparation of his lessons and the assessment of his students.

In addition, he has been involved in Games teaching and has accompanied two trips to Spain. He is now heading off to King’s College, London to study Medicine. We thank him for his efforts this year and wish him well in his future.

Mr Sheppard becomes Head of Upper School, Mrs Henderson Acting Deputy Head of Upper School, Mrs Burrows Acting Head of Lower School and Miss Campbell Acting Head of the First Year. Mr Herklots takes on the role of Head of Science, Mrs Cole Head of Classics, Mrs Penfold Head of Geography, Dr Purves Head of Physics, Mrs Ladislao Assistant Head of Languages (Spanish) and Miss Mobbs Head of Netball. Mr Culver is appointed to the new post of Assistant Director of Student Guidance and Mr Hunt, after 25 years as Head of Geography, becomes our Website Content Manager. Mr Eades takes over the reins of Capon House and Dr Sinnett-Jones will be Acting Head of Lake House.

Since the last Annual Review we have been joined by Miss Smith – Assistant Head Co-curriculum, Dr Mackintosh – Head of RS, Mr Mapstone – Head of ICT, Dr Thomas and Dr Paver – teachers of Chemistry, Dr Sinnett-Jones – Mathematics, Mr Watson – Music, Mr Bulmer – Drama and Miss Mobbs – PE. Mr Leacock joined us for his Year in Industry from Southampton University, Mr Marsden as Chemistry Technician, Mrs Mitchell as Lower School Science Technician and Mr Jones as a member of our facilities staff at Hill Lane. Mrs Duke is a new School nurse and Mr Lingard has joined as Music Administrator, Mr Haynes as a Caretaker and Mr Atwal as Classroom IT Assistant.

Miss Anderson is currently covering for Ms Griffiths in the Accounts office while she is on maternity leave.

We have a number of new staff who will join us next year. Miss Costello (Chemistry), Mrs Quinn (Economics and Business Studies), Mr Tesseyman (Psychology and Biology), Mrs Naylor (Economics and Business Studies), Miss Ridley (Mathematics), Mr Blow (Design & Technology) and Mrs Potter (History – maternity cover).The Modern Language Assistants for 2011/12 are: Mademoiselle Ripoche, Monsieur van Dessel, Fraulein Rodler and Senorita Trenzano Cantero.

The number of visits the School organises each year continues to grow and is a major part of our educational provision. This year KES students have enjoyed visits to the USA, South Africa, Alaska, Holland, Spain, France and Germany. These have ranged from trekking, ice climbing and glacier walking in the remote wastelands near Anchorage to a safari north of Johannesburg. Closer to home students have participated in historical visits to the French First and Second World War battlefields, skiing in La Plagne, language exchanges and study visits to Angers, Le Havre, Mutterstadt, Salamanca and Santander and trips across the UK from regular theatre and music visits to London to geography and biology field trips to Swansea and Dale Fort. The proximity of the New Forest and Dartmoor provide plenty of opportunities for the hundreds of students who participate each year in the Duke of Edinburgh Award.

The arts have had a high profile concluding with our three day biennial arts festival with everything from Morris Dancers and African drumming to a multimedia installation and willow weaving. Regular occasions such as the Carol Service and Thanksgiving have been interspersed with a wide range of concerts and chamber events culminating in success for our orchestra and flute quartet in the National Music Festival in Birmingham in July. Drama has been busy with a number of productions including Tartuffe, Marlowe’s Dr Faustus and several Sixth Form and Junior Drama Club events. The annual art exhibition was one of the most impressive we have had with growing prominence seen for our photographers.

Charitable and community work has long had considerable prominence at King Edward’s. In the past year over £25,000 has been raised by the students themselves and KESSoc for a range of different organisations including our Summer Camp for young carers within the city, the South Africa project supporting the Goedgedacht Trust near Cape Town and a new venture in partnership with St Mark’s Junior School at Lovaton on Dartmoor. Dozens of volunteers helped with cake sales, sponsored events, discos, talent shows and even a magic show. Likewise, our primary school partnerships have prospered involving a range of art, literacy, mathematics,

languages and science clubs as well as special events such as the recent rocket day at the end of last term.

We have been very well served by Ed Richards as Head of School over the last year, ably supported by his deputies, Cathy Chen, Oliver Cross and Rosie Jones. Our Prepositors and Heads of House together with the Lower School Prefects provide excellent leadership across the School.

They have all worked very effectively with a varied range of responsibilities and opportunities to develop their team work and communication skills.

We have a relatively small number of staff leaving King Edward’s this year, with just one significant retirement after long service. Mr Winter will be retiring after 36 years at the School, with 26 years as an outstanding Head of the Upper School; his passions for sport and Duke of Edinburgh have left notable legacies. Mrs Lander, a teacher of biology, is leaving for a position in the church after six years at King Edward’s. Mr Lindsay and Miss Matysiak have moved to other posts after five years teaching design technology and classics respectively.

