Salvete

Valete

Mr John Owen-Barnett

The following text is extracted from Paddy Stephen’s speech at the Leavers’ Drinks Party.

It took some effort to get John here tonight, so I hope that we are still on speaking terms when I have finished! John, I promise that it will be brief and apposite.

How can justice be done to John’s 37 years’ dedicated service in the Community of St Peter’s? Primarily John is a real educator, more concerned with inspiring and enthusing his charges than merely preparing them for exams, although at this more prosaic task he also has a fine record. He has his own completely individual style of teaching which suits him and his sets perfectly. He once described those to whom he taught English as,

“The Chinese, assorted other foreigners, dyslexics and the Stephen boys”!

He then looked at me with those piercing eyes and said,

“I missed out on teaching Nick only because he inherited his mother’s brains and not yours”!

The Biology and English departments will be much more politically correct without him - and much less fun.

How can we replace a man capable of such wonderful statements as these :

“Remove the cheat notes from your knee, Jibson; I am not as green as I am cabbage-looking.”

On teaching the javelin to third-formers: “This is a weapon of war : if you kill each other I won’t mind, but mummy will.”

At the start of his first biology department meeting with his new Head of Department (who had just shuffled John’s new Filofax!)....”Remember, Marty boy, I was School Bully, and my speciality was dead-legs and you are heading for a real pearler!”

John joined the school in 1976 to teach Physical Education. He was an outstanding rugby player who as a student was in the great London Welsh side of the early seventies which included Mervyn Davis, JPR, John Dawes and Gerald Davis. A knee cartilage operation ended his playing career much too early.

Despite all the commitments he had with both family and the school, he studied successfully for an Open University degree in English. Because he had so much experience of different teaching environments (swimming pool to Biology, English class-room to the Sports Centre) his ability to read a teaching situation was unrivalled.

John was also a most successful rugby coach for the 1st and 2nd XVs, and he organised a number of splendid tours, none more so than those to Yugoslavia and Barcelona. Thank goodness there were no Facebook, Twitter or ultra-compact cameras in 1987 and 1989 - as the adage went, “What goes on tour stays on tour!”

In 1986, John and Ann became boarding house parents of Dronfield, only weeks after John’s great friend Barry Daniel had died. After the agreed one year he exchanged roles with Peter Taylor, to become housemaster of the boys’ School House, whilst Peter and Sue Taylor took over in the newly formed Girls’ boarding house in Dronfield. In 1994, a new boarding house, Linton, was formed and John moved his charges down the road.

During the last 40 years, St Peter’s has been blessed with a succession of outstanding boarding house-parents, and Ann and John were most certainly a part of that succession. John’s presence in the weekly meeting of those in charge of Houses (when problems are aired and policies formulated), brought a note of wisdom, understanding and, above all, practicality. In the realm of boarding, John’s voice gave us the confidence to make essential changes and, ultimately, helped the School’s boarders to flourish.

The School as a whole benefited from the tenure of this fine couple during the 15 years of their appointment. John will acknowledge that Ann was vital in all his successes, but - as Ann rightly points out - none of his failures! - and also that without her help he could never have given the total commitment he did during those years. James and Rachel too played their part, and only those who have lived in the boarding situation can really understand just how invaluable is the support of your family in the difficult times. He was also adept at handling moments of real tragedy and distress : Fuluso was a young teenage student whose life was cut short by an inoperable cancer during his school days. John took on his own shoulders the weight of this emotional situation, and spoke unforgettably at a packed service in the School Chapel the day after Fuluso died. At all times - good/bad, night/day, Saturdays/Sundays, term time and holiday - Ann was there.

I leave you with a few memorable anecdotes about John :

…in watching Chris Hall about to eat the last Jaffa cake in the Biology Department -

“If you eat that cake, Hall, I will make you regurgitate it. I need it. Ann has got me on a diet!”

