Behind The Scenes

The St Peter’s School family includes around 400 full and part-time staff in both teaching and support roles. We are immensely grateful for everything our teaching and support staff do to ensure the smooth running of our school.

In this edition of The Peterite we celebrate the work of our brilliant Grounds Team, who brave the elements – and the changeable Yorkshire weather – to maintain our extensive 47-acre campus.

A Day in the Life of the Grounds Team

Hello to Head of Grounds and Gardens Mark Hillaby who has worked at St Peter’s since 2018.

What other jobs and experience have you had before St Peter’s?

I’ve been involved in groundsmanship from a very early age, helping my father when he was Head Groundsman in Hull. My career started in Hull, leaving school and working for the Humberside Police Sports Club as an Assistant Groundsman. At the age of 21 I got my first Head Groundsman job at another local sports ground. In 1990 I moved down to London for 13 years working at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in Wimbledon. Leaving Wimbledon in 2002, I started in the independent school sector, heading up grounds and gardens departments at Uppingham, Pocklington, Repton and Wakefield Grammar, until finally settling at St Peter’s in 2018.

Tell us a bit about your job

I head up the St Peters Grounds and Gardens team, made up of five members of staff which look after the school’s 47 acres of outside green spaces, including tree and hedgerow management. The team is made of George, Assistant Head; Gavin, Head Gardener; Luke, Assistant Gardener; and Groundspersons Ryan and Callum, a new starter. We’re a great team! The role is quite varied and is largely influenced by the school term’s seasonal requirements and of course the weather. I am a hands-on manager so one minute I could be mowing a cricket wicket and the next sat behind a computer or attending meetings.

What are the best parts of your job?

When everything is running correctly and we as a team can look out over the grounds and gardens and see the fruits of our labour – it’s a massively satisfying job.

Is there anything you don’t enjoy about your job?

Rain – unless we are having a drought!

What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you at St Peter’s?

The Estates Team as a whole is such a great bunch. Stories and conversations in the mess room at break times can be comedy gold. Probably best if I don’t give specific examples!

What do you like to do when you’re not at work?

Myself and my partner Janet recently moved closer to York so we are currently working on our bungalow which takes up most of my spare time (and money). I also enjoy relaxing and walking our two dachshunds, Dexter and Scooby.

…and a Fond Farewell to Gordon Gatenby who Retired after 34 Years

In October, we said farewell to Gordon Gatenby, a much-loved and long-standing Groundsman at our school, who started here in 1985. Teaching and support staff gathered in the Dining Room to say goodbye in September, and Mr Walker delivered a speech in honour of Gordon’s retirement. Gordon first worked at St Peter’s in 1985 as a member of the grounds staff. He left for five months to go back to butchery, but as he said, ‘I wasn’t cut out for it’. He then returned to work in school in 1987, initially as a General Labourer, member of the Grounds Team and more recently as a Groundsman. This marks an incredible length of service of over 30 years for which we thank him. Gordon was a hard-working, trusted and truly valued colleague who will be greatly missed. We wish him all the best for the future, and a long and happy retirement.

360 Virtual Tour

This year we launched a new 360 virtual tour of our St Peter’s School campus. We hope the tour will inspire prospective families to visit St Peter’s School, while also giving members of the school community across the globe the opportunity to see how our campus has evolved and developed in recent years. The tour includes 45 separate information points and features St Peter’s 2-8, St Peter’s 8-13 and St Peter’s 13-18, as well as shared facilities including the Chapel and the Memorial Hall. Please explore our site at: www.stpetersyork.org.uk/admissions/virtual-tour