BUILDING ON STRONG FOUNDATIONS
DEVELOPING OUR FUTURE
HEADMASTER’S FOREWORD
When John Wesley was questioned about his motives for travelling the length and breadth of the country on horseback and on foot, teaching and preaching to people, his answer was beautifully simplehe wanted people to be happy, to be virtuous and to be useful to others.
As the newest in a long line of Heads going back to 1748, if you asked me about my own hopes and aspirations for our pupils, I can do no better than to draw on the wisdom of Wesley: my strongest wish that as teachers, we plant seeds that will one day grow, and water seeds already planted so that our pupils can flourish as young adults who are happy, who are of good moral character and who are moved to use these talents in the service of others.
The Kingswood Vision calls for us to transform lives through the power of an holistic education where children grow in mind, body and spirit within a diverse and inclusive community. Our experience is that the transforming power of a Kingswood education can be enjoyed by pupils regardless of when they join the school.
The focus of the Kingswood 275 Campaign will be about enriching the whole Kingswood Sixth Form experience, while offering transformational opportunities to students who can pay full, partial or no school fees at all.
The fundraising target for the Kingswood 275 Campaign is £2.75m (US$ 3.4m/CAD$ 4.5m).
These two years are the pinnacle of a child’s time at School, providing an exceptional academic grounding as part of an experience as rich and diverse as we can make it. In short, an education of breadth, balance and excellence that will prepare them pre-eminently for work and service in society.
Mr Andrew Gordon-Brown, Headmaster
To mark our 275th anniversary in 2023, The Kingswood 275 Campaign asks for your help to deliver:
1. Transformational (100%+) bursaries for two years in the Sixth Form.
2. Phase 1 of a remodelled and extended space for Sixth Form students preparing for first-choice universities and the world of work.
3. A state-of-the-art Cookery School in partnership with Leiths School of Food and Wine, providing enrichment opportunities and life skills for Kingswood Foundation’s students and the wider community.
KS NORTH AMERICAN ADVISORY BOARD (NAAB)
A little over 50 years ago Kingswood opened its doors to a small group of intrepid girls, adding another layer of diversity to a community nourished by students from around the world, and bringing lasting change to the School.
Like many Kingswood alumni, our life-paths have taken us far from Bath and for some of us, far from the UK. We have made our homes in the USA and over the years taken our own children to visit Kingswood’s familiar, yet upgraded buildings and run around on the blustery windswept Upper.
Board Members
• Meg (Gail) Kerr
• Kate Kerr Meigneux
• Andrew Gordon-Brown
• Michele Greene
• Bruce Hoof
• Ben Juliano
• Adom Knadjian
• Graham Papenfus
Fond memories, old friends and meetings with Graham, led to discussions about developing several Advisory Boards made up of KS alumni on different continents. Graham asked us to head up the KS NAAB in support of Kingswood’s efforts to re-connect with fellow OKs living in North America and keep building on the legacy we were both so fortunate to have experienced.
This Advisory Board is a seed planted by Graham, nourished by previous Headmaster Simon Morris, and now flourishing under the leadership of current Headmaster Andrew Gordon-Brown. Along with fellow Board members we are looking forward to being in touch and connecting at one of the reunions being planned during this 275th anniversary year.
KateKerr Meigneux and Meg (Gail) Kerr
Co-chairs KS NAABCAPITAL CAMPAIGN
The Governors have recently authorised the implementation of a refreshed strategic plan which sets out the future direction Kingswood should take. As part of this, our estates masterplan sets out our vision for the development of the campus over the next 15-20 years. We have honed our goals and identified five major focal points for our building efforts:
CURRENT
SIXTH FORM CENTRE
As the senior school has grown to over 800 pupils and Sixth Form of over 250 pupils, the Dixon building, opened in 1970 requires remodelling to provide a distinctive pre-university experience for our seniors.
COOKERY SCHOOL
The Cookery School will offer enrichment and co-curricular cookery for pupils and the local community, academic courses centred on the prestigious Leiths Certificate in Food and Wine and courses for our parents, former pupils and the wider public in evenings, weekends and holidays.
educate WHOLE person FUTURE HEALTH
FUTURE SPORTS CENTRE
Given the outstanding levels of both sporting participation and performance, the current Sports Hall no longer meets the demands and requirements of the school. A new Sports Hall will be located alongside the Astro on the Lower.
