The Bulletin 235

FROM THE HEADMASTER

Many of us walk through the main doorway into our historic Old Building as a matter of routine on a daily basis and yet rarely, if ever, do we pause to acknowledge the coat of arms just above us. The brooding presence of a lion is a traditional motif which is associated with so much of our culture and our history.

There are, allegedly, at least 10,000 images of lions in London alone: from the Landseer Lions, the four enormous bronze cats that surround Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square, to the proud lions adorning the north entrance to the British Museum, to the regal lions on the main gate of Buckingham Palace and the nearby Queen Victoria Memorial. Lions are part of British life, part of British history, part of British popular culture. In fact, lions go back even further to the world of myth and legend: the first labour of Heracles was to slay the Nemean lion; Aesop told the fable of the lion and the mouse; and Androcles won a lion’s friendship by removing a thorn from his paw. Literature and fiction provide a more humane, insightful depiction. In the 1939 film Wizard of Oz, the cowardly lion is sweet and vulnerable; in The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis, Aslan represents among other things, kindness, wisdom and generosity. Lions remain part of our sporting culture to this day: “Three lions on our shirt!” sang Baddiel and Skinner in the 1996 football anthem; the British and Irish lions represent the national teams in rugby; and England cricketers wear three lions on their caps, although the less said about England cricket the better, after the chastening defeat against India in the third Test...

Bringing it closer to home, Guildford also has a pro-occupation with big cats as it boasts the White Lion Walk named after The White Lion Inn: one of the first of the town's five large coaching inns which survived until 1956. Even the RGS is not exempt from this preoccupation with the so-called King of the Jungle. As already mentioned, a gilt lion – accompanied by a red dragon – keeps watch over the main entrance to the courtyard of the Old Building on the High Street and the School Hymn from the 1600s, To be a pilgrim by John Bunyan reminds us that “No lion can him fright; He’ll with a giant fight,” in the valiant man’s quest to be a pilgrim.

And so what do our RGS lion references mean for our students and our community in the 21st century? Is it simply an outdated heraldic depiction of royalty and kingship or does it have more relevance and resonance? Traditionally in mythology, in culture, in folklore, the lion represents courage, justice, power, strength, wisdom, pride, honour, family and dignity: this could almost be an overview of our current School Values. And this spirit is what, I hope, the lion keeping watch over the Old Building symbolises.

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No lion can him fright; He’ll with a giant fight.

For me, the presence of lions all around us is a constant reminder of how we should conduct ourselves, how we should approach life, even in – or especially in – the twenty-first century. Stand tall and hold your head up high when times get hard. Conduct yourself with dignity and never give up. Protect what’s important to you. Have courage and have faith. Lead others with a loving heart and compassion. So, next time you are passing into the Old Building, just take a second to pause, look up and reflect upon the significance of our guardian lion!

INCLUSIVITY SCHOLARSHIP INTEGRITY

RESPECT COURAGE COLLABORATION

OUR VALUES

SCHOOL PRIORITIES

2022-2025

Our current RGS school development priorities are Diversity and Inclusion, Collaboration, and Student Experience. These priorities run on a three-year cycle.

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

We have focused on student and staff voice, as well as experienced external providers, to inform our strategy which is currently centred around staff diversity; developing a more inclusive curriculum; and providing additional training and support for staff and students with the aim of making our whole community more tolerant and inclusive.

COLLABORATION

We are focusing on four areas: staff collaboration to develop and improve teaching and learning; sharing best practice between RGS and RGS Prep; co-educational opportunities and links for our students socially and academically; and linking with our international schools to provide students with cultural and academic exchange opportunities.

STUDENT EXPERIENCE

This is an area of continual development; however, our current focuses are on student appearance; the reporting process; academic tracking and reporting; co-curricular participation; literacy; pastoral support; reviewing the Sixth Form curriculum provision; and effective use of student devices and the possibilities that AI offers.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

Sports Fixtures

We very much welcome parental support this term at weekend sports fixtures including football at Bradstone Brook and hockey at Broadwater School. May we politely remind you that at both of these locations, dogs are strictly not allowed.

May we also remind to check our social media platforms prior to leaving home to ensure there have been no cancellations or changes to the published arrangements.

Wednesday 28 February: Third Form Parents’ Evening takes place online.

Tuesday 5 March: Friday timetable. Market Day lunch-time concert at Holy Trinity Church at 1.15pm. All are welcome.

Thursday 7 March: Upper Sixth Form Parents’ Evening takes place in person, in Great Hall.

Friday 8 March: Field Day 3. Details to follow in Tuesday’s e-communications.

LATEST NEWS

MATHEMATICS

97 RGS students participated in the UKMT Senior Mathematical Challenge. In total our students secured 36 Golds, 36 Silvers and 22 Bronzes with five students qualifying for the British Mathematical Olympiad and 31 students for the Andrew Jobbings Senior Kangaroo Freddie Weir and Yuvan Raja both achieved the fantastic accolade of a 100% score. Yuvan Raja qualified for the British Mathematical Olympiad and earned a Distinction. Julian Zou in the Third Form qualified for the Senior Kangaroo: a fantastic achievement at that age.

LAW

Charlie Everitt took part in the Peter Cane Legal Reasoning Prize at Corpus Christi College, Oxford. His work was Highly Commended by the judges, and he has been invited to attend the prestigious Prize Giving Day.

BIOLOGY OLYMPIAD

Our Lower Sixth Form biologists impressed in the challenging national Biology Olympiad competition with over 50% of the cohort being awarded Gold, Silver or Bronze awards, from over 15,000 students across 900 schools. Of particular note, Milo Findji and Jerome Sturridge secured Gold and have been invited to compete for a place on the UK Biology Olympiad team.

CHEMISTRY

The Oxbridge Chemistry Race 2024 was held at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge with schools from all over the country taking part. The RGS team, comprising Alexander Gillan, Tom Postance, Alex Mann, Sam Thevenon and Freddie Weir, achieved an excellent score of 140 and were eighth out of 99 teams.

SPORTS NEWS

FENCING

In the LPJS St Benedict's Foil 2024 at Under 14 level Lucas finished as Bronze medallist in the Boys' Foil; he now rises to third in the England U14 Foil ranking. At team level, the RGS Under 15 teams narrowly beat Charterhouse School 45 – 44 in both foil and epée.

HOCKEY

In various national competitions, RGS teams continue to make excellent progress. In the Independent Schools Hockey Cup Plate our 1st XI beat Eastbourne College 6 – 4; in the National Tier 1 plate our Under 14A won 7 – 1 against Trinity School; while in the Independent Schools Hockey Cup our Under 13A secured victory against Caterham School.

MEET OUR… SPORT STAFF

Mr RC Black Head of Cricket

Mr MF Baggs Teacher of PE

Mr DJ Bartram Head of Hockey

Mr SD Gaynor Assistant Director of Sport

Mr B Dudley Head of Rugby

Mr GDG Cover Director of Sport

Mr JDN Lythgoe Head of Academic PE

Mr BJD Rogers Teacher of PE & Games

Mr I Wilkes Teacher of PE

Mr DON Hitchcox Sports Assistant

Mr LAC Piper Sports Assistant