M ALVERN VIEW Issue 11 | Autumn 2011
www.malcol.org
From the Headmaster
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Development News: Annual Fund
This publication once again covers many features of the rich tapestry of life at Malvern in a colourful and lively fashion. The range of activities on offer here is testimony to Malvern’s being a school where many different interests are nurtured. Our thanks go to those who have researched and documented some of the key features of recent weeks.
Antony Clark Headmaster
The Development Office, together with the Malvernian Society launched its first ever ‘Annual Fund’ telephone fundraising campaign this August. Aimed at increasing philanthropic support from Old Malvernians, the Annual Fund seeks to increase support for the College’s bursary provision and for smaller scale projects not generally covered by school fees. The telephone campaign also gave us an opportunity to bring OMs up to date with recent developments at the College, as well as gather their views about what our Alumni would like to see from the Malvernian Society in terms of events, publications etc. For the telephone campaign the Lewis Room was transformed into a Call Room and the calls were made by a group of recent College leavers. They are to be congratulated on their approach to those they called who told them stories about Malvern past and who, in return, were very pleased to know more about Malvern present. Old Malvernians were both interested in the Annual Fund projects and generous in their support of them, with over £118,000 pledged over a period of four years. We are grateful to all OMs who contributed to the campaign and who have helped to make it such a success. We would also be very pleased to hear from others who would like to support the Annual Fund and who have not had the chance to do so. Alexandra Albright, Development Office (e: ara@malcol.org, tel: 01684 581 607)
WCCC signs a New, Two-year Deal Worcestershire County Cricket Club has renewed its contract with Malvern College to use its state-ofthe art sports complex for the next two years. The club will continue to use the College’s cricket facility as its official winter training facility from November to April and during bad weather in the summer. The agreement reflects the success of the partnership, which began in 2009 following the official opening of the school’s cricket centre by Michael Vaughan. The Headmaster said: “We are delighted to continue our successful partnership with Worcestershire County Cricket Club. Having sportsmen of this calibre on our campus is proving inspirational to our pupils, who are able to experience first-hand what it’s like to play at a professional level.” Allan Walker, Commercial Director
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Examination Successes Arthur Wakeley (OM No.2)
Charles Bridge (OM SH)
Ed Cooke (OM No.5)
Arthur Wakeley achieved an enormous amount during his time at Malvern. He was an oustanding Senior Chapel Prefect, won the Harvard University Book prize in his Lower Sixth year, and was Captain of Rackets, winning both the Renny Cup at Queen’s and the Pritchard Trophy in his final year at Malvern. He is also a talented debator and reached the national finals of the ESU Mace competition with fellow debator Caroline Varga in their last year at school. Arthur gained 4 A*s in his A levels (3 last year at A* and French the year before at A*) and achieved 100% in both of his A2 History modules. He is reading History at Lincoln College, Oxford where we wish him every success.
Charles Bridge, a Chapel Prefect, was an active member of School House and involved in wide range of activities in his school career. An impressive speaker and debator he achieved excellent examination results in the International Baccalaureate examinations with a points score of 43. We congratulate him on his success and wish him well at Christ Church, Oxford, where he is reading History.
Our congratulations go to Ed Cooke for his magnificent IB result of 45 points – the maximum points score possible in the International Baccalaureate. Ed was a keen actor at school and was active in sports, particularly in rugby as a member of the 1st XV, and in cross country running, notably running the Ledder and gaining his cap. He is now at Edinburgh University reading Classics, where we wish him the very best.
Caroline Varga (OM No.4) Caroline Varga achieved remarkable A level results last summer gaining 4 A*s and 1 A grade and is now reading Chemical Engineering at Murray Edwards College, Cambridge. In her outstanding school career Caroline was a Chapel Prefect and captained the Lacrosse team. She won the inter-house debating competition for No.4 twice and reached the national finals of the ESU Mace competition with Arthur Wakeley. Earlier this year the Health Protection Agency published her report on Chemical Hazards and Poisons. We wish Caroline the very best in her time at Cambridge.
Arthur Wakeley (OM No.2)
Charles Bridge (OM SH)
Caroline Varga (OM No.4)
Ed Cooke (OM No.5)
Remembrance Two services were held in the College Chapel on Sunday 13 November, one each side of the Act of Remembrance on the eastern terrace at St George. Wreaths were laid on behalf of the Old Malvernians, the pupils of Malvern College and the pupils of The Downs Malvern. Sam Cook, Headmaster of The Downs Malvern gave the first Address in Chapel and Brigadier J D Wootton MBE. (OM), the second. The Headmaster, Antony Clark led the Act of Remembrance.
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Refurbishment of the Grundy Library Significant improvements have been made to the Lower Grundy Library with funds donated by the Malvernian Society on behalf of the alumni of the College. Present at the unveiling of the plaque and to acknowledge the Headmaster’s thanks were members of the Malvernian Society Committee, who were joined by Helen Jones, the College Librarian.
Left to right: Helen Jones, Librarian Malvern College, Syd Hill, Secretary of the OM Society, Antony Clark, Headmaster, Sir Stephen Brown, President of the OM Society, Richard Wilson, Chairman of the OM Society, Jim Foxall (OM), Nicholas Engert (OM) and Martin Frayn, Head of the Sixth Form.
5 HOUSE LIFE HOUSE LIFE HOUSE LIFE HOUSE LIFE HOUSE LIFE
EH Girls’ marathon walk for Ghana
New members of the House family
Congratulations to Louise and Lisa, who managed to walk the marathon distance of 26 miles in dreadful weather conditions to raise money for the charities they are supporting in Ghana.
This September we welcomed a new intake of pupils and, in addition, at No.4 and No.9, Rocco the Labrador puppy and Henry the Golden Retriever; both equally adored by their housemates.
