hm leter to parents october 2014
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Contents
Page 1 Open Days
Page 2 Helena TunksRoyal Parks Half Marathon
Page 3 Reading AchievementsModern Foreign LanguagesSixth Form Choices Evening
Page 4 National Poetry Day
Page 5 Gala Evening
Page 6 Read to Feed
Page 7 Read to Feed
Page 8 Football
Page 9 Football
Page 10 Football
Page 11 Hockey
Page 12 Hockey
Page 13 Hockey
Page 14 HockeyPembroke Evensong
Page 15 Smiles with Grace WalkDramaNetballThe School Shop
Page 16 MusicHarry Samuel
Page 17 Friends of Chigwell
Page 18 Chigwell ChoirStaff NewsAnd Finally
Page 19 Chapel
1
Open DaysThank you to all the pupils who have
helped with the various open days that
have taken place this term. We have had
a high degree of interest from prospective
families, many of whom have commented
on how impressed they were by the pupils
they met, who were either working as
guides or as helpers in the departments.
2
Helena TunksWe were delighted to hear that Helena
Tunks in the Middle Sixth has been highly
commended for the essay that she
submitted for The Edgar Jones Philosophy
Essay Competition organised by St Peter's
College, Oxford. The essay was on the
topic: 'Does the fact that our senses can
deceive mean that we can have no
perceptual knowledge?'. Helena wrote an
excellent critical analysis of Descartes'
philosophy and the adjudicators
commented that the standard of entries in
this national competition was particularly
high this year.
Royal Parks HalfMarathonCongratulations to the forty Chigwell
runners who completed the Royal Parks
half marathon on Sunday. The team was
a mixture of Old Chigwellians, parents,
current and former staff, and money
raised will go to Cancer Research UK. The
total has not yet been finalised but is
likely to be in excess of £25k.
3
Reading AchievementsI am pleased to report that there has been a really positive response to our endeavours
to promote wider reading. Bookcases in Houses are filling up with peer
recommendations and students are enjoying spending protected time within the
timetable simply reading for pleasure. I extend a special congratulations to Jimmy
Sawdon, Henry Bird, Alice Melvin, Immy Peck and Ayesha Patel in Swallow's Removes
who have taken to heart the reading challenge set by their English teacher and have
already completed five novels outside of their academic studies. In particular, I should
like to draw your attention to a new feature of the website 'Chigwell is Reading', on
which you will find brief reviews written by a cross-section of the school community.
This is regularly updated, so if your son/daughter reads something that inspires them
over the holidays do encourage them to write a 50 word review of it and send it along
to either Miss Charlotte Nairac (cnairac@chigwell-school.org) or Mrs Emma Rea
(erea@chigwell-school.org) who will see that it gets posted!
Modern ForeignLanguagesJust after half term, the Third and Fourth
Forms are going to watch a visiting
French play, Erreur d’identité, in the
Drama Centre. In addition to this, the
Upper Fifth, Lower Sixth and Middle
Sixth modern linguists will be visiting the
office of the European Parliament in
London in December.
You will be pleased to hear that
Mandarin Clubs for Lower One and Upper
One, and also the Lower Sixth will be
starting before Christmas and further
details will follow.
Former AQA Spanish chief examiner
Derek Bacon is coming in to deliver exam
technique sessions to Lower Sixth and
Middle Sixth hispanists on 27th
November.
Sixth Form ChoicesEveningMembers of the Upper Fifth will be
focussing on their GCSE exams but will
also be starting to think about A level
choices for next September. All pupils
will be interviewed about their A level
choices later in the term when we will
help them consider where those choices
might lead, but the A level choices
evening on Thursday 6th November at
7pm provides an opportunity for Upper
Fifth pupils and parents to discuss A level
options and the A levels reforms. I look
forward to seeing you there – it is an
important and very useful evening,
particularly as the Government is
starting to implement changes to A level
courses next year.
4
Memory, Nariko Gould (REM S):
Memory - it's something we all should treasure:
It brings us grief, it brings us pleasure.
Remember the time you took your first step?
Or the very first day you spent in pre-prep?
Remember the first time you went on a plane?
Remember waking to snow and not rain?
We take for granted what's in our brain:
Every second, every hour it's memories we gain.
They stay with us until we finally let go
Our memories of the sea or playing in the snow.
So hold on to your memories for they are part of you:
They show the success and the struggle you've been
through.
Remembering, Immy Peck (REM S):
Laughing, twirling, spinning, whirling;
Colours popping, stomach flopping,
Lights flashing, music crashing.
Happy day: I fizz inside.
Grey and crying, slowly dying,
Letting go, painful slow;
Heart aching, composure breaking.
The saddest day: I'm numb inside.
Cosy, warm, outside a storm,
Fire blazing, game playing,
Dinner roasting, toes toasting.
Family day: I feel settled inside
Piano, Ayesha Patel (REM S):
It stood there solitary -
The one instrument we were not allowed to touch.
