Upload
others
View
3
Download
0
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
1Achieving Each Child’s Potential
EWELL CASTLE SENIOR SCHOOLSummer Newsletter 2013
This has been a very busy term because it represents the
final run in to the public examinations for pupils in Years
10 to 13. For the other pupils, it is the completion of yet
another year in the educational process, and for those
individuals we also have to measure and assess progress.
Certainly a lot has gone on in the classroom and beyond.
Back in May, Sports Day was a tremendous success.
Poole Road Arena was a hive of athletic activity with the
whole school in attendance. Equally pleasing has been
Ewell Castle’s athletes competing at other local athletic
meetings and acquitting themselves well. The Tennis
Teams have also showed their mettle in local leagues –
the Juniors winning their division and the Seniors coming
second. Well done!!
We have played a lot of cricket and results have varied, but
good team and individual performances were achieved at
all levels.
I am also delighted to see cultural pursuits figuring
prominently. The Lower School production of ‘The
Scholarship’ was a real success. There is little doubt that
younger talent is being nurtured, that will entertain us in
the years ahead. To reinforce the importance of this aspect
of education there have been numerous opportunities
to see West End productions. The final Music Recital of
the year also took place and not only provided the boys
with a chance to perform publicly, but was thoroughly
enjoyable.
Other events this term have included; The PSFA Circus
Event, the New Parents’ Evening, Prize Day, the Sports
Awards Evening, the Summer Evening Entertainment, the
Art Exhibition and the Activities Fun Day.
It has been a great year and all the boys have grown in
stature, in confidence and in an understanding of what
is expected of them. School days will always be about
opportunities. It is up to each individual to make the most
of these. Get involved. If you could have done more, well
look to September and make plans for a new beginning.
If you were wholly engaged, then simply maintain the
momentum. You are on the right track. I look forward
to seeing all of those returning safe and well. For those
moving on to other places and other challenges I wish you
well in all of your future undertakings. I also thank you all
for your varied contributions to the life of the school. Do
make every effort to keep in touch with the school as we
do wish to hear of all of your future accomplishments!
Mr M Holder-Williams Head of the Senior School
HEADLINES
Achieving Each Child’s Potential
2
Ewell Castle School Principal Mr
Andrew Tibble attended the Society
of Heads Annual Conference at
The Vale Resort, Hensol Park,
Glamorgan in March which was
opened by The Princess Royal, and
was invited to meet her during a
recess period. The Princess Royal
was familiar with Epsom and Ewell
and their conversation naturally led to
discussing the Derby.
PRINCIPAL ANDREW TIBBLE AND THE PRINCESS ROYAL
During the Easter holidays our classicists travelled to
the Bay of Naples. Plenty of pizza and ice cream were
consumed, but the boys also learnt a great deal which
will stand them in good stead for the Classical Civilization
GCSE exam in the summer. The exam is sat a year early
as part of the school’s gifted and talented programme.
Highlights of the trip included: a day visiting Pompeii;
sailing to Capri and climbing to the Villa Jovis; climbing
Vesuvius in memorably terrible weather; touring
Herculaneum; and visiting a fascinating interactive
museum on the two cities.
CLASSICS TRIP
3
On the 10th July 2013 I will be setting
out on a 1300 km charity cycle ride.
The aim is to raise as much money
as possible for the Royal Marsden
Hospital, Cancer Charity. Starting
in Biarritz on the 12th July, cycling
through France and finishing at Royal
Russell School on the 20th July.
We have opened a just giving page
that will allow you to donate if you so
wish to this very worthy cause.
https://www.justgiving.com/teams/cyclingsirs
Many thanks for your support
Mr C Blencowe
In March this year Ewell Castle School
started a collection to equip a nursery
in King Abdullah Park refugee camp,
near the Syrian border, home to around
1000 refugees fleeing from Syria.
Boxes of toys and stationery, donated
by staff and pupils, were collected by
Mrs Andrews and transported by her
husband to the camp in Jordan where
he was working on security matters.
