The Pilgrim Review 2019-2020

REVIEW THE PILGRIM

2020

SCHOOL OF THE YEAR FOR PASTORAL CARE AND WELLBEING TES INDEPENDENT SCHOOL AWARDS

SURREY'S HIGHEST RANKING CO-ED SCHOOL THE SUNDAY TIMES PARENT POWER

"HAPPY KIDS, GREAT RESULTS" THE GOOD SCHOOLS GUIDE

SCHOOL OF THE YEAR 2019 PASTORAL CARE

R EI G AT E G R A M M A R SC H OO L

HEAD GIRL AND HEAD BOY’S MESSAGE ...LEAVE NOTHING UNDISCOVERED AND MAKE THE MOST OF BEING SURROUNDED

BY PEOPLE WHOSE ONLY DESIRE IS FOR YOUR SUCCESS AND ABSOLUTE HAPPINESS.

FROM THE HEAD GIRL AND HEAD BOY

A

lthough it is important to focus on the opportunities and excitement that come with a new school year it is impossible to ignore the times we are living through. It is undeniable that the prior months have presented our school with multiple challenges but the kindness, courage and resilience that has been shown by our Reigatian community has been remarkable.

Returning to school in the midst of a global pandemic is a completely distinctive experience and therefore school may look slightly different this year, but the feeling of being a Reigatian remains unchanged. The unique nature of our school allows every individual the ability to uphold their own identity yet provides us with a sense of belonging to a community that stretches far beyond our four walls. It is this unity and inclusion that will support each and every one of us as we continue, or begin, our time here at RGS. I urge you to use this new beginning as an opportunity to explore a different path, strive for the change and dare to be different as ultimately your school years are the foundations of the person you will become. Leave nothing undiscovered and make the most of being surrounded by people whose only desire is for your success and absolute happiness.

In the words of author Margaret J Wheatly “there is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about”.

I encourage you to focus on what you care about and work together to be the change you want to see at RGS. Lean on each other for support and be kind to each other as we navigate our way through these unusual times. So again, make the most out of everything our school has to offer; your school years at RGS are limited and there is no better time to ensure that you are seizing every opportunity than the start of a new year.

Best wishes to all, Jess Bates Head Girl

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hilst it feels strange to contemplate the prospects of a new year in September, now is a better time than ever to refresh our priorities.

A fresh start defined not only by temporal relevance but by sentimental value. This start to the school year, although still animated by the restrictions of COVID-19, commemorates the tenacity we’ve all demonstrated during the prior months, as we’re finally able to progress our learning in the company of the RGS community.

We’re done dwelling on the past - it is time to look to the future.

If we take but one priority into this new school year, let it be to change the way we treat others. Staggering progress has been made in racial and gender equality this year alone, but as injustices remain, much is still to be done. With this new era comes the perfect opportunity to refresh your perceptions of the world, and to channel the love and respect you receive into those less fortunate. Simply upholding these values within our communities is no longer enough, it’s time we strive for justice on a global scale.

In the words of Greek philosopher Plato: “the beginning is the most important part of the work”. Whilst I am doubtful Plato was familiar with the dynamics of a modern pandemic, his words still ring true today. It is in this period of silence - when the rest of the world is yet to awaken from the slumber of lockdown - that our voices will be heard; now is the time to stamp your mark on this new normal. Be loud in your ambitions, and let your actions echo through time to come.

All the best, Charlie Jenner Head Boy

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

HEADMASTER’S WELCOME ...DIFFICULT CHALLENGES CAN OFFER NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO OVERCOME, TO IMPROVE THROUGH CHANGE. WE MUST TAKE THAT OPPORTUNITY BECAUSE THESE CHILDREN GET JUST ONE CHANCE OF AN EDUCATION AND WE MUST GET IT RIGHT.

FROM THE HEADMASTER

I

think these tricky times have shown us again why we mustn’t take precious childhood days for granted, we need to cherish this time and grasp opportunities with both hands.

Things are different but we need to catch this moment and make it perfect: we can’t wait for the perfect moment. We need to take the opportunity to make things better, different but better.

That positive can-do approach to life’s journey is part of what it is to be a Reigatian.

This has been a year like no other but it has still been packed full of adventure and new experiences. Our students have benefitted from opportunities to be coached by international stars, to perform at the highest level and to experience wonderful trips and activities. They are enjoying exciting lessons, embracing the collaborative benefits of new technology and developing into fine young adults. Of course, the daily experience changed during covid lockdown but the school continued to have daily live learning, a full range of pastoral care, online concerts, broadcast drama productions, sports on a daily basis and clubs and societies via Teams meetings, virtual school trips and much more. Difficult challenges can offer new opportunities to overcome, to improve through change. We must take that opportunity because these children get just one chance of an education and we must get it right.

This Pilgrim Review captures some of the energy and optimism of life as a Reigatian. They immerse themselves in incredible and diverse activities, they make life-long friendships and secure life time memories. I love to hear the buzz of learning and the laughter of children in the playground outside my study door.

They have such fun and get up to so many great activities. Yet, somehow, they manage to secure some of the best exam results in the country. We seem to fit the work in around the plethora of fun activities. This year, for example, 97% of students received offers from Oxford, Cambridge, Russell Group or Medical School universities – they head off to world class universities with a fist full of qualifications that open doors of opportunity but, more importantly, with qualities of character that set them up to be happy, healthy and high achieving.

I am so very proud of our Reigatians. I hope that in reading this Pilgrim Review you will see why.

Shaun Fenton Headmaster

I am, especially proud of the way that the RGS community shows we care. During the difficult times our staff and students helped to make and distribute personal protective equipment to front line staff; we became a collection point for a local foodbank; we shared our facilities to help local schools re-open to their younger students; and we remained open to the children of key workers and vulnerable children. Also, we reached out to thousands of local people who were elderly or otherwise vulnerable and offered practical help with collecting prescriptions or food shops as well as just some good company in the times of isolation. At the worst of times, I saw the best of people and was proud, yet again, to be a member of this Reigatian community.

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R EI G AT E G R A M M A R SC H OO L

WORKS OF ART

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Mia P

Lucy G

Harriette M

Ellie G

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Beth S

Savannah N

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Beth S

Chloe B

Lucia B

Grace O

Lucy G

Kitty G

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Lucy H

Hannah D

Rebecca H

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POP ART First Form students have been drawing from small scale everyday objects and have developed their compositions into colourful reduction prints, taking inspiration from the work of the pop artist Michael Craig-Martin. Second Formers have created some bold relief prints inspired by the German expressionist wood cuts.

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CERAMICS The First Form has been exploring the human form in ceramics. Having studied Picasso the students created coil pots embellished with human form and glaze.

Second Form students, having studied the work of Peter Randall-Page, explored depictions of natural form in varying media. Their clay works celebrate the textures, patterns and form of natural artefacts.

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LOCKDOWN ART COMPETITION Students in the First and Second Forms were challenged to produce a work of art portraying their own personal experience of the Covid-19 lockdown. From music to videos, drawings to stop-motion animations, the responses were both varied and impressive, making the judges' job extremely difficult!

The following entrants were selected as prize-winners: First Form Harry J produced a superb stop motion animation of lockdown Sophia W painted a pair of plain white trainers with stunning results

Second Form Sophia S created a very precise and beautiful drawing of nature Jude B produced a thoroughly researched and impressively played account of songs learned in lockdown Overall Gracie O created a stunning portrait of Billie Ellish

Sophia S

Grace O 9

Yasmin M

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Sophia W

Sophia S

Megan R

Jayashree N 10

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DARKROOM DISCOVERIES As part of the Lower Sixth Form Introduction to Darkroom Photography, students used a variety of techniques such as photograms and solarisation.

Finn T: Photogram of feathers

Finn T: Positive and negative darkroom photography

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PROSTHETICS Prosthetic, Make-up and Casualty Effects students applied a variety of readymade prosthetics based on themes such as science-fiction, mythical or aquatic creatures. Students used various painting techniques, thinking carefully about the colour and detail in their designs to achieve realistic results.

Lizzie B: Double exposure

Antonina T: Solarization of photograms 12

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M

usic is at the heart of life at RGS. Over the course of the year, RGS musicians took part in a vast number of events including concerts, church services, ensemble arrangements, a cathedral tour and numerous individual performances. Many students also took the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) exams.

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Following the adrenaline high of RGS in Concert at Cadagon Hall, musicians from all year groups have been involved in areas of musical participation across the school. From the Wind and Brass Showcase to RGS Unplugged, Cabaret Night to the Piano Showcase, The Ensembles Concert to RGS in Concert at Dorking Halls – a wealth of musical talent has been on display.

Choral events included a very special Evensong at St Paul’s for the RGS Godfrey Searle Choir and Polyphony, eighty years after the blitz when the then Godfrey Searle choristers sang Evensong

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

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T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

MUSIC at St Paul’s whilst the Cathedral’s own choristers were evacuated to Truro Cathedral.

Polyphony visited Queen’s College, Cambridge to experience singing choral evensong with the renowned undergraduate Chapel Choir providing an insight into what life as an Oxbridge Choral Scholar might be like.

