Prize Giving 2012: The Headmaster's Annual Review

Mr Chairman, Mr Russell, Guests, Members of the Bablake community,

There can be few headteachers in the land who didn’t take the Olympics and Paralympics as their theme for their beginning of term assembly. But parents, I’m not going to start tonight by inviting you to do the Mobot or the lightning bolt or even a Mexican wave, as your children would be far too embarrassed. No-one, however, could deny that it’s been a thrilling and inspiring few months, and Bablake even celebrated its own Olympic Gold, as Old Wheatleyan Nick Skelton led GB’s showjumping team to victory.

So I make no apologies for applying some salient themes of the Olympics in a few moments to our own educational ethos. The ethos of a school is often conveyed succinctly by its motto, and it’s always astonished me that a school which traces its origins back to 1344 has no Latin motto. Or so I thought until the summer, when I mentioned this at a reunion of former pupils from the 1930s and 40s. They immediately piped up: 'est concordia fratrum'- harmony amongst brothers . More contemporary versions might be ‘brotherhood of man’ or even ‘band of brothers’. However, this appears nowhere as a motto in the archives, and we can only conclude that the legendary Mr Seabourne, Headmaster between 1937 and 1962, invented it. He also wrote a School Song, and we were treated to a rousing rendition of it, from memory, by those who attended the reunion. To give you a flavour, here, briefly, is the first verse, from a full school recording in 1951.

(Recording played)

It includes lines such as 'Roar to the rhythm of flying threequarters/ Steady the heave of the shouldering scrum'; 'Summer comes smiling; now willow’s staunch lovers/ Flash forth your blades from their unctuous sleep!' It says 'Manhood’s impatient', talks of 'Wheatleyan brothers' and ends: 'In service to others/ Our debt shall be paid'. Well, if there were a Latin motto, we would have had to change it by now to 'est concordia fratrum et sororum'- to include the sisters amongst us! But the harmony, the strong sense of community to which it refers and the ‘service to others’ are definitely characteristics of our school today.

Up until a few years ago, our motto was 'Excellence through care', and nowadays it is 'Spirit of Opportunity'. It was once suggested to me that the first sounded a bit like a strap-line for an old people’s home, whilst the second could be the name of a racing yacht! And it’s at this point that I am going to return to the Olympics and Paralympics, because it’s precisely the twin themes of excellence and opportunity which have pervaded the Games and which are the hallmark of our school ethos and community.

And the opportunity to excel is given to all our pupils, and has been grasped with both hands by those sitting in front of me, and of whom we’re very proud tonight. The highlights of 2011-12 are both myriad and sparkling (and far too many to mention), but, with the support of a few fine helpers, I’m going to share a few fine examples of the opportunities and excellence of the year.

Children coming to Bablake have every chance of fulfilling and exceeding academic expectations and of achieving the outstanding outcomes which enable them to proceed confidently and with a love of learning to the next stage of their education. We were therefore very pleased that of our largest ever cohort of A Level students (144) made very good progress in their final year, with 77% accepted by their first choice university. In another year of exceptionally high offers, 5 gained places at Oxford or Cambridge, and 9 were accepted to study Medicine or Dentistry (two courses where even offers are notoriously difficult to obtain). There were some outstanding individual performances at all levels, and the Fifth Year broke the previous year’s A* record at GCSE, with 11 pupils achieving 10 or more A* grades. No fewer than 11 pupils (apparently more than any other school nationally) presented their Gold Crest projects in the national Science and Engineering finals, and two prestigious national prizes were won. 15 pupils completed the Extended Project Qualification, four junior Music Scholars achieved the school’s first Arts Award and books flew off the Library shelves with the introduction of the Power Readers’ Scheme lower down the school.

(Ben Evans, one of our School Captains, was invited to explain further.)