Mr Williams has moved to another position after a briefer period at the School. We also thank other staff who have assisted the School this year on short term contracts including Mr Hardwick, Mr Miller, Mr Morrison and Mr Townsend.

Amongst the non-teaching staff particular note must be made of the contribution of Mr Watts, our Junior Science Technician for a decade, Mr Curtis, one of our caretakers for seven years, Mrs Ribi, our Music Administrator for six years and Dr Marsden, our Junior Science Technician and Mr Leacock both at KES for a year each.

KESSoc continues to be fully involved in the School’s life under the direction of Mrs Swinn. We are very grateful for their support for a range of activities from kayaking to the part-funding of a youth worker in South Africa. We were all very proud to attend the opening by the Mayor of the KESSoc funded eco-garden in June. Our former pupils have enjoyed numerous reunions organised by our Development Officer, Ms Hooper, with much useful work completed by our legacy foundation run by Mrs Millar to help students applying to King Edward’s from disadvantaged backgrounds.

King Edward’s has continued to be a very successful School offering its students a first rate academic education combined with a huge array of co-curricular activities giving them the opportunity to develop their teamwork and leadership skills. KES students are unusual in having a highly developed sense of social conscience, expressed in part through fundraising activities but, perhaps more significantly, through their individual involvement in the local and wider communities. We are very proud of what they achieve.

AJ Thould Head Master

Head of School

Chairman’s Report Having almost finished my final year at King Edward’s I am already experiencing a sense of nostalgia for the years which have passed.

“There is no doubt that KES has a lot to offer in terms of co-curricular activity”

Not one day seems to pass by without an activity, meeting, society, or sports fixture taking place and there is no doubt that KES has a lot to offer in terms of co-curricular activity. Right from the beginning of my time here I have been offered an overwhelming amount of opportunities and it seems that a balanced concern for all year groups engenders a widespread and engaged student response. I have found the same to be true for the academic work ethic. The emphasis is focused on intriguing and inspiring students in order to achieve individual aspirations and it is this attitude which has made school life here such an enjoyable rather than a necessary experience.

However, I would say the outstanding reason for why KES has made such an impression on me is simply, the people. It is a rare thing to come across anybody (staff or pupil) who is not willing to go out of their way to make other students feel comfortable and part of the school life. When I arrived on my first day, I was well and truly petrified but I was soon comforted with the reality that my year group was far from the collective hostile beast that I feared. In fact, I feel that my year group stands out in the ‘friendly’ department. Friendship groups are not regimented or stereotypical and, moreover, although brilliantly talented, I have found my cohort to behold extreme modesty, which should only be regarded with the highest admiration.

It is aspects such as these which have made my school life so increasingly enjoyable, which sadly makes it even harder to leave. I know, however, that in the future, whenever I look back at my time at KES, I will only ever be able to do so with fondness.

Ed Richards

Head of School

After a number of years of intense activity on the building side, the last year has been relatively quiet.

The most significant project, the revamping of the servery area in the Dining Hall, I referred to in my last report. The School has enjoyed the vastly improved layout and modern appearance of this area which is so critical to our catering provision for an ever increasing number of students and staff. The “green garden” has taken shape over the last year and was officially opened in June by Councillor Terry Matthews, the Mayor of Southampton and also a long-time Governor of the School. We have continued with the modernisation of classrooms in order to improve the teaching environment, with the programme for this extending for another two years. On the outside of the Hill Lane building extensive re-surfacing of the asphalt area around the east end took place and we have also remodelled the entrance into the Sports Hall.

At our Wellington Sports Ground the tennis courts have been resurfaced with new fencing in place as well. We have constructed a tiered seating area to accommodate fifty spectators for the all-weather pitch. We also took the opportunity of a change in the occupant of the site house to refurbish and modernise it. During the summer we have carried out a number of improvements and redecoration to the first floor of the pavilion and the access stairs. Post Administration, Portsmouth Football Club continue to rent their training facility from us with every indication that this arrangement will continue until the end of their lease in 2013 and possibly beyond.

With regard to our Rural Studies Centre at Lovaton, we have applied with success for an easing of planning restrictions in order to make possible joint visits there with other organisations such as our local primary schools and ensure greater use of this excellent property. The first one took place this summer with pupils from St Mark’s Primary School in Shirley.

The Governing body suffered two significant losses in the later part of 2010. Councillor David Kirk who represented Hampshire County Council, and Richard Thornback, a former pupil nominated by Southampton Chamber of Commerce.

Their premature deaths were a shock to us all and our sympathies go out to their families. Fortunately we have received excellent replacements from both nominating bodies. Councillor Roy Perry, who is deputy leader of Hampshire County Council and Lead Member for Children’s Services, now represents HCC, and Janet May, a solicitor specialising in property matters and a non-executive director of the Chamber of Commerce, became a Governor in the summer term. Both bring much knowledge and experience to the Governing body.