The Spring Term was a rich and varied musical experience despite the effects of the pandemic. The determination of students and staff kept RGS music alive, not only through the wonderful array of live and digital performances but also in the less seen work: the tuition by RGS’s peripatetic team in school then online, the practice undertaken at home, the mastery of apps for recording, apps for composing, apps for producing... the list goes on! It was a huge period of learning for all and one which will make everyone musically richer.

Lockdown obviously presented a rather unexpected challenge for RGS musicians, but they rose to the challenge magnificently. With a very swift response, RGS Plugged performers recorded their pieces, mostly in a single take so that they could be released weekly online throughout the closure. Viewing figures proved the popularity of these performances and, if anything, more people were able to enjoy their work than normal.

Songcast provided a weekly get together for RGS musicians online, with quizzes and live in-home performances keeping the Music department community close. This was a hugely valuable opportunity for students to chat, socialise and have fun in very unusual circumstances.

Marking the end of the academic year, the Virtual Summer Concert was a real display of remote collaboration. This was an opportunity to see one another’s faces again, to appreciate and be inspired by one another’s musical talent and to be reminded of the strong musical community of which we are a part.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH RGS musicians enjoyed the opportunity to take part in a number of community outreach schemes throughout the term including an instrumental recital at St Matthew’s Church and a Live at Home afternoon tea event where a number of songs were performed to an audience of elderly members of the community. Students entertained the residents at Wray Common Nursing home with Christmas tidings in December and those attending Reigate’s annual Christmas Fayre were royally entertained by the RGS Godfrey Searle Choir and Polyphony who sang a selection of carols in the High Street, prior to the lights being switched on at the start of the festive season.

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CHARITY The year was action-packed on the charity front, with much of the activity overseen by the Sixth Form Charity Committee.

All age groups have been involved, along with many staff including Mr Fenton and Dr Stones, who gamely dressed in Pudsey Bear onesies and acted as goalkeepers, contributing to nearly £1000 raised in aid of Children in Need.

The Sixth Form hosted the first Volunteer Fair, in which a number of local charities had stands in the Harrison Centre to explain their volunteering opportunities to Sixth Formers.

The First Form dressed in neon eighties gear for the Zumbathon in aid of Lepra, raising over £4000 for the charity this term alone.

Second Form students took part in a read-a-thon, reading as many books as they could in a term and raised almost £1500 for St Catherine's Hospice.

The school clearly has a collective sweet tooth, as the £476 raised thanks to homemade goodies at the Macmillan Cake Sale shows.

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Two Second Form students attended the Schools Awareness Day at The Children’s Trust in Tadworth, learning about the charity’s services and projects and taking part in a number of activities designed to highlight the difficulties faced by children with brain injury.

The Studio CafĂŠ was the venue for a welcoming tea party for elderly Live at Home members, who very much enjoyed interacting with First Formers, sharing homemade cake, and listening to RGS singers.

RGS's partnership with local charity Loveworks continues to go from strength to strength with Christmas being one of the most difficult times of year for those in food poverty. Students organised donations and collections of food items, and staff took a van full of boxes to the Merstham food bank; the school's biggest collection to date.

A huge thank you to everybody who has donated, volunteered and given of their time and energy for worthwhile community causes this term.

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les misérables "Truly spectacular.” (TW, Facebook)

T

his year saw the hotly anticipated production of Les Misérables, performed in-the-round in front of an appreciative, sell-out audience. The action moved from revolutionary France to the present day, bringing the play’s themes of political protest, oppression and revolution right up to date. The Concert Hall was transformed into a graffiti-covered concrete bunker in which over 120 members of the cast, crew and orchestra delighted audiences and brought them to tears with the story of the episodic life of Jean Valjean (Archie C) and his constant quest to evade capture by Javert (Sam K). Eibhlin G was spell-binding as Eponine, whose love for Guy G’s Marius is unrequited, as he only has eyes for Freya M’s enchanting Cosette.

Marius also gets involved in the revolutionary plans of his friends, including Josh H as Enjolras, which can only end in trouble.

Lauren K moved the audience to tears as Cosette’s mother Fantine, whose death leaves the child in the care of the menacing and hilarious Thénardiers (Caspar M and Louisa G). Tom W was touching and cheeky as Gavroche.

The week-long run included special performances for GCSE and A Level Drama students, a matinée attended by the entire First Form and students from Reigate School, a community matinée and also a special reunion performance, where the audience included twenty members of the cast and crew of the 2005 RGS production.

Throughout the week the play went from strength to strength, as audience after audience enjoyed the brilliant orchestral playing (conducted by Mr Evans), live fire, explosions, fights, weddings, battles and, of course, brilliant singing throughout. Miss Branston put together a true ensemble piece, and it will live long in the memory of all who saw it.

 Just seen an exceptional, modern, dystopian version of Les Mis! Incredible direction/ design, superb musicianship from the pit, stellar acting & singing. West End quality!

MA, Twitter 21

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ď„?

What a brilliant show – many, many congratulations to the amazing RGS Drama and RGS Music and all the wonderful students who made it fly!

CSL, Twitter

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DRAMA Drama students, Lauren K (Upper Sixth Form) and Josh H (Fifth Form) won places on the National Youth Theatre (NYT)’s Acting Course in 2019/2020, as a result of which both are now National Youth Theatre Company Members.

Both said that the audition day was nerve-wracking but ultimately inspiring, and fun.

Lauren picked up some new singing techniques that she put brilliantly into practice as Fantine in Les Misérables, and says that she’s learnt that connecting with herself helps her not only in acting, but in everyday life too. Josh feels that he can already see a difference in his Drama GCSE work back at RGS, and shared with us the best piece of advice that he was given: “If you’re tiling someone’s bathroom and they want blue tiles but you have red, you can’t do the job right. When they do want red tiles, however, it will be your turn to get the role.” Moral of the story: keep trying – it’s not because you’re not good enough, it’s because they wanted something different.

Josh intends to audition for NYT productions in 2021, while Lauren hopes to be an actor and feels that the opportunities NYT offers will help her to achieve that goal.

...IF YOU’RE TILING SOMEONE’S BATHROOM AND THEY WANT BLUE TILES BUT YOU HAVE RED, YOU CAN’T DO THE JOB RIGHT. WHEN THEY DO WANT RED TILES, HOWEVER, IT WILL BE YOUR TURN TO GET THE ROLE.”

Josh performing as Sanchez in RGS Drama's production of Molly and the Stardust

Lauren performing in RGS Drama's multi-award winning production of Find Me 25

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DF16 T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

cart ible book x 558d ress Dep x 510w 750h

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DESIGN TECHNOLOGY

F11

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HENRY SMITH STUDIES: ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN PROJECT

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Sec D

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The late great Zaha Hadid once said: “I don’t think you can teach architecture. You can only inspire people.” These words have been the inspiration for the inaugural Sixth Form Henry Smith Studies course in Architecture. The new course has been an opportunity to learn about how we can radically change the built FW25 environment, and how we can address FW26 crisis in the UK. the growing housing

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has partnered with one of the UK’s largest construction companies, working closely with the Head of Design and Innovation from Osborne to design and develop a pre-fabricated home, planned for construction in 2020. Students will be busy producing the final prototype models that will be shown to stakeholders and clients throughout the UK. This has been a fantastic opportunity for budding architects G to learn more about F2 the discipline.

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3D DESIGN: BIOMIMICRY Third form 3D Design students were given the brief of biomimicry (the design and 7 production of materials, structures, G0and systems that are modelled on biological entities and processes).

DG

G11

Each student produced a piece of lighting which reflects their research and iterated ideas. All students used SolidWorks 3D software which gave them a virtual model as well as the final prototype through laser cutting.

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DG The range of outcomes was exceptional.

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SCHOOL NEWS

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The Combined Cadet Force (CCF) had a brilliant year, busy from the off with afloat training at Mercer’s Park and a Skill at Arms weekend, shortly followed by Field Day which was a great opportunity for all cadets to experience the thrill of white water rafting.

Remembrance weekend was, as always, a moving occasion. Cadets proudly represented the unit, with the Corps of Drums leading the contingent.

COMBINED CADET FORCE

New members did a brilliant job on Recruit Cadre, learning all about being a cadet and starting their proficiencies. The same weekend saw a Drill Cadre where older cadets were able to learn to run parade, helping them work towards their advanced drill.

RAF cadets had another chance to hone their flying skills at the flight simulator in Dorking and Army cadets developed their skills, making great progress on the digital shooting range in Hampshire.

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DUKE OF EDINBURGH

T

he Reigate Grammar School Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) award continues to go from strength to strength with more and more students taking part and an almost limitless timetable of activities and excursions. The year saw activities, expeditions and a varied and extensive volunteering programme at each level of the award scheme.

BRONZE Fourth Form students completed their two-day Bronze DofE qualifying expedition. All groups displayed a hugely positive attitude in spite of dreadful weather and very damp campsites, and put in a good effort to achieve the high standards required to pass the expeditions.

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Bronze canoe groups completed their qualifying adventure in similarly soggy conditions on the Lower Thames. Despite the inclement weather, morale remained high and students supported each other throughout the expedition.

