U PDATE F ROM TH E HE A D S
B L AC K L I V E S M AT T E R Very particular thanks go to those of you who got in contact in connection with the Black Lives Matter campaign. Your feelings were all read and noted carefully. I spoke to you on film about the topic* and wrote to you in June to confirm that the School’s belief that all forms of racism are abhorrent must be borne out in the curriculum that is taught and we are taking this challenge seriously. A special edition of Non Nobis in Feb will focus on how we are working to improve how we live out our belief that no girl at any time should feel she is treated differently because of the colour of her skin. Alice Phillips, Headmistress Contact association@stcatherines.info to request the link.
*
September: Whole School Staff Meeting in Covid Times
2020 will go down as the year which flew past, and yet also dragged its heels like no other. It is the 2nd of November, as we write, and already time for the second Non Nobis of the year. What happened to May to October, we ask ourselves, acutely aware that individual weeks sped by. The mind plays interesting tricks on us all in a crisis and the Covid Pandemic is without doubt a serious crisis to which our global community has had to adapt. Where our last edition focused on the departing Class of 2020, this one celebrates the resilience of our alumnae community, many in the Covid frontline. Covid ‘Alumnae of the Week’ were presented to the School in all the Summer Term’s virtual assemblies and an impressive bunch of St. Cat’s medics stepped forward with their news, always chirpy, occasionally gritty but above all impressively calm and dedicated to their work. Some graduated one day and were in hospitals working the next. Other members of our community supported their efforts in other practical ways, too, as you will read below. Senior girls baked, sang or packed meals for the cause; Prep School girls reported supporting elderly neighbours and learning to sew face masks. They all made us so proud. In school we also saw resilience and flexibility as the Summer Term was completely reworked online for everyone in our community from aged 4 – 70 initially. After Half Term the Prep. School reopened for certain year groups while the Seniors remained at home, in many time zones, sticking to their studies and finding their own ways of coping with the inevitable constraints dictated by ‘The Lockdown’. The Summer Holidays brought the public examinations challenges: Centre Assessed A Level/ GCSE Grades, then ‘the Algorithm’ and then the reinstatement of the CAGs. Bumpy times to say the least. Nonetheless, university outcomes were outstanding. And after that we were headlong into preparing the Senior School site to match the Prep. School with all the Covid safety features: outdoor sinks, sanitising stations, the removal of lockers and any textbooks, the devising of the ‘Bubble’ buildings for different year groups, signage, hybrid classrooms equipped for lessons ‘in the room and on Zoom’ where necessary. September. It was wonderful to be back, but we have not been Covid free by any means. No one has been dangerously unwell as yet, but we do not drop our guard. The rules imposed by Public Health England have at times infuriated or disappointed those sent into precautionary isolation periods. However, the heroes of the term are without doubt the staff, key workers, every one of them, in all areas of School life. We are proud to lead such a dedicated team of people whose sole focus is on keeping the St. Cat’s ethos, spirit and education going, whatever it takes. Finally, thank you to the Association Community for being out there willing us on and for helping us celebrate our 135th Birthday in September. We continue to make history at St. Catherine’s, albeit in ways unforeseen by our founders. LUGO… Alice Phillips and Naomi Bartholomew – Headmistresses
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D I A RY DAT E S *
We regret that due to the current Covid-19 situation, our sporting fixtures, concerts, exhibitions & plays have had to be postponed until 2021. The dates below are TBC and while we are optimistic, we cannot say with certainty what will happen in 2021. NOVEMBER 2020 Fri 27 St Catherine’s Day Remember and Celebrate #mystcatsday and send in your photos.