…in response to being told by the Spanish authorities at Barcelona Airport (1989 rugby tour) that there was an unspecified delay in the flight and that we could not get any food or drink as we were now in the departure lounge and all outlets were shut.....

....there were about 150 passengers, many with children. It was very hot and we had just played our last game, everybody was very hungry and thirsty, and tempers were getting frayed. John walked up to the machine-gun-toting guard on the gate, gently held the barrel between finger and thumb, lifted the gun to the vertical and told the assembled passengers that they could get any food and drink in the adjacent area, where the shops were still open! The guard, now completely off-guard, could do nothing but watch as everybody went for food and drink!

.......during the first visit of the York City Council boarding team :

John had asked two of his senior boys, both members of the 1st XV, to show the inspector round. As the boys minced round the house holding hands, they told their visitor a number of increasingly worrying stories about John, culminating with their telling him that the locked room was where John placed them in solitary confinement. Taking increasingly copious notes (in preparation, no doubt, for an impending prosecution!), the inspector spluttered out the question, “Do you really lock the boys up in solitary?” With a completely straight face, John replied, “Yes, but only if beating them first did not work!” At this point, the visitor realised that he had been taken for a ride and sheepishly tore up his notes!

....on rugby tour in Yugoslavia when the game at Cisack got a bit nasty (!)....

“Right, boys, remember you are British - they started it so you finish it!”

A sage old Headmaster once said that “a ton of theory is not worth an ounce of experience.”

John has a ton of experience, which we will struggle to replace; he has been mentor to many of us and he remains one of the old style of schoolmasters who saw his work and particularly his pastoral care as a way of life and never merely as a job. Never a clock-watcher, always willing to fill in and help.

John is a great friend, a teacher with the ability to inspire even the most reluctant student, a housemaster ranked alongside the best - and for ever the most defiantly well-meaning colleague amidst suffocating Political Correctness.

Always amongst the best of colleagues, John, we shall miss you enormously.

Mr P Stephen

Mr Peter Northfield

It is hard to sum up briefly Peter’s contribution to St Peter’s because they have been so significant and varied. Peter took over the department following the sad death of Mr Barry Daniel and started by pulling the teaching together by producing electronic pupil notes. This was a major step forward which removed the boring pupil task of note taking and also guaranteeing that each student left the lesson with a perfect set of notes which was the same throughout the whole department. His philosophy of the teaching of Chemistry was for the pupils to be actively involved in performing the experiments. “Chemistry is about making things” he was often heard to say.

He often innovated within the subject, instigating the very important safety aspect of fixed and portable fume cupboards that allowed both staff and pupils to work in safe manner which also allowed them to work beyond the curriculum. Peter was at the forefront of digital technology, utilising video cameras to record experiments and thus enabling pupils to see the practical techniques in close up. Through to the animation library which accessed university sites worldwide and brought chemistry interactive animations to life via the digital projectors installed in each laboratory.

Peter was also in the vanguard for visiting lecturers from local universities and industry. His Friday teatime lectures enabled sixth form chemists to receive a detailed insight into current innovative work going on in these various institutions. Peter was also at centre stage with the Christmas Lecture. This masterpiece of scientific showmanship was always highly entertaining for the whole school each year and unique to St Peter’s School.

His talents also stretched to being a Housemaster for five years in School House where he managed to develop a great level of respect within the pastoral role between the pupils.

One of Peter’s greatest contributions for both the teaching and non-teaching staff at St Peter’s was being the ATL representative. Within this role he used his tact and diplomacy to the full in numerous delicate negotiations between the HR department and fellow staff members. He managed to resolve many disputes with his knowledge of working practices within a school based environment both equitably and fairly for both parties.

His love of sport was obvious with his home town club Leicester Tigers being close to his heart. Cricket was also a passion whether playing for his local club at Copmanthorpe or maintaining the square. He also was the secretary of the local league resolving many a dispute at this level. With school sport he umpired Basketball and Badminton and was an ever present at Sports day with starting pistol in hand.

