Larkhall News November 2013 by St Mark's School Bath

Produced by the students and staff of St Mark’s Church of England School

The

LARKHALLNews Issue 24 November 2013

SurprisingSteam Swainswick Primary School’s Roving Reporters at STEAM in Swindon

WIN! Tickets for the egg this Christmas

Festive Fun in Larkhall A guide to shopping and entertainment on your doorstep

St Mark’s & The Valley Schools report on life in Larkhall

such we will be making further changes to our magazine in the coming months to enable this to happen.

In our last issue we said a fond farewell to two long-serving members of the editorial team at St Mark’s and I am delighted that in this issue we welcome an incredible TWENTY new reporters to our team! I would like to thank them for their hard work and energy in helping to make this Larkhall News such a fabulous publication.

From February, we will no longer be delivering The Larkhall News door-todoor, but rather will be distributing amongst our Valley School partners and local venues and shops in and around our community. If, for whatever reason, you would like to continue to have a copy delivered, please let us know and we will put you on our direct mailing list.

I would also like to give a special mention to Stella Pakeman, our wonderful teacher of English at St Mark’s School. With her help, we have our new reporting team and an abundance of fascinating and informative articles for your reading pleasure.

We owe a great deal of thanks to all of the members of our community who have, over the past six years, freely given of their time and energy to assist with the delivery of our magazine to your homes, in all winds and weathers, and hope that they enjoy the well-earned rest! Wishing you all a wonderful winter.

Our magazine is very special to St Mark’s School, not least because it represents such a wonderfully supportive and vibrant community. It is our goal to reach more homes and more readers than ever before and as

(Opposite St Saviour’s Church)

Paula Paula Hawkins - Editor T: 01225 312661 E: hawkinsp@st-marks.bathnes.sch.uk

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St Mark’s and The Valley Schools

News from St Mark’s and the Valley Schools

Cover Story - Surprising Steam

Pupils from Swainswick delve back in time to the beauty of steam

Larkhall Brownies

St Stephen’s Brownies celebrate the 51st Brownie Pack

‘Tis the season to be jolly

Find out what’s on in Larkhall over the festive season

Traditional crafts and skills

Students from St Mark’s visit Ironart in Larkhall as they embark on a mammoth collaborative project

Marque in The Park

Bryan Chalker and an extravaganza of historic cars

WIN!

A family ticket to see Moominland Midwinter at the egg this Christmas Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in articles are strictly those of the authors. The publisher does not accept responsibility for any inaccuracies or errors in content. Whilst every reasonable care is taken with all material submitted, the publisher cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage. For advertising enquiries contact us on 01225 312661 Published by St Mark’s School Editor: Paula Hawkins, St Mark’s School, Bay Tree Road, Larkhall, Bath, BA1 6ND Tel: 01225 312661 Email: hawkinsp@st-marks.bathnes.sch.uk The Larkhall News is available online at: www.st-marks.bathnes.sch.uk

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Welcome from St Mark’s

By Head of School, Chris Ryan

Welcome again from all at St Mark’s School. In June we undertook a survey of parents with children at our local Valley Schools: St Saviour’s (juniors), St Stephen’s and Swainswick.We wanted to find out what parents knew of life at the school and from our results it became clear that much of what we do at St Mark’s is not known by our local community, and so I would like to take this opportunity to address a few of the issues raised by our survey. Q. Are the facilities at St Mark’s of a high quality? Yes.We are very fortunate to have excellent modern facilities. Our Science labs have been upgraded with dedicated Biology (which is currently home to 3 snakes, a hamster and numerous fish), Chemistry and Physics laboratories. In Technology, we are fortunate to have three wellappointed rooms comprising of an excellent workshop, including the most up-to-date CADCAM equipment, a Textiles room with brand new, state-of-the-art sewing machines. We also have a Food Suite with new cookers that are well used by our students and Norland College, two days a week, training nannies in culinary skills.

We are also fortunate to have a dedicated Business Suite for which we have just upgraded the computers and, in addition, we have three other IT rooms, so our students are very well resourced in this area. Our all-weather Astroturf pitch is very well used by our students and for fixtures with local schools as well as by pupils from the Valley Schools. For example, you may have recently read an article in the Bath Chronicle regarding the Primaries Friendly Football Festival.The pitch is also regularly used throughout the season, under floodlights by a number of local teams. We are indebted to Avon Rugby Club who are letting us use their rugby pitches at their grounds in Batheaston. The club recently hosted a Touch Rugby event involving our Year 7 students playing against Year 6 team from St Saviour’s. This is just a taste of the facilities on offer at St Mark’s School. If you want to see for yourself please do phone the school to book a tour or, even better, why not come along to our Christmas Shopping Evening on the 22nd November and perhaps we can chat over a glass of mulled cider!