SILVER On Activities Day, Fifth Form students threw themselves into a multi-activity team building day on Headley Heath building rafts, canoeing and orienteering. This was in preparation for their qualifying expeditions, during which all students were spirited and purposeful and pushed through the three-day hike in pretty challenging conditions to finish at Arundel.

DofE Courses Students continued Bronze First Aid, Silver Sign Language and Gold Leader training courses during after school sessions.

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DUKE OF EDINBURGH CONSERVATION DAY Bronze DofE students undertook conservation tasks at Queen Elizabeth plantation near Bletchingley. They worked hard to remove Norwegian Spruce which was shading out emerging saplings of native species such as birch, ash and oak. This vital work improves the habitat for wildlife and also provided students with free Christmas trees to take home!

This is the eleventh year of RGS DofE conservation work. RGS students have made measurable improvements to local habitats around Reigate which have improved ecosystems for both wildlife and people.

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ENGLISH DROP EVERYTHING AND READ WEEK The Drop Everything and Read Week was a huge success. Across the school novels, articles and poetry were enjoyed; biographies, journals and reports were dissected. Across all departments, students were set reading instead of homework and also had the chance to start the day with some quiet reading in form time.

Students were invited to bring books into the library to exchange in a book swap and a photo competition was held to see what kind of books pupils’ pets might borrow in the zoologically unlikely event that they could read them.

The aim of this week is to encourage students to carve out some time to read even when busy studying for exams.

HUGO IS PUBLISHED

MACBETH THEATRE TRIP

Hugo R has always loved writing poetry.

He won the local round of the Rotary Young Writer competition with his Stephen Hawking poem this year and was previously a national runner-up in the same competition with a piece on energy.

The Fifth Form had the opportunity to witness some real "double double toil and trouble" as they headed to Chichester Festival Theatre to see an exciting production of Macbeth, which they were studying for GCSE English Literature. The play took place on a cleverly designed stage which allowed the key scenes to involve wild multimedia backdrops,

Award-winning author Onjali Raúf won the 2019 Blue Peter Book Award, the 2019 Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, and was nominated for the Carnegie Medal Children’s Book Award. Onjali read one of Hugo’s poems and liked it so much that she asked if she could use a line as the foreword of her new book, The Star Outside My Window. Onjali also invited Hugo to the book launch in London to read his poem out to the audience.

Beth S said: “The way that symbolism was used really helped me to understand its importance in the text.” Charlotte N added: “The presentation of the witches was really innovative, especially the final scene.”

PAUL CANON HARRIS RGS Poet-in-residence

The English department is pleased to announce a new partnership with Paul Canon Harris as he begins as RGS's poetin-residence.

Paul is a poet, writer and broadcaster whose published work includes two poetry collections, a novel and books on leadership including "Young Person's Quick Guide to Leadership". He performs poetry at festivals and venues throughout the UK 33

atmospheric sound and even a live fire for the epic scene as the witches cast their spell.

and abroad and is a regular contributor to BBC Radio 2 and other stations. He leads the poetry band Lines and Squares and hosts the acclaimed live poetry show Harris-Meant in Bournemouth. His writing draws on a rich source of material from his diverse career including his time as a police officer and a priest. As a trainee teacher he won a national award for outstanding teaching performance and still teaches a variety of poetry courses and workshops, including in schools in the UK and abroad.

Paul worked with Second Form English classes on a number of dates across the Spring Term and also gave readings of his poetry which were open to everyone.

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

A NOVEL APPROACH

POETRY BY HEART

Enjoying an enthusiastic group of attendees this year, A Novel Approach explored all corners of the literary world, from support for essay and poetry competitions to discussions about writers such as Brian Bilston, Alan Bennett and Graham Greene. Thwarted from meeting in person, the group moved swiftly online where there was an opportunity to explore, for example, the strangeness of Baudrillard’s simulacrum, the poetry of

Vernon Scannell and Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra, timed to coincide with the National Theatre Live performance.

KING LEAR LECTURES

DUCHESS OF MALFI STUDY DAY

Wherefore to London? To listen to expert lectures on Shakespeare’s King Lear.

The Upper Sixth Form enjoyed a day of intensive revision and learning about their A Level text. The lectures explored the function of the Fool, in what ways the play was a family tragedy, and ideas about carnival and clothing, as well as considering significant contextual areas such as Elizabethan laws and NeoPlatonic ideas. Students were not only impressed by the lectures but did their own impressing with their confident grasp of the play. It was “every inch a King” Lear day to remember.

Of course, literary fun and challenge can be found everywhere and over the summer students were encouraged to try out some of the activities still on offer, such as the creative critics EMC poetry competition.

The Lower Sixth Form took part in an exciting new venture between The Globe Theatre and City of London School to bring together the theatre and A Level students. The day featured lectures from experts on Shakespeare’s language and the Globe Theatre’s effect on Shakespeare’s language. Following this, there was a tour of the theatre itself, followed by workshops on the set play The Duchess of Malfi by John Webster and how to showcase different interpretations of it. The last session was particularly insightful as it was led by a theatre director.

Poetry by Heart was held for the very first time at RGS and what a spectacular start it was! Each student learnt two poems - one pre-1914 and one post-1914 - and performed them in front of a panel of three judges in school where they were rated on how well they performed, the accuracy of the recital and overall flair. The performances were held in the atmospheric venue of the Old Library with students from First to Third Form reciting their poems. The quality of the recitals was superb and it was a tough task to judge them! Certificates were sent to all those who participated to congratulate them on completing this challenging task.

After calculating the scores, a winner and a runner up were selected - the winner going on to represent RGS at a national level. Jasmine Doherty (First Form) performed for the national competition and was announced to be the Surrey county winner! What an amazing achievement. Very well done to all who took part.

WORLD BOOK DAY Since the slogan for this year’s World Book Day was Reading is Power, the English department decided to harness the power of RGS students to communicate and share their enthusiasm for books – and so everyone, from the First Form to Upper Sixth Form was invited to complete a Recommended Reads form, nominating a favourite book and reasons for liking it. The response was fantastic.

On WBD a pop-up competition invited staff and students to identify authors from their pictures. Student prizes go to Krish, Emma, Sophie and Anna from the Third Form; Ella, Anna, Jemima and Kanika from Fourth Form; Evie, Jemma, Freya, Jazz and Maddie from Fifth Form; and there’s a special individual prize for Grace P.

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ENGLISH

ORLA M WINS REIGATE AND BANSTEAD WRITES WITH WWII-INSPIRED TALE First Form student Orla M is the 2020 winner of the prestigious local writing competition Reigate and Banstead Writes.

The judges were unanimous in their praise of Orla’s story ‘A Reigate Pigeon’s War’ and she is a worthy winner. The story follows a carrier pigeon during wartime and charts its experience on a mission; the themes of determination, faith and hope are a reminder to us all during challenging times.

Not only is the story a subtle and poignant piece of writing, but it also has its roots firmly planted in Reigate’s historical roots. We caught up with Orla in the wake of her success.

How did you feel about winning?

Really surprised, happy and amazed – it came out of the blue!

Last year I came third but I never dreamed I might win!

How difficult was writing the story?

I really enjoy the subject of WWII so it was easy for me to write on this topic. It took around a month of redrafting and editing.

I planned the whole piece out as a skeleton and I knew roughly what would go into each paragraph before I started to write.

After the plan, I developed each section in more detail.

What is your favourite part?

I really like the part when my pigeon meets the other pigeons in Kent. I also like the description of the pigeon’s feelings as it is flying through the war scenes.

“Dipping, diving through a colourless sky. I hear engines of planes nearby and ear-splitting bangs of guns but all I see is grey, all I smell is smoke and fumes. I taste sweat and hunger inside my mouth and can only feel the wind on my feathers and the digging pain of the capsule on my leg.”

Where did the inspiration for the story come from?

My mum has an 87-year-old friend who used to live in the house next door to us in Reigate. Her grandfather had a pigeon loft on Doods Road during the war. His pigeons flew missions to Europe and her memories of that time formed the ideas behind the story. I really enjoy writing about things I have learnt about and the Second World War is really interesting.

Do you have any other stories planned?

I’m thinking of writing a longer story over the summer. I dreamt of writing a novel about a world hidden away under the floor.

Find out more about Reigate and Banstead writes via: https://reigateandbansteadwrites.com 35

A REIGATE PIGEON’S WAR!

By Orla M

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hen I was younger, I never thought there was any place other than Reigate – my beloved home. The beautiful rows of monotonous houses that I could weave in and out of on a delightful, summer’s day. But now I am in an unknown land with a tight, uncomfortable tube strapped to my slender leg. No one’s bothered to tell me where I am or what I’m doing.

All I know is that I want to go home. A stained piece of paper is slipped into the cylinder on my leg and then I’m told to fly away! Where do I go? Reigate is the only place I know but, for all I understand, I am thousands of miles away from there.