No.9 visit Cwm Llwch On the first weekend of the new term the Foundation Year and Remove piled into a minibus destined for Cwm Llwch, an isolated farmhouse tucked away in the middle of nowhere, but somewhere in the Brecon Beacons. We arrived as darkness fell, somewhat later than anticipated due to navigational issues but I won’t embarrass my Housemaster by dwelling on this! Old-fashioned gaslights gave off just enough illumination to enable us to settle in. Mr Wickes and Mr Whitehead managed to cook prodigious amounts of pasta and, although we couldn’t really see what we were eating, I must say it was very tasty! Alas, there was no dishwasher, but we were soon working like a well-oiled machine, and in no time the kitchen was spic and span and we could get on with the main business of the evening – building a roaring fire upon which to toast our generous supply of marshmallows. After a sound night’s sleep, we tucked into a fine cooked breakfast, before heading outdoors to explore the beautiful Welsh countryside. After a morning out in the fresh air the group was mustered in order to pack up, and soon the cottage was empty of its temporary visitors. We left Cwm Llwch in high spirits after our all-too-brief stay pleased to have had the chance for the two year groups to get to know each other. Deema Mozayen, Remove
HOUSE LIFE HOUSE LIFE HOUSE LIFE HOUSE LIFE HOUSE LIFE
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Charlie goes up against a Dragon Duncan Bannatyne appeared at this year’s Cheltenham Literature Festival to promote his book ‘Mistakes Every Business Makes’. Listening with great interest was Malvern College pupil Charlie Miller, presently in the Lower Sixth and with his mind on setting up a business of his own in the future. “I felt very honoured and privileged to meet Duncan Bannatyne at the Cheltenham Literature Festival; he is one of my role models,” said Charlie Miller (SH). Bannatyne, an entrepreneur and a philanthropist, is one of the stars of BBC2’s Dragons’ Den and signed copies of his book after the presentation. Charlie Miller was lucky enough to be photographed with him at the book-signing and says, “The two most useful tips Mr Bannatyne gave me were ‘to get to know your team of people well’ and ‘if you are thinking of going into business – just go for it.’ ” We shall all be keeping an eye on Charlie in the years to come to see if this meeting inspired him in his own successful business and, of course, whether it has enabled him to avoid the mistakes which many others make along the way. Martin Frayn, Head of the Sixth Form
Left to right: Tom Newman, Victor Milard Ducret, Veronique and Jean-Louis Ducret
Entente Cordiale French Michelin Star Chef hosts dinner at Malvern College Parents, staff and pupils at Malvern College were treated to the delights of impressive French cuisine at the College’s Gryphon Room at the close of the Summer term. Michelin Star chef, Jean-Louis Ducret, former private chef to President Mitterand and chef in the world famous Paul Bocuse Restaurant in Lyon, cooked for the ‘No.5 Dining Club’ run for the ‘Friends of Five’ Society by Housemaster Tom Newman. Joining forces with the Executive chef at the College, Steve Unwin, Jean-Louis Ducret and his team produced a spectacular evening for 85 guests. On the menu was snails,
foie gras de canard, frogs legs, blanquette de veal, a selection of desserts, and of course some famous French cheeses. We are enormously grateful to Jean-Louis Ducret for his time and energy and for creating a wonderful gourmet experience for our guests. We were all able to get together, in some style, at the end of the year to enjoy a marvellous evening. Tom Newman, Housemaster of No.5.
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Things can only get Bataar Old Malvernians Hugh Milway (OM No.5), Jonathan Hill (OM No.5) and Jeremy Sharman (OM No.5), along with Joe Farey, tackled mechanical failure, inquisitive border guards, appalling roads and non stomach-friendly cuisine in order to drive roughly 9,500 miles from the UK to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in 44 days to raise funds for three charities, Cancer Research UK, Help for Heroes and the Mongolian based Christina Noble Children’s Foundation, which aims to change the lives of children who have been dealt a rough hand in life. The funds from the Mongol Rally support the running costs of the incredible Blue Skies Ger Village in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia. The Ger Village houses abandoned or homeless children and gives them a new chance in life with a safe place to live, education, and all the support of a family with their innovative techniques. On reaching their destination the Things Can Only Get Bataar team donated their ambulance to a Mongolian hospital. Mission accomplished. Hugh Milway (OM No.5)
In memory of Katie Ashbridge (OM No.4 94– 99) In November a group of family and friends, OMs from No.4, and former teachers of Katie Ashbridge gathered to remember a girl who achieved a great deal in her 25 years. A bronze statue in Katie’s memory now stands at the entrance to the Sports Complex and bears the inscription,”In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years”, Abraham Lincoln. The dedication was led by Father Law and then Katie’s parents Penny and Kevan spoke about their daughter and thanked all who had helped make it possible for the statue to be unveiled at Malvern. Anne Sharpe, Housemistress No.4
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
New Academic Developments Malvern Launches a Leadership Diploma
Malvern College has its own English Literature Certificate
The Leadership Diploma is a two-year noncompulsory initiative designed to help younger pupils develop self-knowledge and integrity. Around 40 per cent of our pupils in the Foundation Year and Remove have already signed up to the course which embraces 10 sections for learning and achievement, a residential course and a series of leadership seminars given by acknowledged leaders in their field. We want to encourage and nurture leadership in every Malvernian at an age where there may be relatively few opportunities for leadership – we believe it’s important to bridge the gap between opportunities in prep school and Sixth Form. The Leadership Diploma will complement and enhance what pupils already do, providing a focus on all-round strengths. It aims to develop pupils’ character, confidence and integrity, encouraging even the shyest to see themselves as potential leaders.
Malvern has begun to run its own English Literature Certificate to replace the standard GCSE English examination. Headmaster, Antony Clark says: “The Malvern Literature Certificate replaces the GCSE, which we’ve found to be less challenging and exciting than one we could produce ourselves. The certificate, which we’ve developed by working closely with other schools offering similar independent qualifications, gives pupils the freedom to choose from a wide range of different texts and to explore connections between them. This better engages pupils and encourages them to think critically, and also develops their creativity as they are expected to be reflective about what they have read and to practise different styles of writing in the follow-up. “The exploration of the aspects and themes across a number of texts is a marked advantage for those going on to do English at both IB and A level, and indeed at university, which of course makes it an attractive qualification.” Head of English Mark Henderson said: “The old GCSE syllabus for English Literature has tended to be unadventurous and uninteresting; we wanted to stretch our pupils and prepare them better for studying English at a higher level. They enjoy the fact that their own feelings about what they study are taken seriously and that they can have some say in shaping the course.”
