Salvete

wealth of knowledge on all manner of topics. As a colleague he has been most supportive and I have much appreciated his patience and good humour. It was never going to be an easy task to stand in for PT during his illness and soon afterwards, his untimely death. Philip however handled the situation with sensitivity and care, and we thank him for all he has done for the Classics department and wish him happiness as he takes up a job at Tees Girls High School in September.

Elisabeth Ellis

Helen Briggs

Helen joined St Peter's as Librarian in September 2003 after previous employment at Heckmondwike Grammar School and eighteen months at the International School of Berne.

She quickly joined in all aspects of school life, producing useful innovations in our Library and also being involved in the foundation of a new Yorkshire and Humberside Branch of the School Library Association. She worked with the CCF and helped with the administration of the annual round of House and team photos.

The longjourney from home (still in Heckmondwike) each day took its toll, however, and when a post was advertised at a much more convenient school Helen applied and (our loss!) got the job.

We wish her all the best in her new role and hope very much that she will not lose touch with her friends at St Peter's.

Avril Pedley

Chris Lawrie

Chris Lawrie joined the ICT department at St Peter's, in the role of technical support, in April 1996. He came to us after 4 years in a similar post at Joseph Rowntree's School which followed a full service career in the Royal Air Force.

Few people at St Peter's have not benefited from the breadth of his knowledge and expertise, always dispensed with his characteristically reassuring calmness, goodwill and humour. From installing new computers, fixing printers, helping students with dodgy discs, admin staff with word-processing problems, to members of the teaching staff working on a teaching presentation, Chris has willingly given of his time and skills to support everybody. His ability to work so well with so many people is a rare quality. He has also spent a significant amount of his time in support of ICT classes at St Olave's.

He has always shown a readiness to find out new things and, when faced with a problem he has not faced before, he has shown dogged perseverance in search of a solution. The qualities of rising to a challenge and getting involved are evident in other aspects of Chris's life. Whilst at St Peter's, Chris successfully gained his Open University degree. He also attended a number of technical seminars and training courses and gained a First Aid in the Workplace qualification last year. Chris also pursues an active role in the Easingwold Lions, taking part in such fund-raising events as the Christmas delivery of gifts and the annual brass band contest in Easingwold. He has involved himself fully with the life of the school and students past and present will have enjoyed his company on the French exchanges.

He leaves us this summer to take on a new challenge as Head of ICT at St Olave's School. He will still be nearby, in contact with his friends and colleagues at St Peter's and still very much a part of the life of the three schools. I am sure that all of the qualities which Chris brought to bear on his work at St Peter's will serve him well in his new post, and staff and students will continue to benefit. St Olave's gain is St Peter's loss.

We thank him for all his hard work over the years here and wish him every success in his new post.

M Jones

Tory Gillingham

Tory joined St Peter's in 2001 to be its first Foundation and Marketing Manager. She had previously held the post of Marketing and development Manager at Pocklington School where she gained valuable experience in the field. She helped to get the Foundation up and running, steering the school towards long term fund raising, whilst also dealing with much of the marketing and development, working closely with the Board on the new Vision for 2010. She even made time to have a second baby!

During her time with the Foundation she did much of the hard work on creating a data base of Old Peterites, Friends and parents past and present, whilst developing valuable links with other professionals in the fundraising field, keeping us in touch with new initiatives and developing ideas, many of which we hope to put into practice. She successfully organised reunions for OP rowers, Queens House, The Rise and the House of Lords reception in May. Tory worked hard to support and encourage our scholars and donors, in addition she organised and ran The Peterite magazine for two years.

I am very grateful to Tory for getting us underway so enthusiastically, and wish her every success with her new post as Secretary of Amdis - The Association for Marketing and Development in Independent Schools.

Buff Reid, Chairman of St Peter's School Foundation

Hugo Battersby

Hugo joined St Peter's in September 2002 and in the subsequent two years he has made an invaluable contribution to many areas of School life. Hugo has coached and refereed a variety of sports at School including cricket, hockey and rugby at both St Peter's and St Olave's. He has also worked closely with other colleagues within the P.E. and Economics departments. Perhaps Hugo's most significant contribution has been as Assistant Housemaster in Linton, where he has performed his duties with skill and care and he has been a real asset to the House.