Dipping, diving through a colourless sky. I hear engines of planes nearby and ear-splitting bangs of guns but all I see is grey, all I smell is smoke and fumes. I taste sweat and hunger inside my mouth and can only feel the wind on my feathers and the digging pain of the capsule on my leg. There is another sense though, a sixth sense that isn’t tired but eagerly searching for the place I love so much. The smoke is slowly clearing and I see towering white cliffs below me and land ahead!

I’m back in grey cloud, dodging bullets, my eyes bleary from the smoke. I can’t keep a straight course because the wind is thrusting me sideways. Feeling hungry, drained and weak, I swoop down to land on a roof top to catch my breath. Slowly, my eyes become blurry and now all I can hear is silence…

I awake not knowing where I am. Smoke is billowing up from a chimney beside me and shouts are coming from below! This isn’t the Doods Road pigeon loft, I think to myself. I decide to go and ask a few chattering pigeons on the neighbouring roof. Dreary and confused, I hobble over to greet them. They welcome me and give me a couple of worms to snack on - that’s kind. They say I am in Kent, which means nothing to me. I just want to go home!

Finally, I set off rested and full, with a hope of making it to Reigate. I can sense it; I am almost home! Where I belong.

There’s the railway line at the bottom of Redstone Hill, the houses alongside it smouldering from a recent bomb hitting them. I see the spire of St Mary’s Church and the roof of Reigate Grammar School, the lake in the park and, there it is, the Eagle Gates of Reigate Priory in the distance!

But the roofs are all so indistinguishable. How will I ever get the message to the right place? I feel like giving up but I’m so close!

With little hope left, I slowly fly to Reigate Priory and land on the grimy roof. Suddenly, my sixth sense kicks in again. I don’t know how but I know where to go! I can feel it in my feathers, and I’m off again on the final straight.

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

ENGLISH

I follow the main road with a flutter in my heart, a spring in my wings and make it to my avenue. After a while of flying round and round the perimeter three times, I come to realise I don’t actually remember which house is mine. I lose hope and start to cry.

But then, I hear a familiar voice below. My long-lost owner!

I swoop down to land by her feet. She lets out a shout of relief and sweeps me up into the basket on the front of her bicycle. In a hurry, she gets onto the bike herself and starts to pedal down the bumpy streets. And now I see it, the bunker nestled in the trees below the hill by the chalky ground, where all those important people are waiting for the message I am

carrying. Being thrown around in the front of a bike is not a fun experience but we make it and at last my precious canister with its priceless cargo inside is removed by a man I have never met before but he pats my head and says I did a good job.

"Finally, I’m home, I made it, I’m actually home," I repeat to myself.

I hope I never have to fly hundreds of miles again and pray that the war is over soon because I can’t bear to think that thousands of pigeons like me are doing that all over the country. But I’m back in Reigate now, safe and sound with all the other pigeons in the Doods Road pigeon loft, and it might just turn out that the message I flew home with will save millions of lives!

CREATIVE WRITING OVERVIEW Creative writing club welcomed many new members this year from all year groups who came together to write and share ideas with one another.

Before lockdown, students enjoyed some fantastic activities such as writing their own fairytales using lots of original Grimm tales for inspiration and playing fun writing games like ‘write a sentence, pass it on’ to create bizarre, hilarious stories.

Following the introduction of lockdown, during weekly video calls students completed lots of activities: they were presented with interesting objects from around the house for inspiration and challenged to post pictures of their own interesting objects; they wrote poetry named after songs on their phones; they picked random words out of a book on a shelf and used that as the first word of a story - the list goes on!

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FOOD AND NUTRITION

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ove was in the air for GCSE Food and Nutrition students as, just before the lockdown began, they undertook their practical exam, the subject of which was Valentine's day. The quality of the mouthwatering savoury and sweet dishes would have scored points on any candle-lit date!

With many other subjects moving into the virtual world after lockdown, it would be easy to imagine that food and nutrition students might struggle, after all a virtual cake is somewhat less appealing than a real one! Needless to say, with the aromas of fresh baking fading at school, students rose to the challenge, taking over their parents' kitchens and (some of) the cooking.

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T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

PSHEE

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he year saw a rich programme of common PSHEE themes as well as current topical issues. Before lockdown, First Form students engaged in drop-down mornings where themed presentations included transition and organisation to help them adjust to and engage in life at secondary school and anti-bullying awareness through a drama presentation by returning guest speaker Mr Robert Higgs.

Reigatian Michael Elis spoke about his international success as an e-sport gaming champion touching on many areas of the curriculum including self-efficacy, entrepreneurship, resillinece and mental health.

An engaging seminar by Amnesty International speaker Mr Peter Breddal alerted students to the situation of asylum seekers, refugees and other displaced persons.

Post lock-down remote sessions included food safety weeks in which students were given practical advice on how to shop and prepare food safely at home to avoid contracting the virus.

Resources about Refugee Week were also shared. The Black Lives Matter movement has been a significant topic and all of the RGS community were encouraged to play their part and to read, gain more knowledge of and question discriminatory attitudes and racial behaviours towards black and minority ethnic members of our society. A BLM RGS online assembly was shared via YouTube and a range of resources shared with students and the wider RGS community for self-reflection, further exploration follow-up discussions in form groups and at home.

COMPUTER SCIENCE

A group of Lower and Upper School students are currently in the midst of building two robots, one of which will be their entry for Pi Wars 2020. This is an international, challengebased robotics competition in which teams build Raspberry-Pi controlled robots and then compete in various non-destructive challenges to earn points. The competition is currently postponed but will take place at the University of Cambridge.

The students will be regularly updating their progress on their blog: https://pjm290.wixsite.com/piwars

A Level Computer Science students attended the Computer Science in Action enrichment day in London. Students participated in five lively sessions delivered by experts on a range of topics including Robots that Work Together, Algorithms + Data Structures = Animation, and how state-of-the-art machine learning and smart devices can solve huge societal problems.

Over 250 students from the Second Form upwards participated in the UK Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge 2019.

This involves students completing a set of 18 tasks based on problems that computer scientists often encounter and solve.

The tasks can be solved without prior knowledge but require problem-solving skills, logical thinking and techniques that software engineers use to write programs and applications.

A number of RGS students achieved Merit or Distinction at each of the three age levels: Intermediate, Senior and Elite. 51 students achieved scores in the top ten percent of their age groups and, as a result, have been invited to enter the TCS Oxford Computing Challenge.

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CLASSICS

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he highlight of the year for the Classics department was undoubtedly the overseas trip to Greece. The odyssey through mainland Greece was a whirlwind tour of fascinating historical sites and spectacular scenery.

After an early morning flight, students quickly found themselves wide-eyed in wonder at the beautiful location of the temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion.

This cliff-top monument suitably kicked off a week of marvel at the architectural achievements of the ancient Greeks, with the incredible Parthenon temple and Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus being particularly impressive. Students walked the Sacred Way at Delphi, ran the first race at Olympia (congratulations to Roman T-L for winning), and climbed the hillside fortress of windy Mycenae before getting some much needed rest by the beach at Tolon.

The Lower School Classics Club has also been busy, starting the year learning about Greek and Roman myths and legends. The budding classicists showed off their knowledge through stories and quizzes and worked together to create Roman wall designs of classical myths. There was also a series of sessions about the Greek and Roman gods, kicked off by the launch of Cambridge University’s Make Your Myth project, and finished the year with a celebration of Roman Christmas during a Saturnalia party.

In the Upper School and Sixth Form students enjoyed a talk from Mr Ingham on Ancient Brexits and from Upper Sixth Form student Louis C on The Rule of Law in Ancient Greece and Persia. The department is very excited about the new exhibition, Troy: Myth and Reality, at the British Museum and looks forward to taking students there next term.

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GEOGRAPHY

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he Geography department’s packed fieldtrip calendar this year saw, amongst other things, Lower Sixth Formers investigating urban change and gentrification in Brixton, A Level students investigating flood management and water quality projects at Gatwick Airport and Third Formers studying sustainability at the London Olympic Park. The highlight of the calendar though was the Third Form’s Iceland excursion. Visits to spectacular waterfalls, iceberg strewn beaches, active geysirs and boiling sulphurous mud pools made for an exciting and educational tour. Students enjoyed a breakfast of eggs and bread cooked geothermally; trekked across glaciers and watched molten lava at over 1,000 degrees celsius pour out before their eyes in a demonstration at the unique Lava Centre. A soak at the Blue Lagoon thermal baths, one of the 25 natural wonders of the world, made for a fantastic final experience.

Lockdown inevitably impacted the Summer Term’s fieldtrips. Whilst confined to their homes, students discovered new and inventive ways to explore geographical horizons.

Students engaged brilliantly in online learning with more time to investigate, research and discover a wealth of new websites and resources. Competitions have provided an opportunity for students to engage in activities beyond the classroom. It has perhaps made everyone more determined than ever to make the most of opportunities to travel and see the world. The virus highlights how people’s lives are so closely connected, and there is clearly a role for geographers in making the world a safer place.

The Geography Society has flourished, with regular talks from students and outside speakers. A diverse range of topics from the ethical sourcing of food and pollution in the oceans to the spread of the coronavirus has provided plenty of topical debate. It is good to see younger students joining the Sixth Form for the discussion. With a number of students applying to read geography at university, such opportunities for academic enrichment are hugely important and foster interest at all levels.