Antony Clark, Headmaster
The House Singing Competition 2011 This year the House Singing Competition was as keenly fought as ever. With less than three weeks preparation time for the event from the beginning of term, it is remarkable that such a high standard was achieved. Overall winners were No.3 with a splendid arrangement of Super Trouper – this was accomplished, unaccompanied part-singing directed skillfully by Claire Fung. The winning boys’ house and recipient of the Tims Cup, was School House with their rendition of Somewhere only we know, cleverly arranged by Aaron King. The evening’s adjudicator, Mr Richard Knight from Bromsgrove School, was impressed by the overall standard of the performances and also made special mention of the lively and musically aware performance of Rhythm of Life by No.8. Congratulations to all pupils who took part and put in an enormous effort for their respective houses. Iain Sloan, Director of Music
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Concerto Concert The annual Concerto Concert is a highlight of Malvern College’s music calendar. This year’s concert, on Sunday 26th June in Big School was no exception. Stunning individual performances came first from Tom Fayle, who sang an aria from Haydn’s The Seasons, next came a movement from Mercadante’s Flute Concerto played by Cécile Wilm and an aria from Bach’s St Matthew Passion sung by Nathan King. Lilli Neumann performing the 1st movement of Bruch’s Violin Concerto and Harriet Sale singing an aria from Handel’s Messiah completed the first half of the programme. The concert resumed with Rebecca Kriegbaum’s fine performance of the 1st movement from Elgar’s ‘Cello Concerto and this was followed by a movement from Weber’s Clarinet Concerto played by Wesley Chow. Isabella Petzinka played the relatively unknown ‘Cello Concerto by Lalo and the evening was brought to a magnificent conclusion with a Rossini aria sung by Jennifer Simpson followed by the Ziegeunerweisen by Sarasate played by Sarah Kriegbaum. Congratulations to each of the performers who gave this wonderful concert that brought the musical school year to an end. Iain Sloan, Director of Music
Summer Serenade at St Edmund’s Hall At the end of the Summer term junior members of the College presented a programme of music containing works ranging from Vivaldi and Bach to a composition completed only days before the concert by the pupil who performed it. Instrumentalists and singers were drawn largely from the Foundation Year and the Remove, and there were some fine performances. Highlights were Caroline Riehl’s Nocturne in E♭ major op.9 No.2 by Chopin and Aaron King’s Serenade for flute which he composed himself. Caroline mastered the piece with great maturity and with seemingly effortless control. Aaron’s performance of the technically dazzling passages and cadenza were impressive in this highly accomplished performance. Iain Sloan, Director of Music
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
A Servant to Two Masters Goldoni’s 17th century comic masterpiece, which is currently appearing in London’s West End in a different, modernised guise; ‘One Man Two Guvnors’ starring James Corden, has set the box office alight and is the hottest ticket in Theatreland. The Malvern College Dramatic Society’s production of Lee Hall’s adaptation, presented on two nights in October in the Rogers Theatre, proved to be more than a match for the National Theatre version, sending its audiences home with a warm glow. The newly founded Society will be the vehicle for final performances by talented members of the Upper Sixth who, during their time at the College, have been ‘leading lights’ on the stage of the College’s Rogers Theatre. A clever set effectively created the 17th century Venetian period splendour and the beautiful and ornate costumes completed the visual feast, perfectly capturing the pantomimic qualities of each characterisation. The cast comprised Susannah Hunt and Flora Henderson as the waiters; Tom Fayle and Camilla Penrice as the love-sick Silvio and Clarice; Sam Goldblatt and Isabella Petzinka as their pompous fathers, Dr Lombardi and Pantaloon; Abigail Hefferan as the lady’s maid with a heart, Smeraldina; Caroline Meinhardt as the all-knowing cook, Brighella; Kavita Purohit as the stroppy Porter; Hebe Morgan and Wulstan Nixon as aristocratic lovers Beatrice and Florindo; and Will Law in the Zanni role of Truffaldino. All excelled, combining to deliver a fast paced, hilarious treat. Sophia Leonard and Emily Maggs completed the company as Assistant Directors, offering valuable advice to the cast obtained from studying the play in their A level Theatre Studies lessons. Will Law, in particular, delighted the audience with his
hilarious interactions and numerous improvisatory ad-libs. His charm and charisma as Truffaldino was rewarded with cheers at the curtain call from a highly appreciative audience. All in all, a truly farcical evening of first-rate entertainment and a wonderful debut production from the Dramatic Society. Bravo! Keith Packham, Director of Drama
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“Four legs good, two legs bad” The Foundation Year present ‘Animal Farm’ by George Orwell adapted by Peter Hall. Foundation Year dramatists enacted George Orwell’s classic political allegory Animal Farm on two nights in the final week of the Summer term. Widely acknowledged as one of the best novels in the 20th Century Animal Farm has enthralled generations of readers with its tale of political intrigue, and allusions to the Stalinist era before World War II. What gives Animal Farm its longevity is its cautionary tale against tyranny, a theme well delivered by this young cast with an impressive level of clarity, poise and maturity. Nancy John as Snowball, Natasha Bishop as Napoleon and Lucy Davies as Squealer, the triumvirate of pigs, captured the essence of the authoritarian political machine. Dominic Walker played the long suffering and loyal Boxer the Horse, Camilla King, Clover, and Holly Hobson Muriel. Claud Letts was Benjamin the donkey who reads the revelatory line “All Animals Are Created Equal, But Some Are More Equal Than Others,” and the self-absorbed Molly was played admirably by Hebe Vosper-Brown. Egg smashing antics by ‘revolting’ hens Jemima Wilson and Kath Clark kept the audience amused whilst the dim-witted Sheep, Amy Elias and Florrie Mayo added their own brand of humour to the darkening plot. Congratulations to all 25 members of this young cast. They created an excellent pace of delivery in this cleverly conceived musical production bringing down the theatrical curtain on their first academic year with a thought-provoking flourish. Keith Packham, Director of Drama
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