Lear ning to Lead Written by Nancy Dowman Member of the Learning to Lead’s Radio Team St Mark’s School has recently decided to take part in the nationally recognised program known as ‘Learning to Lead’. In this new program students can form groups to help change their school in ways of their choice. This program will allow students to get involved in their school and in the wider community, and to give students their own voice. St Mark’s currently has six groups including a radio team, a milkshake team and an interior decor team. All students can participate; they just have to self-elect themselves for the team that they wish to be in. All members of the team collectively work together without a leader to create new ideas. Some teams, who already have the correct materials, have put themselves into action whereas other more ambitious ones are working towards their goal for a while yet. As a member of the radio team, I think that the fact that there are no bounds to what can and can’t be done, and all that matters is how much effort is put in, is the best thing about this project. My team wants to build a school radio to benefit the students at St Mark’s. Stella Pakeman, the member of staff in charge of Learning to Lead, said that “there is a lot of potential,” and that “it could make profound changes to the school”. When asked what she thought the most important thing about Learning to Lead was she replied “that the students get experience of real life, in making things happen by themselves which is a vital life skill.” She hopes that this project will “give students confidence, in themselves and their talents, which will carry on into the classroom and into the student’s academic life.” Learning to Lead has been implemented in St Mark’s in order to give the students a sense of freedom and responsibility in their school. I hope that it will make St Mark’s a better place with the students that are prepared to take action leading the way.

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St Mark’s students have once again seen a significant increase in success at GCSE this summer against a national picture of a slight fall in standards. This summer 58% of students achieved 5 or more good grades (A*-C) including Maths and English: their best ever results. Head of School, Chris Ryan, comments: “We are especially pleased by the levels of progress made by our students in both Maths and English, which were among some of the best across all B&NES schools.”

“We are absolutely delighted with the excellent results of our students and the 58% headline figure represents an increase of 20 percentage points in the last three years.” “These latest results coupled with our ‘Good’ Ofsted inspection in June 2013 and the opening of our new joint sixth form, The New Sixth, point to a great future for St Mark’s School.” Notable individual achievements include:

result as well as 14.5 A*-C GCSE grades of which 12.5 were A*-A. Jenny’s outstanding set of results included A* grades in Maths, Computing, Product Design, French, Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Textiles. Ben Partridge (Head Student): 13.5 A*-C GCSE grades of which 9 were A*-A grades, including A* grades in Computing (3) and Product Design and A grades in Geography, Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Maths.

Jenny Chambers (Head Student): AS Level Maths – A grade, taken a year early and represents an outstanding

The Larkhall News is produced by...

StMark’s School

St Mark’s Students achieve outstanding individual results at GCSE

Business events at St Mark’s in 2014 St Mark’s Church of England School is working to bring businesses and community organisations in our area together providing new and exciting opportunities for young people. Academic excellence is essential for all young people, but we understand that employers need more than this. In an increasingly competitive market young people entering the world of work need to shine and they need the skills and experience to set them apart.

The new editorial team at The Larkhall News. Back: Amy James, Nancy Dowman and Corey Bayliss Front: Elizabeth Norman,Toby Whitehead, Sam Evans, Miguel Roe and Joe Alvis Pearson The Larkhall News has been established at St Mark’s School for six years and in that time has been assisted by a number of student reporters, journalists and photographers. As the school continues to develop the magazine as a unique enterprise for the community of Larkhall, we are pleased to introduce our amazing new editorial team who will not only be producing their own articles for inclusion, but also working with the pupils at St Saviour’s Infants and Juniors, Swainswick and St Stephen’s to develop future generations of editorial teams. Our editorial team is supported by Editor, Paula Hawkins, and Teacher of English and Head of Learning to Lead, Stella Pakeman.

Our business breakfasts will provide the basis from which we hope to further develop mutually beneficial partnerships with our local business community so that our young people become principled, loyal and confident employees and employers of the future. There will be an opportunity to meet our GCSE and A Level Business Studies students and learn from them their ideas on how business and education can work together. For more information, book a place or to simply register your interest, please contact Paula Hawkins at St Mark’s School on 01225 312661. Future events for your diary: January 2014 St Mark’s School, Bath February 2014 The New Sixth, Bath April 2014 The New Sixth, Bath June 2014 St Mark’s School, Bath

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Swainswick

RovingReporters SurprisingSteam

Primary

Do you remember going on a school trip when you were 10? If yes, read on and find out about the amazing world of STEAM. In September the children in Oak Class ( Years 5/6 ) at Swainswick C.E. Primary School visited the famous STEAM Museum in Swindon, but with a twist of imagination they were evacuated to 1940s Britain. They set off dressed as children from World War Two (WW2), and were met from the train by the Billeting Officer, who, together with the village policeman, vicar, and lady of the manor, tried to work out where all the children could stay. At STEAM we participated in lots of activities including viewing the fastest train of its time from underneath, looking at WW2 toys and acting out a WW2 themed play. “It was very creative and is worth paying for. My favourite part of the day was trying on a replica of a real gas mask. On a scale of 1-10 it would be 7. Overall the whole class rated STEAM 9/10. Everyone thought that the trip was very exciting and we recommend it to anyone. The Swainswick Primary editorial team are: Finlay Wade, Rex Neilson, Zac Douglas and Joe Gould.