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HISTORY AND POLITICS Half term saw History and Politics students jetting off to the USA, landing in New York, continuing on to Gettysburg and finishing in Washington DC. A boat trip past the Statue of Liberty to Ellis Island, an afternoon at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, and a tour of the UN Building ensured three busy and thought-provoking days in New York.

In the beautiful Pennsylvanian countryside, the small town of Gettysburg and the battle by the same name saw the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War. Incredibly, one of the students on the trip is related to a Unionist war hero, John Gibbon, who fought at Gettysburg. With great pride, she was able to take her photo next to his statue, which stands on

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the battlefield, going on to find his grave in Arlington cemetery later in the trip.

Rounding up in DC, the group dined in one of President Obama’s favourite restaurants, and enjoyed tours of the US Congress and Supreme Court.

However, the highlights of the time spent in DC were two inspiring talks given by notable political figures based in the USA. The first was by the Director to the NAACP’s Washington Bureau. In an engaging session, Mr Shelton explained the role of the NAACP and its political work. The group was then fortunate to spend time with Reigatian Andrew Sullivan, a political journalist.

The trip proved to be a highly successful and inspiring week which will live long in the minds of the group's receptive and inquisitive students.

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

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HISTORY AND POLITICS SOCIETY: THE MAYOR’S FORUM AND STUDENT LECTURES

LOWER SIXTH FORM WALKING TOUR

Building on the success of last year’s inaugural Mayor’s Forum, the History and Politics Society took a large group of students to Reigate and Banstead Council Chambers on the invitation of the Mayor.

In October, Lower Sixth Form History and Politics students enjoyed a guided walking tour of Westminster and the Palace of Westminster itself as part of Activities Day. Students were particularly interested to hear about the history of Parliament Green as a place of protest, as the Extinction Rebellion members were just starting their two weeks of protest.

Introduced by the Mayor, the discussion focused on ways in which the local councils, at both County and Borough Council level, can improve and adapt their policies to meet the growing sustainability crisis.

After the debate, students discussed local issues with a range of councillors, and a number of students have subsequently become Youth Council members. We look forward to next year’s discussion and debate.

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Student Lectures The society has hosted a wide range of lectures on diverse topics from How to remember the fallen during Remembrance to Modern slavery in Britain.

As ever, the lectures have shown a breadth of academic interest and a high quality of historical and political insight. A huge thank you must go to Sofia G and Katie H who have been outstanding CoChairs this year.

Students then walked up Whitehall to visit the National Portrait Gallery.

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

HISTORY AND POLITICS 53.3%

63.3%

44.0%

of RGS students voted in the 2019 Mock Election

of RGS students* believe that BREXIT and the environment are the most important policies in a party’s manifesto

of RGS students* believe that the national General Election voting age should not be reduced to 16

*poll of 357 RGS students

GENERAL ELECTION 2019: HUSTINGS AND MOCK ELECTION The Upper Sixth Form and Politics students from the Lower Sixth Form attended a General Election hustings in the PMH. Moderated by A Level Politics students Isabel A and Katie H, local candidates from four major parties, including Reigate MP Crispin Blunt, gave a three-minute pitch to open proceedings.

Labour’s candidate Suzanne Gregory opened with a greeting from Reigatian Sir Keir Starmer. All four candidates then answered questions from students on thorny electoral issues including the viability of the four-day week proposed

by Labour, whether or not a vote for any party other than the Conservatives is a wasted vote in this constituency, and university tuition fees.

As Head of Politics Mr Haskey said: “With over half of our Upper Sixth Form having the vote for the first time,

it was a great opportunity to help them make an informed decision. The debate was organised and run by the students themselves and there was little doubt that they rigorously interrogated all the candidates.”

On 12 December, 53% of students voted in the 2019 Mock Election, staged in the Old Library. The result was decisive but very different from the national story: the Lib Dems won 47.9% of the vote and the Conservatives just 23.8%, with Labour coming in fourth, behind the Green party. In addition, 66% of students (from a poll of 357) felt that the national General Election voting age should not be reduced to 16, while 63.3% agreed that Brexit and the environment were the two most important policies for any party’s manifesto.

JUNIOR DEBATING It has been a busy and exciting term for Junior Debating. Students have covered wide-ranging questions and topics including Were the moon landings faked? and As a nation, we have become unhealthily interested in our pets. A highlight was certainly the balloon debate which saw Einstein, Churchill, Mandela and Jesus compete to be of most value to the world.

There have been 36 fantastic speeches, several students have enjoyed acting as the chair and using the gavel, and very interesting points have been made from the floor.

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HOUSE NEWS

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he RGS House Cup runs from Easter to Easter. Following the Autumn Term's intense competition, the start of the Spring Term saw Hodgson in fourth place, Bird in third and Cranston and Williamson up ahead in joint first.

The final events of the competition included netball, hockey, art, debating and chess with football and golf sadly cancelled as a result of the pandemic.

House Chess, run as a round-robin style tournament was well attended with students from First Form to Upper Sixth Form taking each other on.

Congratulations to Cranston on a welldeserved victory.

In House debating, now expanded to include First to Third Forms, Bird defeated Cranston by arguing against the motion Flights for leisure purposes should be completely banned and Hodgson was victorious against Williamson, arguing against the motion Parents are overly involved in their children’s school lives today.

In the final, Bird and Hodgson questioned whether mobile phones should be banned in schools. Bird was judged to be the winning team thanks to the quality of speeches for the motion.

House Art challenged students to design a House ACE card, with points awarded for participation and design. Bird's design was judged to be the winner, and winning entries from each house will be turned in to House Ace Cards in September.

The netball and hockey tournaments were closely fought with almost 100% participation and excellent House spirit all round. An overall netball win was grasped

by Cranston and Williamson took the Hockey crown just one point ahead of

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Cranston.

With all three terms' results added together the 2019-2020 competition placing were: Cranston - 1st Bird - Joint 2nd Williamson - Joint 2nd Hodgson - 4th

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ith the onset of lockdown, a creative approach was required to get the 20202021 House Cup off to a flying start.

As always, RGS students rose to the challenge. House Captains did an amazing job, enthusiastically producing and editing fun weekly videos for their Houses.

Competitions have included climbing Everest (virtually!), taking nature photos, keepy uppies, trick shots, guess the teacher/House Captain (from a photo or fact), a food challenge and guess the location of the photo (from around school). Despite not being at school, the House spirit has helped to bring everyone together in tough times and has proved to be a source of great fun.

The term's participation cup results are: Bird - 1st 344 points Cranston - 2nd 324 points Hodgson - 3rd 304 points Williamson - 4th 281 points

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MATHS BERLIN TRIP The Second Form German visit to Berlin included many highlights such as a guided tour in the Jewish Museum, a visit to the Checkpoint Charlie Museum, Alexanderplatz, Potsdamer Platz and the Film Museum. Students walked through the Brandenburg Gate, past the Holocaust Memorial and learnt about the fascinating history of this cosmopolitan city.

The guided tour of the Jewish Museum was one of the highlights as well as the visit to the glass dome of the Reichstag and the Christmas markets in Berlin. After days out exploring the city, the group relaxed in the evenings with bowling and cinema visits.

UKMT MATHEMATICAL OLYMPIAD FOR GIRLS Lauren C and Alex H competed in the UKMT Mathematical Olympiad for Girls. They tackled five challenging questions requiring full written solutions, the style and difficulty of problems being quite different from familiar school mathematics.

UKMT SENIOR MATHS CHALLENGE Fifth and Sixth Form mathematicians put in an impressive performance in the annual UKMT Senior Maths Challenge achieving 14 gold, 35 silver and 36 bronze medals between them.

Congratulations to gold winners Chris M, Jack R, Ziyan S, Lauren P, Cici X, Tae K, David H, Ahmad H, Harry A, Bernie C, Amelie D, Noah F, Oliver S, Lakith G. A special mention goes to Tae K who achieved RGS's highest score. All 14 gold award winners went on to sit the Senior Kangaroo paper in the next round.

UKMT SENIOR TEAM MATHS CHALLENGE After weeks of practice a team of four: Captain Chris M (Upper Sixth Form); Tae K and Amelie D (Lower Sixth Form); and Thomas K (Fourth Form), was selected to represent RGS at the regional final of the UKMT Senior Team Maths Challenge.

The contest comprises three rounds: a group round; a crossnumber; and a shuttle round. In the group round questions must be answered in just 45 minutes. The team achieved full marks!

In the second round, a cross-number where all answers are two, three or four digit numbers, Reigate again achieved perfection scoring 66/66. The last round was a shuttle round where RGS scored an impressive 49/60.

RGS came second overall of the 20 schools present, only losing out to Hampton, who remarkably achieved full marks.

HANS WOYDA The RGS Hans Woyda team consisting of Chris M, Tae K, Amelie D, Lakith G, Thomas K, Jamie M and Taylor S put in a strong performance, placing second in their group and in doing so qualifying for the ongoing plate section of the competition.

