ASSEMBLYSPRING 2021 From the Headmaster It is a truism in sport to say that you learn more from a defeat than you do when victorious. The same can apply to adversity, when the chips are down, you find out far more about your resilience, ability to adapt and make the best of the situation. Since early January, we have all had to deal with the misfortune of another national lockdown and school closure. The fact that
we have come through it stronger than the first lockdown last year is testament to everyone’s resolve to keep going and make the best of things. Our IT skills have improved immeasurably and many of the innovations introduced to keep the School running smoothly will be incorporated into new timetables and school routines in the future. Above all, lockdown has reinforced
Top row left to right: Spring Term Charity Day in aid of City Harvest, Y5 Lockdown Learning. Middle row left to right: Y3 Life Long Ago Workshop, First lesson at Huxley’s Y8 Latin. Bottom row left to right: Y2 Dinosaur Visit, Y7&8 Covid Testing at Huxley’s.
ASSEMBLY
the importance of being together; life and learning is better as a shared activity and let’s hope that we have an uninterrupted summer term to enjoy ourselves – we deserve it! Viv Thomas
Healthy Competition at Arnold House The House System at AH was first introduced in 1925, making inter-house entertainments a fixture in the school calendar, usually in the form of playlets. Each of the three houses, named after great British historical figures, had their own motto and colours. Nelson took the motto ‘Verba Non Facta’, ‘Words not Deeds’ and the colours blue and yellow; Wellington, ‘Fidus et Audax’, ‘Faithful and Courageous’ and light blue and dark blue; and Pitt, ‘Strike Sure’ and black and old gold. As well as entertainments, there were inter-house sporting competitions, and the Cock House Cup Competition was introduced, covering games, work and conduct. Pitt House was the first winner. As numbers grew, a fourth house, Thompson, with blue and white colours, was formed in 1938. According to the School archives, Thompson House was short lived, likely due to the change of School numbers during the Second World War, but another fourth house was created in 1981, taking the name Brunel after the famous engineer. As is the case today, since the inception of the House System, boys were appointed as captains of each house providing another layer in the hierarchy of responsibility among boys. In 2004, the School applied for a grant of arms and the resulting design made reference to all four houses, Nelson, Pitt, Wellington and Brunel. The silver cross at the centre of the shield alludes to the arms of Lord Nelson. The gold discs around the cross refer to the arms of the Duke of Wellington. The crest is formed of a stork, which refers to the arms of Pitt the Younger, while the propeller on which the stork rests its foot refers to the great engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Today, the House System has four main aims: 1. To encourage healthy competition in sport, music, drama and art. There is a full programme of House sports matches as well as a House Verse Speaking competition. 2. To allow younger and older boys to share each other’s company. The older and younger boys often come into contact as members of the same house in sports matches, assemblies, the House Verse Speaking Competition, House concerts, Sports Day or in other House activities. 3. To allow boys to develop leadership and organisational skills and to have confidence to speak in public. House Captains learn to take on responsibility, act as role models and take House Assemblies. They need to organise teams and participants for House matches and other House activities. 4. To encourage boys to work hard and to behave well. Boys can accumulate House ASSEMBLY
points through the Interim Reports and Progress Reports, which are issued at half term and the end of term respectively, or through their Citizenship Report, which accompanies the Progress Report at the end of each term. Points are awarded for Industry and for Citizenship and count towards the overall House totals. House Assemblies are held twice a term. Boys from each of the four Houses, assemble either in the Science Lab or in the Gym. The House Assemblies are organised by the House Captains who invite other senior boys to present the assembly, which are very much pupil-led. The theme of the Assembly is decided by the House Captains though there may be reports or information about forthcoming House events and competitions. All members of staff are affiliated to one of the four Houses and they also attend the respective House Assemblies. The dual rota system for House Assemblies not only ensures that younger and older boys are together during proceedings, but also share break times together. This provides an opportunity for contact and interaction between boys in different age groups. During this break, older boys are encouraged to talk to and play with younger boys in the same House. Since the outbreak of the pandemic last March, we have found inventive ways of ensuring that the spirit of the House System remains very much alive especially during the long periods of home-schooling. Transferring the House Assemblies into Cyberspace was an example of this. Using Google Classroom instead of the Science Lab or Gym, the House Captains were able to keep everyone in their House connected despite being in their bedroom! It was very impressive to see the creative and tech-savvy ways that the senior boys delivered these events; everyone enjoyed them immensely. Lockdown didn’t mean an end to House competitions. In fact, many Lockdown House competitions were organised in cooking, photography, joke-telling and magic tricks. A nice feature of these events was the involvement of the teachers; each event was judged by a new team,
giving boys praise and encouragement. Of course, House Competitions lend themselves to sports. Despite the restrictions that plagued the past year, real-life House matches in football, unihockey, cross-country, touch rugby, tennis and cricket were contested. Whenever the school was shut, the boys were encouraged to participate in a variety of sports-related House Challenges. The chance of winning House points remained as alluring during the lockdown as in normal times; an amazing 192 AH boys participated in one of the 3 House Sports Activity Challenges available during the two periods of home schooling and collectively many hundreds of miles were covered running and cycling. The varied programme of House events enriches the lives of every AH boy; past and present. The sense of belonging and opportunity for healthy competition that it fosters is an AH institution that we all cherish. Ask any AH old-boy: they can all remember which House they were in! Chris Kerr (Senior Master) & Seb Stones (Deputy Head Pastoral)
A record of the initial formation of the Houses in 1925 from AH founder Amy Hanson’s diary.