DECEMBER 2020 Thur 10
End of Autumn Term
JANUARY 2021 Wed 6
First Day of Spring Term
FEBRUARY 2021 Wed 10 – Fri 12 19:00 – 22:00 Senior School Production – Chicago * (TBC) Mon 15 – Fri 19 Half Term
MARCH 2021 Thur 11 19:00-21.30 Chamber Music Concert, Auditorium TBC Tue 23 19:30-21:30 A Level Examination Recitals & Leavers’ Recitals Auditorium (TBC) Thur 25 End of Spring Term
APRIL 2021 Wed 21 First Day of Summer Term Fri 23 19:30-22:30 Senior School PTA Quiz Night * Fri 29 19:30-22:00 Senior School Summer Concert, Auditorium Fri 30 Apr Association Battlefields Trip to – Sun 2 May Normandy *
MAY 2021 Fri 28 19:30-22:00 Jazz and Rock Concert * * Contact association@stcatherines.info for more information
ST CATHERINE’S DAY – REMEMBER & CELEBRATE Following on from our successful launch of this initiative last year, to celebrate St Cat’s Day 2020 on 27th November, we want as many alumnae as possible to share photos of themselves taken on the day via Instagram, Facebook or Twitter, wherever you find yourself. You can share a picture of you with other alumnae, or on your own or provide a throwback photo from when you were at School. Get involved in helping us to compile a global snapshot of St Cat’s Day 2020 and join in on the day's festivities. Please tag us in any photos using @stcatsbramley and/or #mystcatsday so we can see all your posts. Ways in which you can send in your photos:
INSTAGRAM @stcatsbramley and #mystcatsday
TWITTER @stcatsbramley
FACEBOOK www.facebook.com/groups/ stcatsalumnae
EMAIL association@stcatherines.info
PROSPECTIVE PARENTS’ EVENTS 2021
END OF TERM LECTURE – Lisa Graham (2005) Following the lecture, there was a Q & A session hosted by the Association Prefects via zoom, and we were thrilled to receive such a range of thought provoking and challenging questions, including the effectiveness of in-situ versus ex-situ conservation. A few girls were lucky enough to contact Lisa following her talk to gain a further insight into the veterinary profession and working alongside wildlife.
Currently happening as Virtual/Online events. For more information go to : www.stcatherines.info/admissions/ open-mornings
SENIOR SCHOOL Wednesday 27th January 2021 Friday 12th March 2021 Tuesday 27th April 2021 Wednesday 16th June 2021 Senior School Registrar – Clare Woodgates 01483 899609 clare.woodgates@stcatherines.info
PREP SCHOOL Friday 5th February 2021 Thursday 11th March 2021 Wednesday 28th April 2021 Friday 11th June 2021 (Reception Entry) Prep School Register – Sally Manhire 01483 899665 sally.manhire@stcatherines.info
On 9th July, we hosted our first virtual end of term lecture via Zoom webinar, and were delighted to welcome Lisa Graham, who currently works as a veterinarian in South Africa. On leaving St Cats, Lisa studied Psychology at Sussex University. It was inspirational to hear about her ‘u-turn’ decision to then follow her passion for Veterinary Science at Nottingham after completing her first degree. I am sure this will have reassured all the students that a change of career path can be beneficial, while any decisions made in life are not set in stone.
Finally, I would highly recommend watching ‘Work on the Wild Side’ on Channel Four which features Lisa and other conservationists’ vital work, helping to make a difference in the world today. Phoebe Smith (U6 Midleton)
After qualifying as a vet, Lisa travelled to Borneo to work with the charity IAPWA (International Aid for the Protection & Welfare Of Animals) and now works in South Africa as part of Ikhala Veterinary Clinic’s wildlife services. In her lecture, she discussed her journey to become a vet and also the variety of roles within her job. For any budding conservationists and vets, Lisa’s involvement in Rhino research and as an ecologist was particularly interesting. Her stance against poaching and advice to follow your dream regardless of the consequences will have undoubtedly motivated everyone who listened, whatever field of work they choose.
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COVID MEDICS
Celebrating our alumnae
Emma Martin (2019) Philippa Webb (Vega) (2009) Radiologist at St George’s Hospital, London I’m doing ultrasound and wearing the trust PPE for a non-aerosol generating procedure. I am not on the frontline ICU units but as a radiologist I am still working with patients who have Covid-19 for scans etc.