Peter I feel is the complete professional, with his quiet hard working approach within the department to his general help around the School in so many ways that I have written about above. I have never witnessed him lose his temper in all his days here at St Peter’s. His only utterance is occasionally with certain pupils is a “Jeepers” if they are about to do something stupid in a practical session. I am sure that all those who know Peter would like to wish him the very best in the future. He will be keeping himself busy with his involvement with AQA, cricket, his allotment and his family.

Mr RG Shread

Mr Paul Hynard

It probably came as rather a surprise to most people on arriving back at school after the summer holidays to learn that Paul Hynard had less than a month to go at St Peter’s. Over the summer Paul had decided to take up a new post in Harrogate, providing IT support at Henshaws College. As he pointed out, it was only 5 minutes from home so he could spend more time with his family, he could cycle (or even walk) to work, and he didn’t have to work Saturdays!

Paul came to St Peter’s in January 2005 to take up the newlycreated role of IT Manager, joining John and Shaun in the ICT Support Department, and relieving the then Head of ICT, Mike Jones, of the burden of ICT Support administration. Under Paul’s guidance we saw a great leap forward in the provision of IT within the school, particularly the network infrastructure linking together all areas of the campus. This solid foundation paved the way for a number of initiatives and improvements. The introduction of PC clusters – the Humanities Cluster in the Peter Taylor Room, the Economics/Politics Cluster near room K and the cluster upstairs in the Alcuin Library to name three – was one of the more visible improvements, reducing the burden on the ICT Computer Suite and spreading computing provision more evenly around St Peter’s.

Wireless networking was introduced into the school and over successive summer holidays reached most of the parts that the cabled networks couldn’t reach. Although initially intended for the school laptop scheme the wireless setup improved the provision of laptop connectivity throughout the school and is now proving of great benefit for iPhones and other mobile devices. Paul’s insistence on annual upgrades to operating systems kept IT provision at St Peter’s up to date, with corresponding improvements to the skill sets of all members of the IT Support staff.

Paul’s military background made him a natural candidate for membership of the CCF team, a role he took on almost as soon as he stepped onto St Peter’s grounds. Through the CCF Paul became involved with the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme, initially helping with the Bronze Expeditions. Extending this interest he became an accredited Expedition Assessor, assessing not only for St Peter’s but also other schools in York.

Outside of school Paul’s main interests were his family, his running and motorbikes – not necessarily in that order! His running was spurred on by a great rivalry between Paul and his wife Angie, each not wanting to be outdone by the other and neither acknowledging the other to be the better athlete!

Almost everyone in all three schools knew the man in the black leathers with the big red motorbike, and it was motorbikes that put a special gleam in Paul’s eye. Holidays and work schedules had to be worked around MotoGP and the Isle of Man TT Races!

Paul was a popular figure among all departments at St Peter’s, and though colleagues were pleased for him and what it would mean for his family life we were all sorry to see him go.

Mr Jeremy Connor

Jeremy joined St Peter’s in September 2010, having spent a few years after graduating from his degree on Classics from Manchester working in Greece in the summers and running a chalet in France in the winters. It was no small task for Matthew Adams to take the two of us on (one an NQT and the other with no teaching experience) and he fought against the concerns of those then in the leadership team who thought hiring Jeremy might be a bit of a gamble. As it is, his youth and inexperience has not been a barrier to success and during his 3 years at St Peter’s, Jeremy has become a confident and accomplished teacher.