Introducing The Arnold Society
YOUR HISTORY...OUR LEGACY...YOUR CLUB
During the spring term we were delighted to launch an exciting new club for AH old boys; The Arnold Society. Through this new platform, we hope to be able to encourage our old boys to remain connected to Arnold House from their prep school days. As part of the launch, a dedicated website has been created, designed to be modern, informative and interactive. As a private social media platform for our old boys, it will be an easy way to re-connect with school friends, reminisce, share information and receive updates from the School on recent news and events. Through the website, old boys can: • Create a profile • Find and reconnect with old friends • Search for people in specific industries, countries or companies. • View upcoming old boy events and sign up to attend • Grow business and social connections • Enjoy Interactive news articles • Share news & success stories • Post thoughts on the newsfeed • Discover the AH digital archives and photos • Join the Business Directory • Benefit from career support • Advertise and search for jobs • Buy merchandise online
ASSEMBLY
Life membership to The Arnold Society is automatic on leaving Arnold House School and in addition to the website; a new programme of exciting events and a dedicated newsletter ‘Post House’ will soon be launched. We are incredibly proud of our old boys and look forward reconnecting with those young and old, encouraging them to be active within our community, inspiring those that will follow in their footsteps and allowing Arnold House to continue to offer their support long after the school gates have closed on their prep school days. Stephanie Miller Head of External Relations
www.arnoldsociety.co.uk
Interview with Mr Thomas By Head Boys, Dariush Ghaffarpour & Harry Slade
As Mr Thomas starts his final term at Arnold House, the Head Boys sat down with him to find out more about his time at the School and his future plans. What will you miss most about Arnold House? The people, the community and the sense of belonging to something very special. What won’t you miss? Being tied to my desk at times when I would undoubtedly rather be out-and-about with staff and boys. And complaints from neighbours when a car is blocking their driveway! What would you like to be remembered for as the Headmaster of Arnold House?
How long have you been the Headmaster at Arnold House? 15 Years as Headmaster although I initially joined Arnold House in 1997 as Head of Mathematics and was promoted to Deputy Head Pastoral. I left in 2001 to become Head of Keble School. I returned as Head of Arnold House in September 2006. So in total I have been at Arnold House for 19 years. How many boys have been at the School since you have been Headmaster? Around 1,000 boys have been on the register at Arnold House since I have been Headmaster. Could you sum up your time at Arnold House in one sentence? Taking inspiration from the opening lines of Charles Dickens’s famous novel A Tale of Two Cities, “It has been the very best of times”. What was your first impression of Arnold House and has that changed during your time here? When I joined Arnold House in 1997 I found a really happy school with a good heart and wonderful spirit. This stems from the first two Heads of Arnold House, Amy Hanson
and George Smart, who established the ethos and values of the School over a 60 year period. I believe this spirit still remains as it continues to be commented on by those who visit us for the first time. What have been the main challenges you have faced as Headmaster of Arnold House? I consider myself very lucky to have been asked to lead such a stable and wellregarded school. The challenges I’ve faced haven’t been unexpected or disruptive, apart from the recent pandemic of course! So the challenges have in fact presented themselves as opportunities, the Bursary scheme is a perfect example. With a knowledgeable and supportive governing body and staff who commit long term to the School it is much easier to bring about change and move with the times. What are the top three highlights of your time at Arnold House? The big events have always been a highlight for me; from the music concerts and plays to sports day and prize givings. Working alongside such a talented team of professionals who care about the boys would be another. And the boys themselves - they are great company!
My predecessor, Nicholas Allen, carried out a huge amount of refurbishment to the school in the late 90s and early 2000s which afforded me time to focus on the boys and staff. During my time I feel I have enhanced the co-curricular offering in sport, music, drama and activities. With the Pastoral Team, we have developed an all-inclusive rewards programme with badges, bars, cups and certificates to acknowledge all areas of school life. Overall, I would say an Arnold House education is about helping little boys grow into the beginnings of good young men. I think the boys (and their parents for that matter) appreciate the simplicity of this message, understand its importance and have succeeded ten-fold in rising to the challenge! What would be your main advice to your successor? I have just re-read my interview with the Head Boys, Sam Grabiner and Anthony Pulsford from 2006. I said at the time ‘The trick is to move with the times, be flexible to change but stick to what you believe in’. I’m happy to go with that again…along with enjoy it! What are you planning to do on your retirement? I’m at my best when I’m busy so I plan to learn to play the guitar, improve my golf (that might take some time!), take on some voluntary work, read the classics I haven’t got round to yet and see more of the world starting with a trip to see the giant sand dunes in Namibia. I also hope to keep very much in touch with the prep school world in these next three to five years in the hope I can make a contribution to their continuing success. Finally, what is your favourite meal at Arnold House? It has to be the macaroni cheese!
Arnold House School 1 Loudoun Road, St. John’s Wood, London NW8 0LH Telephone: 020 7266 4840 Email: office@arnoldhouse.co.uk Website: www.arnoldhouse.co.uk Arnold House School Ltd (Limited by Guarantee). Registered in London Number 889424. Educational Charitable Trust Number 312725
ASSEMBLY