I really love cooking. I make cakes and biscuits with my Mum.We make very tasty brownies together! I like cracking the eggs best. I help mix everything together with a wooden spoon. I find it easy to do. My favourite thing to make is biscuits because I enjoy rolling out the mixture. I have lots of cutters so I can make different shapes like hearts and stars. I then cover them in icing when they are cooked. I think pink and white ones look lovely. It’s a good idea to learn to cook because when I am older I will know how to make healthy meals for my family. Cooking is great fun!

Saviour’s Nursery & Infant School

CookingbyIsabelle

FootballbySonny

On Wednesdays I go to football club after school.We play at St Mark’s School. I really enjoy going because I learn skills like tackling and dribbling.We split into groups and take turns to practise with the ball. I love going to Club because I get to play with my friends. I think I am good at playing football and I have been practising since I was about 3. I play on the field behind my house with my friend Mason. Sometimes I play with my Dad but he is not very good so I always get more goals than him. My favourite team is Arsenal – they are awesome! It would be great to play for them when I’m grown up.

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Primary School

51stBrowniePack Larkhall Brownie leader, Blue, has been leading 51st Victoria Hall Brownie pack for the last 10 years. Before that, she was a Brownie herself! Matilda Zanelli from St Stephen’s School is a member of this Brownie pack, and talked to Blue to find out some of the exciting events she has planned for this term. Activities: There are always lots of exciting new games to play at Brownies. Matilda and her friends get lots of inspiration from these games and often play them on the school playground too. Making crafts is a big part of Brownie meetings. Matilda’s particular favourite craft activity has been creating a collage on canvas, using a photograph of themselves and words to describe their different talents. Badges: The Brownies work towards different badges throughout their meetings. So far they have earned badges such as Fire Safety, Craft and an Upside Down Back-to-Front challenge! This term they will be aiming for the Jigsaw badge as well as the Big Brownie Birthday Challenge. There are many, many badges for the Brownies to collect throughout the year. Trips: This winter the Brownies will be going to the Pantomime, Peter Pan, at the Theatre Royal.They will also be having an exciting trip to Star Quest where they will take

St Stephen’s

RovingReporters

part in a fantastic range of craft and physical activities to keep them busy. In the summer, they always go on a pack holiday, which is Blue’s favourite trip! Nativity: Each Christmas the Brownies put on a Nativity play. This year they will be performing at the Community Tea Party event at the United Reformed Church on 15th December. 51st Victoria Hall Brownie pack meet at Victoria Hall in Larkhall on Tuesday evenings.

Year3ChristmasPlay Wilf, now in Year 4, said, “I was a wise man last year and really enjoyed it.” Becky said, “I was Angel Gabriel and the rehearsals went well.”

If your child is 3 years old by 31/8/14 and you would like to apply for a Nursery place at St Saviours Infant School for September 2014, please contact the school on 01225 313928 for an application pack. Closing date for applications is 1st March 2014. If your child is 4 years old by 31/8/14 and you would like to apply for a Reception place for September 2014, please contact BANES Admissions and Transport on www.bathnes.gov.uk or 01225 394312. Closing date for applications is 15th January 2014.

All of the Year 3s work hard on the Nativity and all of them enjoy it. “I was a wise man and I enjoyed it,” said Finley. They try to make up a new story every year. The Year 3 teachers both have had a favourite nativity. Miss Drake’s favourite was ‘There’s only one King’ and Mrs Simpkins’ favourite was ‘Jesus’ Christmas Party’. Everyone is looking forward to this year’s play! By Emma Mousley and Leon Bird

Junior School

We also interviewed the Year 3 teachers, Miss Drake and Mrs Simpkins. The Year 3 teachers said they always enjoy organising the Nativity. They said, “The Christmas play is always funny and enjoyable. Sometimes they forget to put the toy baby in the manger!”

St Saviour’s

In a couple of months time Year 3 will be performing their annual Christmas play to parents.

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ChristmasFair

Junior School

St Saviour’s

RovingReporters

St. Saviour’s Junior School is running a Christmas Fair for family and friends. The fair is on Friday the 6th of December from 3:30 to 5:30 in the main hall. It will have lots of fun and games including: Guess the Lego, the Wonka Bar Challenge and Hit the Cans with the Nerf Gun. The fair will also have food stalls where you can buy delicious cookies and cakes. The hot food and drink will be served in the canteen. There will be more events like the Tombola and, hopefully, a big raffle!

The St Saviour’s Juniors reporting team is Nina Harvey and Billy Collis

We talked to a member of our school’s PTA and she said,“The money that we will raise will be going to new playground equipment after the new building work on the school has finished.” So please come to St. Saviour’s’ exciting Christmas Fair!

