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Kathryn Rudge
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Making a difference with music - by Simon Hart
For Kathryn Rudge, the day-to-day has been markedly different since the onset of COVID-19. With a career built around performing, the mezzo soprano from south Liverpool now finds a big blank space where her itinerary used to be.
‘For performing arts and the arts in general it’s brought everything to a standstill,’ she affirms. ‘A lot of the work I had booked in has had to be either cancelled or postponed. For me it’s a massive change as I’m normally on the road quite a lot. I don’t think I’ve been at home this long for a long time so in many ways I’ve really appreciated the time to have a base and be settled for a good few months as normally I’m preparing for something else.’
If the comforts of home have been a blessing for this parishioner of St Ambrose’s, Speke, the biggest downside of this period is the loss of that connection with audiences which is the essence of any performer’s existence. me,’ says the 33-year-old. ‘It’s the connection with the audiences and the people you’re working with and nothing recreates that. We try over the internet to do little bits and pieces but that connection is the closest thing I find to prayer – I consider it a real privilege to be able to communicate something that brings through emotions and connection with people, and I really miss that.’
The impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the arts sector has even left a question mark against the future of the Royal Albert Hall, a venue where Kathryn has sung several times – most recently when performing Mozart’s Requiem with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and BBC Singers during the 2019 Proms season. ‘When I was younger, I saw it on the television and thought, “It must be amazing to perform there” and it seemed very quickly to happen and actually when I got in there, it’s such an intimate atmosphere. It looks huge on the telly but it’s a really special place.’ classical music’ during her final year at the Royal Northern College of Music and who was one of Radio 3’s chosen New Generation artists from 2015-17.
For all the fine venues she has graced, though, there really is no place like home. ‘I honestly feel the concerts I do at home are my favourite,’ she explains. ‘Probably rather than the venue, I relate most closely to the people who are there. If I perform at the Philharmonic Hall and I look out, I can almost see friends in the audience and it means so much. So I’d say on a personal level it is in Liverpool because that’s coming home for me and I really love that.’
The same goes for singing at St Ambrose’s parish church. ‘The people there have all been like a family – they’ve seen me grow up and it’s a pleasure to come back and share what you’re doing with them and to be able to be a part of the community,’ she says.
As a child who ‘enjoyed getting up in front of people’ – initially to make her family laugh with her impressions – the
church choir played an important part in her formation. ‘Father Ed Cain is a really musical priest and encourages all the young people to take up an instrument or get up and read. I was doing bidding prayers first which got my confidence up to stand up in front of people. From there I’d be singing and the space is so big that it’s such a good preparation. I felt more confident about getting up at school as there was never anywhere as big as St Ambrose’s until you got to the cathedral.’
The next significant step came at Liverpool College. ‘I found when I was about 15 that I couldn’t sing pop songs –my voice was becoming heavier – and so I was really lucky I met a teacher, Polly Beck, who put me on the road to classical singing.’ From there she moved on to the Royal Northern College of Music for an eight-year period, starting in 2003. She laughs as she recalls her first opera there as a third-year student. It was a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin – and began with something of a false start. ‘We had an evening with all of the governors in and I must have felt so enthusiastic about running out there that on my first entrance I tripped on my dress and I just hit the deck. I heard the whole theatre gasp. I just bounced up and carried on and I think after that nothing was ever as difficult!’
Her singing has since taken her far and wide though one of the most resonant nights came at Liverpool Cathedral when she was soloist for Michael Nyman’s Symphony No. 11: Hillsborough Memorial, performing alongside the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.