Over £3,000 has been raised for different charitable causes over this academic
year including; the Syrian appeal, Mr Blencoe’s bike ride across France, mufti
days, Christmas collections, white elephant stalls, cake sales and the Poppy
Appeal. Well done to everyone, let’s keep up the good work and raise even
more next term!
Mr S Leigh
CHARITY BIKE RIDE
CHARITY FUNDRAISING
SYRIA
Praise must go to all boys involved in
this year’s Lower School production
of ‘The Scholarship’, an adaptation
of a play by ‘Denise Deegan’. Set
in the confounds of ‘Grangewood
School for Boys’ in 1927, the play
follows the journey of ‘Danny
Meradith’, a scholarship pupil who
takes on several challenges in a
bid to prove himself to the pupils
and teachers of this high achieving
school!
Both aspiring actors and technicians
proved a great success and worked
with enthusiasm and dedication
throughout the rehearsal process.
It was rewarding to see such talent
from Year 7/8 and also to see how
well our Year 9’s had progressed
from last year.
As they say at Grangewood......
Spiffing!
Miss L Jones
THE SCHOLARSHIP PRODUCTION
On Thursday 20 June Year 7
went to see the award winning
Musical, ’Matilda’ at the
Cambridge Theatre, London.
It was a dazzling evening of
entertainment with music and
lyrics from Tim Minchin. The
set and lighting was amazing
and the performances were
outstanding. Miss Trunchbul
played by Charles Brunton was
outlandishly foul and Matilda
played by Cristina Ray was
incredible. The boys came
back even more energised than
they had left school and the
following day they were still
buzzing about the production.
Mr L Bader-Clynes
MATILDA DRAMA TRIP
Achieving Each Child’s Potential
4
used his speed and guile to find space in the box to score
a brace and make it 4-0. Mr Grindrod added a 5th with
a blasting shot into the roof of the net. Mr Turk, smelling
blood, drifting out of defence and after some clever 1-2’s
passed the ball into the back of the net. The Sixth Form
responded with a goal of their own. Josh Gregory broke
the offside trap to clip the ball over the out-coming Mr
Manley in goal.
Final score; Staff 6 – 1 Year 13
TEAMS
Year 13; Fifield, Iqbal, Angel, Keohane, Theobald (C), Cousins,
Abeyratne, Radley, Allotey, Gregory, Pfeiffer, Vijapura.
Staff; Manley, Fitzgibbon, Krause, Turk, Grindrod (C),
De-Souza, Young, Darlow, Casey, Marigeson,
Bradshaw, Sing, Vijapura, Szetela.
Ewell Castle School achieved its
best ever results at the Surrey
District Athletics Championships 16
May at Kingsmeadow Stadium in
Kingston. Junior and Intermediate
Teams represented the school
within the boys competition,
against Epsom College, Glyn,
Blenheim, Esher High, CLFS, St
John’s, Hinchley Wood, Ashcombe,
St Andrews and Therfield. This
was our best ever year, with great
performances from the boys
and lots of personal bests that
resulted in us coming fifth in the
Junior competition, second in the
intermediate competition and the
following intermediate boys being
selected to represent the District
at the County Championships on
the 8 June: Julius Banks (Discus
second place), Mark Goulder (third
in the 200m final), Khaya Mtunzi
(second place in the Javelin) and
Jack Dyer (winner of the 800m).
Well done to all who competed,
and the very best of luck to those
boys representing the District in the
County Championships.
Mr S Casey
At the start of the summer term with study leave and
exams around the corner, the Year 13 boys wanted to say
“au revoir” by taking on and defeating the staff in an 11
a side football match. Unfortunately, their best laid plans
didn’t quite go as they had wished!
Some clever interlinking play in the midfield saw Mr
Fitzgibbon strike a low drive past the despairing Ben
Fifield. A few mintues later, Mr Grindrod found himself in
an advanced position on the wing and sent in a teasing
cross for Kye Marigeson, the groundsman, to rise like a
salmon and dispatch a header into the net, 2-0. With Mr
Grindrod driving a penalty wide of the post before half
time, it was a chance for the Sixth Form to get into the
game. Always looking dangerous from set pieces, Tom
Radley headed wide and Harry Keohane scuffed a shot
over the bar. It was now game on. Mr Casey came on and
STAFF VS LEAVERS FOOTBALL
DISTRICT ATHLETICS
5
On Thursday 23rd May the annual
Lower School Recital House Music
Competition took place, showcasing
the talents of numerous pupils from
Years 7-9. All performers earned a
point for their respective Houses
and the winner for each year
group received a musical trophy!