Tis the season to be jolly kk in larkhall Events Christmas Fairs With the Christmas season upon us, Amy and Lizzie from St Mark’s have put together a list of all festive shopping opportunities, fairs and events available in Larkhall this December:

Friday 22 November – Christmas Shopping Night at St Mark’s School. Take the chore out of Christmas shopping and join us from 6.30-8.30pm in the main school hall. Gifts, hampers, mulled wine and cider, local traders, jewellery and hand made crafts. Sunday 24 November – Craft Fayre, Gill Silverside and Larkhall FC at New Oriel Hall, 11am - 3pm Friday 29 November – Christmas Clothes Sale, New Oriel Hall. Fantastic stalls full of wonderful good quality second hand clothes, little black dresses, coats, boots, accessories, plus great selection of kids clothes too. If you would like to sell call Sarah on 07511 523 176. Saturday 30 November – St Saviour’s Church Christmas Fair, 10am-3pm Saturday 30 November - Alice Park Community Gardens Winter Fair at New Oriel Hall. Great event for the whole family, workshops, talks and refreshments. Saturday 30 November – St Stephen’s Primary Christmas Fair, 12-3pm Friday 6 December – St Saviour’s Junior School Christmas Fair from 3.30-5.30pm (see above for more details) Saturday 7 December - Swainswick Christmas Fayre from 11am - 2pm at New Oriel Hall. There is a café and cake stall, Christmas craft stalls, presents to buy, games to play and Father Christmas. All are welcome.

kk Entertainment Fa La La La LaA, La La La La!

Friday 6 December Christmas Community Party at St Mark’s School for local senior citizens, 2-4pm. Sunday 1 December Christmas Decoration Workshop with Sandy Corke, 10am-3pm at New Oriel Hall. Monday 16 December 7pm Carols by Candlelight at St Saviour’s Church. Join St Mark’s School for their annual Christmas celebration 7pm. Wednesday 18 December Over 50s Christmas Lunch with Christmas bumper lottery draw. 1.30-3.30pm 22/23 December (TBC) Hark in the Park at Alice Park Saturday 25 January Mark in the Park at Alice Park

Saturday 23 November - Greek Night at St Saviour’s Church. Eat, drink, dance and smash plates! Wednesday 4 December – Mouthing Off by Grasey Mayes, 8pm at the Rondo Thursday 5 December – My Stepson Stole my Sonic Screwdriver, 8pm at the Rondo Friday 6 December – Christmas Time, 8pm at the Rondo Saturday 7 December – Tales from the Shadows, 8pm at the Rondo Thursday 12 to Saturday 21 December (selected dates and times) – The Bluebird at the Rondo

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Bringing traditional skills and crafts to life at St Mark’s School PICTured: Left: students at Ironar t on their recent visit to help inspire their designs. right: a bespoke piece of metal work being created.

A new collaborative project aimed at bringing young people together with traditional crafts and trades has been launched at St Mark’s School, working alongside local blacksmith, Ironart. The project will see students from Year 9 working to design and create a sculptural piece of art that is due to be unveiled in the summer term. It has been organised by Head of Creative Arts, Denny Lever, and Head of Technology, Zoe Balfre, to introduce students to traditional skills and crafts that they would not otherwise have an opportunity to experience.

“

We are really excited about working with Ironart to create something beautiful and functional for our school.”

The students decided that they would like to create a new set of entrance gates to enhance the lower entrance on Spring Lane in Larkhall. They have been working on their initial concept designs under the theme ‘harmony’. As part of the project, students were invited to visit Ironart and share their ideas with owner, Andy Thearle and his team, along with organisers, Denny and Zoe. “The students really wanted to create something that would be a functional piece of art and something that could be added to in future years. Part of the school’s Learning to Lead initiative is aimed at encouraging students to take responsibility and ownership of their surroundings and this project allows them to really do that whilst

creating a legacy for the future,” said Head of Creative Arts, Denny. Head of Technology, Zoe Balfre added, “The students are taught technology in a classroom so an opportunity and experience like this is an absolute dream! They can gain real, hands-on experience from skilled professionals within half a mile of the school. We are really grateful to Ironart for getting involved in the project and everyone is really excited about working with them to create something very beautiful and very significant for our school.” Owner of Ironart,Andy Thearle, commented, “The Ironart team are really excited about the prospect of working with the Year 9 pupils of St Mark’s school to create a new set of lower gates for the school in Larkhall. We are a long-established Larkhall business with strong links to this vibrant, thriving community.” “The St Mark’s students met with our team of skilled blacksmiths when they visited the workshops recently; now they are tasked with creating a design that will translate well into metal. Metal gates have a huge lifespan if they are well made. This collaborative project will be a positive landmark on the landscape of St Mark’s not just for this generation, but the next and more! We are really looking forward to seeing what they come up with.” In order to fund the project the school, supported by the school’s PTA (St Mark’s School Association, SMSA) will embark on a fundraising

campaign. The estimated cost at this early stage is £10-15K, although this may be less, depending on the final design chosen. Head of School, Chris Ryan, said, “Working with local groups and organisations has always been an integral part of our school’s aim to widen the experiences of our students in preparation for life after school. Our partnership with Ironart is a unique opportunity for our students to be very hands-on, working with traditional craftsmen to create something that will be an architectural piece for our school and community.” “We would love to hear from any individual or organisation who may be able to help us in our efforts to raise the necessary funds to make this project happen and would urge anyone interested in finding out more to get in touch.”