The learning which occurs in the classroom and in school is often complemented by rich enhancement opportunities both in this country and beyond our shores. There have been language visits to Germany, Spain and France, History to Russia and the 1st World War battlefields, Art to Morocco (jointly with KHVIII) and numerous field trips and expeditions at home, including well supported CCF camps and Duke of Edinburgh hikes. The fact that no fewer than 17 staff accompanied the D of E Bronze practice expedition one weekend in the Spring Term reflects just how committed they are to offering such opportunities. Sadly, we spent our last 2nd Year weeks at Fousseau, which has provided a very valuable and memorable experience to hundreds of pupils and staff in Foundation schools for the last 20 years; various constraints across the schools and the increasing cost to parents regrettably made it no longer viable, but we shall instead be providing a rich, varied and exciting week for the year group based at Haworth Youth Hostel in Bronte country. In the Spring Term we enjoyed a Classics Evening, with readings, drama and an account of the Autumn visit to Italy.

(Amy Kuner said more about the Classics trip.)

38% of Team GB’s Olympic Golds were won this year by athletes educated in independent schools, including our own Nick Skelton, and sport continues to play an inspiring and vital part in the life of our community. There too we aspire to excellence, but we’ve never been a ‘win at all costs’ school, for we believe in ensuring healthy and enjoyable participation for all. There have been many notable victories, but teams have also been gracious in defeat and determined to do better the next time around. All of our major sports have enjoyed success, with boys’ hockey enjoying their best season yet, the U14 girls competing in the netball national finals and, despite the rotten weather, some splendid highlights in athletics. I could mention many individuals, but I shall limit myself to Jimhill Xu who set a school record with a 'five wicket maiden over' against Caludon Castle. As Mr Woodward’s website news headline read, ‘Would Xu believe it?’ Whilst our annual Shells House Olympics was bathed in sunshine last Saturday, we struggled to play much cricket, and the 1st XI still have the final of the Warwickshire Cup to play at Edgbaston!

(Tom Betts recounted some of his sporting highlights.)

The unpretentious self-confidence which characterises Bablake pupils comes in part from the encouragement they receive in so many activities beyond the taught curriculum, and we believe passionately in offering such opportunities. The house system remains as strong as ever, and Flight Simulator and Formula One challenge are but two recent additions to the programme of clubs. We collapsed the timetable for two days in the final week of the Summer Term to organise some cross-curricular activities for the lower years, and these were undoubtedly memorable for a number of reasons: the Shells embarked on a specially devised Coventry City Trail, which certainly went swimmingly- they were soon so wet that their answer sheets disintegrated- even then, it was probably better than the year’s final French lesson with Monsieur Watson. And an author arrived to read from and talk about her book- but had completely lost her voice; Mr Seeley came energetically to the rescue with a very rapidly devised Viking quiz.

(Anna French spoke a few words about the extra-curricular opportunities from which she has benefited.)

The strength of our community and the sense of service to others as mentioned in the school song have been richly in evidence this past year. We continue to look outwards as a school, and our musicians have played at lunchtime concerts at the ‘Bablake’ church, St John’s, as well as in care homes and a local primary school. Mr Tyas was remarkably still standing (just) after running seven marathons in seven days in October, and over £20,000 was raised through various events for charity. The focus of some of our fundraising was CRY (Cardiac Risk in the Young), as we were so deeply affected as a community by the sudden and very tragic death of Pippa Chowne in our 5th Year just before Christmas; we went ahead with our carol service the following evening as a tribute to a warm, loving and generous girl whom we all miss greatly. The mutual support given by pupils and staff was a huge source of strength and comfort, and one of our prizes newly awarded tonight recalls Pippa’s ever-positive and selfless contribution to our community.

Our forms are all encouraged to devise their own event for charity-fundraising, and Shell S, having already enjoyed our Red White and Blue day, had their own ideas about celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

(Harkiran Sundal and Sam Lowe spoke about their efforts.)