The role involved singing the names of the 96 victims of the Hillsborough disaster. ‘That was probably a point at which I felt I really understood the privilege of having a voice,’ says the lifelong Liverpool supporter. ‘My dad and my mum were massive Liverpool fans and I grew up having that knowledge of the tragedy and the fight and the inspiration of the families, and so to get that opportunity to sing those names and for it to be set to music in that way, it’s almost like a prayer.’ she takes lightly. Kathryn is a patron of the Clatterbridge Cancer Charity and has performed more than once at the Royal Liverpool Hospital, owing to a connection forged when her late parents, George and Susan, each underwent cancer treatment there. ‘I’ve been singing at their Christmas dos and my mum and dad wouldn’t have wanted me to stop doing that,’ says Kathryn who has also performed for the Music in Hospitals and Care UK charity. Another cause close to her heart is the community singing project she established in 2012 in Hale Village, where she lives. This comprises two separate groups – the Mersey Wave Young Singers and the mixed-voice Mersey Wave Choir –and they perform three times a year in St Ambrose’s parish church. ‘It really bridges the community and opens up the church to people who don’t necessarily often come into it – it’s such a beautiful church, it seats 700 and our ambition is to fill it one day.’
Not surprisingly, it is something that has been much missed during the lockdown. ‘It’s really hard because the music is such a focus for the community and the friendship that has come out of that and I can sense everybody is missing that,’ she says. ‘We’ve tried Zoom and it’s kept us going but there’s nothing quite like having that mutual appreciation both for the music and coming together to do something good in the community.’ The power of music once more.
To learn more about Mersey Wave Music, visit: https://merseywavemusic.com/
Kate Griffin – an inspirational leader
The school community of Christ the King Catholic Primary School, Liverpool, were shocked at the sudden death of Head Teacher Kate Griffin. Year 3 teacher, Liam Fay pays tribute:
A daughter, a sister, a wife, a mother, an educator, a leader, an inspiration, a friend. Kate Griffin wore all of these titles with great pride and with great humility. The power to be humble, admired and yet achieve so much in such a short space of time is a combination of a rarest form. The embodiment of a pure heart and endeavour pure in its intention.
Kate Griffin was the head teacher at Christ the King Catholic Primary School having been appointed in 2014 after serving as Deputy Head in 2011. She passed away after a short illness at the age of 40.
Kate forged a career based on hard work, faith and fun. She was an agent of change moving forwards and bringing others along with her. She put trust in them to enact a shared vision and continued to nurture a strong team, adding to it as the school grew. This team became a family in its own right. At Christ the King Catholic Primary School, where she became the youngest head teacher in Liverpool, she saw the power of a holistic education in developing young children into happy and fulfilled ones with the power and the make up to deal with an ever changing world. The breadth and variety of education on offer at Christ the King was a point of pride.
Finding the time to allow children to be children was important to her. Helping to develop Forest School into the curriculum. Kate understood the vital role that family plays in the community of Christ the King fostering and building strong bonds. She gave herself to them. Schools were not to be exam factories filling a child’s day with ways of mastering a test, Kate saw every day as a blank slate for learning, fun and development, whether that be physical, mental or spiritual. Her faith shone through in everything she did and was especially apt in the school that she led and community that she served for the Kingship means service in all of its forms. This was Kate.
In every day there was love evident for all who wore the maroon and gold and entered under her roof, an almost infinite amount of love that bordered on unconditional. Her smile showed this. Kate didn’t just smile with her mouth, nor her eyes, but instead her entire being. This was an infectious smile affecting all it shone upon.
Kate was also fierce and was not afraid to stand up for what she believed to be right. If we do the right things for the right reasons then the end will be worth the means. She was truly selfless and supported many heads across the city, chaired many committees and developed many links with other schools across the country. She took the time to get to know those she led and genuinely cared about them as people not just employees always finding time to have meaningful conversations amidst the chaotic, intricate workings of a school day. Kate possessed a power to know when something wasn’t right. These chats were often accompanied by her bear hugs which had the power to calm, comfort and reinvigorate. She believed that going the extra-mile to help someone was the right thing to do, in many ways it was just another step for her.
Kate has left an indelible mark on education, a community and all who reside in it. Her legacy will be renewed each time a child begins their first day in reception at Christ the King and in every day by the family that she built from the foundations of her predecessors.