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MARQUE IN THE PARK 100 YEARS OF MOTORING IN BATH WHAT BEGAN AS A SKETCHY IDEA MORE THAN A YEAR AGO AND SUGGESTED BY TONY AND RUSS, OPERATORS OF THE ALICE PARK CAFÉ, GRADUALLY EVOLVED INTO AN EXTRAVAGANZA OF HISTORIC MOTOR CARS ASSEMBLED FOR A MEMORABLE DAY IN THE SUN ON SEPTEMBER 1. It was never going to be easy organising an event of this magnitude with so many initial problems to contend with, such as traffic-flow in Gloucester Road, parking issues, Health & Safety concerns, the sheer number of historic vehicles anticipated and doubts about the weather. Nevertheless, with great co-operation from Bath & North East Somerset Council, the Avon & Somerset Constabulary, Bath West Rotary Club and staff at the All-Organic Café, ‘Marque In The Park’ eventually ran like clockwork, so to speak, and fine weather prevailed throughout the day. The main thrust of ‘100 Years Of Motoring In Bath’ was focused on the Horstman motor car, produced in Bath from 1913 until 1929. Over 1,000 Horstmans were built but there are only nine known survivors and, amazingly, six attended this epic event on Sunday, 1 September. Five were trailered to Alice Park, whilst ‘Katie’, owned by Trevor Turpin, who wrote and edited the excellent ‘The Beauty Of Bath – Horstman: Engineering In A Georgian City’, arrived under her own steam and charmed all who saw this delightful survivor from a Golden Age of motoring. I was privileged to be invited by Trevor Turpin to ride in ‘Katie’ when the Horstman and countless other historic cars paraded through Bath during the late afternoon. As a prelude to ‘Marque In The Park’, the Museum of Bath At Work’ held a finger buffet and drinks reception at the Museum on Saturday, August 31, attended by the Chairman of B&NES, Cllr. Neil Butters, and Mayor of Bath, Cllr. Malcolm Lees and the Mayoress, Mrs. Pat

Lees, Friends of the MOBAW, various members of the Horstmann family and Horstman Defence Systems Limited, who helped to sponsor the ‘Marque In The Park’ celebration.

“

Over 1,000 Horstmans were built but there are only nine known survivors and amazingly, six attended this epic event”

It was significant perhaps that Alice Park was chosen as the venue for this auspicious motoring event, as the park’s founder, Herbert (‘Bertie’) Montgomery MacVicar, was himself something of a car buff and once owned a chauffeur-driven American Buick, which brought HRH Queen Mary to Alice Park on several occasions. In later years Bertie was often seen driving his black and yellow Lanchester around Bath. More than 120 vehicles attended ‘Marque In The Park’ and makes like Riley, Wolseley, Morris, Morgan, Austin, Rover, Sunbeam Talbot, Triumph, Rolls-Royce, Hillman, Ford Anglia, Model-T Ford, Lagonda and Singer gave the public a rare opportunity to savour the best of what Britain produced in its heyday. There was even a 1974 East-German 2-stroke Trabant on display: my very own ‘Hermann The German’, which prompted one onlooker to utter the words, “What a horrible little car”! The Horstman Company itself has come a long way since Gustav Horstmann, a watch and clockmaker from Westphalia (in what is now Germany) emigrated to Britain in 1853 and set up his business premises in Bennett Street near the Assembly Rooms in 1854. To quote from Trevor Turpin’s ‘The Beauty Of Bath Book’, “Gustav quickly established a reputation of being an engineer with meticulous standards and skills and workmanship – in 1865 he submitted a highly accurate micrometer for a national competition – which he won. This was the world’s first screw micrometer (accurate to 10,000th of an inch), and is on display at the Science Museum in London (a reproduction is at the Museum Of Bath At Work)”. To cut a long story short, one of Gustav’s sons, Sidney – the youngest of five – showed an early interest in the

PICTured: Left: Chauffeur, daniel Blackshaw with Herber t ‘Ber tie’ MacVicar’s prewar Buick. right: An early Larkhall motoring memor y George Burden (Builder) at the wheel of his 1912 Morgan runabout in St Saviour’s road

Page 11 engineer by building a single-cylinder engine, threewheeled motor car. In 1903, he helped set up the Bath Garage & Motor Company and three years later set up business on his own as the Horstmann Garage, which then became the Horstmann Car Company. Sidney built his first car chassis in Monmouth Place, Bath. In 1907 Sidney designed and patented a motorcycle gearbox, which was fitted to a Belgian FN motorcycle which had no clutch nor gears. He had the idea of replacing the FN’s prop-shaft with a two-speed gearbox and clutch and this gave Sidney the idea of building a car based on an FN engine and gearbox which would have been dubbed a ‘cyclecar’ at that time.