2011 — International Year of Chemistry In 1911 the Nobel Prize was awarded to Marie Curie for Chemistry, for her work on the isolation and determination of the atomic weight of Radium. Curie was the first woman ever to receive a Nobel Prize so the anniversary is a significant one: it is also the anniversary of the establishment of the International Chemical Societies. In this year of the celebration of the science, the aim is to illustrate how vital Chemistry is to solving the world’s needs, and to encourage interest in the science among young people but it is also to generate enthusiasm for the creative future of Chemistry. Malvern College’s Chemistry department is playing its part raising the profile of the science and has already organised a number of activities – the first of which is an ongoing and fiercely fought Inter-House Chemistry competition. During the early rounds the Lower School, in their Houses, were intent on establishing the melting points of marshmallows and the percentage of air in chocolate bars. They also undertook the re-crystallisation of vanillin. The next round required our young chemists to ‘Turn Irn Bru into Coca Cola’! Designed to test the analytical skills of the Sixth Form chemists, the task in this round was to find the quantity of the reducing agents in Irn Bru. The experiment was delightful to the eye as the chemical reactions produced an array of colourful chemical changes. In round three the Lower School pupils tested their chemical knowledge and problem solving skills to build a virtual pharmaceutical to combat HIV, AIDS or asthma. Round
four was a quiz, which allowed pupils to show off their knowledge of the periodic table, spell some of the trickier elemental names and put elements and compounds in order of their boiling points. They could also show knowledge of some famous chemists and their discoveries. At the end of the fourth round there was a tie between Ellerslie House and No.5 so we took the opportunity to hold a head-to-head quiz when Nick Barker from the University of Warwick came to give a fantastic lecture entitled ‘From Bacteria to Solar Cells – what do research chemists do all day?’ No.5 narrowly beat EH however there are still two further rounds of the competition to go and the difference in points between the leading Houses is so small that a strong performance from any of them could change the final ranking. The competition has sharpened our Chemistry knowledge and it has been great fun. In this special year we have also made visits to the University of Warwick with Lower School pupils where they synthesised aspirin, and to Bristol University with the Upper Sixth pupils for a very informative spectroscopy workshop. At home we were absorbed by Dr Stewart Vaughan’s account of the atmospheric research career that he followed prior to joining the team of chemistry teachers here at Malvern. The title of his lecture was “Atmospheric Chemistry: the science of the biggest lab on Earth”. All in all a busy year so far and one which has brought Chemistry to the forefront at Malvern. Dr Natalie Watson, Head of Chemistry
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Preparatory Schools’ Chemistry workshop In June we welcomed Year 6 pupils from The Elms preparatory school and from The Downs Malvern preparatory school to the Chemistry labs at Malvern College to enjoy an afternoon of fun! Pupils were able to perform their own experiments, the highlight of which was making a rainbow in a test tube. Then it was time for them to watch some expert demonstrations of spontaneous combustion, a chemiluminescent glowing burette and finally the ever-popular oxidation of a “howling jelly baby”. No need to create extra enthusiasm in this group of budding chemists – they had brought heaps of their own. Dr Natalie Watson, Head of Chemistry
Skinny Dip At the end of examinations we decided to treat the Remove to an ‘Apprentice’ style project where they could see the link between Chemistry and a world with which they are familiar. The task was to prepare a skin care product, design the packaging, and come up with a name, logo and marketing slogan and then to make a presentation to launch their product. Emma Chetwynd-Jarvis of Skinny Dip came in to talk to us about her experience of setting up in the beauty product business. During the chemistry lessons that followed Emma’s visit pupils worked to prepare hand creams and lip glosses with natural flavouring. They designed the packaging and considered how they could market their products then they made successful presentations to Senior Deputy Head, Dr Lister. Dr Natalie Watson, Head of Chemistry
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Prep Schools’ Arts Day 2011 An exciting day of Art, Music and Drama was arranged for visiting preparatory schools this term. Director of Drama, Keith Packham, conducted sessions on collaborative working skills and script writing for the mini-plays that would be enacted later. The choir, under Iain Sloan, Malvern’s Director of Music, sang Britten’s Old Abram Brown and Elton John’s Hakuna Matata and a lively Round, which brought the performers and concert audience together in a rousing chorus. The orchestra rehearsed and performed pieces as diverse as the theme from Dr Who to a suite of pieces from the film Shakespeare in Love. Tim Newsholme, Director of Art, set pupils to work on the theme of A Continuous Street to which there was a very impressive level of commitment and obvious enjoyment by all. The day ended with a universal sense of achievement. Diane Arthur, Secretary, Music School
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Alina Pecherskaya No.6 Alina, an accomplished artist and a ballet dancer, has joined the College in the Lower Sixth this year. Her home is in Russia where she has been dancing for the last seven years. She has a natural talent for painting and combines both passions in a stunning self-portrait that is displayed in the school’s Main Building. Tim Newsholme, Director of Art
IB Exemplars of Excellence — Visual Art The International Baccalaureate academic website for Art uses a virtual gallery as a resource that teachers, candidates and examiners from around the world refer to regularly for examples of top class IB Diploma Programme visual arts work. After each examination session the senior examiners select the best studio work to be included in the virtual gallery which is hosted on the visual arts pages of the online curriculum centre. We are delighted that work from two artists at Malvern College, Maria Henshall (OM No.8) and Stephanie Julia Schöhl (OM No.8), was chosen to be included in the Painting category following the May 2010 examinations. Congratulations to these girls for their excellent work. Tim Newsholme, Director of Art
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