There was abundance of standout
performances on the night making it
almost impossible to pick a winner.
Jonathan James Year 8, Joseph
Carter Year 7, Charlie Sumeray Year
8, Jamie Wilkinson Year 9 and Nathan
Segel Year 9 in particular stood
out as performing some fantastic
solos. There can only be one winner
though and so congratulations must
go to Jason Liu in Year 7, Leo Nam
in Year 8 and Benedict Barron in
Year 9 for winning in their respective
year groups. In addition to individual
performances the Guitar Ensemble,
Percussion Ensemble and the Ukulele
LOWER SCHOOL RECITAL
Band also performed to earn points
for their Houses. With just two points
separating Castlemaine and Raleigh
for second and third place, it was
Essex who took the overall House
Cup. Thank you to everyone who
helped to make the evening run
smoothly and make it so enjoyable.
all played extremely well in what was
a great afternoon’s work from the
Junior team.
In the Senior match play, Cameron
Bell and Sam Wilton played well as
a pair winning their pairs match as
did Callum Cunningham and Julius
Banks. The other pairings of Peter
Ku, Justin Kim, Charlie Fordham-
Moss and Charlie Borman had tough
matches and finished 2nd best. This
resulted in Glyn taking the Senior
competition.
As it finished, a win for each school
was the overall outcome. The boys
had a great day out and Horton Park
were superb hosts. Well done and
thanks to all.
Mr J Grindrod
On Wednesday 5th June, Ewell
Castle golfers from Year 7 – 10 took
on Glyn School in a pairs Junior
and Senior Derby Competition at
Chessington’s Horton Park Course.
With boys pairing up to form a 4
ball against a pairing from Glyn, it
was an exciting opportunity for the
players to demonstrate their driving,
pitching and putting skills in fabulous
conditions. At the end with all the
scores added up from the Junior pairs,
Ewell Castle were victorious. The 4
boys in particular who contributed
to the victory included Ollie Noon,
Ollie Carter, Taylor McLellan and
Ben McManus – each wining a free
day pass to Chessington World of
Adventures! Tom Gill, Josh Pasley,
Brandon Hammond and Eoin Nestor
GOLF DERBY
Achieving Each Child’s Potential
6
Another glorious day greeted us at the Poole Road Arena
for Ewell Castle’s annual Sports Day. Although the day
was well fought by all who took part, in the end, the
winning House was Essex who for the third year in a
row won sports day, much to the delight of Mr Grindrod,
a feat that many of his predecessors failed to achieve.
Second place was achieved by Raleigh who missed out
by 57 points on the top spot with Mr Casey’s Castlemaine
finishing in third place 3 points behind Raleigh.
Mr N Turk
SPORTS DAY
7
Four students and two teachers
from Ewell Castle, aptly called the
Eggsperts, took part in the 10th
annual Water Rocket Competition on
Wednesday 19th of June in National
Physics Laboratory, Teddington.
Our launcher didn’t fail to amaze
and impress, giving the competition
‘launcher envy’, and the egg that
was put in our rocket for the final
round survived take-off and landing.
Unfortunately, this year we returned
without the usual glassware, we had
no fancy parachute nor our 2 metre
size rocket this year, however, a great
afternoon was had by all.
Miss J Reid
This term’s winners and runners up
are;
YEAR 7
7MA ADAM THORNTON
RUNNER UP
7NT TOBY CONYERS
YEAR 8
8SJS LEO NAM
RUNNERS UP
8RI LOUIS EAVES
AND 8LBC JOSH ROSE
YEAR 9
9JR FAARIS SHEIKH
RUNNERS UP
9EMC CHOONG HWAN SEO
AND 9VS SEUNG HO LEE
YEAR 10
10B WILL DENNIS
RUNNER UP
10G CAMERON BELL
So now that we have chosen
artists for each term this academic
year the Art Department has been
able to award points to the House
competition. With Essex gaining the
most points this year it is given 8
points. The other two Houses were
quite close but Castlemaine just
made it to second position gaining 4
points with Raleigh in third position
with 2 points. Lastly well done to
all of our artists this year we are
really pleased with your work and
enthusiasm.