We congratulate Councillor Terry Matthews on being elevated to the position of Mayor of Southampton after a successful year as Sheriff – the Mayor has an extremely full schedule but we hope to see Councillor Matthews at King Edward’s both in his capacity as a Governor and wearing his Mayor’s chain of office at our more formal events! Councillor Alec Samuels, one of our longest serving Governors, has been created an Alderman of Southampton in recognition of his services to the city, so our congratulations go to him as well. I must also pay tribute to one member of staff who retired this summer – Mr Winter. He has been Head of the Upper School for 26 years and a mainstay of the Mathematics Department. We wish him a welldeserved retirement.

In past reports we have noted our concerns with regard to the more onerous requirements for schools such as ours in the light of the 2006 Charity Act. The School has always taken pride in its widespread public benefit and we welcome the more pragmatic approach of the current government. Further clarity in this regard will follow from the conclusion of the of the Independent Schools Council’s legal challenge to the Charity Commission in an attempt to obtain a better definition of the term “public benefit”. King Edward’s will continue to offer bursarial support to a number of incoming pupils who demonstrate high academic ability but

who otherwise would not be able to come to our school. We believe this adds to our diversity whilst giving an opportunity in life to these individuals which would not be there without this financial support. To this end the King Edward VI Foundation continues to gain momentum particularly from our older former pupils, several of whom attended the first Legacy Dinner in the summer term.

The Head Master has reported in some detail on the successes our students achieve both in the classroom and on the playing field.

He has also referred to the many co-curricular and charitable activities which take place every year. This is a great tribute to all our students and to the members of staff who teach them with such enthusiasm and devotion to their chosen profession. The Governing body, primarily through its various sub-committees, closely monitors the activities and progress across all areas of the School, and is united in its desire for the current standards to continue into the long term future. Given the understandable concerns raised in recent months about the state of the nation’s youth,

we clearly stand out as an excellent example of what can be achieved. We are, of course, a privileged community at King Edward’s but I believe this is recognised by all members of our school, students and staff alike and all feel an obligation to contribute to the wider community in which they live.

Brian Gay

Chair of Governors

Academic Progress The School began the year with 963 pupils on roll and a ratio of 62% boys to 38% girls. The School continues to produce excellent academic results at A level and GCSE. 88.6% of our students achieved A*, A and B grades at A level with over 25% of all examinations taken awarded an A* grade. The overall pass rate was 100%. 47% of those who took A levels this year obtained 3 A grades or more. The GCSE results were also very pleasing with 76.3% at A and A* and 99.3% of all results attained in the A* to C range. 100% of pupils gained 5 or more GCSEs including mathematics and English, the usual DfE measure of high standards although, given our adoption of the more demanding IGCSE, this is not given official recognition in the government’s league tables.

These results have ensured that our students are able to proceed to a range of competitive institutions in Higher Education with 93% gaining places at their chosen universities and over 73% achieving places at the top 25 universities*. 9 students obtained places at either Oxford or Cambridge representing 11% of the total application.

A Level Results 2011 40

Percentage

30 20 10 0

A*

A

B

C

D

E

A Level Grades

GCSE Results 2011

Percentage

40 30 20 10 0

A*

A

B

C

D

E

D

E

GCSE Grades

92.8% CF/CI Places Other University placement or PQA

Students placed in The Times top 25 ranking universities Students in other HE institutions including music & art

*As quoted in the Times Good University Guide for the year the application was made.

“KESSoc’s social calendar has been particularly full this year.”

KESSoc KESSoc has continued to provide an informal link for the KES community with our events programme now proving so popular that they are often over-subscribed.

The new parents’ wine-tasting evening grows more popular each year and is appreciated as a welcome introduction for parents to get to meet each other and to put ‘faces to names’. The quiz evening was great fun and was, as always, hotly contested. We owe a huge thank you to Carole and Tom Pierce who have prepared and refereed the quiz for many years. They have decided to step down from this next year but they have a new team in training to take over!

Capper (with her hospitality team) has been busy throughout the year.

The refreshments provided at Parents’ Evenings and concerts are much appreciated. In July we welcomed over 450 guests to our biennial ball with its ‘Midsummer Night’ theme.

This year we have been able to contribute funds for many school activities including the Music Department, Byron Society, Goedgedacht Project, Summer Camp, Rock Academy and Canoe Club.

A huge thank you to all on KESSoc committees, especially to Carole Pierce, whose help and guidance has been ‘beyond the call of duty’. KESSoc has grown enormously in the last few years and has become an integral part of life at KES. With continued support we look forward to another year of social events and fund-raising.