During his time in York, Hugo has been involved in a wide array of activities including many boarders' activities, school ski trips, Duke of Edinburgh expeditions and coaching both the North Yorkshire Under-15 girls' and York University rugby teams.

After completing a P.G.C.E. course at The University of Hull this year, Hugo will begin his first full-time teaching post in September, as an Economics teacher and Assistant Housemaster at Fettes College, in Edinburgh.

On behalf of the School community, I would like to thank him for all his hard work and wish him every success in the future.

M.A. M.

P. Brian Jelbert

Bursar 1985 - December 2003

Brian joined St Peter's after a career in the army. He immediately took a keen interest in the CCF and went on to become Contingent Commander. During his time as Bursar the school expanded its horizons and he can look back with pride at the construction of the Chilman Building, the purchase of Linton House and, more recently, the purchase of the Queen Anne's site. This acquisition allowed expansion on a scale which we had never before dared to contemplate.

He may have retired from St Peter's but his presence is still felt in the world of education as he uses his experience to guide other schools in the finer points of finance and administration.

We wish you and Carol much happiness in your retirement.

Peter Simpson

Pearl Huitson

Pearl came to St Peter's in 1991 as Assistant Bursar's Secretary. However, her contribution and commitment to work and the school community was soon recognised and appreciated by her colleagues and over the years her workload has increased to incorporate all secretarial support for the Music Department, working closely with Mr. Wright. Pearl's responsibilities increased within the Music Department and I know her support has been invaluable all music staff.

On a personal note I would like to thank her for her support in the Bursar's office and her friendship. Having completed 13 years service we all wish Pearl a long and happy retirement.

Mr. Simon Marriott: Deputy Headmaster

Before arriving at St Peter's Mr. Simon Marriott was Director of Music and Senior Boys Boarding Housemaster at Sutton Valence School near Maidstone, Kent - a school of a similar size to ours.

His early experience of St Peter's is favourable: "My first impressions were of a wonderfully historic 'front' of school. There was, and I hope still is, a remarkably civilised culture evident as you walk around the school.

The pupils here have a real sense of purpose and focus with everything they do academic, sporting and cultural - a quite extra-ordinary selfdiscipline, which I still admire as I complete two terms here.

The school community is very warm and friendly; staff are always willing to offer help; the monitors are a remarkable bunch of good-humoured, responsible (well most of the time!) and willing students who very much sum up all that is good about St Peter's."

When asked what he most likes about St. Peter's and for that matter, what he dislikes Mr. Marriott replied, "I very much enjoy the community of St Peter's, its rich diversity and wide-ranging opportunities and the willingness of pupils to talk and contribute to the life of the school. I really wish that I could get to learn names more swiftly! It's hard when you only see pupils briefly at various times of the week and try and put a name to them as you meet!

What do I dislike? I suppose I like seeing action and can feel frustration if I can see that some aspects of change (for the better, I hope!) take longer than I would like. I have had to develop greater patience when faced with such issues."

Mr. Marriott's decision to come to St Peter's was not based on geography. "The decision to 'come north' was based on the reputation of St Peter's nationwide as a wellrespected and highlysuccessful school. I regard it as a real privilege to be here. I also took the post wanting to work with Mr Trotman - although I knew that it would only be for a year. I am very much looking forward to working with a new Head Master - it'll keep me on my toes"

Clearly Mr. Marriott is enjoying living and working in Yorkshire.

"As a family we love being in York with all its culture and history. To escape to the moors or dales on Sundays to walk is wonderful. One wish... that it were a few degrees warmer! I think we all feel totally settled here now - the last place seems a very longtime ago!"

It is apparent that the new deputy Headmaster is impressed by the facilities available at St Peter's. "The library is a wonderful haven of quiet and it's great for tracking down that elusive book or reference - I wish more people would use it, particularly in the younger years. The Art Department is quite exceptional in terms of space and quality of work. The gallery is a very special focus, which has yet to see significant support from the community. When I'm showing prospective parents or staff around there is always an audible gasp that such a facility exists in a school.

Chapel is a very special way of starting the school day. We are still extremely lucky that the whole St Peter's community can continue to meet together - again, I find the whole atmosphere remarkably civilised and appropriate."