Kate is survived by her husband Steven and her three young children Amelia, Ben and Pippa.
Archdiocesan stalwart and Liverpool’s longest serving headteacher retires
Dennis Hardiman MBE, executive headteacher of two Liverpool primary schools, is retiring after 37 years. Dennis has served St Sebastian's Catholic Primary School in Fairfield for 37 years and for the last 14 years, he has also been the headteacher of St Cuthbert’s Catholic Primary School in Stoneycroft. He was born in New York, USA, in 1951. His mother was born in Tiger Bay, Cardiff, and married a US Naval Officer during WWII and settled in the USA after the war. Dennis has 11 brothers and sisters, including a twin sister. His family eventually moved to Penarth, South Wales in 1960, so that the family were close to his mother’s family. Dennis started his teaching career at St Pascal Baylon Catholic Primary School in Childwall, where the head, Colin Semple, mentored him and he soon became deputy head. The late Fr Patrick Kelly, who was parish priest of St Sebastian’s and chair of the school governors at the time, appointed Dennis as headteacher in September 1983, making him the city’s youngest headteacher. They both had a burning ambition for the success of the children and the school. St Sebastian’s was soon named a ‘beacon school’ to share good practice with other schools. Located in an area of severe deprivation, Kensington was declared a ‘regeneration area’ under the EU Objective One Programme in the 1990s. All schools in the Kensington and Fairfield area worked hard to raise standards. Part of the regeneration plan was to start with the youngest of the area to allow their parents to work or gain qualifications. There was no nursery in the area so Dennis and the school governors of St Sebastian’s were asked to establish a nursery to serve the community. In 2004 ‘The Field of Dreams Nursery’ opened as part of St Sebastian’s school. St Sebastian's and St Cuthbert's federated under one governing body with Dennis as executive headteacher in 2006. Throughout his tenure, he has ensured that the children achieve the best they can, which is reflected in SATs results and OFSTED inspections. In 2017, Dennis received a well-deserved MBE for his services to education, although he is still an American citizen. On receiving his MBE Dennis commented that this was a ‘humbling’ personal accolade, he said: “I consider this an award that belongs to others also – my patient, supportive, loving family, and wonderful and generous colleagues, past and present, whom it has been my privilege to work with and learn from, and also the many supportive parents and fantastic children I’ve been privileged to work with”. Such was his standing in the community over 700 people attended a Mass at St Sebastian’s Parish Church to celebrate Dennis’s 25th anniversary in charge in 2008. Pat Moloney, chair of school governors, said: “Mr Hardiman is much loved and respected by the children, staff, parents and local communities who have seen what he has done for the children and the schools.” Clare Bellis-Knox, who will be taking over from Dennis as head of St Cuthbert’s said: “Dennis’ determination that only the best is good enough for our children inspires everyone in school to strive to achieve their best.” Jacqui Mulligan, who is taking over from Dennis as head of St Sebastian’s said: “Dennis has steered our schools to many successes over so many years for which everyone is truly grateful.”
