The Flagpole

The final Flagpole of an academic year is always a great letter to write. The sense of excitement, setting off on holidays, waiting for results, and hopefully spending restful days in glorious sunshine, all add up to what a summer holiday should be about. However, it is important to remember how hard we, as a community, have worked to get to the end of the academic year. This time last year saw me complete 100 days in post. Looking back, I am blown away by how quickly this year has gone and how much has happened. It has been filled with highlights of our pupils flourishing at Princethorpe.

We had the bi-centenary celebration of Jules Chevalier, the founder of the MSCs, on whose ethos and values we as a school stand. Ours is a Spirit of Family and we have raised more than £13,000 for charity this year. Our pupils are off to Malawi again for an outreach and the donations they are taking along, further adds to our ethos of caring for others. A special mention goes to Trutex who have sponsored 1,000 items of clothing, and their shipping to Malawi, for the children our pupils will be supporting. Our Development Office have also seen incredible buy-in from our community. Our bursary fund remains a focus to support current and future pupils for whom Princethorpe may not be possible without the help we can offer through the generosity of others. Our Smallholding/Farm project is gathering momentum and future projects around exciting developments in the enhancement of our sporting facilities are very much on their agenda. I know Mr Kowal and his team massively appreciate every interaction in improving the College and making it more accessible. If you have any questions or if you wish to support any aspect of Development, please do get in touch – it genuinely makes a difference.

In terms of calendar highlights, this year has been busier than ever. It would be almost impossible to list everything that is in our calendar, but I feel it is most important to acknowledge that we have stayed true to our broad approach in offering our pupils so many opportunities both in and outside of the classroom. Princethorpe pupils get stuck in and enjoy being busy – very busy! We have run 71 trips this year and 96% of all pupils in Year to 11 have participated in a co-curricular or sporting event. Every Year 7 pupil has represented Princethorpe in a competitive sports fixture and 170 pupils have been on a Duke of Edinburgh expedition. On 40 occasions our sports teams have been part of the final stages of various competitions at regional and national level. Our pupils have also thrown themselves into various Olympiads with great success and Theo Sparks in Year 11 deserves special mention for being awarded a highly competitive Arkwright Scholarship. We are eagerly awaiting the Results Days in August as they will once again show the hard work of our pupils. Add to this the Drama production, Musical, Music concerts, Performing Arts Week, PTA events, Charity events, Outreach, the Art, Photography and Design Show, House Activity Day and events, IAD days, Trip Day, and Make a Difference Day and I hope you would agree that, as a school, Princethorpe is an exciting place to be where all our pupils have a chance to find and pursue their passions. As I said, this holiday is deserved and needed!

The staff at Princethorpe remain one of the key reasons we can offer the excellent and broad education we are known for. Their commitment and willingness to give extra, enriches the experiences of all our pupils and I would like to say a massive thank you to all my colleagues for their efforts this year. I will write to you in August to introduce new teachers joining us in September – we have again recruited an incredibly strong group of staff. However, that means we have to say farewell to some staff.

I would like to start by thanking our non-teaching staff who are moving on from Princethorpe. Helen Shayler (Payroll Assistant), Amanda McKenzie (Sixth Form Administrator) and Jim Hardwick, who has worked for the Foundation for 17 years, all leave us this summer. They have made such a difference as colleagues who ensure the wheels turn behind the scenes and they go with our very best wishes.

Our Graduate Teaching Assistants are coming to the end of their year at Princethorpe and we wish OP Lilli Draper good luck with her next adventure and look forward to seeing Sam Harding return next year as a Trainee Teacher.

In the RS department we say goodbye to Lizzie Hester who is relocating to The Hall School in Hampstead, London, and from the Sports Department Vicky Howell finishes her maternity leave cover and leaves us to join Bloxham School – I’m sure we’ll see Vicky again on the opposite side of the touchline. We are also saying goodbye to Jo Evans and Jess Proudlock from the English Department. Their contributions in the classroom and beyond will be missed and I know there are numerous pupils who wish these teachers could have stayed longer. Nurturing a love of language and literature is so important and the passion Jo and Jess show for their subject has left their pupils inspired.

Bérénice Galano is relocating to Penzance in Cornwall to become Lead MFL Teacher at the Humphry Davy School, while Lizzie Caisey, Teacher of Psychology and Sociology, is also moving onto new ventures. They have both made significant contributions to our House system as House Leader for Austin and formerly Head of House for More respectively and we thank them for the impact they have had.

We will be saying goodbye to Fionnuala Schofield after eight years as a Teacher of Psychology and Sociology and five years as Head of Department. She takes on the challenge of Head of Department role at Cardinal Newman Catholic School in Coventry. Will Bower is leaving us to take on the post of Head of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme at Abingdon School near Oxford. He has helped a total of 1,240 Princethorpe pupils achieve Duke of Edinburgh Awards (Bronze 758, Silver 341, Gold 141) in his tenure as Head of Outdoor Education at Princethorpe and he will be missed both in and out of the classroom.

And finally, once in your career you will come across someone that is truly of “legendary status”. Rachel Taylor is retiring as Teacher of Classics. Formerly Head of Classics, Rachel is one of our longest serving members of staff and joined St Joseph’s school in Kenilworth (now Crackley Hall) in May 1974. She has served the Foundation for 50 years! I have never met a person in education with such a track record, and I am sure I will never do so again. We wish Rachel well in her retirement, although we may still see her invigilating an exam or two!

To all our departing colleagues we want to say a huge thank you for their services and impact on our pupils. Even though you won’t be here in September, be assured your memories will linger.

A couple of more general reminders for the holidays:

·  In our continued drive for sustainability, we are making a change to normal practice. We are not going to print the little calendar books as we normally do. Instead, you will receive an electronic copy via email and/or instructions on how to access the calendar through MySchoolPortal towards the end of August. This should be easily accessible from your phone and ensures we can update any changes to the calendar immediately.

·  Mrs Sharpe did write to all parents recently about uniform expectations and I request that you ensure your child arrives in September with the correct unform. Summer breaks are notorious for growth spurts, so please ensure trousers, shirts, skirts, and sports kit are long and big enough.

·  Mr Compton has a section in this Flagpole about our Digital Device scheme for any parent who wishes to access it over the holidays. A reminder that pupils must have their own device, however, our scheme is but one option and families are more than welcome to provide their own device as long as it meets the required specifications.

·  The academic timetable for 2024/25 will be published shortly before the start of term. If there are any questions or concerns about subject choices, please get in touch with Mr Spencer.

It would be remiss of me not to mention the challenges that may be facing us next year associated with the election taking place tomorrow. When challenged, there is sometimes a danger that we so focus on those things that we cannot control, that we forget about the things firmly within our grasp. Whatever, the outcome and resulting actions from the election, I want to reassure you again that we are working very hard behind the scenes to be able to respond as robustly as possible to any changes. Most importantly, please be assured that the excellent education we offer will not change – we can control that, and we will never be complacent. Our pupils deserve the very best we can offer. What is really encouraging is the fact that many families outside of Princethorpe are recognising this too. We currently have 35 external pupils signed up to join our Sixth Form in September, which shows our strong reputation. We will be in touch with any updates or news if relevant, otherwise, know that all is in hand.

Finally, may I take this opportunity to personally thank you for all of your support. As I get to know more families, I continue to be impressed and encouraged by our school community. As parents, your input and support are what schools fall or flourish on, hence our gratitude and appreciation. I hope you and all your loved ones have a restful and safe holiday wherever your travels may take you. Make sure to slow down and be selfish. We look forward to seeing all our community back in September.

With best wishes

Grove du Toit
Headmaster