“

‘Katie’ took pride of place behind the Mayor of Bath’s official limousine to head the parade through the city.”

PICTured: All aboard! Trevor Turpin at the wheel of ‘Katie’ with Br yan Chalker

motor car industry and had devised an automatic gear box for motor vehicles and, believing that this device could be made to work, the other brothers established.The Horstmann Gear Company but Sidney’s invention proved unreliable, so the company launched a new product, an automatic time switch for controlling street lighting. In 1904 the Horstmann Solar Dial clock was patented and it proved to be a big success and the most successful of all the company’s products.

From these initial ideas centred around the Belgian FN’s mechanics, the rudiments of the 8.9hp Horstmann car began to take shape and in 1913, the vehicle, an open twoseater with dickey seat, was launched at that year’s Olympia Motor Show. After the Great War (1914-18), the second ‘n’ was dropped from the car’s name in deference to anti-German feeling and at the 1923 Olympia Motor Show, a Horstman car was displayed on Stand No.6 and Autocar magazine readers were urged to ‘Be Sure You See The Beauty Of Bath’. One hundred years on from the launch of the very first Horstmann car, six of these ‘Beauty Of Bath’ machines appeared at Alice Park and ‘Katie’ took pride of place behind the Mayor of Bath’s official limousine to head the parade through the city: a fitting finale to a wonderful day of nostalgic motoring memories.

By 1900 Sidney Horstmann was learning his trade as an

The column that puts creativity back into cooking with the majority of ingredients sourced from Larkhall shops, gardens or allotments. It’s the time of year for soups and broths and what better way to warm the cockles of hearts than this delicious health-giving recipe. . .

The Larkhall

Village Kitchen

CREAM OF GARLIC & MUSHROOM SOUP

Ingredients: About 25 cloves of garlic 4 cups of button mushrooms, rinsed and halved 3ozs butter 1 teaspoonful fresh thyme 4 tablespoons of flour 2 ⁄3 of a cup of chicken stock 1 ⁄2 pint of milk 1 ⁄3 cup of single cream Salt and pepper to taste

Method: Separate the garlic cloves, blanch them in boiling water for about 1 minute, drain and remove peel. Sweat the mushrooms in butter for 5 minutes, lift out of the pan and keep to one side.

To serve: 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley 2 ozs of button mushrooms, thinly sliced A little Parmesan, finely grated

Remove from the heat, stir in the cream and season to taste.

Add the garlic and thyme to the butter and mushroom juices and gently cook with the lid on for 10 – 15 minutes until the garlic is just tender. Add the flour and cook for several minutes. Increase the heat, add the stock and milk gradually, stirring well, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and simmer for a further minute to heat them through.

Serve sprinkled with chopped parsley and thinly sliced, raw mushrooms. For added zest, sprinkle a little finely grated parmesan cheese over the top.

StMark’s School

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Larkhall Athletic Top League Words by Miguel Roe and Joe Alvis Two St Mark’s students and a St Saviour’s student decided to interview the Acting Manager and a committee member of a club at the heart of our local community, Larkhall Athletic Football Club. Lee Collier, assistant manager, and Clive Burge, a member of the club for an impressive 48 years, sat down with Joe Alvis and Miguel Roe for an enjoyable interview, concerning both the new club house and the team’s recent success in the Tool-station Western Premier League.

How are they doing? Larkhall Athletic have enjoyed a very successful start to the new campaign, having recorded a fair few wins early on; the most notable of which being a 2-0 walk over of Bristol Manor Farm, the league favourites and rivals. The recent absence of manager Wayne Thorne has only encouraged and inspired them onwards to impress their recovering head coach.They’ve also recently constructed new changing rooms after a hefty donation and are looking forward to the future with heads held high. Q: What has impressed you most this season? Lee Collier (LC): ‘The real first team manager was involved in a really serious car accident; he’s been out of action for about ten weeks. So, for me, it’s really how the boys and the team and the club have rallied together. It could have easily gone the other way. It has been beyond our wildest dreams, we’ve turned it around and won 7 out of our first 8 games.’