It was not for the hands of young children; not for
Sticky fingers, it was preserved for
Pristine hands. The taboo instrument:
The piano.
Watching the extraordinary hands playing,
Flitting magically, led to my slow discovery:
Ebony and Ivory.
Eager eyes wondering what the black notes meant.
A cloud that came into focus.
I wondered how it was possible.
One hurdle at a time, though. At first,
Chopsticks. With two fingers!
Later, less clumsy, equally determined,
musically fluent and then
ambidextrous.
The piano player.
National Poetry DayOn 2nd October the School celebrated National Poetry Day. This year, the theme was
'Remembering' and English students spoke in chapel and assembly to complement the
lessons that occurred on the theme of Remembering.
5
Gala EveningChigwell students performed on stage in a
well-supported gala evening in aid of two
local charities. The evening of sketches
and musical performances was compered
by Lower Sixth Form students, Will
Weightman and Barney Walsh, and
organised by Rhea Gupta and Max Albert
from the same year. Close to £3,000 was
raised which will be shared between
Haven House Children’s Hospice and
Smiles with Grace, the charity set up by
Chigwell pupil Grace Boxall who sadly
passed away last year just days before her
sixteenth birthday.
6
Students have been asked to set
themselves a target of how many pages,
chapters or books (fiction or non-fiction)
they intend to read in the month and to
source sponsorship linked to their
reading achievements. Students should
have received sponsorship forms either
in class or via Chigwell post and we
sincerely hope that you feel able to
support this initiative which combines
the promotion of wide and varied
reading for pleasure with raising money
for an incredibly worthwhile cause.
Read to FeedThis October half term we have set
students throughout the School a reading
challenge linked to the ‘Send A Cow’
charity which is running the ‘Read to
Feed’ campaign.
7
8
FootballThe football season has been as busy as
ever with many boys and girls playing
plenty of football. Pre-season football
was yet again well attended with 51
senior boys attending. The 1st XI kicked
off the season in superb fashion,
finishing as runners up in the ISFA
National Sixes competition, which saw
32 teams from across the country
compete in the event which was held at
Chigwell this year. This was a remarkable
achievement by the team, considering
they had played Bradfield on the
afternoon before and also the calibre of
schools who entered the tournament.
The 1st XI was disappointed to be
knocked out of the ISFA Cup in the 1st
round by Trinity as it was a game they
could have won. The 1st XI has, however,
produced some fine performances and
secured four victories to date, the most
notable was the 5-3 victory over Alleyn’s,
which was very pleasing considering
they were 3-0 down after twenty
minutes. Tim Lovett is currently top goal
scorer with five.
9
FootballThe 2nd XI recorded a fine 3-2 victory over
notoriously strong opposition in Bradfield
College at the start of the season and have
developed a tight knit, successful squad.
The other senior teams have played
regularly with lots of boys involved. The
U16 team are through to the second round
of the ISFA small schools shield after an 8-
2 win over Thorpe House with Liam
Farrant and Justin Morse both scoring hat-
tricks. They will face Harrodian in the next
round. The U15s have enjoyed much
greater success this season and there is a
positive attitude towards the sport
amongst the group. The U15 team got
through to the 2nd round of the ISFA cup
after beating Portland Place school 6-0 in
the first round, however they lost 3-1 to
Highgate in the second. The U14s have
continued to play some fine football and
have reached the third round of the ESFA
U14 small schools cup. They played PACA
Academy from Brighton in the second
round and won 3-0.
10
FootballA large number of Junior School boys
have been involved in matches. The
U13A team were knocked out of the ISFA
cup by Yardley Court, but put in a strong
performance in the IAPS Eastern regional
tournament which was held at Chigwell
when they finished 3rd in their group but
narrowly missed out on going through to
the next stage. Nearly all of the Third
Form boys have represented the School
at some point this term, with all teams
playing some impressive football.
Chigwell recently hosted the U12 9v9
festival which saw Forest, John Lyon and
City of London schools come over for the
afternoon to enjoy lots of football in
the sunshine. The U11 festival at the
start of term was again a great success
with 21 teams playing football over the
course of the morning. Chigwell also
hosted the ISFA U11 Herts & Essex
regional tournament in October which
saw 20 teams compete. There has been a
lot of football for the Lower Two and
Upper Two boys and there has been a
real improvement throughout these
age groups. Finally, as always, the KS2
football club is well attended every
week with over 50 boys attending on a
regular basis.
11
HockeyCongratulations to the U14 girls who
finished 2nd at the Essex Tournament
yesterday. The girls won their group with
two wins and a draw, and then faced
Coopers in the semi-final. Despite having
the majority of the possession and
numerous shots, the Coopers GK played
extremely well and the score finished 0-0.