Wendy Swinn

Chair of KESSoc

Joy Lofthouse was a wonderful speaker at the KESSoc annual lecture in May. Her chatty, cheerful and very inspiring talk about her life as an aircraft pilot during the Second World War was truly memorable. The OBNO team (headed by Sonia Ohri) has had a busy year selling the clothing and equipment our young people require for school activities. Petra Sansome has successfully promoted KESTRAVAGANZA – our lottery – which has helped our funds and Marian

Work continues in the Development Office to expand and maintain links with our Edwardian Community and to grow the funds for the King Edward VI School Foundation.

Edwardian Society

Reunions have been varied and extremely well attended this year.

November saw the 10 year reunion for the Class of 2000 take place in the Hospitality Suite and in March the School held a formal dinner at the East India Club in St James’ Square for those Edwardians studying in London.

This proved to be a very enjoyable occasion and over the forthcoming years we hope to extend similar events to other universities with high student populations of Edwardians. Our annual Poole Veterans’ and Pre-1939 lunches were once again very successful and in June we hosted a Legacy Club Dinner for those who have pledged money to the Foundation in their Wills.

For the first time this year, some Edwardians have received the biannual magazine by email and the launch of the new School website also

introduced a newly revamped Alumni section posting news and articles directly related to past pupils, as well as photo archives of past reunions.

The profile of the King Edward VI School Foundation continues to grow and the list of donors and legators is steadily increasing. However this is a relatively slow process that will take time to reach its full potential.

Suzanne Hooper

Development Officer

Drama

Art This has been a bumper year for cocurricular Drama, starting with a very funny Sixth Form production of Tartuffe and followed by moving performances of Marlowe’s difficult play Dr Faustus.

In February we had the delights of another Sixth Form play, The Real Inspector Hound and the department hosted and facilitated the physics musical That Certain Uncertainty.

March saw us busy with preparations for the AS and A2 practical examinations and the performances of the two physical theatre pieces and the play 100 were very well received by the audience. The beginning of

Once again the Art Department has proved to a hub of activity and creativity. Those new to the School will have, for the most part, been surprised with the rapid improvement in their drawing and more recently with how easy it is to make a sculpture. Further up the School pupils have worked in many different mediums and tried their hand at a wide range of techniques from dry point etching, sculpting in clay and wood to photography and computer graphics.

The large clay heads created by the Fifth Year have been even bigger, and in many cases heavier, than the year before and the diversity and imagination shown in their large crayon drawing has, as always, been impressive. Photography has continued to grow in popularity and the work produced at both AS and A2 has been of a very professional standard.

As always, the highlight of the year was the Summer Exhibition which was well attended by both parents and students. On display was the huge amount of work produced by our Fifth and Sixth Form students,

“This has been a bumper year for co-curricular Drama”

the summer term brought The Mad Woman of Chaillot, performed by our Fifth Year Theatre Studies pupils, and Junior Drama Club members were also busy performing a series of melodramas over six lunchtimes in the Dobson Theatre. The Arts Alive Festival in June provided, amongst other delights, theatre workshops on magic and illusion for the Second Years and a devising workshop for the Fourth Years. The Third Year Theatre Studies performance evenings were another highlight in July.

In addition, we have organised theatre trips for all Theatre Studies Upper School and Sixth Form pupils taking them to varied productions such as The Caucasian Chalk Circle, Blood Brothers, Kneehigh’s very inventive The Red Shoes and the National Theatre’s much acclaimed Frankenstein. We have also welcomed a new member of staff to the Department this year, Mr Bulmer, who has brought with him a welcome injection of energy and enthusiasm. We look forward to his directorial debut at the School in the autumn term when he will working with Mr Watson of the Music Department to direct a pantomime - Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.

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Music The Music Department has enjoyed another exciting year. GCSE musicians enjoyed a Tabla Workshop with Iqbal Pathan, attended a performance of Romeo and Juliet at the Mayflower Theatre, a performance of Sylvia at Covent Garden and a concert in Salisbury Cathedral by the Hilliard Ensemble and saxophonist Jan Garbarek. A large number of pianists enjoyed a Chopin recital and a series of master classes with Professor Adakov from Trinity College of Music and A Level Music students travelled to the Anvil, Basingstoke to hear James MacMillan conduct the BSO. There were many performing highlights in the autumn term with KES musicians performing at the Wessex Cancer Trust’s concert and singing Christmas carols to the residents of local care homes. The School Carol Service brought a festive end to the autumn term with over 200 musicians performing a variety of carols at St Mary’s Church. A charity Christmas CD was produced to raise money for the charities ‘Simon Says’ and ‘Unicef’ and featured student bands, solo artists and a video of the KES staff performing Band Aid’s ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas? ’

the very best from those taking public examinations. The Highfield Art club has also continued to run very successfully ably organised by its Sixth Form helpers.

The Work of the Art Department is on display all over the School; evidence of the imagination and flair so many of our students demonstrate.