19 years of service
As the final few weeks of term drew to a close Mrs Maureen Hillsdon, Headteacher of Our Lady of Lourdes, Birkdale reflected on her 19 years of service at the school: first as Deputy Head and then as Head. She has been involved in a number of school improvement initiatives and nine Thirty students from the Academy of St Francis of Assisi (ASFA) have secured a chance to learn virtually at Eton College this summer. The EtonX programme allows students globally to benefit from Eton’s acclaimed expertise in developing well-rounded, high-achieving students. An Eton education develops real-world skills alongside academic learning. The broad range of courses draw on centuries of expertise from Eton College, preparing students with the skills they need to be leaders and be successful in the world’s top universities. All students will be mentored by their Eton college tutor, receiving certification at the end of the summer. Jen Avery, English teacher at the academy, came across the opportunity during lockdown and managed to secure 30 places for the academy. These places were then offered to students of all abilities in Years 10 and 11, giving them the chance to continue their learning during the summer holidays. Choosing from a range of courses, Jen and ASFA students decided the most beneficial would be ‘research skills’, ‘resilience’ and ‘creative problem solving’. Jen said: “All of the courses sound great but we want students to get the most out of this opportunity and so, together, we chose the ones we thought would help inspections but the time since 23 March has probably presented the most challenging circumstances in her entire career. The School aims to celebrate in the Christmas term when perhaps life is more normal. Before Mrs Hillsdon left she had one final achievement to celebrate - Our
Mrs Catherine McDermott, Acting Headteacher, Mrs Maureen Hillsdon, Retiring Headteacher, Mrs Jo Hodge, (Lead for Learning and Technology) them ahead of sixth form or college, university and the world of work.” The research skills course will see students develop their ability to conduct independent research that goes far beyond textbooks or basic internet searches. They will learn new research techniques to help plan and organise their research for essays and other projects. The resilience course will help them feel more capable and in control. They will analyse a range of scenarios which will help them learn how to bounce back from failure and use key techniques, such as growth mindset, mindfulness and gratitude. Finally, the creative problem-solving course will allow students to come up with many innovative ideas, to craft those ideas and apply them in life. They will also develop skills in creative expression, both Lady of Lourdes is the first primary school this year to have gained Digital Schoolhouse status. This means that they will be able to offer fun, free computing workshops for primary schools in the local area. Digital Schoolhouse together with Nintendo UK, uses play-based learning to engage the next generation of pupils in order to ensure they are equipped for the future digital economy. All of the workshops engage pupils through the use of creative resources, whilst upskilling and inspiring visiting teachers to deliver the new computing curriculum. ‘We were thrilled that we were successful with our Digital Schoolhouse application. I cannot wait to begin delivering exciting workshops which I know the children in the local area will love’, said Mrs Jo Hodge, Digital Schoolhouse Lead Teacher at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Primary School. The application process was extremely rigorous and challenging so to achieve Digital Schoolhouse status in Mrs
ASFA students set to learn with Eton College
Hillsdon’s final term is a fitting accolade.
verbally and visually and learn how to see problems from different perspectives. The two-week courses are packed full of engaging learning materials, with a personal action plan and a knowledge test for each learner. Students learn from each other as well as from their Eton College tutor, participating in a range of role-play and discussion tasks in the virtual classroom and collaborating on peer learning tasks between classes. Jen added: “The programme will not only support their academic learning but it’s also a brilliant way of meeting other students from around the world, which will help build their confidence when speaking with people from other walks of life. One Year 10 student said: “I am really happy to get a chance to take part in this opportunity.” Andrea St John, senior assistant headteacher, said: “Our Year 10 and 11 cohort at ASFA are incredibly motivated and are always so keen to get involved in extra-curricular learning. The fact that they are eager to continue their studies during the summer holidays is testament to this. It is an invaluable opportunity to further develop communication skills, readiness for sixth form, university and the world of work. “We wish them luck and can’t wait to hear about what they have learnt from this experience”.
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Issue 175 Issue 163 April 2019 April 2018
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Easter Joy
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Peter Woods appointed High Sheriff Celebrating marriage and family life
Catholic Pic Pilgrimage to the Holy Land 8 days £1350.00 departing from Manchester Departure: October 4th 2021 4 nights half board 4* Hotel Bethlehem 3 nights half board 4* Hotel Tiberias.
Tel Aviv • Caesarea • Stella Maris • Nazareth • Cana • Tiberias • Sea of Galilee • Jordan River • Mt Tabor • Jerusalem • Ein Karem • Bethlehem • Qumran • Jericho • Dead Sea • Mt of Olives • Mt Zion • Holy Sepulchre • Capernaum
Guiding in the Holy Land with a licensed Christian Guide.
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