INNOVATION CENTRE
The current Design and Technology Centre will move to an Innovation Centre opposite the Ferrens and next to the Humanities Block.
ASSEMBLY HALL
A new Assembly Hall will be built on the site of the current Sports Hall creating a space for assemblies, services and events.
KINGSWOOD SCHOOL MASTER PLAN
PHASE ONE: TIMELINE
The focus of this phase is the Dixon Sixth Form Centre and the Cookery School. The Dixon project will be funded partly from retained surpluses and donations while we are asking the Kingswood Community to support the Campaign fully funding the Cookery School.
“Kingswood will become a Leiths Academy School.”
A SIXTH FORM CENTRE FOR THE FUTURE
Although much loved by students, The Dixon Sixth Form Centre, opened in 1970, no longer meets the needs of a growing Sixth Form.
Our vision is to transform the Dixon from a series of small studies designed for boarders prep time, into a modern, more open plan, space that allows for collaborative working and group seminars which facilitates a pre-university experience, preparing our leavers for higher education and the world of work.
The Dixon building remains structurally sound and consistent with our pathway to net zero sustainability strategy. Our plans are to transform the building rather than replace it.
Refurbishment plans built on the input from current pupils and our ‘critical friend’ (Old Kingswoodian Kate Meigneux, a residential and commercial architectural garden and interior designer) will include in Phase 1:
• Reconfiguring the existing spaces to provide a range of different study spaces within the existing floorplate
• Increased capacity without extending the building
• Improved external appearance via new skin, refurbished windows and a light filled atrium
KINGSWOOD COOKERY SCHOOL
(IN PARTNERSHIP WITH LEITHS SCHOOL OF FOOD & WINE)
Food and drink has a very high profile in Bath, the West Country and indeed the UK, and Kingswood Cookery will be a significant strategic move for the benefit of our pupils, our parents and the local community. The importance of knowing how to cook on a budget, using fresh ingredients, as well as the benefits of cooking and sharing a meal with others is now accepted as a bedrock of our society, with benefits to mind and body. Learning to cook is an essential life skill that we should all possess.
VISION
Kingswood Cookery will offer:
1. Enrichment and co-curricular cookery for current Foundation students and the local community.
2. Academic courses centred on the prestigious Certificate in Food and Wine as well as Level 2 (GCSE) courses.
3. Commercial courses to parents, alumni and the wider public in evenings and school holidays.
SERVING THE SCHOOL AND COMMUNITY
Leiths Academy School
Kingswood will become a Leiths Academy School which brings to Bath a market leader in cookery education, offering pupils the chance to take on the prestigious Level 3 certificate in food and wine as well as the soon to be released Level 2 course designed for Years 9-11. Our partnership with Leiths will bring a host of opportunities from training events and filming, to joint marketing and promotional opportunities.
Outreach
The cookery school provides a distinctive opportunity to enhance Kingswood’s charitable outreach programme, supporting the government’s new national food strategy and sharing a state of the art facility with our current partner, St Mark’s School, as well as future partners with whom we build relationships.
Commercial opportunities
Kingswood would offer a range of experiences to increase the profile of the School and support the ongoing community offerings. Early ideas include:
• Hands on cookery courses e.g. ‘Feast for Four’, & skills days
• Experience dining e.g. ‘Friday Night Is...’
• Private hire e.g. filming, photography shoots
• Private Chef’s table and hosting of corporate events
• Hire of facilities for other food and drink teaching e.g. WSET
TRANSFORMATIONAL BURSARIES
As we approach our 275th anniversary in 2023, we continue to draw inspiration from John Wesley’s words, renewing our commitment to expanding the access to life-changing education to more students.
Our recent accreditation with The Royal National Children’s Springboard Foundation groups us with many other leading schools in the UK helping to drive social mobility by broadening access to life-changing opportunities. Thanks to the generosity of the Baines family, our first Springboard scholar is now a boarder in Middle House, whilst our second scholar started in September 2022 in Fonthill.