“The Arts Festival provided a colourful kaleidoscope of stimulating workshops and performances”

The spring term saw the School Hall full to capacity for another eclectic evening of music from 170 of our talented musicians at the Spring Concert. The Symphony Orchestra gave high energy performances from Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite and there were foot tapping numbers from Big Band, Concert Band, Sinfonietta and First Year Choir. Other notable performance evenings included the popular Fusion Concert and the Fifth Year Recital Evening organised by Natalie Fairhurst.

In the local community our musicians have taken part in concerts at Romsey Methodist Church and at the Turner Sims Concert Hall and the Chamber Choir travelled to Oxford to sing evensong with the St. Peter’s College Chapel Choir. The Symphony Orchestra and Flute Quartet performed in the National Festival of Music for Youth with the Orchestra giving an excellent performance on stage at Symphony Hall, Birmingham and the Flute Quartet winning the ABRSM chamber music award for its first class performance at Birmingham Conservatoire. There have also been a number of personal achievements this year with Jenny Whitby winning the Music at Beaulieu Junior Award, Byung Gong gaining place in the National Youth Orchestra and Anna Roberts representing the School in the English Schools Orchestra.

The Arts Festival provided a colourful kaleidoscope of stimulating workshops and performances with 46 artists visiting the school over the 3 days and 1000 workshop places filled and enjoyed by the pupils. Workshops included African dance and drumming, theremin playing, street dance, willow weaving, illusion theatre, Flamenco, choreography, music theatre and vocal workshops. These were complemented by various lectures, sound and lighting workshops and a traditional street theatre with buskers, magic acts, stilt walkers, dance displays, portrait painting, a living mosaic and an American line dance.

Sport The sporting programme at King Edward’s remains very busy indeed.

Teams have enjoyed much success at county, regional and national level while individuals have performed on a national and international stage. The boys’ hockey teams fulfilled nearly 100 fixtures and the girls’ netball sides exceeded the 100 match total, illustrating the level of commitment from the students throughout the School.

The recent replacement of both the water-based artificial pitch at Wellington and the sand-based artificial pitch at the Hill Lane site has enhanced the provision for hockey at the School. Two of the boys’ hockey sides (the U14 and the U16 teams) progressed through the county rounds to reach divisional level, as did the girls’ U16 side. The most successful sport in the past year has been netball where the U14 school team finished in third place in the national finals – a remarkable achievement!

Other sports have also been successful this year. The School’s fencers have continued to perform at national level and there are also pupils competing at national level in athletics, sailing and squash.

KES once again hosted the annual King’s Coast Rugby Tournament at the Wellington site. This event attracted entries from schools across England and Wales. Overseas trips have included a junior girls’ netball tournament in Holland and a rather more ambitious senior cricket side tournament in Sri Lanka.

The range of sports available at KES continues to be impressive with teams training and competing throughout the year. Some more adventurous activities, such as kayaking, climbing and sailing, feature as part of the extensive Sixth Form games programme. More than a dozen different activities are available to Sixth Form students each term.

Co-Curricular It is definitely fair to say that we are, as ever, a school packed with busy people. Over eighty clubs and societies have been running each term, with a real range of opportunities.

We have seen the introduction of some new academic societies instigated by pupils and staff, and the dance programme has also extended to incorporate break-dance. The old favourites remain as popular as ever.

Competition was a welcome event.

Over 120 pupils took part on behalf of their Houses and there was superb House spirit resonating throughout.

Junior House has continued to be well-played and well-attended and the Allen Grant Trophy went right to the wire. With just the Swimming Gala left, Sylvester, Watts, Lake and Capon were all in the running, with Sylvester being the eventual victors.

The House Competition has once again been a flurry of activity and the introduction of the House Choir

The Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme has had another successful year and in the autumn term we hosted the

skill sections, as well as training for expeditions.

Southampton Annual Presentation, where KES pupils formed 79% of Gold Award recipients. We are lucky that we currently have 35 Hampshire-approved staff capable of acting as Expedition Supervisors, meaning that we have been able to run numerous trips to the New Forest, Dartmoor, the Lake District and Elan Valley. We currently have over 250 pupils in the Award Scheme, from the Fourth Year upwards, working on their physical, service and

In the community, our links with the local primary schools thrive, and this summer we took a joint venture to Lovaton with St. Mark’s Junior School and some of our Sixth Formers.

We have also, on top of our weekly clubs, had a rocket launch day and some of our partnership pupils took part in dance sections of the Spring Concert and joined in the Royal Ballet workshops. Our regular clubs in Spanish, numeracy, literacy, science and the Shirley reading scheme continue to provide learning opportunities for both our pupils and those who come to visit us.

The Arts Festival, Sports Day and Activities Day meant that we were all very busy right up until the end of the year, but we look forward to Olympic Year 2012!