LARKHALL SPORTS CLUB Charlcombe Lane, Larkhall FULLY EQUIPPED CLUBHOUSE AVAILABLE FOR PRIVATE HIRE AT COMPETITIVE RATES

The absence of first team Licensed for up to 100 guests manager Wayne Thorne Catering and disco facilities available could have had a negative For further information and booking enquiries, please contact: impact on the club, but the team have pulled Clive Burge on 01225 311156 Special discounts to all Club Members together and gelled in order to put together an impressive string of performances. This impressive start has it. Now we’ve had an investment on our new propelled them into the high regions of the changing rooms, to bring it up to regulations table and everyone involved will look to for a higher standard.We’re trying to keep up to the level required of us through improving continue this vein of form. facilities. If we win the Western league, then Q: So, it’s been an impressive start we want to go on to do well in the Southern to the campaign, but what are your league. ambitions for the season? LC: To win the league, that’s what we set out for at the start of the season.We want to get ourselves as high as possible. As a local boy, I’d like to see the success of the club. Q: So how do you intend to achieve that? By bringing in youth players or sticking with the more experienced lads? LC:We’ve got a mixture of young players and old players.Well, experienced players, not old! You know, we try to mix it up a bit. The experienced ones have played at a lot higher level. Clive Burge (CB): We’ve got a super youth section, we’ve got 15 teams ranging from the under 7s all the way up to the under 18s. We’ve got foundations for bringing local youngsters through. Q: So, as a committee member, what’s your long term aim for the club? CB: When I was 18 at the club, we were changing in a wooden shed. We’ve upgraded to a clubhouse, we’ve had four extensions on

Lee Collier went on to talk about how the influx of goals is due to the style in which they played, and that they worked as a squad rather than one player claiming all the glory. More than one player was responsible for their success, and their aim when they played was to go out on the pitch and enjoy themselves and have fun in the game.This approach is proving beneficial for the team, as they find themselves high up the table. He also mentioned the training drills that the team use, saying that they concentrate on much more football than fitness.They like to focus on the shape of the team and the way they play, so they can learn about their roles. Q. If you could compare yourself to one top flight manager, past or present, who would it be? LC. Probably Roberto Martinez; he’s just taken over Everton, who I’m a fan of. I like his attacking style of play, the fear of not making mistakes and let the team play with freedom. But I don’t think we really copy anyone, we play as our own team.

Larkhall Athletic Youth FC Larkhall Athletic Youth Football Club currently has over 200 children playing for its many Youth teams, on both Saturdays and Sundays in the Mid-Wilts and Midsomer Norton Leagues. We have teams from under 6s (school Year 1) right through to under 18s, and its not too late to join! This season we are in particular looking to recruit boys for the u13s (Year 8) and the u9s (Year 4). Managers Tony dennis (07769 945434) and rich Sweet (07966 539771), respectively, would love to hear from you and welcome you along to a training session to

try us out! details of all managers contact details can be found, along with more information about the Club, at www.larkhallathletic.com. Larkhall Athletic also host Soccer AM each Saturday morning at Plain Ham (Charlcombe Lane, BA1 8dJ) where 5-11 year-olds are encouraged to come along, play games, matches and enjoy competitions, with no onging commitment (although we are sure they will want to come back!) Two hours, from 9.30am to 11.30am costs just £5, with no need for parents to stay. James Gray, organiser, can be contacted about Soccer AM on 07776200144.

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“The rFu have been very supportive of our ambitions and through their donation our teams can now compete wearing the latest kits and using first class facilities.”

In a city such as Bath, the sport of Rugby is second nature to many and none more so that the students at St Mark’s School. They have recently seen a dramatic increase in the number of students playing the game, both male and female, as a result of an exciting partnership with their local rugby club and the rFu. The rFu have provided funding to supply new kits to the lower and upper school A Teams as well as coaching for the girls rugby squad. This donation, along with a new collaborative partnership with Avon rugby Club, provides a major boost to youth rugby in the east of Bath. St Mark’s School is located in the vibrant community of Larkhall and plays host to a number of community-based sports clubs who wish to use their all-weather, floodlit pitch facilities. However, when it comes to rugby, the school do not have suitable playing facilities on site. A new partnership with local club, Avon rugby Club, has changed all of that as school teams are now discovering. Julie Swann, rugby development Officer for

the rFu commented, “The local rFu staff identified that the school were not playing a lot of rugby and a local rugby club were aiming to recruit a new age group and so, through building a relationship between school and club, it would greatly improve the playing experience of the boys and girls at both school and club. Working alongside Head of Pe, Steve Leonard at St Mark’s, Matt Sutherland from Avon rFC and Ian Smith from rFu, we were able to establish what the local needs were and then work on bringing all key stakeholders together.” “Sporting teams, both school-based and locally-based have utilised the facilities at St Mark’s well in recent years, but unfortunately they are not suitable for rugby fixtures and this has been disappointing for our school teams,” said Steve Leonard, Head of Pe at St Mark’s School. “We are really pleased that this is no longer an issue for our sports men and women and everyone is really excited to have our own ‘home’ facility.”

The teams have already seen success on the field with a string of victories over local schools as well as collaborative projects with local primary schools to share in the benefits of this development and new community partnership.

StMark’s School

Major boost to rugby youth development in Larkhall

“The equipment will facilitate increased sessions of rugby across the age group, improving the enjoyment of the boys and sustaining activity over the coming years,” said Julie. “We hope to have helped establish a long-standing relationship between the school and club, leading to more players enjoying rugby at school and wanting to join Avon rFC to continue their rugby journey.” Head of School, Chris ryan, commented, “It is through working with the rFu and Avon rFC that St Mark’s are able to offer students unique opportunities that they would never get in a larger institution. We are incredibly grateful to both the rFu and Avon rugby Club for their support and look forward to the partnership developing even further in the coming years.”