I have been working for a year at the Royal Surrey Hospital as a Healthcare Assistant in A&E and EAU before going to read Medicine at Glasgow University. Since these departments turned into a High Dependency Unit for Covid patients, it was really good experience for all of us. I had to learn loads of new skills so although challenging, it was also very interesting. The environment at the Royal Surrey is so good. Everyone seems to come together and support each other as it is a challenge for all of us. We have also had so much support and loads of donations from local companies, schools and the public which is amazing.
Lucy Olsen (2012) I am a first-year doctor at Kingston Hospital, working on the Covid-19 wards. The hospital prepared very well, and we were all put on an emergency rolling rota of 13 hour shifts to ensure staffing levels were adequate. It’s been really tough but the support from the wider community has been absolutely overwhelming!
Rebecca Ashworth (2015) I am in my first year as a Graduate Entry Medical Student in Oxford. When we were sent home from uni for the lockdown, I took up my old job in Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham, where I worked last year as a Healthcare Assistant. I was working on one of 3 designated Covid wards in the hospital. The workload was harder than normal but due to all of the extra staff it was manageable. Yet, the emotional toll definitely played a part as we lost more patients in the first 2 weeks of April than my ward had lost the entire previous year. It was made harder by our patients being totally alone. After 3 weeks of mixing shifts and revision for my impending (virtual) mock exams I became ill with the virus. Since then I haven’t been back to the hospital as I had my 2 weeks isolation followed by mock exams and virtual term starting up again at Oxford.
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Becky Geffen (2008) I am working at Chelsea & Westminster hospital as a foundation year doctor on the Covid elderly care ward. I was brought back in from a community hospice job along with hundreds of other doctors in psych, GP surgeries and research posts. They also redeployed all of the surgeons to ITU so although they were triple capacity, and they had the staff to cope.
Annabel Yip (2014) It has been a very intensive start to my job as a trainee doctor. I graduated over Zoom and got drafted into work a few months early. I am working at the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth and was initially on a Geriatrics Covid ward for 2 months at the height of lockdown. Since August I have been working in a gastroenterology ward.’
on the front line
Morgan Roberts (2020) Octavia Lord (2004) Octavia is a Paediatric Intensive Care Nurse who reported: I’ve been working in Adult Intensive Therapy and A&E. My neighbour’s children made me these scrubs!
Morgan joined the huge army of volunteers at a WW2 hangar at Bicester Motion, (a former RAF base), packing meals to feed NHS workers. More than a thousand helpers worked for over 3 months to send meals to hospitals across the country. The first delivery went to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford at the beginning of April, and since then the scheme has supplied over a million meals to 49 hospitals during lockdown.
Morgan met the Countess of Wessex when she visited the team and told us: I have really enjoyed volunteering these last 3 months and have made really strong friendships. Morgan subsequently won the coveted HRH Duchess of Cornwall’s Patron’s Award at the virtual Speech Day. She has now started her first term reading Classics at Cambridge.
Naomi Joshua (2014) Naomi graduated from UCL Medical School in April. Her graduation ceremony was cancelled, as was her overseas elective to Cape Town, South Africa. Instead, within 10 days of graduating, she started on a geriatric Covid-19 Ward at the Whittington Hospital.
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LOCKDOWN LUGO
Janet Davies (Former Staff) I have been part of the Godalming Bramley and Chiddingfold "Scrubs" group under the wing of Godalming Rotary Club making nurses scrubs, hats and bags for local hospitals, hospices, care homes and surgeries. I have mainly made hats and bags. Now I am making washable face masks for those who need non-surgical face coverings. I also answered a request from the ambulance service for pairs of hearts to be given to patients being taken to hospital. One to the patient. and one to their next of kin.
Alex Crouch (2010) Whilst Alex was furloughed, she volunteered for The Passage, a charity which ‘encourages, inspires and challenges homeless people to transform their lives’. Alex helped the newly formed Food Hub to prepare 3 meals a day for over 300 homeless people who are housed in emergency hostels during the pandemic.