“Over eighty clubs and societies have been running each term”

Trips & Visits At KES, we strongly believe that learning outside the classroom is not an optional extra. Our range of trips and visits has been as varied as ever and over 260 have taken place during the year. Our students of all ages have enjoyed cultural and history trips, language exchanges, sporting activities and adventure.

Over 20 trips have taken place outside the UK and we have maintained the links with our partner schools in France, Germany, Spain and the USA. Our Sixth Form visited New York, our cricketers visited Sri Lanka and our netball players visited the Netherlands.

Following the Speech Day visit of our MEP, Nirj Deva, members of the School were invited to see the European Parliament in Brussels. Our classics students spent some time in Greece and the School mounted a summer expedition to Alaska.

Closer to home, there have been biology, history, geography and classics field trips, science visits to Intech and a Second Year camp on Dartmoor, to mention just a few.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award programme continues to thrive.

Expeditions at Bronze level take place in the New Forest, whereas for Silver and Gold levels, the students travel to Dartmoor (based at the School’s facility in Lovaton on the edge of the moor), Mid Wales or the Lake District.

Our students have the opportunity to undertake charity work on the annual Summer Camp in Dorset and in Goedgedacht in South Africa, as well as helping our local communities.

All these activities form an important part of life at KES, and cannot take place without the help of the many KES staff who are happy to give their own time for the benefit of our students.

Charities This has been an outstanding year for the Charities Commission fund-raising, culminating in a grand figure of £25,000.

In the autumn term pupils and staff participated in the national ‘Jeans for Genes’ day successfully raising £882 and, in October, the Romania Shoe Box Appeal took place with a final count of 127 boxes being handed in at the end of the month. This year’s Toy Appeal involved a sponsored toy-themed run with each student choosing to dress up as any toy past or present and, at Christmas, a member of the Fifth Year had the very inspirational idea of making a whole school Christmas Charity CD that was produced and sold raising over £1,400 for charity. The money raised has been split jointly between Simon Says and UNICEF. Money raised from the Christmas Carol Service provided donations to Wood Larks Camp Trust and Christian Aid. The spring term saw students selling wooden roses on St Valentine’s Day, the South Africa team organising a Barn Dance, a ‘Guess the staff baby’ competition run by the Cricket Tour team and Red Nose Day. Along with an Easter egg hunt and ‘KES has got talent’ these were just a few of the highlights.

The summer is always a bit quieter due to public examinations.

Therefore, time has been spent largely donating money to the following charities: Fairbridge Solent, Naomi House, Shirley Warren Community Garden, Leukemia Busters, No Limits, The Rose Road Association, Two Saints, NSPCC, Down Syndrome Association and the British Heart Foundation. The Charities Commission has also been able to support current and

past pupils in a variety of charitable activities.

Many of the KES community and staff give up vast amounts of time to be involved with the myriad of charitable activities that take place throughout the year; something for which we are always exceptionally grateful.

“This has been an outstanding year for the Charities Commission fund-raising, culminating in a grand figure of £25,000.”

Staff Mr Lindsay departed from King Edward’s at the end of the spring term having spent some four years in the Design and Technology Department.

He will be most remembered for taking the GCSE Graphic Products course. His involvement in the co-curricular life of the School involved many disciplines; Duke of Edinburgh expedition training on Dartmoor, Rock Academy (giving students a chance to demonstrate their creativity and contemporary musical abilities) and running canoeing as an activity for students on Sixth Form Games and as a weekend activity.

Mr Winter joined the school in 1975 and quickly established himself as an outstanding teacher of mathematics.

Equally at home teaching Oxbridge candidates or weaker Lower School pupils, his style of teaching appealed to pupils of all abilities as he brought his own brand of humour and repartee to his lessons. His talents were not confined to the classroom. A keen sportsman, his interest in sport was transferred onto the games fields of KES where he was involved in coaching junior rugby teams. He played for the staff cricket team and has also coached school cricket teams and taken hockey sides at weekends.

As well as accompanying numerous trips abroad, Mr Winter has also spent many a weekend on Dartmoor helping out with the Duke of Edinburgh Award.

Mr Winter’s pastoral skills were quickly recognised and he was appointed to his first major role as Head of First Year in 1982. This was followed by his appointment as Head of Upper School, a position that he has held since 1985.

In his 26 years in that post, hundreds of Upper School pupils have passed through his doors and have benefited from his thoughtful and helpful advice.

He has given generously of his time to both staff and pupils and all have enjoyed his company.

Mr Williams joined the School in September 2009 and left in October 2010. He arrived having previously taught in local schools. He established an excellent rapport with his students who achieved notable success under his guidance.

He also coached the Under 13 Rugby XV and ran the School’s Young Enterprise Scheme and took his role a pastoral tutor in the Lower School very seriously applying successfully for the post of Head of PSHE. In October 2010 he decided that he wanted to head for pastures new away from education and we wish him well in his new endeavours.