Mrs E Morton
Will Dennis 10
Leo Nam 8SJS
Faaris Sheikh 9JR
Adam Thornton 7MA
WATER ROCKET CLUB COMPETITION
AT THE NATIONAL PHYSICS LABORATORY
ARTISTS OF THE TERM
Achieving Each Child’s Potential
8
staging, mixed
with the theatrical
ethos of Patrick
Barlow’s ‘Theatre
of Brent’, this
production strips
away much of
the paraphernalia
of major West-
End plays. In
essence, with just
4 actors multi-rolling over 50 characters, we become
immersed in a dramatic experience full of almost child-
like simplicity, where fast-paced acting and daring
inventiveness produces a first-rate theatrical event.
Mr L Bader-Clynes
Team also played Trinity but managed
a convincing victory and are now
through to the semi final stages!
For the first time ever, Ewell Castle
School was accepted into the I.S.T.A
Championships (Independent Schools
Tennis), a national competition held at
Eton, with four pairs competing over
four days.
The Senior Squad played really
well in the preliminary stages and
the first pairing of Sam Wilton and
Cameron Bell came second in their
box league, winning three matches
against stiff opposition and losing
just the one. The second pairing
of Alex Moore and Milan Andesilic
played really well against some great
teams and have improved hugely
on the back of this experience. The
Junior Squad, however, went one
stage further! The second pairing of
Michael da Gama and Dawood Bush
managed to win two of their matches
in the consolation rounds but the first
pairing of Arunan Raviendrakumar
and Benedict McManus won all four
of their matches in their box league,
beating St. Georges and Abingdon
Boys along the way, placing them
in the quarter final box leagues the
following day. They won their first
match against Yarm School, Bradford
but unfortunately narrowly lost the
other two matches which meant they
were unable to reach the semi final
stages. Considering there were over
three hundred schools in this National
competition they did exceptionally
well to reach the quarter finals.
It is wonderful that our Senior Boys
are still in the Surrey Schools Aegon
competition and we would like to
wish them the best of luck in their
semi final to be played next week.
Mrs E McManus
The summer term has been incredibly
exciting and successful for our tennis
teams. Both squads managed to
reach the knockout stages of the
Surrey Schools Aegon competition
with the Junior Squad, consisting of
Arunan Raviendrakumar, Benedict
McManus, Dawood Bush and Michael
da Gama finishing top of their division
and unbeaten all season. Then it
was the turn of the Senior Squad,
consisting of Sam Wilton, Cameron
Bell, Milan Andesilic, Alex Moore and
George Williams. They came second
but still went through on points. The
Junior Squad faced a really strong
Trinity team in the semi finals and
after a ferocious battle in both the
singles and the doubles they lost
and were knocked out. The Senior
On Wednesday 26 June Year 9 went to see ‘The 39
Steps’ at the Criterion Theatre,London.
Patrick Barlow’s theatrical adaptation of John
Buchan’s ‘The 39 Steps’ is a joyous reworking of
Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 film and a master class
in physical storytelling, one in which verve and
inventiveness win the adulation of the audience. It
tells the story of Richard Hannay, the protagonist, and
how he becomes embroiled in a villainous pre-Second
World War plot to steal British military secrets out of
the country by a spy ring.
For a student approaching a devising project this
production shows that convoluted sets, props or
costumes are not required to create an amazing
theatrical experience, nor are huge budgets required.
Using Brechtian simplicity in characterisation and
TENNIS
THE 39 STEPS – YR 9 DRAMA TRIP
9
Seniors Dylan Walker-Todd (Essex)
Louis Woollen (Essex)
Year 10 Felix Sanderson (Essex)
Year 9 Kofi Aburam (Essex)
Year 8 Trocon Barchue (Castlemaine)
Year 7 Eoin Nestor (Essex)
VICTOR LUDORUM
The 7th annual Ewell Castle School
Sport Award Evening on the 1st
July 2013 was the biggest and the
best so far, a very enjoyable and
lively evening that celebrated the
sporting honours and successes
gained by our students throughout
the year across so many sports.