Mary Tyler (2011) When Mary left St Cats in 2011, she read Music at Oxford, followed by a Masters in Performance from the Royal Academy of Music. Now based in London, Mary is working as a professional clarinettist, having performed with the Royal Northern Sinfonia, the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House and the Brandenburg Sinfonia, and she is also the founding member of the Cavendish Winds. Mary is passionate about community music- she regularly performs in care homes and works in musical projects for people living with dementia. During lockdown she continued to give online concerts for care homes and made tailor-made concerts on request.
THE QUARAN - QUEENS
Aiym Almas (2008) Aiym came to St Cats from Kazakhstan for the Sixth Form in 2006. I graduated from LSE in the summer of 2011 but then ventured into a career in music which has brought me to Los Angeles, where I’ve been living for the past 6 years. Aiym released her first single in 2015, and the following year joined a newly formed all-female hard rock group called Dorja as lead singer. In April 2020 Aiym was the vocalist on a Tribute To NHS Heroes, singing ‘You Must Love Me’ from Evita. Follow this link to view the video on YouTube www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-Xg7jel8Ps
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Thank you to all those who listened in to the eight ‘On The Lockdown’ podcasts from the Quaranqueens. (Alice Chapman, Larissa Gaunt & Oge Elumelu 2019). They reached over 1,000 listens in 15 countries which is testament to the St Cat’s spirit around the world. Thanks also go to Laura White, member of staff, who inspired them to dip their toes in the podcasting water. They never looked back!
Laura Hirons (Current Staff – School Photographer) School Photographer, Laura Hirons, used her photographic skills to raise money for her chosen charity Shooting Star Chase Children’s Hospice, which supports children with life limiting conditions across Surrey and London. Laura offered to take ‘lockdown pictures’ for families to send to friends and relatives where they haven’t been able to see each other in a long time. She raised an amazing £1,941.
Emily Revess (2010) Emily wrote to us: I’ve been working as part of the Cabinet Office Covid-19 response hub for the past four months, looking particularly at business support and reopening the economy. From a personal perspective, I feel very privileged to be able to contribute in my own small way and it is heartening to see government, business and civil society working together to contribute to the restart, recovery and renewal of our country. I think there is a great opportunity to use our collective passion and resources to harness this community energy and spirit to accelerate economic growth, financial resilience and a society that works for all. In the last year, I have sought ways to continue to give back and support issues and organisations I care about at a more strategic level as I progress in my career. I became a Trustee of the Multiple Sclerosis Society in December 2019 which I’m really enjoying, although as the youngest member of the Board by far, I feel that I am often asked to represent the views of the entire UK population under 40!
Sarah Small (Current Staff) and Ginny Small (2019) Ginny and I have been part of the national effort making scrubs and scrub bags for the NHS. I have been making scrub sets and Ginny has been making the bags in which they are transported and laundered! The bags are used to ensure that medical staff can transport their scrubs to and from the hospital safely to launder at home. We initially began by using all the old duvets we could find but then began to receive wonderful donations from John Lewis
and other fabric retailers. Most recently we have been purchasing material funded by the incredible efforts of 11-year-old Noah Evans (son of Chris Evans) who raised £100,000 by sleeping in a homemade den in his garden for 28 days! To date our group has made over 5,000 sets of scrubs which have been requested by hospitals and health settings from Guys in London to midwifery units in Haslemere.
Alastair White (Current Staff – Head of Design & Technology) Alastair White came in to School during lockdown to manufacture PPE visors for local health services. These were very warmly received, and we were even sent a picture from a grateful anaesthetist at our local hospital in Guildford wearing one. ‘The generosity of local schools,’ he said, ‘has meant no shortage of visors at the Royal Surrey County Hospital’. He was also helped on the assembly line and delivery by his son Tom, and Imogen Haywood (2019). Not to be left out, Mrs Amanda White (Ashcombe Housemistress & Geography Teacher) and daughter Rebecca were busy making miniature knitted hearts to give to Covid-19 patients who could not see their loved ones.