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BRIDGING PROGRAMME – BEGINNERS' ITALIAN AND ITALIAN CULTURE The Upper Sixth Form had the great opportunity to join an Italian bridging programme in which they learnt to communicate on a basic level in Italian - for example to introduce themselves, order food, drink and ice-cream, and to describe people.

They also learnt about Il Risorgimento (the unification of Italy-1871) led by Giuseppe Garibaldi and how this late coming together of the country is still evidenced through a strong sense of regional identity and the use of over 20 indigenous languages.

They studied the Italian Resistance movement during the rise of Fascism and Mussolini’s dictatorship, and what the song Bella Ciao! really means. Students then went on to learn about the Mafia and how Falcone and Borsellino together with the AntiMafia Pool fought to try and over-turn this criminal organisation.

Finally they found out about the vast array of national and regional festivals within Italy, including the Snake Handlers Procession in Cocullo in May, the Battle of Oranges in Ivrea in February and, of course, the famous Palio di Siena in August!

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

MFL ONATTI PRODUCTIONS PRIMERA CITA First to Fifth Form students enjoyed Onatti Productions' latest Spanish play, Primera Cita (First Date). This story was a hilarious observation of two Spanish teenagers, María and Carlos, getting ready for that important primera cita!

There was hysteria, panic, fear and apprehension. María had issues with her make-up, her hair, her clothes and a very untimely spot on her face while Carlos, in his room, attempted his first ever shave!

Students thoroughly enjoyed the show and some were even invited on stage for some improvised involvement.

LANGUAGE ASSISTANTS GO REMOTE During lockdown RGS's wonderful language assistants (Antía – Spanish, Gaëlle – French and Alex – German) continued to offer Fourth to Upper Sixth Form students weekly online individual speaking classes despite being back at home with their families. They did a brilliant job of ensuring that students, despite not being in school, were still able to access weekly speaking practice to maintain and improve their fluency.

Lower Sixth Form students said that the sessions were really engaging and that they looked forward to their slot each week. Antía even became famous in her local paper in Asturias as they published a newspaper article about her time as a language assistant at RGS and about how her role continued during la cuarentena.

CERVANTES THEATRE TRIP Sixth Form Spanish students visited the Cervantes Theatre in London to see a stage production of La Casa de los Espíritus (The House of Spirits) by author Isabel Allende. The national best-seller, first published in 1982 continues to captivate readers across the world.

The story charts the rise and fall of the Trueba family in an unnamed Latin American country. The play, written by Svich, spans the 1920s to the 1970s as the country moves through enormous socio political changes that culminate in a devastating dictatorship.

JUNIOR CULTURE CLUB A varied term in Junior Culture Club saw activities as diverse as quizzes on countries currently being studied and salsa. Craft activities were very popular and with cultural creations like Diwali divas, Halloween pumpkins and Christmas mash-up posters from around the world.

The end of term raffle was popular and students tasted delicious foods from around the world.

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REIMUN

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his year has been another incredible year for Reigate Grammar School Model United Nations (ReiMUN). The annual RGS conference welcomed a record number of delegates, with almost 400 students attending from across the UK, from Bristol and Hertfordshire to the Isle of Wight (where a group of students left at 4.30am, unaccompanied, to get to RGS on time – the effort is admirable!). External speaker - Lee Adamson, Director of Communications at the International Maritime Organisation, illustrated the importance of the UN in modern times.

The hard work of the students and staff of the MUN society ensures that, 24 years after the introduction of MUN at RGS, it continues to flourish. Following a hugely successful home conference, the society attended numerous external events from Royal Russell School to Croydon High School, where it received a plethora of individual and delegation awards. ReiMUN stepped off-piste into a new style of conference this year American MUN, held at Wycombe Abbey, and were delighted when Ethan B received a top award for his part in Media Communications. The society also took part in Scottish Dancing with Alex C leading the charge most impressively: another MUN first!

Even though some conferences were cancelled as a result of the pandemic, the RGS MUN team has thrived. As school went online, it continued to hold weekly sessions via video call which was wonderful and allowed students to continue to hone and develop their debating skills. It also continued to develop younger talent through Junior MUN, something which has grown to an amazing standard. It is marvellous to see 13 and 14 year-olds debating at such a high level.

The Lower Sixth Form MUN leadership team took over in October, and they have risen to the challenge phenomenally. They have put in huge amounts of effort and time to keep the club running at a high standard, even during the pandemic. They developed a mentorship scheme, paring younger students with more experienced delegates, in order to prepare them for future MUN endeavours and competitions. The MUN leadership team have also supported the running of training and chairing sessions, on more complex matters such as security council debate which has been impressive.

The weekly club has also grown in numbers with swathes of intellectually curious and globally minded Third, Fourth, and Lower Sixth Formers joining the ranks. It has been a tremendous MUNing year, and even though a global pandemic hit – the team adapted!

The year was rounded off with a whole school quiz, MUN-interested?, which attracted a wide level of participation. Some very tricky questions across a breadth of current events failed to daunt Grace P who achieved a perfect score – no doubt on her way to MUN success!

Ved N MUN Prefect

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MUN CLUB Wednesday's MUN Club has gone from strength to strength with a huge range of complex issues being discussed, from far right extremism to the death penalty.

The MUN team also took part in two further external conferences: two teams attended the Royal Russell School’s MUN conference and a further two delegations attended the MUN Conference at Croydon High School. Both were a success for RGS students.

Azsvin M achieved an award for representing Israel at RRMUN and went on to gain the Outstanding Delegate award for his role in the Security Council representing The Dominican Republic at CroyMUN. Conor F was also named Outstanding Delegate at RRMUN. All teams prepared with great vigour and thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to both hear and take part in quality international debate.

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SCIENCE The Science department has seen a plethora of enriching trips, activities and competitions throughout the year.

COMPETITION WINNERS

During the Nettlecombe residential fieldtrip, Upper Sixth Form biologists developed their ecological knowledge and investigative skills as they explored rocky shore and freshwater ecosystems.

Psychology students cemented their understanding of how biological processes impact human behaviour with a trip to the Body Worlds Exhibition where they saw the structures they have been studying, gaining greater context for their learning. Through the Psychology and the Media lunchtime activity, students had the opportunity to consider how psychological issues are portrayed in the media and the impact this may have on our understanding and treatment of them.

Ella H First Form

Physicists attended a range of lectures at the Emmanuel Centre in Westminster where topics included the physics of smart buildings of the present and future and the wonders of the visible and invisible universes. Students also witnessed the practical applications of the electric and magnetic fields section of their syllabus on a visit to the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy.

Sixth Form chemists attended the Chemistry in Action conference in London and New Scientist Live, offering opportunities to hear from leaders in industry and also visited Queen Mary University of London for an infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy workshop. Second Formers built molecules in the Molymod challenge and Third to Fifth Form chemists tested their practical skills when RGS hosted the annual Royal Society of Chemistry competition, Top of the Bench for schools from the surrounding area.

Chloe B Second Form

Tyra L Second Form

Showing the confidence to explore ideas beyond school, First Form student Oliver Y won the UK NASA Scientist for a Day competition with a compelling essay about why we should further explore Miranda, one of Uranus’ moons. Sixth Formers demonstrated their calibre in the Biology and Chemistry Olympiads, winning 56 awards included six gold awards.

Zayna A Third Form

Jemima H Fourth/Fifth Form 53

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

The Sixth Form Science Week essay competition winner addressed the topical field of vaccines and sought to address whether an effective vaccine could be developed against the Wuhan Coronavirus. There were an impressive number of entries for the Upper School and Second Form Photography competition inspired by Shapes in Nature, as well as for the Animazing inspired First Form Specimen Drawing competition.

The department welcomed several inspiring visitors during Science Week.

First Form met the visiting menagerie of Animazing, learning about survival adaptations and inspiring observational drawing sessions with the Art department. Second Form had a blast with their rocket car workshop from the Bloodhound project. The Third and Fourth Forms were visited by the Royal Institution for Energy Live: an exciting journey through the stores of energy which surround us. Fourth Form also considered the impact of science on the environment and the population through a site litter pick and glo-germ experiment considering indirect-transmission of disease. With TSI Psychology bitesize talks, Mr Crook and Dr Gompel’s Chemonstrations explosions, the Sixth Form led an assembly on the science behind the novel Coronavirus and the fascinating talk Space and deep sea diving: the effects of extreme environments on the human body by Reigatian, Polly Aylwin, there really was something for everyone.

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THEOLOGY AND PHILOSOPHY

irst Form students have explored the meaning of Theology and Philosophy (T&P) and begun diving into the Big Story, an exploration of the Bible through discussion and creative activities such as their project on Desert Island Rules. The Second Form meanwhile created some wonderful presentations for their Knowing God projects, creating a piece of art that explains how people may connect with God. T&P is more popular than ever with record numbers selecting the subject at GCSE. Younger students have begun exploring issues surrounding peace and conflict, while those in the Fifth Form have been looking at human rights and social justice.