As a school, we have made great
improvements both in individual
and team sports in recent years,
often outperforming and outclassing
schools we compete against which
have a greater number of students.
We were delighted that ex Surrey
The Design & Technology
Department has again taken
great pleasure in exhibiting
work from all years in the Tudor
Lounge. It is always a great joy
putting up the exhibition, as not
only does it show off the great
works our pupils do year upon
year, but also acts as inspiration
for all DT pupils as something
to work toward. This years’
exhibition sees spectacular
work from Piers Mason-App
(Year 10), Josh Newsome
(Year 10) Jack Hazell (Year 11),
Daniel Crego-Bustello (Year
11), Christian Vander (Year 11),
amongst others. Well done
to all Design & Technology
pupils, of all years, regardless
of whether your work made it
to the exhibition or not!
Mr S Getty
and England Cricketer Alistair Brown
was our honoured guest this year,
and as well as awarding pupils their
sports awards and trophies he also
officially opened the new cricket
nets. Congratulations and continued
success to all the boys who received
awards.
Mr S Casey
SPORTS AWARDS EVENING
DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY EXHIBITION
Achieving Each Child’s Potential
10
On yet another
hot evening, the
Art Department
opened the
Art Exhibition
for 2013. It
was extremely
busy with lots
of parents,
governors, students, staff and past students. It was
wonderful to see so many people going out of their way
to come and visit us. All year groups were represented
with projects such
as Year 10’s ‘Nice
treats’ and Year
8’s ‘Futuristic
landscape’ projects.
Additionally past
students such
as David Blewett
visited us, who
has just finished a Photography course at NESCOT
college and Rhys Laverty who is at University. It was
great seeing all our older boys doing so well out in
the real world. Out in the marquee Year 9’s patchwork
Year 8 and Year 9 French students,
watched a play performed by the
Onatti theatre company.
Although the whole play was in
French, students managed to
follow the plot and were engaged
throughout the performance.
patterns were on display
for everybody to enjoy.
Inspired by the artist
William Morris and wall
paper designs, they
were a lovely modern
representation. It
was also nice to see
some students who
will be joining us in
September with Tahir
Ballantyne winning the Art raffle prize for this year.
After the exhibition finished we were able eat some of
the lovely cakes, view Mr Leigh’s White Elephant Stall,
buy some books and listen to the amazing Castle
Chorus. A very lovely evening with a great vibe to
the school, made
special by all of the
Ewell Castle staff,
our lovely students
and some great
stories from our old
boys.
Mrs E Morton
SUMMER EVENING
FRENCH PLAY
Having completed a lengthy and
demanding interview process
we are pleased to announce
the following appointments for
the next academic year: Daniel
Archer – Head Boy, Hugo
Bromley – Deputy Head Boy.
Congratulations to them both.
HEAD BOY AND DEPUTY HEAD BOY
The atmosphere in the room was
extremely pleasant, with lots of
laughter.
Tahir Mukhtar-Hawes was invited
to perform on stage and did an
excellent job; although Tahir was
a bit shy, he managed to make the
audience laugh and his French was
very good indeed. Well done Tahir!
Mrs Kennedy and I were very
impressed by the behaviour
of students, as well as their
understanding of the play; well
done boys, I hope you found
this experience worthwhile and
enjoyable!
Ms P Hernandez
HOUSE RESULTS
U12 CRICKET
Four victories to date in which Cameron Mason Apps has kept wicket tidily. There have been impressive contributions from captain Ollie Carter ( 5 wickets against Moon College and a total of 11 wickets for the season), Tayler McLellan (averaging 74.5 with the bat) and Ollie Noon, who has bowled most economically, and averaged 41 runs in his last two innings, one of which was against Glyn A XI. In addition, Edward Cribb has contributed effectively with both bat and ball in the matches played against Kingston Grammer School and Glyn.