In the department, he has made the dream of having Greek on the timetable a reality by leading the Gratin initiative, which started this year in the 4th form. This has followed 2 years of

running a Greek club after school for 6th form, which has resulted in them taking a GCSE this year, and he has also offered Oxbridge poetry sessions to interested parties. Both of these are examples of the extra mile Jeremy will go for his pupils and the care and concern he feels for their success. The L6 Latinists say that he has a knack of creating an open and friendly atmosphere in his classes and his honesty means they feel secure asking any kind of question. Jeremy has also enthused pupils through his own interest in Classical Civilisation. He has brought to life for his students those who lived long ago through his imaginative teaching, be it building a replica Hadrian’s Wall out of desks or creating a Twitter feed for Achilles, and he has gained particular fans amongst those who have read The Odyssey with him at GCSE and AS Level. The epic games of board slap and Latin cricket are well worth mentioning too. Jeremy has also organised two trips to Hadrian’s Wall and visited Greece with school, and the skills which he has amounted will no doubt come in useful in his next job. He takes with him too the experience of being non-resident tutor in The Manor, time which Jeremy has enjoyed so much that he has said he would love to run a house one day.

Jeremy’s enthusiasm and energy is infectious, and the fact that he can switch from talking about Jay-Z to Ovid, or from linking the rugby scores to Sparta has done brilliant things for the accessibility of the subject. He will get involved in almost anything, and was pushed to the limit when the rest of the department signed up for the Athens Marathon in 2011. Grudgingly he followed suit, moaning throughout the training, but must have enjoyed it as he signed up for other events since! Another area of his involvement in school life has been through food. Jeremy has run a successful and popular cooking club, which starting in Exploration Week 2012. Cooking With Connor has produced such dishes as chilli Connor carne and chicken Jezfrezi, and 2 years of students will be making sweet potato and pear soup to impress at university. His appetite for the exotic went some way to being satisfied by the school trip to India in summer 2012, an experience he enjoyed a terrific amount. He has also been involved in rugby, hockey and cricket, coaching boys ranging from the U14c team to the U15a team. In his own sporting life, he has been instrumental in the organisational and practical side in the school’s local league football team. Struggle Street FC have won both the 5-a-side and 7-a-side teams in the last 2 years and he will be missed on and off the pitch at Friday night football.

He leaves us to teach Latin and Greek at Brighton College, his own alma mater. I am sure he will throw himself into the new challenges life there brings, as well as being able to spend more time with his family.

Miss KS Barker

Miss Claire Wright

Although Claire only joined the school in 2008, her impact and enthusiasm have been such that it seems as if she has been with us for a much longer period of time. She came to us as an NQT directly from completing an MA in Education at the University of Leeds. However some might say that her previous jobs; person in charge of livestock and administrator in a high security prison, prepared her perfectly for teaching.

Claire’s family name, Wright, is believed to descend originally from the Boernicians, an ancient northern race who were made up of Scottish Picts and Angles so it is not surprising that Claire’s time at St Peter’s reads a bit like the history of Scotland, full of ambition, intrigue, and even murder.

Mary Queen of Scots was a young queen, ambitious and a lover of all things French. Likewise, Claire went from being an NQT in 2008 to becoming Head of French at the beginning of 2012 so her rise has been rapid. She has been an inspiring teacher of both French and Spanish but I would say that she has a definite preference for things French. Claire organised a trip to France in 2010 to allow the pupils a brief taste of French Culture, frogs’ legs included, and challenged our sixth form boys by introducing them to the ideas of Françoise Sagan, a feminist writer.

Robert the Bruce was a tenacious figure in Scotland’s history and Claire is also tireless and tenacious, indeed this tenacity is one of her most positive qualities because just like Robert the Bruce’s spider, once Claire gets started on a project she doesn’t like to give up. She has been involved in many school projects ranging from assisting and organising trips: Barbados, Murcia, Salamanca, India and Brittany to helping out with choreography for school productions. She has also been tireless on the sports’ field teaching a variety of sports and activities and she will be sadly missed by the Games’ Department. Claire has also been intensely involved on the pastoral side not only as an assistant in one day house, Queens, but also in a boarding house, Dronfield. This tenacity also paid off outside of school when trying to pass her driving test. In one of her tests Claire ran over an unfortunate duck that was in the wrong place at the wrong time. However, she didn’t allow this to put her off, even when the instructor got out of the car and threw the lifeless body in the boot, she simply carried on. Although Claire did not pass that particular test, she persevered and finally attained her license. We also hope that the examiner in question enjoyed his crispy duck later that evening.