An introduction to ethical theory and rationalism versus empiricism kicked off the A Level course for Lower Sixth Form students while the Upper Sixth Form has been exploring topics as diverse as gender roles in society and religious language.

Philosopher Steven Law once again visited the school and provided a workshop and talk on religious experiences and sexual ethics. The religious discussion revolved around the reliance on visions of God and whether or not they are evidence for God’s existence.

During the sexual ethics section Christian views on homosexuality and Thomas Aquinas’ natural law were discussed. Issy G said "The talk was an informative and concise summary of some of the topics we cover throughout the A Level syllabus.“ The Upper Sixth Form also enjoyed a trip to London where they participated in a variety of lectures aimed at gifted and talented students. The lecturers included theologians Keith Ward, Daphne Hampson and Tom Greggs.

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SPORT

#TeamReigate

D

espite the obvious challenges of Covid-19 in the latter part of the year, it has been another fantastic year for #TeamReigate. Whatever metric is used it was very successful and thanks go out to all of the staff, students, parents and the wider community for the time and consideration that is given to make sport such a fun and inclusive part of school life.

The sporting year started in August with a very successful Hockey tour to Holland, 150 students attending pre-season netball and rugby camps and the introduction of football for all year groups.

Cup competitions were in full flow through the early part of the term with football, netball, hockey, rugby, swimming, golf and squash teams all competing in local and national competitions.

Highlights included the U15 boys' football team winning away at traditional

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powerhouse Hampton School, the U13 footballers taking a hovercraft to a fixture on the Isle of Wight, the 1st XI hockey team establishing themselves as a top competitor in the Tier 1 National Cup, the First Form students having extraordinary results on the netball court and rugby pitch and the senior cricketers' tour to the UAE.

741 STUDENTS HAVE REPRESENTED RGS ACROSS NINE SPORTS FIRST EVER GIRLS' FOOTBALL MATCHES COUNTY CHAMPIONS IN SWIMMING AND HOCKEY INDIVIDUAL NATIONAL BIATHLON CHAMPIONS RGS TENNIS ACADEMY LAUNCHED

Swimmers have had a remarkable time with the girls winning the county relay and individual championship. The boys also had a brilliant result helping #TeamReigate claim a double county title as they too won the county individual championship.

The 1st XV rugby team led by example with a very competitive season in testing conditions. The U14 San Sebastian tour was a great experience for all as students were spurred on by the England's success at the rugby world cup.

This year has also seen badminton, ultimate frisbee, squash, futsal, cross country and cricket matches.

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

NETBALL Netball at RGS is more popular than ever and the increasing participation is beginning to reap rewards. There is a real buzz around the school about netball which is great to see.

Performance squads trained hard throughout the winter and lead other year groups through the netball season. The run up to lockdown was jam-packed with exciting fixtures including county champions Guildford High, national champions Brighton College and local derby days against Caterham and St John's.

Following the Christmas break, the juniors headed north for a five-day Manchester tour. 24 talented Second Formers took on an intensive pre-season programme with training sessions from the likes of Manchester Thunder's Captain and England superstar, Laura Malcolm and the legendary Tracey Neville, former England Head Coach. As well as learning from the best of the best, the girls had a chance to play against some of the top netball schools in the country. Of course, there was some well deserved downtime including the chance to take on the Ninja Warrior course and showing of their dance moves on the ice!

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R EI G AT E G R A M M A R SC H OO L

CRICKET

TOP 100 SCHOOLS

RGS CRICKET GAINS TOP 100 SCHOOLS ACCOLADE FOR THE THIRD YEAR RUNNING RGS has once again been selected by national magazine The Cricketer as one of the top 100 senior schools in the country for excellence in cricket.

The Playing Fields of England annual report follows an exhaustive process which saw a record number of schools submit entries to be included in the guide, and recognises schools that have the best coaching, facilities, results, fixture lists, community engagement and sustained support for the wider game and its players.

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“I AM DELIGHTED THAT CRICKET AT RGS HAS BEEN RECOGNISED FOR THE THIRD YEAR IN A ROW. RGS STUDENTS HAVE OUTSTANDING OPPORTUNITIES TO EXCEL AT THE SPORT AND WE AIM TO DEVELOP WITHIN THEM A LIFELONG LOVE OF THE GAME”.

MR JAMES LECK, RGS HEAD OF CRICKET

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

#TeamReigate DUBAI TOUR The senior cricket squad headed out to Dubai for the regular RGS UAE tour where students experienced unique opportunities and gained an understanding of the cultures of a society that the majority had not seen before. These included, a guided tour of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, a cultural lunch at the Sheik Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Centre for Cultural Understanding, exploring the street markets of Dubai Creek, a Desert Safari, cycling around the Abu Dhabi Yas Marina Formula 1 circuit and a day at the Aquaventure Water Park.

On the field, the boys were up against some very strong and talented opposition - the development of cricket since the last visit in 2017 is impressive. It was a pleasure to be hosted once again by Dubai College and the Desert Cubs Cricket Academy and it was a fantastic experience for the boys to play outside the Zayed Cricket stadium against their academy.

COUNTY SELECTION At the end of the 2019 cricket season, a number of RGS cricketers were put forward for Surrey County Cricket Club trials. This year has seen a record number of students selected for both the boys and girls county age-group programmes. Congratulations go to all those selected who have worked hard to progress to and in some cases, stay at this level.

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R EI G AT E G R A M M A R SC H OO L

HOCKEY

The girls’ hockey season got off to a hot start as the teams travelled to sunny Almere in Holland for the annual pre-season trip, where a fun-filled few days of matches, training, theme parks and hospitality awaited them.

The away theme continued with a trip to the South West for younger age groups. Taunton provided a busy weekend of matches and training along with lighter entertainment in the form of bowling, swimming, meals out and birthday celebrations.

The introduction of England Hockey’s new Tier 1 league provided the 1st XI squad with the opportunity to travel across the South East and to test their methods of play against new opposition to great effect.

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T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

#TeamReigate Successes this year for the girls included the U18s making it to the south finals of the England Hockey indoor competition; the U15s becoming county champions for the fourth year running, and the U14s winning the Surrey championship and placing third at the England Hockey south finals, once again narrowly missing out on a place at the nationals. There was also great success in the International Schools Hockey Cup (ISHC) with the U15s and U19s making it through to the quarter final and the and U13s making it all the way to the final.

In boys’ hockey, the U15 team reached the last 16 nationally of the ISHC and the U12s came third in Surrey. The U13 team came second in Surrey, qualifying them for the south final of

the England Hockey competition before it was cancelled due to Covid. The boys also enjoyed a very successful Taunton weekend tour in which they played some of the strongest schools and clubs in the Southwest.

Individually, more than 20 students gained representative honours for their county and several gained higher honours, representing Performance Centres for their region. Katie D, Zoe M and Amy W represented East Grinstead HC in the U18 National Clubs Indoor Finals 2020 and Lily FJ represented the club at the U16 event. Ben T began the England Hockey Diploma in Sporting Excellence programme (DiSE).

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R EI G AT E G R A M M A R SC H OO L

RUGBY

RGS Rugby enjoyed another exciting and competitive season, continuing its focus on both performance and mass participation.

Fielding 19 teams, a total of 175 matches were played giving all the opportunity to enjoy the great British game of rugby regardless of ability.

Nearly 3000 points were scored across the teams, demonstrating the free-flowing RGS style of rugby the school seeks to promote and develop.

Excitingly the school was once again able to field A-E teams in the First Form with the A team proving particularly impressive, going all season undefeated.

Representation at a higher level also continued with several boys and girls selected for the Harlequins DPP setup as well as the Surrey county teams.

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T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

#TeamReigate

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R EI G AT E G R A M M A R SC H OO L

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T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

#TeamReigate

SWIMMING AND BIATHLON

RGS

swimmers continue to thrive in the pool. They excelled at the Surrey Schools Relay Championships where the senior girls were crowned county champions in both the freestyle and medley relay. There was also success in the intermediate girls’ freestyle, intermediate and junior boys’ medley with bronze medals all round.

The impressive performances qualified the senior and intermediate girls for the English Schools Swimming Association (ESSA) national relay final. Once again the girls swam exceptionally well achieving 11th in the senior girls’ freestyle relay, 15th in the senior girls’ medley relay and 16th in the intermediate freestyle relay.

The biathlon season included a very successful competition at the east region biathlon championships where Eva M (U15) and Issy H (U16) took golds in their respective age groups. There were also great results at the Whitgift event where Sam A won the U12 and James C the U16 boys’ events, and for the girls Gabi H won at U14 and Clara A at U16 level. Silver medals went to Tomos K and Jemima P in the U17 boys’ and girls’ events.

Successful competitions at regional level lead to a number of students attending the British Biathlon Championships where there were further successes for #TeamReigate: U14 Girls Gabi H 1st U15 Girls Eva M 2nd U12 Boys Sam A 10th, Barney S 44th U15 Boys Morgan C 26th, Lukas K 28th 64

R EI G AT E G R A M M A R SC H OO L

JUNIOR SKI TRIP

A

s a busy autumn term drew to a close, 62 students from Second to Fifth Form packed their bags and headed off to Saas-Grund and Saas-Fee in Switzerland for week of action-packed skiing.