U13 CRICKET
In what proved to be a tough 2nd half term the team struggled for consistency and results. The team played 4 and lost 4, Sai Patel’s 46 not out against Kingston Grammar School was one of few highlights of the half term. The team for next season will be hoping for an upturn in results and need to have a greater breadth players “stepping up” when it matters
U14 CRICKET
An enjoyable season with five wins from 10 matches. The
highlights were the wins against Caterham (by 7 runs),
John Fisher (by 20 runs) and Kingston Grammer School
(by 25 runs). How we contrived to lose against Glyn by 12
runs will remain a mystery having been in what appeared
to be an unassailable situation! There were good batting
performances from Eshen Patel (Royal Russell 50 not out,
Glyn 67 & Kingston Grammer School 41), Julius Banks
(Royal Russell 50 not out & Caterham 50), Todd Harmon
(Tiffin 44 & Kingston Grammer School 31) and Luke
Steeper (John Fisher 30). The bowling performances
were a little variable but we should mention Ben Higgs
(4 for 5 against John Fisher and Todd Harmon (4 for 10
against Greycourt). Top catchers were Ben Higgs, Luke
Steeper and Todd Harmon each with four. Ben Barron did
a good job behind the stumps and Eshen Patel skippered
the side well.
U15 CRICKET
A sad end to the season when a couple of other schools could not honour the scheduled fixtures but what an outstanding season for the U15. Played 8, Won 4, Lost 4, and two of the losses were by one and three runs only! Dizzy heights for a team not used to winning cricket matches. Special mention of captain David Farrington for his captaincy, and significant contributions with bat
and ball, and for Cameron Bell (leading run scorer), Wajid Khan (leading wicket taker), and Kearin Mulcock (bat and ball), and Charles Hall (who hits it further!), and Jordan Mealin-Howlett (unsung hero behind the stumps).
FIRST TEAM CRICKET
First team cricket has been positive this term, with only one fixture being lost to the English Summer weather. The back drop of exams has not deterred the boys from playing Wednesday’s and Saturdays with some good performances against local schools.
The first eleven have had victories against St James, Claremont and Kingston Grammar School but have lost against some of the bigger schools such as John Fisher and Claremont. Amir Nazir has been excellent with the bat averaging nearly 50. With the ball Tommy Quinton has been a strong performer and has captained the team well.
HOUSE CRICKET
Year7 – Year 7 House cricket was played on Friday the 21st of July at a sunny Old Schools Lane ground. A number of boys were playing hard ball matches for the first time and the level of competition was excellent. Raleigh were the victors and they were easily the best team. Castlemaine snuck past a resilient Essex for second place. Which left Essex with the wooden spoon.
Year8 – Winners Castlemaine, 2nd Essex, 3rd Raleigh. Man of the series Sai Patel scoring the winning runs in both of Castlemaine’s wins.
Year9 - Winners Raleigh, 2nd Castlemaine, 3rd Essex. Man of the series was Josh Conyers whose batting display won them the deciding match vs Castlemaine.
Seniors – this took place before half term. Winners Essex, 2nd Raleigh, 3rd Castlemaine. A major upset that Castlemaine having virtually the whole school team came 3rd. The final game was decided on a “super over” between Essex and Raleigh with Louis Woollen hitting a 6 off the last ball.
HOUSE ATHLETICS
The result of this year’s House Athletics was as follows:
Seniors Essex (1st)
Raleigh (2nd)
Castlemaine (3rd)
11
Achieving Each Child’s Potential
12
At the end of this academic year we find ourselves saying good bye to a number of colleagues. Miss Mikala O’Connor came to us in September 2012 as maternity cover in the Music department. She also taught some Business Studies and was a Year 11 tutor. She contributed to the extracurricular programme by organising the Concert Band and the Ukulele Band. She also played the trumpet in the School Orchestra. We wish her well in her new appointment as a Business Studies teacher at John Wallis Church of England Academy in Kent.