Another famous Scot, Andrew Melville, was a gifted linguist who was instrumental in the educational reform in Scotland and was famed for his imagination and straight talking. Claire also has a fertile imagination and can tell a good story, in fact, each time that she tells it, it gets better. Having strong northern roots also means that she can get her point across very clearly. This straight talking has certainly helped her to get the message across to the pupils as her results have been impressive at both the top and bottom end of the range with her 2010 set 5 French all achieving higher than a C pass to give the French department a 100% pass

rate for only the second time in its history. She has used her creative talents in the teaching of Zumba and in the choreography for the whole school production of “Dream a Little Dream” as well as putting her choreographic expertise to good use by helping out in smaller productions.

Claire leaves us to take up the post of Head of French at Wellington College in Berkshire. We wish her good fortune in her new venture down south but equally we hope that she will forever keep her roots firmly fixed in the north where they belong.

Mr M Duffy

Mrs Anna Cowling

Anna joined the biology department in September 2007 and she has given a huge amount during the six years at the school. Her ever cheerful and optimistic disposition saw her cope admirably with the demands of the busy six day weeks and she was highly successful in her various roles in the school. During her time at St Peter’s Anna has been a boarding assistant and tutor in Dronfield, an assistant in Grove house and has, as such, added much to the pastoral care of students. She also contributed heavily to the extra-curricular activities within the school including netball and science society lectures and events. She has always been a willing contributor to school events and has taken part in many trips and events such as silver and gold Duke of Edinburgh and expeditions to Morocco. After the birth of the very cute Sebastian Cowling, Anna returned from maternity leave as Acting Head of Department in my absence from Jan – March 2012 and in doing so demonstrated her impressive organisation and proactive nature and I am very grateful to her for taking on the role. Anna has always been a loved and valued member of our department and we will miss her. She leaves us to head back to her home city of Leicester where she will be working part time in Leicester Grammar School and full time as a wonderful mum to Sebastian and Arabella. We wish her happiness and success in her new adventure, and hope she pops in from time to time for a cup of coffee and numerous biscuits!

Mrs S Morgan

Dr Kate Whittaker

Kate Whittaker joined the Drama Department in 2011 bringing with her incredible academic background and a wicked sense of humour. Her students always commented that they loved the way she pushed them to do better but also knew when to praise them when they did well. Although only working part time, Kate invested time and energy into the subject and even led a student ensemble made out of sixth form a couple of evenings a week getting them to understand the meaning of teamwork in the theatre. Her rigorous planning and careful organisation made sure that any production that she was part of was pulled off with military precision. As well as being a brick in the drama department she was also a tutor in The Rise helping out an evening a week which she found rewarding.

Kate leaves us to take up the post as Lecturer of Drama at City of Birmingham University.

Helen Heaton

Mrs Lorraine Underwood

Lorraine Underwood (née McCartan) completed her teaching degree at Bangor University and joined St Peter’s School in 2008. She immediately became fully involved in school life as Head of ICT, as a tutor and in the extra-curricular programme. As a tutor, she gave her all, with the students being top of her priority list. Lorraine began tutoring in Queen’s House, in which she kept her tutees in line with lots of teambuilding treasure hunts and then, she moved as an assistant into Clifton House where her care for and genuine interest in her students was evident on a daily basis helping many 3rd form groups settle into St Peter’s. In the extra-curricular programme, she was RAF Flight Lieutenant as part of the CCF team and when she left, she had been promoted to OC RAF Section, as well as working dependably with the Community Action team. With all of the roles Lorraine filled, she never took her responsibilities lightly.

But her main love in school was, of course, ICT. She taught her third form classes with her inimitable Irish charm, patriotism and lots of chocolate. She could regularly be seen carrying boxfuls of sweet treats to different classes and also to members of staff if they had provided ‘ICT tip of the week’ (needless to say, I was never toptipper!).