Mrs Lander came to KES as a PGCE student in 2004 and then joined the Biology Department in January 2005.

Initially a Sixth Form Tutor, she helped potential medical students to set up a student society to provide them with opportunities for lectures and discussions. She accompanied two Operation Wallacea trips to Honduras and for four years was a key member of the Summer Camp team. Mrs Lander was an excellent First Year Tutor and taught Junior Science and Extended Studies and has led some memorable meetings of the Junior Science Club. She worked on the Shirley Junior School Science partnership scheme and provided the junior children with exciting experiences in KES science labs.

She has accompanied many Duke of Edinburgh trips to the New Forest and Dartmoor and has been part of the Christian Union.

She is moving to a new role as a Ministry Assistant at Romsey Baptist Church.

Staff Internal changes / New Appointments

Head Master’s Report The academic year 2010/11 has seen a number of significant developments. We began the year with 963 students on the roll and the School remains a popular choice at every level. A major revision of our strategic development plan for the next 5 years has been completed linked to our regular surveys of parents, students and staff.

The School has sustained its facilities development programme with a number of new initiatives including refurbished English and Modern Languages classrooms, landscaping on Hill Lane and a range of smaller projects. Further detail is provided in the Chairman’s report.

Effective teaching and the studious nature of our students have resulted in another very good set of academic results, notably at A2 and GCSE. We were also particularly pleased with our Oxbridge admissions results. Nine students have been offered places this year and over the past five years 72 students have been offered places at the two universities, an average percentage of 12% of the year group.

We continue to send over two thirds of students to universities in the Russell Group. The School’s success in this area has been endorsed by the Sutton Trust which placed the School in the top 30 schools across the country in this regard.

It was a particular privilege to have Mr Nirj Deva MEP as our Chief Guest at Speech Day in 2010. Mr Deva has had a distinguished career as an MP and MEP and gave a particularly detailed insight into the workings of the European Community. We were very grateful that he subsequently organised for a group of students to visit the European parliament in Brussels where they met Mr Roger Helmer MEP, a former pupil who also recently visited his old school.

We have had a particularly good season in the School’s sport. We have conducted an external review of our provision, the first for five years, and a number of measures have been implemented to develop what we provide for our students. There have been some outstanding performances in a number of team games as well as some very impressive individual achievements to note. Our hockey teams, both male and female, have been particularly successful with arguably one of the strongest junior squads the School has had for many years. The boys’ hockey teams enjoyed

success at regional level in both the U14 and U16 age groups with the U14 team winning the Hampshire Cup. The senior girls’ hockey team had a good season while at junior levels there is real strength in depth. The senior netball squad has also had success at county level while the younger netball players won the Ballard Tournament and the St Swithun’s Tournament.

The U14 squad came third in the National Schools’ Netball Finals, a rare achievement. All enjoyed the netball tour of Holland. The U16 tennis teams had pairs in both of the Hampshire Schools’ Doubles Championships, winning the girls’ competition.

The rugby season began with the School’s annual hosting of the South Coast Tournament. With one of the largest squads we have had in recent years, with over a dozen fixtures, the Daily Mail competition and Wren County Cup it was a good season as a younger squad began to find its feet.

Our cricketers, under the leadership of Mr Eades in his first year in post as Head of Cricket, have also enjoyed some competitive play in spite of a number of interruptions from the weather, concluding with a demanding schedule of games in Sri Lanka on tour in which they won the plate competition. Other sports have kept our students active with Sports Day in June, a very competitive Swimming Gala in July and real success in basketball - the team were champions of their division and the Southampton and District U19 Men’s League. Our footballers have enjoyed their most successful season for a decade while sailing continues to be prominent with a number of students competing at a national level. Athletics, fencing, table tennis and rhythmic gymnastics and dance remain popular. The many individual achievements at county and national level are too many to mention here but these are regularly recorded in KonnEctionS and on the website.

Miss Matysiak joined the School with excellent references and was a very enthusiastic teacher of Classics. She demonstrated particular enthusiasm for accents used in Classical Greek in which she had a thorough Polish grounding. As well as teaching, she introduced the delights of Eastern Bloc cookery to KES and started the Polish Club most effectively. She also put her ICT skills to use with the development of aspects of the departmental web site. We wish her well in her new job in Basingstoke where she joins a panel assigned to interviewing potential pilots.

Dr Marsden became the Chemistry Technician in September 2010 and it did not take him long to establish himself as a very welcome addition to the team. He raised the standards of organisation and Health and Safety in the workplace and was prepared to make every effort to achieve desired results. He was always happy to take on new challenges which arose and to adapt to his new working environment. The Chemistry Department is extremely grateful for all that Dr Marsden has done over the last year and we all wish him and his family the very best for the future.