Mr Alex Daroux also joined us as maternity cover in the History department in September 2012. In addition he taught Government & Politics, Religious Studies and PSHE! He saw direct pastoral involvement as a Year 9 tutor. He was always ready to commit to the school in the fullest sense. He organised History trips and accompanied various others e.g. to Bodiam, Duxford and to The Somme. Furthermore, he enthusiastically contributed to the extracurricular programme – Under 14s rugby, the Duke of Edinburgh Award Programme, Badminton, Table Tennis, the Castle Ravens, the school choir and Castle Chorus! He will be missed. Good luck to him as he now returns to New Zealand.
Miss Samantha Stacey also joined the School in September 2012 to teach ICT. She was an experienced teacher and showed herself ready to engage both inside and outside the classroom. She has taught a full range of ICT courses to students in Years 7 to 13. She has been a Year 8 form tutor, was involved with the Duke of Edinburgh Award programme, ran the Computer Club and assisted the Drama department in developing posters & programme for the school productions. She takes with her our best wishes as she contemplates a move to Australia.
STAFF NEWS Mr Malcolm Bradshaw joined us in September 2011 having been teaching previously in Wellington, New Zealand. He was appointed to teach Mathematics. He was also form tutor and for the last year was Head of Raleigh House. He coached the 1st XV and a number of younger seven-a-side rugby teams as well as assisting with the Badminton and Table Tennis Clubs. He was a friendly and popular colleague who now returns to home to New Zealand to take up a position at Tawa College.
Mrs Katharine Donegan joined the School in September 2005 as Assistant Director of Music. She also taught German at Key Stage 3. As a musician she contributed fully to the activities programme in areas such as the Concert Band, Wind Band, Chamber Ensemble & the Keyboard Ensemble. Add to this pastoral roles as form tutor for Years 7, 8, 9 & 10 (over 7 years) and Castlemaine House Mistress (for two years) she was clearly a busy person. She moves on to Worth School in West Sussex as a boarding House Parent.
Also joining the School in September 2005 was Mr Vikram Singh as Senior Physics teacher. He thoroughly enjoyed his teaching and he managed the department most successfully in conjunction with the Head of Science. Added responsibility came as the Radiation Protection Supervisor. In a pastoral capacity he was a Year 9 tutor. He engaged enthusiastically in the running of the Badminton and Table Tennis Clubs. He also enjoyed his involvement in school events such as Sports Day, the Swimming Gala, the Fun Run and the VI Form Leavers’ Dinner on the Thames. He now moves on to new challenges at Epsom College.
Miss Sophie Brack joined the School in September 2001. Initially, she was Assistant Director of Music, before assuming full responsibility for the department in April 2004. In this capacity she has worked prodigiously to cultivate an interest in all genres of music. The number of extracurricular
groups has grown under her tutelage ranging from the Orchestra and Big Band to the String & Percussion Ensembles to the Soul Band, School Choir and the Castle Ravens. She organised public performances, entered competitions such as ‘Music for Youth’, engaged wholeheartedly into the spirit of Arts Week, organised pupil trips to music concerts and West End Musicals. She was always on hand to contribute to other school events that required the use of music systems. She was generous with her time and the word ‘no’ did not seem to be in her vocabulary. Pastoral responsibilities came as a Sixth Form tutor. Furthermore we note her varied involvement in the Junior School. She now moves on to a new role as Director of Music at Notre Dame School (Lingfield).
Mrs Sue Stedman was appointed to teach English as an Additional Language in January 2001. She came to us having taught previously at St John’s in Leatherhead. Initially her teaching was two double periods a week, but over the years it has built up significantly. Her teaching helped to reinforce the quality of English used by our foreign students for whom English is a second language. She has enjoyed the interaction with the pupils. We wish her well.
Mrs Bellenger was appointed as PA to the Principal and School Registrar in September 2002, and has therefore been very much a first point of contact for parents of prospective pupils as well as many current parents, and hence will be known to and missed by all members of our community. As with so many colleagues at Ewell Castle, one’s primary role rarely tells the complete story. Mrs Bellenger is a member of the Castle Chorus and was involved in various fundraising activities at the school. In her spare time she earned a degree in English Literature through the Open University. She leaves with our best wishes to assume a significant role as Director for Admissions at Wycombe Abbey school.