We are also enormously grateful to the Quadstar Foundation for their generous support in part-funding several sixth form awards for which we are seeking match funding through the 275 Campaign. Together we can extend our support to a growing number of students, allowing them to grow into confident, compassionate and enthusiastic young people, ready to make a meaningful impact on the world.
TESTIMONIAL FROM A DONOR
‘The Quadstar Foundation is dedicated to supporting educational opportunities for students both at home and abroad. Over the past few years, we have focused more on supporting a small number of individual talented students with Sixth Form scholarships. As well as funding places, Quadstar helps students with uniform, laptops, books and school trips as well as mentoring and encouragement. Kingswood School has embraced and supported our desire to help these students flourish and we have built a strong relationship with the school, which we hope will grow each year. From one student in 2021 to two students in 2022, we hope, as part of our support to the Kingswood 275 Campaign, to continue our support in 2023.
Our first Quadstar student has thrown herself into the school community and embraced all the opportunities Kingswood has to offer. I meet up with her regularly and she is growing in confidence. I look forward to supporting her to University and beyond.’
Nick Butcher, QuadstarTHE 10 FOR 1 BURSARY FUND
A single gift on its own is amazing but, joined with others, that gift becomes even more powerful. The 10 for 1 Bursary Fund at Kingswood School provides life-changing opportunities for young people who otherwise would not have the benefit of a Kingswood education and all that it offers. 10 generous benefactors donating US$185 per month over two years, fully funds a place for a day student each year.
The Kingswood 275 Campaign is refocusing the 10 for 1 Bursary Fund towards life-changing fully funded bursaries for both day students and boarders in the Sixth Form. Individual gifts, large and small, are combined to cover the full cost for their two years in the Sixth Form.
TESTIMONIAL FROM THE SECOND 10 FOR 1 BURSARY PARENT
‘Receiving the award has had a huge impact on my child’s well-being and confidence. It has given him a greater sense of purpose and a determination to succeed, knowing that other families are committed to his future through this award. One of Kingswood’s greatest strengths is its unique community values which are demonstrated by the School’s desire to actively contribute to each family in a meaningful way. This award reinforces those values so wonderfully and it is one of the many reasons we are so proud to be at Kingswood.’
Old Kingswoodian parent
TESTIMONIAL FROM A DONOR
‘By offering a full secondary education at Kingswood to pupils who have the potential but not the means to benefit from it, the 10 for 1 Bursary Fund enhances the School’s inclusivity still further, and to everyone’s advantage.
I see my contribution to the 10 for 1 Fund as an opportunity to share with others the responsibility for ensuring that current and future generations at Kingswood continue to enjoy that excellent broad educational experience.’
Tony Deyes (Kingswood, 1954-1963)
A single gift on its own is amazing but, joined with others, that gift becomes even more powerful.
ANNUAL GIVING
Gifts to the Kingswood School Annual Fund are hugely appreciated. They support the ongoing excellent work of our staff and pupils across the academic, sporting and creative arts areas of the school on an annual basis.
STORY
Gifts made to the Kingswood School Annual Fund provide the essential support, beyond tuition dollars, to fulfil the highest aspirations for all of our students and allow us to attract the best people working at Kingswood. Like most private schools in the UK, Kingswood does not have an endowment and so running costs (significantly salaries) are mostly covered by fees from our parents. We do not receive any financial support from the Methodist Church and rely on letting out our facilities and the annual fund to support the outstanding teaching and learning our students enjoy.
TRANSFORMATIONAL BURSARIES
• The 10 for 1 Bursary Fund
embracing FINANCIAL diversity OFFERING ASSISTANCE
The Kingswood 275 Campaign is refocussing the 10 for 1 Bursary Fund towards lifechanging fully funded bursaries, for both day and boarders, in the Sixth Form. The current three pupils who started in Year 7 will be joined by a further five pupils in the Sixth Form. 10 people donating $150pm (day pupil) per month for two years, fully funds a pupil in the Sixth Form.