The Old Malvernian Lodge Charity Prize The Old Malvernian Lodge, founded in 1922, is a member of the Public School Lodges Council. Finding itself with a modest surplus after hosting their annual Festival at Malvern in 2005 it elected to endow a prize for the school. There was no prize at that time for Achievement in Charitable Activity so a trophy was made and is awarded to a pupil each year, along with a small cash prize, for raising funds for charity. The handsome Gryphon trophy (intended to adorn the House trophy cabinet in the pupil’s boarding house) is a symbol of the union between lion and eagle which in heraldry and legend guards the treasure. The treasure at Malvern is to be regarded as education. In making this award for an act of charity, the Old Malvernian Lodge feels that it encourages the noblest of achievements and inspires the highest of ideals in the pupils at the College. Jeremy Havard, OM (8.65-68) Malvernian Society Committee and member of the College Council
Award Winner 2011 This year’s winner of the OM Lodge prize was Charlie Magnay (OM No.3) who, through the Young Enterprise group at Malvern, raised £2,000 for The Invisible Children Foundation in Uganda. The charity builds schools, funds the education of future leaders for the country and helps provide jobs for many of Uganda’s children who have all but lost their childhood to war. Charlie and her friends sold 100 Ugandan Kikoy scarves and this, together with other fund raising, contributed to the final total. www.invisiblechildren.com
Techniques for Study Skills Ever wondered how to improve your memory, take notes effectively, achieve maximum results with minimum effort? Our very own Study Skills guru Martin Frayn who is Head of the Sixth Form, is something of an expert in this field. He inspires pupils to believe in themselves and their abilities and points out that the acquisition and retention of knowledge is a skill similar to any other and, like playing tennis or the piano, is very much down to the right technique – which can be improved with practice. His lecture on Study Skills offers tips and techniques for memorizing and retrieving information and for getting yourself organised. Invaluable!
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Everyone’s wild about Harry Malvern College held a Harry Potterthemed event for prep schools as part of the celebrations for National Poetry Day. More than 100 visiting pupils aged 11 joined in the celebrations, which included the flying of owls from the National Birds of Prey Centre at Newent, before a Refectory style, Harry Potterthemed lunch in Big School. The visiting pupils later took part in a workshop, creating pieces of poetry around the theme of the Harry Potter books, with poets Marcus Moore and Sara-Jane Arbury. The poets, who work together as Spiel Unlimited, also held workshops on performance poetry for College pupils throughout the day.
The Headmaster said: “National Poetry Day is a wonderful way to engage pupils in the art of poetry, giving them a love of words and rhythm. Combining this with our annual Harry Potter celebrations really gave our pupils the opportunity to feel the fun involved.”
Halloween ‘Longy’ It was a little ahead of the end of October but Halloween was a great theme for the shared party between No.2 and No.4 at the Sixth Form Centre; this Spooky party at the Longy was a hoot.
Anne Sharpe, Housemistress No.4 with two of the girls from No.4
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Dorm with a View There are a few hardy girls who go for early morning swims or runs, but not many girls are up early enough to photograph the sunrise. Emma Good (Remove), took these pictures from her (then FY) dorm. What a simply stunning view over the roof tops of No.4. Anne-Isabelle Sharp, Housemistress, No.4
This was the College’s second trip to Ghana and the aim was to enable our pupils to help with much needed development work being undertaken by charities working in Ghana. The trip would highlight, for each member of our group, the differences between the hardships of Ghana and the relative luxuries of life back home and would make a lasting impression on them. There were so many memorable features of this visit but one in particular was the presentation given by Martin Derry for the charity ProNet at the regional capital Wa. He spoke about the need to provide better access to water and achieve improvements in the road system. He also described how ProNet was also trying to empower women in the region by teaching them to manufacture shea butter for export. Our pupils were captivated as he described the issues that faced the charity and the obstacles to development in Ghana. They became inspired to help as much as they could whilst they were working in Ghana and this determined commitment was maintained throughout our time there. At Elima the Malvern pupils worked with the Sabre Trust helping to refurbish a classroom block in the 700 strong rural village school. Sabre provided the building materials and Malvern College the manpower! The team was also successful in the construction of a playground – an additionally challenging part of the playground project was how to keep the children from playing on it before the concrete had set. At the end of the trip virtually every Malvernian had spent time on construction, time teaching large classes of 5 –10 year olds and time learning about the difficulties charities face in trying to improve lives in Ghana. Malvern College will organise a similar trip to Ghana each year to allow pupils to help the charities with these life-improving projects. Adam Hutsby, Economics & Business Studies
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Careers and university entrance advisors at Malvern College Left to right: Andrew Hutchinson, Richard Thurlow and Adrian Grundy
Beyond the Sixth Form Malvern College believes in thorough preparation for university entrance so that pupils in the Upper Sixth have the best chance possible of gaining a place at the university of their choice. In the Hundred and Lower Sixth pupils begin to think hard about their future choices during careers tests. They are strongly encouraged to spend a week of their holidays on Work Experience placements that are closely linked to their own interests and possible future career paths. Then, throughout the Lent and Summer terms of the Lower Sixth, a range of presentations are offered to pupils on, for example, writing an effective personal statement and how to navigate the UCAS application system. During the Upper Sixth, more tailored help is given to individual pupils by Sixth Form tutors and the Careers Department, whilst coaching on interview technique is provided by an expert team who visit the school in November. American universities are an increasingly popular destination for Malvern pupils, with 30 pupils applying
Harvard University Book Prize Each year, Harvard University awards a Book Prize to a pupil at Malvern College who is an extremely able academic with keen scholastic and intellectual mettle. The pupil to whom the Harvard Book Prize is awarded should also be making a significant impact on the Malvern community and, this summer, the award was made to William Law who this academic year is the Senior Chapel Prefect. William is also enthusiastic about many aspects of the co-curriculum and is talented in areas such as Drama and Debating. He is a worthy winner of the Harvard Book Prize for 2011.
