The Flagpole

2018 has proved to be another exceptional year for the College – full of achievement, progress and success on so many levels. What better way to celebrate than at the annual Prize Giving Ceremony on Friday 16 November when Princethorpe was delighted to welcome pupils, parents, staff and Old Princethorpians to a wonderful new venue, the IXL Events Centre at Dallas Burston Polo Club.

Before the ceremony the Old Princethorpians Committee hosted a special drinks reception for the returning Upper Sixth, their parents and VIP guests, providing a welcome opportunity for the class of 2018 to get together and catch up on their news since the summer.

The evening began with a screening of the College’s new film Princethorpe College – What’s It All About, before Chair of Trustees, Mrs Liz Griffin, officially opened the proceedings, warmly welcoming parents, friends of the College and Princethorpians old and new to the special occasion.

In his formal address the Headmaster, Ed Hester, gave thanks to the Princethorpe family who make Princethorpe the special place it is - the staff, the pupils, the parents and the wider Old Princethorpian community.  He talked about the many special and amazing people who are a part of that community, reflecting especially on the support and guidance of the late Mrs Mary O’Farrell.  His warm words paid tribute to all that she had done in support of the College and he announced that a new prize would be awarded in her memory.

Mr Hester congratulated last year’s Year 11 and Upper Sixth on their exceptional examination results and reflected that the results were the best in the College’s history.

The atmosphere throughout the evening was joyful and celebratory and there were superb musical interludes from the Year 7 Chorus, College Orchestra and College Jazz Band.

At the ceremony Mr Hester presented GCSE and A-level Examination Certificates and then a myriad of well-deserved trophies, cups and shields. Watching the stream of young people coming across the stage and shaking Mr Hester’s hand was truly inspiring and humbling. The talent in evidence, the grit and determination, the passion, enthusiasm and commitment were all applauded and honoured.

Some of the young people took to the stage with confidence, others more self-consciously, some made us laugh, and some brought a tear to our eye as we listened to, Head of Sixth Form, Ben Collie’s citations.

The College was especially honoured to welcome on stage John O’Farrell to poignantly present the Mary O’Farrell Prize to Upper Sixth leaver, Daniel Dziurzynski.

And then it was time for the recipient of the final award, the Princethorpe Shield, the College’s oldest and most prestigious award to be revealed. The Shield is presented annually to the student who is seen to embody the spirit and ethos of the College in many facets of their school life. It was a very popular decision, as to resounding applause former Head Girl, Miriam Isaacs, was welcomed back to the stage to receive the Shield.

To close the proceedings Head Girl, Elizabeth Carr, and Head Boy, Tom Warne, gave an eloquent vote of thanks, before the evening finally came to an inspiring end with fervent singing of the College Hymn, ‘Here I Am Lord’ by the assembled throng.

Prizewinners will shortly be sent a link to photographs of the occasion.

Nearly fifty years on from when they boarded at the College, Professors Paul and Peter Cheung returned to Princethorpe last weekend to take 11 lucky GCSE Design Technology pupils on an amazing hands-on journey into the technological advanced world of 3D printing.

The twin brothers visited Princethorpe College, their old school, on Friday 9 to Saturday 10 November, to share their exceptional, engineering expertise.  Both are now professors at the University of Hong Kong and Imperial College London respectively and they were generously donating their time, and the printer technology, as a thank you for the opportunities, inspiration and support the College had provided them.

On the Friday afternoon Professor Peter Cheung gave a compelling presentation to pupils interested in a career in engineering.  He explained how engineers solve problems, the innovative opportunities his university students get involved in and the facilities Imperial has to offer.  He described time at University as ‘enabling’ and gave examples of where engineering careers could take you before finishing with the challenges engineers will face in the future.

On the Saturday Professor Paul Cheung hosted a full day workshop for 11 invited GCSE Design Technology pupils.  Helped by his brother Peter, cousin Patrick, and Head of Design Technology, Paul Scopes, the 11 pupils spent the day building three 3D printers completely from scratch.  After an initial briefing the pupils quickly got to work and the big build began.  Over the course of the day the new printers took shape, progress was swift, the pupils focussed and engaged and by mid-afternoon, incredibly, and thanks to a determined and tenacious effort, the first machine was already printing.   Pupils, parents and staff watched in amazement as the machine printed a perfect pair of miniature owls.

What was only recently an out of reach, expensive, industrial technique has, over the past few years, developed into accessible, new technology. Today anyone can print musical instruments, household items and, with easily available open source programmes, pretty much anything you can think of.  The new 3D printers are an amazing technological addition to Princethorpe’s Design Technology workshops that will develop new design skills and inspire the next generation of engineers.