We bade a fond farewell to some very loyal servants of the school. Fuller tributes will appear in the Wheatleyan, but some of our leavers are worthy of particular mention. Mr Simon Enstone made an energetic impact on our pupils’ lives in his eight years as a teacher of Geography, rugby coach, tutor and Head of Enrichment Studies. We hope he is enjoying new adventures in Tanzania. Four staff retired. Mrs Danny Thomas came to us as IT Manager, with the challenging brief of developing the school’s IT facilities and curriculum. She was very successful in this role, and as a teacher of ICT and Mathematics, and the efficiency and effectiveness of our current network owe much to her vision and organisation. Mrs Marilyn Prowse first came to Bablake in 1976, departed for a career-break to bring up her children, and returned as a highly effective teacher of both Chemistry and Biology. She was involved in numerous aspects of school life, and many students benefited from her enthusiastic management of the scientific CREST award. Mr David Prescott was appointed as an English Master in 1975, and became Director of Drama in 1980. Pupils recall with great affection their time in his English or Drama classes, in his tutor group or in one of his many successful drama productions. Bablake has taken a performance for 26 consecutive years to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and many have benefited from this very special and unique experience. Mr Martin Rhodes came a year earlier, in 1974, to teach Geography. His passion was also Geology and the outdoors, and he coached boys’ hockey, ran the model railway society and took groups of pupils youth hostelling. Many will remember him as a passionate Head of Fairfax House for over 20 years, and the vibrancy and strength of the House system owe much to his leadership.

We also said goodbye to Mrs Sue Senior, a most loyal and unassuming steward of the School and the Foundation’s finances for the last 24 years. Her friendly, cheerful and approachable nature meant that parents, staff and pupils felt immediately at ease in her presence, and she devoted herself selflessly to supporting the aims of the school community, carefully managing our budgets and readily adapting to increased regulation. Mr Vince Iwanek, Bursar and Clerk to the Governors, also retired, and the strength of our schools today is in no small part due to his astute financial guidance and his determination to support our pupils’ education.

I am very grateful for the enthusiasm and dedication of our staff, past and present, both support and teaching, and I would ask you to join with me in showing your appreciation.(Applause.) And thank you too to our Parents’ Association for their energetic support and fundraising, as well as to the Governors for their unflinching commitment to the future of Bablake, despite the recent set-back over a new Junior School.

The Olympic motto 'citius, altius, fortius'- faster, higher, stronger- propels us into this new school year. Mr Burden, our School Archivist, only last weekend forwarded me an e-mail from a former school Captain: 'Although I thought the school a great place to be as a pupil, it appears even more impressive now. Whenever I come back there are new developments. It appears that the standards of achievement continue to rise and this can only be down to the hard work and talent of the staff and pupils and the culture of the school.'

And opportunity and excellence will continue to characterise the endeavours of this ambitious community, as is perhaps best summed up in the words of an old boy who wrote after our 30s and 40s reunion: 'Being at Bablake does so many things to a boy and the ultimate man, it sets one apart in so many ways. I am so proud of the old school.'

Someone who has surely been set apart in his highly successful career is our guest of honour, Mr Angus Russell. He is now based in the States and we are very privileged, as he has flown over specially with his wife, Nadine, to present prizes and to address us tonight- you are both warmly welcome. Described by the Independent as ‘the drugs baron who manages without dealers’, he has grown a small primarily UK-based business into a large multinational company with more than 4,000 employees, and he is guided by the principle of delivering the most value not only to the healthcare system but also to society. He sums it up thus: 'feeling good about doing good for people.'

Mr Russell has already addressed some 6th Formers interested in Business, Management and Science, and we are thoroughly looking forward to what he has to say tonight. So, in a few moments, he will present prizes to our prize winners, as we proudly celebrate their success, but I’d like to end with a few words from Professor Stephen Hawking at the opening ceremony of the Paralympic games. I have already shared them with pupils, for I believe they encapsulate the wonderful opportunity of education:

'Look up at the stars, and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.'