INTRODUCTION & WELCOME KINGSWOOD ASSOCIATION NEWS 2020-21
Gordon Opie
This piece really resonated with me, and I think we all now appreciate many aspects of Kingswood life that we did not even recognise as special before. I even look forward to the return of the legendary “Kingswood Run to Lunch!” We will also need to embrace all the gains from better use of modern technology. It will never replace face to face contact, but it has certainly helped us develop as educators. I could list lots of examples of things we might continue to do in the future including: The use of MS Teams enables us to offer evening pastoral events which can be accessed by parents either live from the comfort of their own home or by listening to a recording later.
whole community undertakes Lateral Flow Tests twice a week. The cleaning regime remains as thorough as ever, and the list could go on and on. Kindness really is at the heart of this community! Now we are in the Summer term, it has been lovely to be able to begin to release some of the restrictions under careful risk assessment. We have started to mix certain year groups outside for sport and other activities. We have started to play fixtures against local schools and what excitement this caused after over a year with no competitive matches. I was delighted to be able to lead the first Whole School Service of this term “live” to a small group of Year 12 students in the Theatre whilst it was streamed live to the rest of the school. It does feel as though we are getting back to a more normal school, and this is exciting. At the same time, Michele Greene has begun to plan events for the Association, and it will be lovely to be able to see people in person again. I am not sure, at this point, what event will be the first live gathering in over a year, but I will certainly be there! Michele has, as usual, done the most amazing job
We have also enjoyed holding Virtual Parents’ Evenings which has allowed parents and guardians all over the world to meet the teachers. This is something that our overseas parents have particularly appreciated with some meeting their child’s teachers in person for the first time. However, at the same time as all this excitement at the return to physically being in school, there were some who, quite understandably, found this a difficult and unsettling time. As ever the Kingswood community reached out to try and support everyone. The students and staff accepted the need to always wear masks including in lessons. The 1
in keeping in touch with everyone and I love her phone calls to update me on what is going on. Her enthusiasm and positivity are infectious and lightened many a day during lockdown. She has worked hard to put this magazine together and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have. At this point, I would like to thank all members of the Executive for their hard work during this challenging year. Chester Lewis steps down as Chair as does Sanveer Singh from his role as Treasurer. I was fortunate enough to look after both these fine people when they were boarders in Hall House, and it has been an absolute privilege and pleasure to be on the Executive Committee with them. Our new Headmaster, Andrew Gordon Brown, now takes over as President and this is an exciting step for the Association. He has so many innovative ideas and is keen to work even more closely with the alumni. I have loved my time on the Executive and so have told Michele that I want an invite to as many events as possible in the future!
Gordon Opie, Deputy Head (KS 1976-81)