Professor Paul Cheung was delighted with Princethorpe’s pupils’ enthusiasm, commenting, “Princethorpe’s pupils have beaten the record for the build time for the printers, beating even my university students.”  He added, “It has been really great to be back at Princethorpe College, we have been warmly welcomed and I would like to thank everyone for making our visit so enjoyable and memorable.”

Whilst visiting the school the brothers were also able to meet the former Director of Boarding, Fr Teddy O'Brien MSC.

At the end of the workshop Headmaster, Ed Hester, thanked Paul and Peter Cheung for their hugely generous donation and presented them and their cousin Patrick, who now lives locally, with a token gift, a much sought after, Old Princethorpians scarf.

A time lapse of the day can be found here.

It was all systems go on Saturday 10 November as Princethorpe welcomed over 300 children to take the Entrance Examinations for September 2019. Seamless organisation made the day run smoothly with candidates being efficiently organised into eighteen colour coded groups when receiving their day’s timetable.

Headmaster, Ed Hester welcomed girls, boys and parents before members of staff and Sixth Formers ushered the prospective pupils to their respective ‘base camp’ classrooms for the day.

Papers were sat in English, Maths and Free Writing alongside an online CEM test of verbal, non-verbal and numerical reasoning.

With regular comfort breaks (involving Princethorpe’s legendary cookies), as well as a hot meal provided in the middle of the day, the prospective pupils were well supported at every stage before being reunited with their parents at 3.45pm.

Comments, Melanie Butler, Assistant Head - Marketing, Admissions and Communications, "We played host to over 300 prospective pupils across three year groups which made it our largest ever exam session. Feedback from parents and candidates alike has been very favourable indeed, which bodes very well for next year's intake."

"The marking machine swung into action, even before candidates had left the building on Saturday and the Admissions Panel sat last week to decide on who will be joining us in September."

Over the last few days the top achieving academic scholars have been invited back to interview with the Headmaster and Assistant Head - Co-Curricular, Greg Hunter, has also been interviewing selected all-rounder scholars.

Results will be posted, first class on Thursday 29 November. The deadline for acceptances is Monday 4 March 2019.

Our thanks go to all the pupils, prefects, parents and staff who helped in the run up to the exams, on the day and, last but by no means least, those who helped mark the papers so efficiently.

Princethorpe College’s Junior Girls Cross Country Team can congratulate themselves after qualifying for the English Schools’ Athletics Association’s National Final. The event, to be held on Saturday 24 November, at Woodbridge School in Suffolk, will see the top three schools from nine regional finals competing for the National Championship title.

Princethorpe’s Junior Girls’ eight strong cross country team includes: Grace Darcy, Amelie Edge, Jess Evans, Ava Farren, Julia Loftus, Kate Pomerleau, Olivia Sarkies and Sage Westbury.

The girls had already won the inter-district Warwickshire County Cup that took place back on Monday 8 October at Princethorpe College, before five of them travelled to Chetwynd Deer Park, near Newport in Shropshire, on Saturday 10 November, to take part in the second regional round.

The regional final saw a field of over eighty runners from fourteen qualifying schools take on a challenging 2,300m course.  The course was hilly, but running conditions were good, the mild and dry autumn a blessing for those more use to the driving rain and slippy mud.

Kate and Ava both ran well, at the finish line Kate just outsprinted her team mate to come home first for Princethorpe in 7th place, with Ava finishing just behind her in 9th. They were closely followed by Jess who made good progress round the course to finish 17th.  Sage and Amelie ran solidly, knowing that every runner’s position could count towards the final team qualification tally.  Sage finished 36th and Amelie brought the team home coming over the line in 48th place.

All the girls were surprised and excited to discover that they had come third overall and therefore earned automatic qualification for the ESAA National Championships.

Head of Outdoor Education, Will Bower, was delighted and commented, “We have a strong team of girls who support each other and never give in.  They ran well against tough competition taking on the hills tenaciously.” He added, “We have a brilliant turnout every Wednesday morning at 7.30am for our breakfast cross country club.  Week in week out, we always have 25 runners and their hard work and discipline is clearly paying dividends for us all.”

Huge thanks go to Mrs Pomerleau who kindly took the team to the regional event.

Put together 92 Sixth Formers, 16 professionals and one day, Monday 12 November, and you get a very successful Sixth Form Interview Day.

To better equip our Upper Sixth for the future, the Princethorpe’s Careers Team organised a special mock Interview Day.   Designed to perfect interview technique, sharpen communication skills, presentational qualities and the ability to respond to feedback, each of our Upper Sixth students took part in a thirty-minute mock interview.

Taking the role of interviewer were some 16 senior professionals including Chief Executives, Managing Directors, HR Directors, Sales Directors and Consultants from a variety of different business backgrounds. Some were past or present parents, many had 20-30 years of experience out in the working world, and all were happy to support our students, in this, the most critical year of their school career.