Mrs Ribi joined KES in 2005 as the School’s first music administrator and in this role organised and managed the team of twenty-six peripatetic instrumental teachers. She assisted countless pupils and she also accompanied pupils for music examinations. The Department was very grateful for her support at busy concert times when she was always willing to give up time to help in a whole range of ways. We wish her well as she moves on to spend more time with her family.

Mr Watts was the Junior Science technician at KES for ten years and worked under several different Heads of Junior Science. He made the role his own with his unique style and his enthusiasm for Science was clear for all to see. Having previously worked as Head of Science at another independent school, he frequently and willingly helped out within lessons when required.

He also contributed in other areas of the School, most notably the cycling proficiency training for First Years, which he will hopefully be continuing. We wish him well in his retirement.

Mr Curtis joined the School in 2003 bringing with him previous caretaking experience from a local school which he has put to good use at KES. He is looking forward to his retirement where he will be able to spend more time in his boat fishing and no doubt making trips back to the Mid-West where he can pursue his interest in photography. We all wish him well in his retirement.

Mr Townsend joined the School in November 2010 at very short notice.

As a former pupil, he took little time to settle into his new surroundings.

During the brief time that he has been on the staff he has made an impressive contribution seemingly undaunted by the various challenges that face a new teacher. He has used his impressive knowledge of Economics to good effect in the classroom taking great pains over the preparation of his lessons and the assessment of his students.

In addition, he has been involved in Games teaching and has accompanied two trips to Spain. He is now heading off to King’s College, London to study Medicine. We thank him for his efforts this year and wish him well in his future.

Mr Sheppard becomes Head of Upper School, Mrs Henderson Acting Deputy Head of Upper School, Mrs Burrows Acting Head of Lower School and Miss Campbell Acting Head of the First Year. Mr Herklots takes on the role of Head of Science, Mrs Cole Head of Classics, Mrs Penfold Head of Geography, Dr Purves Head of Physics, Mrs Ladislao Assistant Head of Languages (Spanish) and Miss Mobbs Head of Netball. Mr Culver is appointed to the new post of Assistant Director of Student Guidance and Mr Hunt, after 25 years as Head of Geography, becomes our Website Content Manager. Mr Eades takes over the reins of Capon House and Dr Sinnett-Jones will be Acting Head of Lake House.

Since the last Annual Review we have been joined by Miss Smith – Assistant Head Co-curriculum, Dr Mackintosh – Head of RS, Mr Mapstone – Head of ICT, Dr Thomas and Dr Paver – teachers of Chemistry, Dr Sinnett-Jones – Mathematics, Mr Watson – Music, Mr Bulmer – Drama and Miss Mobbs – PE. Mr Leacock joined us for his Year in Industry from Southampton University, Mr Marsden as Chemistry Technician, Mrs Mitchell as Lower School Science Technician and Mr Jones as a member of our facilities staff at Hill Lane. Mrs Duke is a new School nurse and Mr Lingard has joined as Music Administrator, Mr Haynes as a Caretaker and Mr Atwal as Classroom IT Assistant.

Miss Anderson is currently covering for Ms Griffiths in the Accounts office while she is on maternity leave.

We have a number of new staff who will join us next year. Miss Costello (Chemistry), Mrs Quinn (Economics and Business Studies), Mr Tesseyman (Psychology and Biology), Mrs Naylor (Economics and Business Studies), Miss Ridley (Mathematics), Mr Blow (Design & Technology) and Mrs Potter (History – maternity cover).The Modern Language Assistants for 2011/12 are: Mademoiselle Ripoche, Monsieur van Dessel, Fraulein Rodler and Senorita Trenzano Cantero.

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KING EDWARD VI SCHOOL SOUTHAMPTON

ANNUAL REVIEW 2011

HIGHLIGHTS

Contents

25% A* at A level with 89% at A*, A and B

Head Master’s Report

grade

Julian Thould looks back on

73% of applicants

another successful year for

achieving places at the

King Edward’s

top 25 universities

Chairman’s Report

9 places at Oxford and

The Chairman of Governors,

Cambridge (12% of all

Brian Gay, gives an update

applications over past 5

on new faces and new

years)

buildings at King Edward’s

Excellent GCSE results

Culture

with 40% at A* and 76% at A* or A grade 11 refurbished classrooms for English and modern languages

KING EDWARD VI SCHOOL

The latest news surrounding drama, music and art at King Edward’s

Sport & Co-Curricular

SOUTHAMPTON

Activities and achievements in the past year

New landscaping on the Hill Lane site

Wilton Road Southampton SO15 5UQ

Charities, Trips & Visits At home and away

New spectator stand for the Wellington ground

Tel 023 8070 4561 Fax 023 8070 5937 Email enquiries@kes.hants.sch.uk www.kes.hants.sch.uk

ANNUAL REVIEW 2011

Staff

Welcomes, moves and farewells