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By Corey Bayliss, Toby Whitehead & Sam Evans On the 16th of October, a group of students from the Larkall News went down to the Rondo Theatre in Larkhall to meet with the man in charge, Ian McGlynn. We spent forty five minutes talking to him about his experiences in the field of directing and the history of his association with the Rondo Theatre.

news from

New Oriel Hall

New Oriel Hall is going from strength to strength and Autumn has seen the hall busier than ever. We have some fantastic festive events coming up along with lots of exciting new classes, workshops and initiatives. do take a look at the timetable of events on our website www.neworielhall.org.uk NEW CLASSES Early Bird Workout! At Better Bootcamp in Bath we combine the expertise and benefits of 1-2-1 personal training with the camaraderie and motivation of exercising in a group to achieve your goals. every Tuesday and Thursday 6.45 – 7.30am New Oriel Hall and Monday 9.1510am. Saturday 9.45-10.30am at Alice Park. Only £6 a session. Line Dancing with Polly Ludlow Jones, Footloose Line dancing is a fun and informal way of staying fit and making new friends. The classes will run on Wednesdays from 2-3pm (costs £4 a class) and Mondays 8.309.30pm. Polly is also running a Pilates class on a Wednesday before the line dancing from 1-1.50pm (costs £5 a class). FAB ABS Claire Alison has been running BuggyFit for new Mums in Alice Park and Victoria Park and is now running a class here called Fab Abs, Tuesdays 12.30 -1.30pm. As the name suggests the class is predominately working to strengthen abdominals, reduce waist-size and regain spinal stability. The class is suitable for post-natal women with children of all ages – babies are welcome. Baby Yoga Course with Melissa, Mondays 11.30-12.30pm, starting on 20th January for 6 weeks. enjoy special time with your baby in these sessions which include baby yoga, baby massage and gentle stretches for mum. For more information or to book a place email Melissa on mfhwest@hotmail.com or phone me on 07824612987 ROOM HIRE Parties /Weddings or Corporate Events If you are having a party or wedding do take a look at the ‘virtual tour’ on our website to see the range of rooms available for hire for your special occasion. Affordable, light airy rooms available for hire. Community Library Since opening in May the Community Library has really come into its own. run by a dedicated team of volunteers the library offers a good selection of books for all ages. If you haven’t already popped in do come and take a look.

Ian studied at the University of Warwick and also went to the Mountview Theatre School, before moving to Bath. He has written 6 plays, with his favourite being his first play “Reunion” as he feels this is very personal and it is his first successful play. As well as running the Rondo, Ian is now working on two one-hour shows for the radio. He said that his current challenge is to keep the business alive with artistic integrity. He is happy where he is and said that if he could do it all again, he wouldn’t make any changes. When we asked him for some advice for upcoming directors he said to “do your own thing” and “don’t give up.” The Rondo has a warm glow and cosy atmosphere with a sense of friendliness. Both regular and new people come to the Rondo to enjoy the performances and many performing groups return year on year. He comments, “It’s shocking when you hear stories about big theatres where people are treated badly in cramped changing rooms without so much as a cup of tea. We make it our mission to be as homely as possible to both our acts and our audience.” When asked what was next for him since he has achieved so much, Ian replied with a funny line about how hard yet fun running The Rondo is. He also mentioned that he will be on BBC Radio 2 soon with a broadcast about songs that have been banned on the radio. Upcoming productions: The Bluebird 12-21st Dec This play shows that true happiness can only be found from seeking, rather than finding. Dr Who 50th Anniversary My Stepson Stole My Sonic Screwdriver: 5th December Join Toby Hadoke as he takes you on a heart-warming journey that pays homage to the restorative powers of the time lord. See the Rondo website www.rondotheatre.co.uk for more details.

Competiton! Win a family ticket to see MOOMINLAND MIDWINTER at the egg and discover the enchantments of one of the most magical places you could ever dream of this Christmas... Join some of children’s literature’s most captivating and curious creatures this winter in Moominland, where a talented group of actors with beautiful puppets will peform a brand new adaptation of one of the best-loved of the original stories. Heart-warming, humorous and spellbinding, this is a wondrous Christmas fantasy for all the family to enjoy together. If you would like the chance to win a family ticket for 4 (2 adults & 2 children or 1 adult & 3 children) to watch MOOMINLAND MIDWINTER at the egg theatre on Tuesday 10th December at 7pm, just enter our fabulous COMPETITION! All you have to do is answer this question:

What is the name of the little girl (in the advert below) who lives with the Moomins? Email or post to:The Editor,The Larkhall News, St Mark’s School, BayTree Road, Larkhall, BA1 6ND or email hawkinsp@st-marks.org.uk by Thursday 5th December. Entrants must be aged 4 - 16 and have the permission of their parent or carer and must be available to attend the egg on Tuesday 10th December.

Competiton!

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Enquiries welcome