In readiness for their one-to-one interviews students had submitted their curriculum vitaes to be scrutinised beforehand. Exactly like in a real interview these documents formed the basis of questions that were discussed. Then at the end of the interview the professionals provided valuable feedback with constructive suggestions for improvement.

Before half term this year’s Upper Sixth had also benefited from an interview skills workshop and an unforgettable masterclass in ‘How not to Interview’ courtesy of Head of Sixth Form, Mr Collie and Headmaster, Mr Hester.  No one will ever quite forget the lessons to be learnt from their classic performance.

Head of Careers, Jacqui Quinney, commented, “Our Upper Sixth were encouraged to prepare well for these interviews. Our aim was to provide them with a head start in developing their interview technique. It was an extremely important day for them all as they face the looming reality of university and workplace interviews. The skills practised today will benefit all of our students and we are immensely grateful to the volunteer interviewers who have given up their time to take part in the day.”

If you trod the corridors of Crackley Hall on Tuesday 6 November and listened carefully at the door of any classroom you would have been treated to the sound of a Saint recounting their life's work and good deeds.  For that day was no ordinary one; as Crackley Hall RE Co-ordinator, Susanne Jackson-Mayne, and Princethorpe College's Joint Head of Drama, Aileen Cefaliello, had hatched a clever plan to inspire and delight the junior school’s pupils.

To help bring RE lessons to life six Princethorpe Year 10 Drama pupils took on a very special role, they each played a different saint and shared the story of their vocations.  Dressed in costume they visited the classrooms in turn bringing vividly to life their saint’s spiritual journeys.  Their super saintly performances were packed to the brim with detail, they handled tricky questions well, whilst sharing their knowledge and wisdom.

It was a very special morning for everyone, the children were clearly inspired by the saints walking amongst them and they all developed their knowledge of St Joseph, St Therese of Liseux, St Francis, Mother Teresa, St Peter and St Oscar Romero.

Huge thanks to the pupils for their excellent research and incredible performances: Mary Lomas as St Therese of Lisieux, Lauren Taylor as St Joseph, Greg Burford as St Oscar Romero, Fern Boston as St Peter, Carys Burchell as Mother Teresa and last but by no means least, Jenny Brown as St Francis.

Matt Dickinson, award-winning author and Mount Everest summiteer re-visited Princethorpe College on Friday 16 November. A successful writer and film maker Matt has worked for production companies including the BBC, National Geographic Television and the Discovery Channel and is one of the very few cameramen to ever film at the summit of Everest.

Matt spoke to Year 8 Geography pupils and some Y7 English classes about his experiences climbing the tallest mountains in the world and coping in extreme climates. He talked about the risks involved in mountaineering and his personal experiences of dangers such as frostbite. He shared breath-taking images and film clips of towering icebergs, fathomless ice crevices and gigantic glaciers and discussed the wider geographic impact humans are having on the world.

His anecdotes helped pupils understand the preparation and practice, the determination and resilience required to be an adventurer, but also how it is possible for anyone to get out there and get involved in the natural world. Matt has met some amazing and inspirational people on his travels and his love of adventure and extreme environments has given him plenty of story lines for his writing. He is the author of the ‘Mortal Chaos’ series, fast-paced action adventure stories for teenagers, and the crime drama series ‘The Everest Files’. He has also written ‘Death Zone’, a factual book based on his climb to the summit of Everest during a devastating killer storm.

Matt Dickinson was clearly delighted with his enthusiastic audience and said, “I have had a great day at Princethorpe College, with some superb questions from the pupils. Their knowledge of the natural world is impressive, they were able to talk about alternative energy sources and global warming and appreciate the impact of tourism on natural environments.”

On Tuesday 13 November Princethorpe College’s Year 10 and 11 Drama pupils were treated to a full day of theatre experimentation with Michelle Edwards from the world acclaimed theatre company, Frantic Assembly. The company’s work includes collaboration with both the Australian State and the National Theatre including productions such as The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time and Othello.

Frantic Assembly are at the cutting edge of the industry, with their bewitching blend of physicality, design and sound-tracking.  Their distinctive creative approach has influenced contemporary theatre-making prioritising the use of movement directors and choreographers in new dramatic works. 

Practitioner, Michelle worked the pupils physically and intensely and took them through a variety of devising techniques for creating original performances.

Aileen Cefaliello, Joint Head of Drama, commented, “The day started with the signature Frantic Assembly warm up condensed to 20 minutes rather than 90! Pupils then learned a variety of lifts before breaking into dynamic devising.”

Frantic’s approach is accessible, their techniques empower and inspire people to participate and the results make thrilling work.

Aileen continued,"‘The stakes are high!’ was the quote of the day.  You could see pupils pushing themselves in terms of choreography and muscle memory.  It was a wonderful and productive workshop for the Drama Department!”