GENERAL GIVING
• Financial Aid
Kingswood is committed to broadening our intake and currently has students from 17 countries across the globe. Financial Aid for our parents is often the difference between their children being able to experience all that a Kingswood education offers, or not. We are not in a position to be a needs blind entry school but we are very keen not to turn any student away where Kingswood is the best school for them purely on the basis that their parents cannot afford our fees.
By supporting the Annual Fund via General Giving, your annual gift will be allocated by the Headmaster to the area of greatest need at Kingswood at that time. This could be an urgent, but unbudgeted for, piece of equipment for an academic department or perhaps a sporting or extracurricular activity benefiting a wide range of students.
IT TAKES A GLOBAL VILLAGE
Kingswood School is a global community. We currently have students from Hong Kong, Bulgaria, France, India, Japan, Kenya, Latvia, Lithuania, China, Nigeria, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, the UAE and Ukraine – a total of 17 countries outside the UK. The map below shows how global our Old Kingswoodian Community is living in over 80 countries.
Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Belgium, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Cayman Islands, Channel Islands, China, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dubai, Egypt, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Guernsey, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Isle of Man, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Jersey, Kenya, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Northern Ireland, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sultanate of Oman, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, British Virgin Islands, Zimbabwe.
ADVISORY BOARDS
The three Advisory Boards comprise volunteers, who have agreed to act as ambassadors, helping to deepen the relationship with members of the Kingswood Community, help organise periodic reunions/receptions and help identify and engage with potential donors to the Kingswood275 Campaign in their region.
DONATING FROM THE U.S.
We are partnering with British Schools Universities Foundation (BSUF) to ensure that your $US donations are donated as tax efficiently as possible. BSUF supports school and university fundraising in the British Commonwealth through tax-effective giving in the US.
BSUF is a non-profit, tax-exempt foundation managed by volunteers who serve without compensation of any kind. Its operating expenses and scholarship awards are supported by income from investment of its own funds, by member dues, and by contributions from friends.
We have recently relaunched our partnership with BSUF as part of our move to extend the global impact of our work. BSUF was a natural choice for us; their focus on UK educational institutions and the zero rate commission from donations are unique in this arena.
It’s early days for us yet but we have ambitious plans and are happy to have BSUF working with us. Our donors respect the dedication of BSUF’s volunteers and their in-build understanding of our school too.
Please send your check, made out to ‘British Schools and Universities Foundation’, with an accompanying note stating which of Transformational Bursaries, The Dixon or The Cookery School you would like your gift to support at Kingswood School to:
MISSION STATEMENT
Supporting British Commonwealth Educational Institutions since 1965.
The British Schools and Universities Foundation, 575 Madison Avenue, Suite 1006, New York, NY 10022
BSUF will send you a tax letter once they receive your gift and share the good news with us. They remit gifts four times a year to us.
Contact: James Bruce Hoof (Known as Bruce) | E. jbh@brucehooflaw.com | T. +919 493 1736
DONATING FROM CANADA
Donations to the Kingswood 275 Campaign from our Canadian Community can either be via:
1. Bank transfer from your bank to the Campaign Development Fund in the UK OR 2. Mailing a check to Kingswood School in the UK
KEEPING JOHN WESLEY’S DREAM ALIVE
CONTACT US
KINGSWOOD 275 CAMPAIGN
If you would like to find out more about the Kingswood275 Campaign or are interested in supporting the Campaign, please do contact me. I very much look forward to hearing from you.
GRAHAM PAPENFUS Development DirectorT. +44 (0)1225 734399
M. +44 (0)7703 189710
E. gpapenfus@kingswood.bath.sch.uk
The Wesley Stone was erected in 2003, in the grounds of Kingswood School to celebrate the Tercentenary of the birth of John Wesley. This commemorative carving reflects not only John Wesley’s impact in the eighteenth century, but also his message for today. The text chosen summarises both what he believed and how he tried to live…
“Kingswood School has been extremely fortunate to benefit from the support of its community since being founded in 1748 by John Wesley.
Join us as we launch the Kingswood275 Campaign and look ahead to our 275th anniversary in 2023, and beyond.
All gifts will be gratefully received - remember that no gift is too small.”