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Happy 135th Birthday, St Catherine’s! The School opened on 25th September, 135 years ago, with just 17 pupils: 11 Boarders & 6 Day Girls. Thank you to everyone in our global community who joined our Great Cake Bake challenge to celebrate our virtual Foundation Day and sent in their photos to be displayed. We were overwhelmed by all the baking you did! Thank you for all your pics from Singapore, Australia, NZ, and USA, from current and former pupils, staff and parents, from both the Prep & Senior School, as well as from some of our Bramley friends and neighbours. You have shown the true St Cat’s spirit and we are very grateful for all the lovely messages we have received from all Association members! Dawn was thrilled that we easily met and overtook her target of 135 cakes for the 135th birthday.
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HERBIES HELPING HAND
Jess MacDonald (Vyvyan-Robinson) (2008) We were delighted to hear from Jess during lockdown. She wrote… After leaving St Cats I read Classics at King’s College London, spending one year out at the University of North Carolina. I currently live in South Africa, where I work as a travel writer. As I’m sure you can imagine, the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic have been particularly
pronounced in South Africa, where existing issues including poverty, corruption, unemployment, and homelessness have all been exacerbated by close to five months of national lockdown. In response, I have started a small project to help those most affected in our local area. Each week, my daughter and I provide coffee, sandwiches and a hot meal to the homeless in our neighbourhood. We are also employing three women from the city’s
most disadvantaged communities to knit warm clothes for the homeless. In addition, we are donating wool to a knitting therapy group at our local frail care home, which the ladies there will use to make hats and bed socks for child cancer patients and their families. You can read the full story here: www.justgiving. com/crowdfunding/herbies-helping-hand
BBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT SOUTH AMERICA
Katy Watson (1999) Katy Watson came back to St Cats in 2018 as our summer End of Term Lecturer. Since starting her career with the BBC, Katy has worked in the Middle East, Washington and has been based in South America since 2014. At the time she had told us how she is one of the few female correspondents with a family, so it was great to
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hear from her again during lockdown, continuing to work on fascinating stories on Covid-19 in South America as well as the devastating fires in the Amazon, but to also to see photos of her ‘working from home’. We particularly love the picture of Katy broadcasting on the balcony of her home with the children inside!
NEW HORIZONS & BRIGHT FUTURES From the Director of Development Throughout the past months we have been watching with anticipation as a new feature of the St Catherine’s skyline emerges. Behind the familiar red brick of School Block and situated next to the newly revealed Neo-Gothic facade of the Warren, our new home for the Sixth Form, The 6, is being revealed. With the scaffolding down, we can almost hear the hub-bub of girls coming and going from lessons; the pop of the toaster and the clink of mugs being filled with hot chocolate; the “Goodbyes” as day girls head
home for the afternoon, leaving their boarding friends to settle down to work in the comfort of their rooms. The 6 has been built with close attention to the needs of teenaged girls … we’ve met a few! The comfortable Common Room, where all Sixth Form girls will be able to gather and chat, will provide a flavour of the collegiate atmosphere of university. Stylish yet practical double rooms will give quiet places for boarders to study, while
during school Sixth Formers can all work in The Speech Hall Library which was refurbished in 2014. Plenty of hot showers in The 6 will allow for the morning rush to get ready or to freshen up after a hard-won match on the Lax pitch or Netball court. We look forward to seeing you when you next visit and would be delighted to show you around the St Catherine’s campus.
PIETRA MELLO-PIT TMAN (2001) SISTERS GRIMM THEATRE COMPANY INSPIRING YOUNG PEOPLE
ECONOMIC VALUE & EMPLOYMENT
career workshops r un across the globe
HIGHLIGHTING SOCIAL ISSUES
SUPPORTING LOCAL ECONOMIES *at each global locale
Throughout our history we have provided academic excellence for families with very restricted means by giving bursaries to talented young women who would not otherwise have been able to experience all that a St Catherine’s education offers. As a new generation of girls look forward to becoming the first occupants of The 6 and to taking their next steps towards independence, we thought you would like to hear the story of one of our alumnae, herself a beneficiary of The Bursary Programme. Pietra Mello-Pittman moved from Rio de Janeiro aged five and joined St Catherine’s Prep School. After moving across the road to the
Senior School she was recruited by The Royal Ballet School in 1999 where she completed her A levels. Pietra graduated to the Company in 2002 and was promoted to First Artist in 2008. Not content with this remarkable achievement, Pietra has gone on to co-found the production company Sisters Grimm with the goal of creating cross-cultural collaborations in art, music and dance. As well as performing to sellout audiences worldwide, Sisters Grimm have a clear corporate mission to ensure the widest possible audience for their productions and to inspire and empower young people.