On Friday 9 November a group of 18 Princethorpe pupils from Years 10 and 11 visited Rugby School to take part in an academic conference on the theme of Conflict and Co-operation.  They joined pupils from Rugby School, Lawrence Sheriff School, Ashlawn School and Harris Church of England Academy.

Over the course of the day pupils heard from four thought-provoking keynote speakers, including the MP for South Leicestershire, a barrister, a campaigner for the legalisation of cannabis and a journalist.  Their talks punctuated the day and in between the pupils broke out into seminar groups where they each presented a paper, they had written, on the conference topic of Conflict and Co-operation.

Religious Studies Teacher, Cyp Vella, explained, “We wanted to stretch and challenge our top performing students and allow them the freedom to look into a broad issue and explore a particular element, that was particularly interesting or important to them.”  He continued, “This was the first time Rugby School have run this conference and it proved to be a fantastic day, a really good opportunity to be immersed in an intellectually challenging environment, and where pupils could be exposed to the interests and work produced by their peers.  Everyone delivered a presentation and I was really proud of the way our students conducted themselves and the high standards of their participation.”

Abbie O'Carroll-Bailey described the day saying, “Rugby School’s conference was a brilliant day enjoyed by all. It was extremely interesting to hear everyone’s interpretations of the main topic Conflict and Co-operation. There was such a wide range of paper titles, for example some people did essays on the effect of weapons on war, whereas others did essays on how the brain copes with conflict. As well as listening to the presentations we also had multiple talks from keynote speakers. The talks varied from Julian Matthews talking about conflict and co-operation within the law, Robin Scott giving us a controversial talk on alcohol and cannabis, Alberto Costa talking to us about the conflict in his role as an MP, and finally my favourite talk, Tony Birtley speaking to us about his experience as a journalist travelling across the world and reporting on conflicts. For example, he went to Afghanistan to report on the devastation bought about by the war. These talks were extremely inspiring and sparked a lot of discussions amongst the pupils. I want to say thank you to everyone involved in this trip especially Mr Vella and Mrs Scott who gave up their time to take us. It was an extremely engaging day and a wonderful experience.” 

Police are appealing for any witnesses, anyone who followed any vehicles or local residents that may have CCTV of an incident which took place at approximately 08.40 hours on Tuesday 16 October 2018 at the junction of Leamington Road and Oxford Road, Ryton on Dunsmore. 

If you were witness to this incident please contact DS 960 Henry Scutt via 101 on extension 6107 or e-mail henry.scutt@warwickshire.pnn.police.uk

Princethorpe Cemetery war memorial is benefitting from a grant of £3,750, towards the total cost of £6,000, from the Grants for War Memorials scheme supported by the First World War Memorials Programme and Historic England.  The grant has enabled the war memorial to be deconstructed, allowing the corpus and plaque to be cleaned and preserved, providing a new oak cross and has covered the re-pointing and re-instating of the surrounding mound, which signifies Calvary.

On Sunday 11 November, following a Mass in Our Lady of the Angels' Chapel, over 100 parishioners, Princethorpe villagers and friends processed down the College drive to the cemetery. Fr Teddy O'Brien MSC conducted a re-dedication and blessing service assisted by Luke and Sean O'Kelly. The service was very moving with Fr Teddy offering prayers, Paul Waddoups, a St Anne's parishioner, reading the poem For the Fallen by Robert Laurence Binyon and everyone standing together for the national two minute silence. The playing of the Last Post echoed around the cemetery with everyone thinking of the four soldiers named on the memorial.

After the service the College hosted a gathering for all in the Sixth Form Centre including Princethorpe villagers, who had dedicated their own memorial, with light refreshments, music and readings prepared by the children from Our Lady's School, Princethorpe and villagers. It was a very fitting, memorable and uplifting event for such a special occasion.

Frances Moreton, Director, War Memorials Trust said, “War memorials are a tangible connection to our shared past creating a link between the fallen and today. It is vital we ensure all our war memorials are in the best possible condition for their age and the charity is delighted to support this project. The centenary of World War 1 is a wonderful opportunity for local communities across the country to protect and conserve their war memorials. If anyone knows of any other war memorials in need of help please contact us.”

Fr Teddy O'Brien MSC added, “As Parish Priest responsible for the cemetery and the war memorial in it, I am delighted and grateful to receive this grant from the War Memorial Trust. This makes possible the restoration of the memorial in time for a re-dedication ceremony at 10.45am on Sunday 11 November 2018. This ceremony will mirror that which was composed for the dedication of the memorial in 1922 and will serve as a reminder of the values that underpinned the erection of the memorial in the first place.”

Please visit the St Anne's, Wappenbury website click here to learn more about the restoration project.

Images are attributed to John O'Kelly, parishioner of St Anne's, Wappenbury with Our Lady of the Angels' Chapel, Princethorpe College.