The Bulletin
Friday 7 October 2016
Issue 96
From the Headmaster As a school in the heart of the local community, a school which has service as one of its four central aims, the themes of self-sacrifice and altruism would seem particularly poignant. In this light, our annual commemoration service last week served to remind us all of the extraordinary debt we owe to those individuals and families without whom the modern RGS would not exist. At our service in Holy Trinity Church, we acknowledged our gratitude to “our founders and many benefactors, men and women whose generous gifts and dedicated service have built, maintained and improved the School over the centuries”. The six House Captains then formally dedicated our thanks to those whose influence was transformational for the RGS: “In particular we thank God for Robert Beckingham to whose will we trace our first foundation in 1509; and for the generosity and determination that resulted in the construction of the Old Building by the Mayor and Approved Men of Guildford, led by John Austen; and William Hamonde, a wealthy clothier, who aided in particular the building of Usher’s house; and for Joseph Nettles who founded a University Scholarship in 1692, which later became the main endowment of the School; and for the commitment of three generations of the Powell family, who made many generous donations to the School, and who served with distinction as Governors and Chairmen of Governors, in the 19th and 20th centuries; and for the local men and women who gave their time, money and skill to maintain and rebuild the School in the 1880s under the wise leadership of Canon Arthur Valpy.” These individuals showed exceptional vision and benevolence to support an institution which would go on to educate and inspire so many talented local students. No institution, however, can live in the past and schools are no exception. We must continue to re-evaluate, innovate and develop: these are all aspects which make the future of the School exciting and ensure that we will continue to provide our students with the very best education, preparing them for a rapidly-changing world. And yet, as the service served to remind us, the core values which remain at the heart of our ethos are timeless; continuing to nurture young men who are decent, humble and altruistic in outlook is an aim which has stood, and will continue to stand, the test of time.
Latest News
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Art: James Miller (4N) was runner-up in the RSPB’s WildArt Competition with his painting of a fox. The exhibition of paintings, including James’s work, is on display at The Mall Gallery in London. Design and Technology: The Schools Design Prize rewards high-quality design from entries from promising young students from over 1,100 schools nationally. Luke Kelly’s (L6) innovative and professional design for a floor lamp received the award from The Furniture Makers’ Company. Drama: George Chapman (2C) has been chosen as one of the lead roles in the Yvonne Arnaud Youth Theatre’s production of The Borrowers which will be staged later in the year.
Economics: James Palles-Clark (U6) entered the highly prestigious John Locke Institute essay competition for students of Economics, Politics and Philosophy. James was awarded a Commendation for his essay, “What is the optimum amount of government debt?” Enterprise: In the Inter Schools’ Business Competition held at St John’s School Leatherhead, the teams were tasked with creating a Summer School in just two hours, considering this from organisational, structuring, marketing and budgeting perspectives, followed by a presentation. The Fourth Form students, Team Echo, secured first place; the other RGS group Team Pentagon finished third. Field Day: On Field Day 1, every single boy was involved in one of the many extra-curricular activities taking place locally and further afield. These activities included: a visit to Tate Britain; kayaking and raft building; an overnight Duke of Edinburgh qualifying expedition in the New Forest; air experience flying at RAF Benson; sail training in the Solent; familiarisation activities with the L98 rifle at Longmoor Barracks including close-quarters-battle simulation; paintballing, orienteering and high ropes team-building exercises; a diverse range of Community Service activities; stage fighting and puppetry drama workshops; the First Form trip to the Isle of Wight; surfing and lifesaving in Newquay; French and Latin Primary School Projects; road cycling in the local area and mountain biking in the Surrey Hills; climbing at Harrison’s Rocks in East Sussex; an enterprise day for the whole Second Form; and many others! Volunteering: The RGS hosted the annual Volunteering Fair. Representatives from ten different organisations – local, national and international – were on hand to introduce different volunteering opportunities to students from RGS, Tormead and Guildford High School.
Sports News
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Badminton: Christopher Chong (3R) won the silver medal in the Surrey Badminton Under 15A Boys Singles tournament. In addition, the 1st and 2nd teams both recorded strong wins against Charterhouse School. Chess: In the Russell Trophy event in the top section our 1st team scored 12 out of a possible 16 points and came second; in the lower section, our 2nd team finished in first place. This was then followed up by victories for the two senior sides against Wilson’s School. Cross-Country: In the Surrey round of the ESAA Cross-Country Cup, our junior and intermediate teams both qualified for the south-east regional semi-finals. Rugby: In the block fixture against Wimbledon College, the senior teams recorded seven out of eight wins. Highlights included a 29 – 21 victory for the 1st XV and a narrow, dramatic 21 – 19 win for the Under 15A team. The stand-out age group against St Paul’s School were the Under 16 sides which recorded two wins and a narrow, tense defeat for the Under 16Bs. The Under 13s won all their matches against Reigate Grammar School, conceding only five points in the process. Tennis: Our Under 15 tennis team comprising Jimmy Comiskey (5H), Samuel Hodges (5B), Edward James (5V) and William Murray (5A) secured third place in the regional LTA team tennis finals day.
Forthcoming Events Monday 10 October
View the School Calendar Staff and Parents Prayer Meeting in the Staff Room
Tuesday 11 October
New Parents’ Reception in Great Hall
Wednesday 12 October
Independent Learning Assignment Presentation in the Auditorium
Thursday 13 October
Upper Sixth Form Parents’ Evening in Great Hall
Monday 17 October
Half term begins
RGSGuildford
Registered Charity No. 312028