The group was treated to three days of exceptional conditions with blue skies and lots of fresh snow. The beginners progressed quickly, and the more advanced groups enjoyed learning how to ski in ungroomed conditions.

Stormy condition forced the closure of the resort for the other two days meaning lots of fun messing around on the beginner slopes, sledging, snowshoeing and souvenir-shopping in Saas-Fee. In the evenings after dinner, students enjoyed family fortunes, bingo, ice skating, mini-Olympics and the increasingly infamous nightly disco. At the end of the trip, Reigate’s Got Talent was won by a well deserving group of Second Form boys led by Billy R.

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T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

#TeamReigate

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R EI G AT E G R A M M A R SC H OO L

CAREERS

T

he RGS Careers department organises a packed timetable of events throughout the year, many open to the local community as well as RGS students. These events are hugely popular and see ever increasing numbers of attendees, keen to hear from and meet with the visiting speakers and representatives.

In addition to the evening talks and lectures, lunchtime presentations and various workshops the Careers department provides a wide range of advice and guidance to students as they start to think about life beyond RGS. As ever, the contribution from parents, former students and friends of RGS who have given up their time to talk to our students has been invaluable - the RGS careers programme would not be as successful as it is without their support.

This year's timetable has included presentations on applying to US universities, careers in medicine, social justice, careers in the Arts, and veterinary medicine. There was the annual presentation on CV and covering letter writing for Fifth Form students, and Mrs Budden presented to Lower Sixth Formers on the subject of Oxbridge applications, advising them on how to make themselves excellent university candidates. Fifth Form students have also been busy taking careers profiling tests along with follow-up interviews.

RGS staff volunteered to put prospective medics and dentists to the test with multi mini interviews (MMI). Students move from station to station undertaking a range of interview questions, role plays and tasks which aim to simulate what they will face in their medical interviews. The event was both good practice and good fun, despite being necessarily challenging at times.

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The Accounting and Finance Evening was the first major event of the year and was, as ever, very well attended; Ian Magness (Reigatian parent), Maggie Stilwell (current RGS parent) and Jamie Mehmood (Reigatian and current RGS parent) gave informative presentations; and Ed Forsyth (Reigatian) and Iain Dewson (Reigatian and current RGS parent) took questions from the floor.

The Degree Apprenticeship Evening was attended by more than 200 people reflecting the level of interest in this route.

Representatives from Withers Law Firm, Pearson College and NestlĂŠ gave their views, and Nick Harrison from Waterman Group (Engineering/Environment) and Antony Auston from Huntley Cartwright (Quantity Surveyors) joined the panel.

At the biennial Careers Convention, students had the opportunity to speak to representatives from a wide range of sectors and gap schemes, with a record number of careers being represented. They were also fortunate to have several insightful speakers including: Melissa Read (OR) who presented on Career Profiling: Looking for careers that play to your strengths; Clare Hartley-Marjoram (OR) who spoke about her career in Engineering; Natalie Jones (OR), who addressed students and parents about the Dyson Degree; and Ben Adey (OR) who spoke about the PWC degree and early years in accountancy.

WEEKLY EVENTS The weekly Medical Discussion Group is a forum for students who are interested in medicine, veterinary science or dentistry to discuss current issues in these fields, present and listen to presentations from each other and from outside speakers and to share experiences of interviews and applications.

The group has been an important factor in the school's success at helping students to get into university to study these subjects.

T H E PI LG R I M R E V I E W 2020

ECO COMMITTEE The Eco Committee has stepped up its mission to influence students and parents to consider the environment when making daily decisions.

Students from all year groups have had an opportunity to write to MPs, watch and discuss documentaries, and plan events and assemblies.

The Eco Prefects attended the Mayor’s Forum at Reigate Town Hall with members of the Politics department where they voiced young people’s concerns about the environment and shared and discussed solutions to help combat major issues. They met with local Green councillor Jonathan Essex to look at what problems we face locally and have since written to MP Crispin Blunt to raise their concerns.

In December, students discussed solutions to tackle the enormous amounts of waste generated over the festive period by suggesting gifts for a conscious Christmas.

In the Spring, they looked into combatting the UK’s reliance on fast fashion by promoting a swishing event, where pre-loved clothes could be swapped and re-loved rather than sent to landfill.

Eco Prefects have met with the new school caterers Chartwells, to discuss what can be done to help students make ethical decisions in the canteen and around school, such as increasing the use of reusable cups and introducing the use of reusable food containers from home where a takeaway lunch is required.

The committee even visited the Grundon Recycling Plant to find out where waste goes and how it is reused or recycled.

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FOUNDATION EIGATE G AMMA SCHOOL

2020

has brought uncertainty and disruption, but also a huge outpouring of compassion and generosity. As soon as the closure of schools was announced, the Foundation team launched the RGS We Care initiative. We look back on how we, the Reigatian community, rose to the challenge.

WE INFORMED The RGS Foundation drew on the expertise of our community to provide support and information. This included coronavirus guidance from an epidemiologist, insights from NHS staff in a hospital ICU, GP surgery, care home and a physiotherapist.

Coming out of lockdown, we provided a guide to Creating a Covid-secure workplace.

WE PROVIDED PRACTICAL SUPPORT Science labs, food tech and art rooms were stripped of gloves, aprons and goggles and the RGS Design Technology department made over 1,000 visors for front-line staff. With the support of volunteers, we coordinated the collection and delivery of shopping and prescriptions for local Reigatians who sought help. RGS collected donations for food bank and local charity, Stripey Stork to support families affected by the pandemic.

WE CELEBRATED THE TALENTS OF OUR COMMUNITY Through weekly email newsletters, the Foundation shared music, drama and other stories designed to lift the spirits.

These included quarantine versions of One Day More from Les Misérables by Sixth Formers and I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles by acapella singing group, Quintus. Past productions of Sweeney Todd, Abigail’s Party and other RGS Drama delights were live streamed.

And RGS parent, Hari Ghotra showed us how to cook curries in her weekly online cook-along.

We’d like to say an enormous thank you to all the parents, students and wider Reigatian community who pulled together like never before by providing donations, giving practical help and sending messages of support.

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rgs.foundation

Reigate Grammar School was honoured to support NHS key workers, and the wider community, through the RGS We Care initiative. But we want to do more.

The new Nightingale Fund will support children from disadvantaged backgrounds by: •

Providing bursaries to the children of essential key worker children (NHS Scholar initiative) at various entry points throughout the school

•

Providing bursaries in our Sixth Form for children who specifically wish to follow A Level courses to access Medicine and related studies at university

“Our school, and its global community, recognises the outstanding contribution that NHS key workers make to the health and wellbeing of the British people, particularly at a time of national crisis. We are in awe of their commitment, passion and bravery as they protect and care for us all from their pivotal position on the front-line.”

Shaun Fenton Headmaster “We all recognise the value and importance of our NHS. We also appreciate that not every child has the opportunity to realise their dreams. This fund will allow children from disadvantaged backgrounds to access a world-class education and fulfill their ambition to follow a medical pathway. We need our special community to help us to nurture the NHS heroes of the future.”

Sean Davey Head of Foundation For more information on how you can help, visit rgs.foundation/nightingale-fund

STAY CONNECTED external-link-alt Keep up-to-date with the latest news from the RGS Foundation via social media channels: Facebook facebook.com/groups/reigatiancommunity Twitter FoundationRGS instagram @RGSFoundation 70

RGS Hartswood Sports Ground

CATCH UP ONLINE As this Review illustrates, RGS is an action-packed school with a wealth of news and activities happening around the clock. To keep up to date, visit our website or join in with RGS online:

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facebook.com/reigategrammarschool

twitter-square Follow our news and views on Twitter: Headmaster @rgsheadmaster

RGS Cricket @RGScricket

RGS Hodgson @RGS_Hodgson

RGS Science @ScienceRGS

Reigate Grammar @ReigateGrammar

RGS Drama @RGSDrama

RGS Library @RGSlib

RGS Sixth Form @RGS_SixthForm

RGS Art Department @ArtDeptRGS

RGS Economics @EconomicsRGS

RGS Lower School @RGSLowerSchool

RGS Sport @RGSSport

RGS Bird @RGS_Bird

RGS English @RGSEnglish

RGS Maths @RGSMaths

RGS Swimming @SwimmingRGS

RGS Careers @RGSCareers

RGS Foundation @foundationRGS

RGS Music @rgs_music

RGS Ultimate @RGSUltimate

RGS Classics @ClassicsRGS

RGS Geography @RGSGeography

RGS Netball @RGSNetball

RGS Upper School @RGSUpperSchool

RGS Computing @RGSComputing

RGS History @History_RGS

RGS Rugby @ReigateGSrugby

RGS Williamson @RGS_Williamson

RGS Cranston @RGS_Cranston

RGS Hockey @HockeyRGS

RGS Scholarships @RGSScholars

RGS Weather @RGSweather

Reigate Grammar School, Reigate Road, Reigate, Surrey RH2 0QS 01737 222231 info@reigategrammar.org reigategrammar.org