Pietra’s belief in young people, her efforts to open their eyes to creative opportunities and her determination to encourage young talent runs through all that she does. At St Catherine’s we are committed to The Bursary Programme and are proud to watch the ripple effect that it creates. If you would like to learn more about how you can support The Bursary Programme at St Catherine’s please do call Pippa Carte on 01483 899754 or e-mail pippa.carte@stcatherines.info
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Non Nobis Domine! Not unto us, O Lord, The praise or glory be... The opening of the school hymn
RUDYARD KIPLING
KATHLEEN MENAUL (MACKIE) (1980) We were delighted to receive this photo from Kathleen.
CLARE BERGIN (2015) & LUCY BERGIN (2020) Lucy and her sister Clare supported the charity ‘Beat’, which supports people affected by eating disorders. They recently designed and sold organic cotton t-shirts, the profits
LAUREN BEAVIS (2018)
‘My 1974 School blazer continues to provide sterling service – Let Us Go On!’
Some of you may remember Lauren Beavis, a St Cat’s Lifer PP1 – U6 and Ashcombe House Captain. Lauren is at Bristol University studying Liberal Arts. She has set up a good news YouTube channel on positive climate change initiatives, called Rising Earth News. They are committed to sharing the stories of individuals, communities and businesses that
of which went to the charity. Thank you to all the St Cats community who supported the charity by buying a T-shirt!
are paving the way to a sustainable future. Lauren said ‘Rising Earth wants to create a community of people from all across the world who are initiating the solutions to tackle climate change. We want to raise awareness that the climate movement is not a movement of disparity: climate change is beyond borders and is something that will affect everyone. It will require action from every individual, business, corporation and government from around the world, and that’s exactly what we want to do at Rising Earth. Our aim is bring together these currently disjointed communities to collaborate.’
Follow this link to see Lauren in action. https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=xWxvc1M_InA&feature=youtu.be
DR JENNIFER BATE OBE St Catherine’s reports the very sad loss of Dr Jennifer Bate OBE, patron of our Organ Scholarship and Academy for 16 years, who lost her battle with cancer on 25th March 2020. A world-renowned concert organist and in particular a leading expert on the organ works of Olivier Messiaen, Jennifer’s remarkable career as an international recitalist spanned over 50 years, during which time she also made a number of recordings including the complete works of Messiaen, Franck and Mendelssohn. She was very proud of her association with St Catherine’s and was a dear friend to us. Always generous with her time, she gave so much encouragement to young women organists: her legacy lives on in them. We hope that there will be a concert to celebrate her life and achievements as soon as this is possible and the School looks forward to playing a part in that to commemorate a wonderful, talented woman who was an inspiration to us all.
BEING IN CONTROL OF YOUR DATA AND OUR FUNDRAISING PROMISE We take your personal privacy seriously. We have a Confidentiality and Data Privacy Policy that is available on the St Catherine’s School website under ‘School Policies’. Communications we send might include publications, surveys, appeals and event marketing and may be sent by post, telephone or email. We will never release your details to any third parties for their use for marketing purposes. We are committed to high standards of fundraising, being open and honest, respectful of you and accountable for the support you give us. We adhere to the Institute of Fundraising Codes of Best Practice and as a charity are registered with the Fundraising Regulator. Our Fundraising Promise and Vulnerable Adults commitments are on the Development section of the website. If at any time you would like to change your preferences, please call Dawn Pilkington on 01483 899692 or email association@stcatherines.info Thank you.
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