Mr. Marriott's first experiences of his new job have confirmed just how much there is to be done." I have been busier than I ever expected with issues now connected with the day-today running of the school. I wondered what I would do with such a light timetable but now realise how difficult it is to do everything and teach! Watching the matches (Rugby and Girls Hockey) in the Autumn Term was terrific. Coming from a place with no Saturday afternoon school the atmosphere on home match days is very special and reminds me of my own schooldays with everyone on the touchline supporting. Starting the Girls Choir has been very special - it is like an oasis in the middle of the week. I'm pleased that it's also identified a need amongst some tremendous singers too!

Penny Lacey

Penny Lacey who, so far as I am aware, is the first female to hold the position of Bursar in the long history of St Peter's arrived in September 2003. Her name could not be more appropriate for the job. Penny's previous post was also as Bursar at Queen Margaret's School for Girls, Escrick, where she was very well respected and we are fortunate to have someone with her track record. Before returning to York penny trained as a chartered accountant in London. She is an ex-pupil of Queen Anne's School and therefore will be more than familiar with the St Olave's site. It must have been a case of deja vu when she was shown around the junior campus during her interview.

Penny has settled into life at St Peter's quickly and says that she is enjoying the administrative challenge of working in a 3 to 18 co-educational school and is looking forward to forming a working relationship with the new Headmaster. When I gave penny a guided tour of The Art School shortly after she arrived I was impressed by her sense of aesthetics and interior design. This is very evident in those areas of the school, which have been refurbished and upgraded under Penny's leadership.

We wish Penny the very best of good fortune in her position and hope that her association with St Peter's will be a long and rewarding experience.

JDa

Mrs. K Edgar-Hunt

Mrs. Edgar-Hunt became St Peter's' first qualified Drama teacher in the newly created department in September. The addition of CCSE Drama and AS Theatre Studies subject options has been a long awaited one, and Mrs. Edgar-Hunt is pleased that the students here show so much eagerness for the subject.

Mrs. Edgar-Hunt's dramatic talents do not come as a surprise as she comes from a family with a strong performing tradition. Both her parents were involved in the arts and she and her brother were encouraged to be creative from an early age. Interestingly, despite the fact her father had taught Drama at primary school level, Mrs. Edgar-Hunt only became interested in teaching after hosting a Drama workshop for inmates at Dartmoor prison.

Before coming to St Peter's Mrs.Edgar-Hunt ran a theatre company with her husband called "Pomeranian", and they worked in conjunction with the Open University to perform small-scale productions for various festivals but, due to her commitments at St Peter's, this has recently been less active. However, Mrs.EdgarHunt is thoroughly enjoying her time here.

With three productions and various examined performances (not to mention the GCSE and AS courses) to supervise and teach, it has been a very busy first year for Mrs. Edgar-Hunt. One of her most stressful moments this year was when the AS students staged a "Happening" involving destroying books outside the Monkeycage. It was a very public display of their work (as I'm sure some of you will remember - your participation was appreciated!) and, she states, "it was made particularly stressful as we didn't know how it would be received by the school." However this rather unorthodox event went well and the students got some very positive feedback.

After Mr. Lowe's retirement as official Director of School Productions there was a void to be filled and Mrs. Edgar-Hunt rose to the challenge with enthusiasm. Her first production here at St Peter's had a hard act to follow after the success of 'Guys and Dolls'. However, (despite a few worrying rehearsals!) Brecht's 'Threepenny Opera' was a great success, and Mrs. Edgar-Hunt was thoroughly impressed with not only the ability to perform but also the considerable vocal and musical talents of the pupils.

In only her first year here it is fair to say that Mrs. Edgar-Hunt has made a huge impact upon the school as a whole, and the quality (and quantity!) of productions has been fantastic. In the future she plans to further improve the Drama facilities and we wish her every success as drama is becoming an increasingly important part of life at St Peter's.

Betany Lloyd LVI

Mrs.Jacqueline Palmer

Born and bred in North Shields, where she worked in a 'Fish and Chip' shop during her teens, Jacqueline Palmer is proud of her accent, which she insists is 'not too strong'. Struggling with Dyslexia throughout her school years, she looked to her artistic skills for relief. Having gained a BA Hons.degree in Fine Art from the Cumbria Institute in Carlisle and an MA from Northumbria, Mrs Palmer is no doubt an extremely valuable new member of The Art School. After her degree, she was very busy running her own studio for two years as well as being a part time assistant at the art college in Carlisle. She took part in the Grampus Heritage community projects in Germany, for a year (where she made sculpture in wood) and in Poland for three years (where she

worked in an art school, a children's mental hospital and in a community center). It is no wonder that she took a year out from full time work after intense period. How she still worked as a time barmaid back in home town. Last year completed her PGCE secondary school tea< at Northumbria Univei..._, and then joined us here at Si