Her excellent knowledge of IT and computers was indeed valued throughout the three schools and this, combined with her patience and care for others extended to her helping and supporting all teaching and support staff in the use of SID and any other system. Lorraine was the consummate professional from day one at St Peter’s who worked with everyone to build their skills. This work spanned 3 generations of ICT users; in her third and fourth form CLAIT classes, staff in lunchtime and departmental help sessions (what a wide range of ability in that group!) and the Silver Surfers as part of the Community Action team. It is safe to say that everyone gained much from her guidance. Her longest lasting legacy perhaps will be the introduction of iFAWKES, our fantastic virtual learning environment. Even during the holidays, Lorraine was in school and I know that Neil Matkin and David Watkinson are eternally grateful for her help on examination results days.

Whilst undertaking a busy life at St Peter’s, Lorraine managed an even busier personal life. She got engaged, bought her first house, married the love of her life in Dr Phil Underwood and had her son, David, all in her five years here. She tallied all of this with some time to herself, enjoying her love of caving and cross-stitch: some of her work can be seen in Clifton House.

We thank her for all of the work that Lorraine has done for the school as a whole, and as individuals for the help that she has given us. She has been a thoughtful, kind friend to many and we wish her well for her new position at the University of York.

Ádh mór ort, Braithfimid uainn thú, or better for me, bonne chance Lorraine et tu vas nous manquer!

Mrs J Lunardi

Mr Lee Manning

I was very fortunate to have been employed alongside Lee Manning many years ago in a Jersey boys’ school when I was new to the job of teaching and he was a seasoned campaigner in the profession. My then Head of Department, who himself was an experienced and very wise schoolmaster, advised that I should spend any spare time that I had watching this outstanding and inspiring teacher. I subsequently attended his lessons and watched in admiration as he sculpted and shaped the rough diamonds in his charge into sparkling linguists capable of tackling very difficult concepts with a huge deal of success. Lee has never lost that ability to inspire and enthuse all different levels and abilities of children and was an exceptional addition to our department for the short time that he stayed here.

Lee came to us in January of this year in order to cover a maternity leave having previously had much experience in various teaching posts. In his role as a classroom teacher of French he taught both to IGCSE and Advanced Level where his enthusiasm and his love of the subject were infectious. He is an outstanding teacher in all respects. He has a calm, almost unnerving, classroom presence which is complemented by an extremely strong work ethic (he is the last to leave at the end of the working day) and a rigorous intellectual engagement with a pinpoint delivery and the meticulous education of the children at its core.

Lee’s command of French is remarkable and his academic record is long and distinguished. He very quickly became a respected member of our department in his short time with us and he is an example of teaching at its best. He may not be the all singing, all dancing, modern teacher who sucks the life out of pupils by using Wordle, Voki or Prezzi but he delivers pedagogic excellence, on a daily basis, at all levels. I very much enjoyed having him here and, just like all those years ago, I learned much from listening to his wise words.

Mr M Duffy

Mrs Sheila Groves

When I first joined the administration staff at St Peter’s it was Sheila who showed me the ropes. It was Sheila who could always be relied upon to keep the rest of us on the right track and who knew when and what to prepare for the next important task coming up in the school calendar. Her knowledge of parents, pupils and staff ,both past and present, and knowing who was related to who, proved to be a valuable resource to any ‘green’ member of the school office team. Equally, having spent most of her life living in York, her knowledge of the area could be relied upon when, as was the case on many occasion, we received a frantic phone call from visitors who had become lost enroute and needed guidance through the challenges of the York traffic in order to make it to their appointment at school.

As a teenager Sheila had learned her secretarial skills in the traditional way and her competency as a typist, use of shorthand, accuracy and attention to detail were second to none. However, her unassuming manner hid a mischievous sense of fun, often resulting in the school office staff struggling to quash helpless fits of giggles.

We wish her a very happy and well-deserved retirement.

Mrs G Daniells