Merchistonian Newsletter
September 2023
At the start of September the new academic year began at the School and we were very excited to welcome our pupils back to the campus. Despite only three weeks having passed from the start of the new year, the School has already seen a buzz of activity ranging from new appointments, recruitment events and sporting encounters.
One of the highlights of these first few weeks has certainly been the reopening of the Chalmers East & West Boarding Houses. Following an extensive programme of refurbishment, Chalmers now offers sector-leading facilities for our Middle Years boarders. The re-opening of the Houses has also marked the move to a new House system with IV Form, Shell and V Form boarders housed in the same boarding environment and a dedicated Day House for Middle Years Day pupils in Rogerson. Our Junior boarders in Pringle have also moved closer into the heart of the School, into what used to be knowns as Evans.
All of the above changes are synonymous with a very busy Summer for the teams on site – ensuring that the School was ready and looking its
very best for everyone returning at the start of the Autumn Term has been a huge team effort and a big ‘thank you’ to everyone who contributed and made it possible.
In his first address of the year, Mr Anderson extended a warm welcome to all returning students and to those pupils who are joining the School for the very first time. Alongside new pupils and families, we are also welcoming some new staff members into the Merchiston community, in a variety of different roles and areas of the School.
You can read the Headmaster’s full address here.
Updated Contact Details
A little bit of housekeeping.
We have recently been struggling to reach some Merchistonians due to contact details held on the database being out of date. Please remember to drop us a line at merchistonians@merchiston.co.uk to advise us of any changes, which might impact your ability to receive information from the Club.
The process of amending the database is very simple, so a quick email will go a long way to ensure you receive our news and updates – as well as the imminent circulation of the new issues of the Magazine.
If you are in touch with other Merchistonians who might be wondering about lack of communication, please encourage them to get in touch at the above address to check the details held in the system.
U18 Rugby Festival
With October fast approaching, preparations are well underway for the annual Merchiston U18 National Rugby Festival The School will be hosting the event on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th of October and we are delighted to welcoming 16 Teams to the event this year Teams from all over the country will be battling it out on the pitches over what is forecast to be an exciting weekend of rugby This year, we will be welcoming:
Durham School
Wycliffe College
Boroughmuir RFC
Dame Allans School
Collegiate School
Ayr RFC
Norwich School
Dollar Academy
Barnard Castle
Mount St Mary's
St Benedict's School
Seaford College
Edinburgh Reivers
Glasgow Caledonia Reds
Peebles RFC
MCS
We were very saddened to hear of the passing of the following
Merchistonians:
Mr John D. Murray
1941-2023
At Merchiston: 1954-1959
For our pupils, the festival is not only a brilliant sporting occasion but a chance for teams across the country to come together and develop friendships and bonds, on and off the field We are delighted to be able to welcome the event again and it is going to be a weekend of incredible rugby, sportsmanship and growth Match streaming will be available throughout the event - look out for further information via our channels for full schedule and streaming links
Merchistonian Club Committee
The Merchistonian Club Committee met at the School this month under the leadership of current president, Mr McDonald. The meeting took place on Wednesday 13 September in Old Library and sought to bring together key members of the Committee to discuss roles, events and other important Club matters.
With a few recent changes to the roles, we are encouraging Merchistonians to put their interest forward if they wish to become part of the Club Committee. This includes Area Representatives and Sport Secretaries. If you are interested in getting involved, please contact merchistonians@merchiston.co.uk.
Open Day
It was a busy day at Merchiston last Saturday as we hosted out Autumn Open Day and welcomed prospectives families to the School. For the first time and in view of the imminent opening of our Forest Nursery & Junior School, we hosted both a Forest Open Morning and a main School event, which saw over 65 families joining us throughout the morning.
Despite a wet start, we had an incredible morning chatting to families and showing them everything that Merchiston has to offer. Forest families were treated to a delicious breakfast, before taking a walk through the woodland with our newly appointed Head of Forest, Davina Bowers.
The main School event kicked off in Memorial Hall where families were welcomed by the Headmaster, before setting off on an interactive tour of the School, led by our very own Senior students. Across the entire campus all departments engaged our visitors with exciting activities; families also had the opportunity to visit our Boarding Houses – with particular praise given to our newly refurbished Chalmers East & West facilities
We had an incredible day meeting everyone and it is always exciting to be able to show families first-hand what it is that makes Merchiston such a special place to learn and grow.
A huge thank you to all the staff who helped organising the event, in particular to the Grounds & Catering Teams who ensure the campus looked its very best and fed us all so masterfully during the day.
Planning for the next event is already underway!
Merchistonian Magazine
The latest issue of the Merchistonian Magazine will be released shortly The Magazine includes departmental reports and events at the School, but also features a Club section
We will be circulating this issue digitally via a mailshot, in the same manner we did last year If you have also advertised in this issue, you will be receiving a hard copy in the post Hard copies will be available upon request, on first come first serve basis, and will be subject to a nominal fee to cover postage and print Further information on how to request this, will be included in the mailshot communication