With an allergy to printing ink it is no wonder Mrs Palrr least favourite process is printing. But, her skills are mainl; textiles and ceramics, which, she says, complement other tat already in the department. Her favourite artists, she says, Anthony Tapies, Kiki Smith and jenny Holtzer but she admits that this is subject to change. Mrs Palmer does not like watching soaps on television, but enjoys anything with Ant and Dec in it, Faulty Towers and programmes about hospitals. Her favourite books are "The Fireside book of Death", simply because it is bizarre and Harry Potter, The Prisoner of Azkaban (she says that one thing she loves about our school is its similarities to Hogwarts College of Witchcraft and Wizardry!) Originating from a Fishing town, York must seem extremely alien to her: it is no wonder that she misses the sea breeze and walks on the beach with her husband and her daughter Harry.

Sophie OttewellL VI

Mr.Philip Barras

was here once before. He joined St Peter's in 1982 and shared a school flat with Mr. Stephen. On being informed they were about to become flat mates, both thought, "Oh no, I bet he's a tee-total religious maniac!" However, such thoughts were totally unfounded, sharing as they did a liking for certain hostelries in town, and indeed each eventually became the others best man.

Mr. Barras attended Holgate Grammar School, Barnsley, where he excelled in Latin and Greek, having had the His ambition since the age of 13 was to read Classics at Oxford. Therefore, determined as he was, he received a well-earned Open Exhibition Scholarship to Worcester College, Oxford. Following graduation he moved to London to read for the Bar, but realising he had no interest in jurisprudence he found a place as a teacher in a prep school in Wimbledon. St Peter's, a 'Boy's Rugga School in the North' as it was then, was his next stop. In contrast to the former reputation, Mr. Barras describes how the incorporation of females to the school has created a more civilised and courteous atmosphere and there now seems to be a greater variety of extra curricular activities.

Having married a woman from Milan Mr. Barras moved to Italy where he taught English at a Medical School and there he used his talent in Latin and Greek to explain a vast anatomical vocabulary to medical students. Mr. Barras promptly warned me never to fall ill in Italy as I might be faced with a doctor who was taught anatomy by himself, a mere Classics graduate.

Mr Barras has been great fun and of tremendous assistance in helping pupils through the course. We all wish him well in his new ™«t at Teesside Girls School.

When I asked Mr. Barras what he would have as an epitaph he he would have no monument or memorial just the words," puellis nuper idoneus, Et militavi non sine Gloria": very fitting

rgina Duke LVl

Mr. Richard Smalman-Smith

y you'd be in for a big surprise...in the form of Mr. and Mrs. Smalman-Smith. Both new arrivals this year, the formidable pair have already wrought great changes upon the unsuspecting boating community at StPeter's.

Mr.Smalman-Smith can also be found (not wearing lycra) on Linton House and in the maths department (as can two other rowing staff, Mr.Ellis-Davies and Mr. Mike Hall, although he assures us this is "pure coincidence"!), but those of us who have seen him down a boat club on Sundays realise that hi: passion lies with the river. Especia these extra Sunday sessions were his In addition he has introduced a Boat Newsletter and lunchtime trai sessions. His aquatic zeal would pei surprise his old school friends to whom he vowed he would "never get in a boat again" after his last race, nevertheless, years later, he is to be seen rowing alongside his young proteges ••"*'unquenchable enthusiasm.

Mr. Smalman-Smith's schoolday themselves were not, in fact, that di: ilar to many of his pupils', as much of hi youth was spent at boarding school. Hov. year here has shown him that St.Peter's is "much friendlier" and "more relaxed" than he anticipated. ms his first

When asked whether he engaged in any interesting hobbies in his somewhat limited free time Mr.Smalman-Smith replied he had "become a bit boring" however he did admit to being "a bit obsessed" with environmental concerns such as recycling and reducing waste. Indeed, since his arrival at St Peter's, he has chosen to cycle to school every morning, an environmentally friendly mode of transport.

Clearly Mr. Smalman-Smith has settled quickly into life at St Peter's.