this year. The United States university system requires specialised knowledge and six teachers with experience of US applications act as ‘School Counselors’ to help applicants with aptitude tests, completion of application forms and essays, as well as being responsible for the production of references and transcripts. Malvern has a good knowledge of how US universities judge applicants; Adrian Grundy, in charge of University Admissions, recently met staff at a number of top US universities including Harvard, Yale, and Brown, to discuss the criteria upon which they make their decisions. The College has also appointed an external educational advisor to advise pupils and their parents on the admissions process as well as offering a SAT preparation course. We hope that soon pupils applying for American universities will be able to sit these tests at Malvern when it becomes a SAT test centre. Adrian Grundy, Head of University Admissions
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Malvern CCF break record in Pringle Trophy
The Sir Steuart Pringle trophy is probably one of the most demanding events any pupil from Malvern will undertake in their time at the College. It is a difficult physical challenge but a difficult mental challenge too. Over a period of 48 hours, teams of eight are tested on their military skills, general knowledge, navigation and on the endurance course that includes the infamous ‘Sheep dip’ and ‘Smartie tubes’. This year’s team – Naomi Sharpe (Captain), Kavita Purohit (Second in Command), Will Baker, Ben Donaldson, Henry Henshall, Will Kitching, Simon Macdonald, Jasper Ross and Natalie Seager, lived up to the high standards set by their predecessors. In spite of being the youngest team competing, Malvern set the bench-mark, winning a trophy for the first aid stand and coming third on the endurance course. It was the first time that this team has been captained by a girl so the results were very exciting and a fantastic achievement for such a young team and a sign of great things to come. Peter Scurfield, OC CCF Malvern College
CCF Wins Silver Eleven cadets took part in the annual Military Skills competition at the camp at Swynnerton in Staffordshire. Twenty teams had entered the competition and our team: Andrew Hawkins, Anna Llewellyn, Harry Rees, Helen Lamport, Michaela Asamoah, Natalie Kingdon, Rory Hopkinson, Rupert Harris and Shi-Nan Zhang, was led by captain Ben Chandler with his deputy Wulstan Nixon. The Military Skills competition covers a wide range of events that encompass the majority of the cadet syllabus. This relatively new team gave a fine performance achieving first place on the Close Quarter Battle Lane, the 25m rifle range, and in the Leadership Challenge. An accumulation of these individual wins was enough to earn the team the silver medal place. John Nichols, WO2 Malvern College CCF
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Cheltenham Literature Festival 2011
There was a standing ovation for the Walking With the Wounded team at the end of their presentation at the Cheltenham Literature Festival. The four wounded servicemen, two amputees, one with a paralysed arm and one with serious back injuries, made the trek to the North Pole in April and were accompanied by HRH Prince Harry, their patron, who was able to spend four days with them on the ice. In all, the team covered 167 nautical miles on the floating icecap in the space of 13 days during which they battled temperatures of minus 38°C. Former Malvern College pupil Capt Guy Disney, whose right leg was amputated below the knee after an incident which occurred whilst he was serving in Afghanistan, together with Capt Martin Hewitt who lost the use of his right arm also in Afghanistan, and co-founder of Walking With the Wounded, Ed Parker, met presenter Ben Fogle to talk about their experiences. The event at Cheltenham Literature Festival was supported by Malvern College. The charity Walking With the Wounded supports injured servicemen and their families by funding retraining and re-education for wounded servicemen and women, in order to assist them find long term, secure work outside the Armed Forces. Ed Parker says “Walking With the Wounded is not an expedition machine, it is a way of empowering those who have been injured in their service career, of restoring their confidence and, if they are not able to stay in the services, enabling them to find a new career. It is about getting the world to look at disability in a different way”. Next year, Walking With the Wounded will be tackling an even bigger challenge: scaling Mount Everest and putting four wounded servicemen on top of the world. To donate to Walking With the Wounded and support their next expedition to Everest please visit www.walkingwiththewounded.org.uk
Capt Martin Hewitt, Antony Clark, Capt Guy Disney and Ed Parker
Ben Fogle, presenter with Antony Clark, Headmaster
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Lower Sixth Walk for Charity Somewhat ironically, on the day of the announcement that drought conditions had been declared in the East of England, the first weather warning was given for heavy and continuous rain – on the day planned for the Lower Sixth Charity Walk (32 miles along the Worcestershire Way). Should we postpone or keep to the plan? All 75 walkers were keen to go ahead, after all how many times has the weather forecast been wrong in the past? But the rain arrived earlier than expected and the measure of it had been predicted quite accurately. By the 20 mile mark some were beginning to feel that the going was hard – we had been ‘on the road’ for seven hours and a few were beginning to look cold. So, at the Talbot Inn, some bode farewell to return home to school.
Two weeks later a sub-group of walkers gave it another go and, with temperatures this time approaching the 30°s and a cloudless blue sky above, they were in greater danger of sunburn and dehydration than a soaking. It was hot but the countryside was looking at its best and the Malvern Hills, rising in the distance, drew them slowly in. Most of those taking part achieved their personal marathon, completing 26 miles in some commendable personal times. Each pupil had selected a charity to support and the total amount raised exceeded £5,000. For so many reasons, congratulations to everybody who took part in the walks – it was such a worthy effort but it had been extremely tough. Peter Gray, IB Co-ordinator and Maths
Staff Profile: Jon Herod (OM No.6, No.4 and Hampton) Jon Herod has been teaching History at Malvern College since 2008. He was a city lawyer and chose to return to teaching and luckily, chose Malvern. In addition to teaching he is Deputy Head of the Sixth Form (Academic), he coaches the 3rd XI cricket team and is Master i/c Croquet. He is Master i/c Forum and a United States university counsellor. LIKES: History, especially 19th and 20th century history; listening to music, especially classical; and playing the guitar. He enjoys literature (history and fiction); languages, especially Spanish; travel (he is currently planning a trip to Lithuania and Belarus); and playing sport (cricket, running, 5-a-side football). DISLIKES: Time wasting, indolence and rudeness. Fortunately we have very little of that here!
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Loch Ness and no sign of a Monster This year’s D of E Gold expedition was to Scotland where we had to canoe the Caledonian Canal from Fort William to Inverness, a total of 96 kilometers in four days. Arriving at a campsite near Fort William we had just enough daylight to set up camp and to go for fish and chips for supper. A day later, packed and ready, we met with our assessor in the morning to check our route and camping spots, and by 10 o’clock we were on our way. The first stretch was long; we had been determined to canoe the 30 kilometers to the next lock so that we could camp at a place with running water, flushing toilets and showers (we weren’t ready to give up those luxuries just yet!) Luckily the wind was with us and we made it to the lock by 5 o’clock. A dreary weather start to Day Two was made worse by the fact that we had all been kept awake by the wind and rain from the tail of Hurricane Irene during the night. We were determined to make it over Loch Lochy and to Fort Augustus so that we could canoe Loch Ness for the whole of the following two days. And we made it! With team spirits extremely high and experiencing a great sense of accomplishment we decided to start canoeing Loch Ness that very afternoon. Day Three and the dwellers of the Loch were treated to a lot of loud, spirit lifting (and fairly tuneless) singing and there was still no sign of a monster. At least our rendition of Mamma Mia, followed by Jerusalem and the school song (in Latin of course) received a round of applause from the tourists at Urquhart Castle. On the last night we chose a poor place to pitch our tents and had a very bad night’s rest as a result. There was however an up side to this. Our uncomfortable sleep allowed us to get up at 5 o’clock the next morning, pack up quickly, and get straight on the water to watch the sun rise over Loch Ness. It was absolutely beautiful. Trying to capture this on camera with us standing in our canoes, we
had several near-capsize moments but safely reached the end of Loch Ness by the time the sun had risen and stopped on a beach to have breakfast where we could look back over the Loch. We reached our finishing point by 11 o’clock and all clambered out of our canoes in triumph – then jumped into the water to celebrate, fully clothed! Truly this had been a great achievement, hard going but worth all the work. Amelia Freeman, No.8
The Newly Elected Sixth Form Council
Back row: Max Hetzler, Tom Fayle. Middle row: Eleanor Hobson, Alex Khan, Wulstan Nixon, Oyin Akande, Renée Rust, Matteo Panizzardi, Ferdinand Grossman, Rosella Soravia. Front row: Arthur Jones, Olivia Pascoe, John Guilbert, Amelia Freeman, Tonye Cookey-Gam.
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Malvern wins the 2011 Chesterton Cup Malvern played Cheltenham College in the final of the Chesterton Cup and, put into bat, they produced a fantastic opening partnership between Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Odge Davey. Tom eventually fell for 47 but Odge just kept batting and produced one of, if not the best, knocks ever in the Chesterton Cup. He scored a massive 185 not out to lead the side to 314 in 40 overs. Cheltenham were short of the Malvern total at the end of 40 overs finishing with 209 for 8. Mark Hardinges, Master i/c Cricket
Wisden rankings for two very promising Malvern Cricketers Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Will Wright have both excelled in the sport this summer gaining high rankings in the Wisden Schools’ Cricket records for the season. Tom, an opening batsman, scored 1,010 runs in the season at an average of over 80. This placed him 5th highest run scorer amongst the HMC schoolboys. But for a declaration in the final game of the season he may have gone on to break the school record for ‘Runs scored in a season’ set by David Nash (David Nash, Middlesex CCC and England A) however he still has two more school seasons to give this record his best shot. It was also a great summer for bowler Will Wright who is a natural sportsman. A prolific off-spin bowler over his two years in the 1st XI, Will uses flight and guile to gain his wickets and these numbered 42 last season placing him 2nd in the list of HMC schools’ wicket-takers. Well done indeed to both these boys. We all look forward to seeing them in action again next summer. Mark Hardinges, Master i/c Cricket
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Cricketer Cup victory for OM side Congratulations to Will Gifford and his OM team for their victory over the Eton Ramblers by six wickets at Shenley Cricket Club in the final of the Cricketer Cup this season. A consistently good side, they have taken the title four times in the last six years. This year’s final was a real team effort with some fantastic catching which reduced Eton to 141 in 50
overs. Malvern lost only four wickets in reaching their target with good contributions from Odge Davey, Jon Wileman, Mark Hardinges and Will Gifford. Mark Hardinges, Master i/c Cricket
Back row: Graham Busby, Craig Wood, Charles Griffiths, Odge Davey, Joe Lewis, Oliver Griffiths, George Chesterton (President) Front row: Oliver Powell, John Cartwright, Matthew Smart, Will Gifford (Capt.), Jon Wileman, Mark Hardinges, David Nash
The Lord’s Taverners Trophy Malvern cricket won its second piece of silverware this season when the youngsters won the first round of The Lord’s Taverners Trophy. Malvern U15s beat Prince Henry’s in the Regional final of the Lord Taverner’s competition and now progress to the National competition next summer. In the final at the Nomads ground, Malvern won the toss and decided to bowl. Liam Smith and Freddie Wynn bowled tightly to prevent the batting
side from scoring, but it was Zen Malik who did the damage taking 3 for 26 with a fantastic display of leg spin bowling. Malvern restricted Prince Henry’s to 104 and then Liam Smith smashed 65 not out to assist the Malvern side to victory. Mark Hardinges, Master i/c Cricket
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
Girls’ Football Girls’ football has gone from strength to strength this season, with over 40 girls involved in the sport from the Foundation Year to the Upper Sixth. Twice weekly training sessions have helped the standard of play improve markedly as the season has gone on. This term the College has regularly fielded teams at U15 and U18 levels and achieved success in regional and national competitions.
South-West of England, Six-a-Side at King’s Taunton The U18 A side played extremely well in their first two matches, led by Elena Fabritius, beating Wellington 1-0 and then narrowly losing 2-1 to the eventual tournament winners, King’s Taunton. But they played below par in their final group match and so just failed to secure a semi-final place. The U18 B side showed continued improvement in each of their group matches. Pride of place, on this occasion, goes to the U15 side, which stormed through their five group matches, conceding just one goal, and then beat Wellington in the semi-final 2-0. They then played out a very tense final against Lewiston. With no score at the end of extra time, the U15 very confidently won the penalty shoot-out, with Carlotta Maucher and Josephine Steiskal smashing the ball past the keeper and Heather Macdonald saving a penalty, with Lewiston firing wide with their other. The U15 squad comprised: Heather Macdonald, Josephine Steiskal, Carlotta Maucher, Kemi Anazodo, Marta Morras (captain), Michelle Asamaoh and Florence Mayo.
Independent Schools National Six-a-side Tournament at Bradfield Two weeks later two Malvern teams competed in the Nationals with the U15 team playing very well to win two of their four group matches and narrowly losing the other two, Vikki Veith being the pick of our players. The U18s had a very successful tournament in a competition where 15 of the country’s strongest schools were competing. Reaching the Plate Semi-Final, they played brilliantly to defeat Chigwell 3-0. Our girls then dominated the final against Cheltenham Ladies College to clinch a victory. The U18 team was Elena Fabritius (captain), Gabi Belliars Lombard, Olivia Barnes, Anna Kempe, Lodovica Genghini and Connie Prudden.
Stop press Four girls have been invited to attend trials for the Independent Schools South-West of England U18 squad, to be held in January: Sarah Laouiti, Olivia Barnes, Gabi Bellairs Lombard and Josephine Steiskal. Joe Gauci, Deputy Head: Academic and i/c Girls’ Football
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Rugby duo selected for North Midlands U18s Bar Barlett (1st XV captain/fly-half) and Toby Hurdle (1st XV prop), both in No.2, have been selected to represent the U18 North Midland side that plays Staffordshire and then Warwickshire in November. In recent matches for Worcestershire they have made impressive appearances and have caught the eye of the selectors. Nick Tisdale, Master i/c Rugby at Malvern College says “I am not surprised that these two boys have been selected, they are talented Rugby players and both have worked extremely hard; they are always first to arrive at training sessions and last to leave.” Nick reflected further, “I hope that with the junior sides excelling in their fixtures so far this term, many more will follow in their foot-steps over the coming years.“ Nick Tisdale, Master i/c Rugby
Sporting Exchange In recent years Malvern College has established an exchange agreement with The King’s School, Parramatta in Australia, an independent boarding and day school for boys in the western suburbs of Sydney. The agreement allows King’s to send a young man to Malvern for the Autumn term and, in exchange, permits two young men from the Hundred to go to Australia for six weeks during our summer holidays. This year’s Australian student at Malvern is Ben Stacy who joins the boys in No.7. Ben is a talented Rugby player and has already made an impression on the College’s Rugby squads. Playing at U16 level and for the 1st XV he has contributed to some significant score-lines. He is a very capable all-rounder who plays with style and confidence and he looks forward to finishing his time in England with a Rugby tour with his school side. Dan Eglin, Housemaster No.7
Worcester Warriors Malvern College has recently established a partnership with the Worcester Warriors which will, in addition to the top class coaching already offered by the school, bring in an additional source of coaching expertise. It will also give young and talented Malvern players the opportunity to trial for the club’s Academy. Tom Ryder, Head of Market Development at Worcester Warriors, said, “We have worked with the staff at Malvern College over a number of years and have been glad to assist with the College’s development of sporting talent. We have found the facilities at the College to be impressive and of great benefit to us in our training and are now delighted to formalise the relationship between us by establishing a partnership.” Allan Walker, Commercial Director
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Malvern View • Autumn 2011
U14 Girls’ Hockey Squad make the National Final In the U14 regional competition our girls played some tremendous hockey, beating Rugby School in a series of penalty flicks in the semi final. This made them runners-up to Trent College and puts them into the National finals at the end of February. Congratulations girls! Erin Preece, PE & i/c Girls’ Hockey.
Head Hockey Coach Mark Moss (left) and Erin Preece i/c Girls’ Hockey (right) with the U14 Girls’ Hockey squad at the Regional finals.
Sarvi Razavi’s 11 Wickets for Wales Congratulations to Sarvi Razavi , Director of Girls’ Sport at Malvern College, who has recently returned from playing in the Wales Women’s Cricket team in the Indoor World Cup in South Africa. The Welsh side beat England twice in the group stages and also beat one of the South African sides. They beat England convincingly again in the knockout stages and progressed to the semi-finals. Miss Razavi took 11 wickets in the tournament all together.
Head Coach Appointment for Mark Moss Congratulations to Mark Moss, our head Hockey coach who, in addition to his commitments to Malvern College and to his role as the England Hockey Centrally Contracted Coach takes on a new appointment as Head Coach of the Welsh U16 Boys’ Hockey team.
Future Activities 2012 COLLEGE OPEN DAYS 7th May SPORTS ACADEMIES 5th — 6th January 15th — 16th February 2nd — 3rd April
PREP SCHOOL OPEN DAYS Pre-Prep: 2nd March Whole school: 3rd March
Girls Netball Camp Hockey Camp Boys Cricket Camp
www.malvernactive.co.uk/junioractivities 4th March
National Preparatory Schools’ Cross Country Competition — 20th anniversary
19th May
The Schools’ Aquathlon hosted by The Downs Malvern at Malvern College
30th May
Preparatory Schools’ Debating Competition
20th May
U11 EIGHT8 Cricket Competition
17th June
U13 EIGHT8 Cricket Competition
24th June
Preparatory Schools’ Tennis Tournament
June
Science in Technicolour — Practical Science workshops for prep school groups.
Please contact us if you are interested t: 01684 581 603