The match was to be decided by a
penalty strokes contest. Jasmine Illey
stood up big and strong and pulled off
some great saves and Chigwell girls Zoe
Wright, Stevie Southall and Venetia
Bailey did their job by scoring too. The
result finished 3-1 to Chigwell, and this
not only took Chigwell into the Essex
final but more importantly secured a top
2 finish which meant they qualified for
the Regional Finals. The Chigwell girls
faced Felsted in the final, and defended
confidently, but were unlucky to concede
a late goal from a penalty corner, seeing
Felsted win 1-0. The girls’ performance,
effort and results were outstanding all
day and we wish them all the best at the
regional finals on November 11th where
they will be the Essex representative at
the tournament in Bedford.
12
HockeyChigwell girls have had a very successful
half term with their hockey. The U14s are
currently undefeated, with performances
becoming progressively better with a
pinnacle display against Saffron Walden
last Saturday. Spectators watching this
match saw an excellent performance
from the girls with high levels of
possession and ample scoring
opportunities created. The final score
ended 2-0, with goals from Stevie
Southall and Aime Smithers, but it was
the team performance that was the real
winner. With a squad of 28 girls in the
U14s this year, rotation has been key,
and there are some U14B fixtures to
make sure everyone is getting plenty of
pitch time. The U15s have had a good run
of results with their last four games
seeing them earn a draw against St
Edmunds, a win against Forest and losses
against very strong Saffron Walden and
Brentwood sides.
13
HockeyThe 1st XI girls played at the Essex U18
tournament at the start of October. A
sleepy start saw the girls lose 2-0 to
Felsted, but this proved to be the catalyst
for better performances for the rest of
the day. They went on to beat King
Johns 4-0 (including a fine reverse stick
strike from Alice Melvin), and they then
faced New Hall in their final pool game
knowing that a win would secure them a
spot in the semi-finals. The girls went 1-0
down but showed true character to come
back and win 2-1, with goals from Emily
Goodhew and Kirsty Farquharson.
Chigwell faced Coopers in the semi-final,
knowing that a win would earn them a
spot at the Regional Finals. The girls had
a plan to play at high intensity, which
worked until the last thirty seconds.
Megan Wells and Captain Georgia
O’Connor worked tirelessly in the
midfield with the forwards rotating
continually doing sprints across the pitch
closing the opposition down, when the
Coopers’ centre forward scored with a
great strike that flew hard and high into
the net. Chigwell were disappointed to
have lost, but pleased that they had
played so well and could not have worked
any harder. The girls finished the day
with their best placing at this
tournament in many years. In addition to
the tournament, the girls have played six
matches this half term, picking up three
wins, one draw and two losses, but only
conceding three goals in these six
matches.
Pembroke EvensongThe Chigwell Chapel Choir returned to lead Evensong at Pembroke College, Cambridge,
the college where our founder became Master some four hundred years ago. The choir
were surrounded by interested tourists and prospective students during rehearsals in the
afternoon, some of whom stayed on for service itself. The Choir sang with appreciable
beauty and clarity, as we have come to expect. The vesicles and responses of Rose, were
charmingly intoned by Adam Melvin; the colourful lines and rhythms of Kelly’s Magnificat
and Nunc Dimittis were playfully
poised; and the anthem, Haydn’s
The Heavens are Telling gave an
uplifting end to the service. The
Choir’s next evensong will be at
Westminster Abbey on Friday
7th November at 5.15pm. The
service is open to the general
public.
14
HockeyWith an influx of keen and able UV girls
to the 2nd XI squad, the girls have really
developed this season. With a mix of the
experienced Middle Sixth girls showing
true grit and the enthusiasm and energy
of the new UV, the 2nd XI have proven to
be a tough side to beat, notching up
many draws this season.
Junior girls’ hockey continues to go from
strength to strength, with an extensive
fixture list for the girls with many A, B, C,
D fixtures for all year groups every week.
The U11s have already enjoyed their
involvement at the IAPS tournament last
week, and the U12s and U13s look
forward to representing the School when
they return after half term.
15
Smiles with Grace WalkSome two hundred pupils, parents and friends gathered to walk nine miles in order to
remember Grace Boxall. The walkers gathered at Chigwell, made their way along the banks
of the River Roding to Woodford Green Prep School where much-needed refreshments were
kindly provided. They then made their way back through Epping Forest and the Roding
Valley Meadows Nature Reserve before arriving at Chigwell School for tea.
The walk raised money for Smiles with Grace, the charity which Grace set up herself to raise
money for causes which help other children suffering from life threatening diseases. To date
the charity has raised nearly £90,000 and currently is sponsoring a project at Great Ormond
Street Hospital, where Grace was treated, to support children with Spinal Lipoma. Several
of the patrons of the charity are Grace’s friends from Chigwell.
DramaFollowing on from the Gala Evening, the
Upper Fifth performed their Scripted pieces
on Thursday 16th October. This was an
evening of five plays ranging from
Shakespeare to material written and
directed by Miss Janey Foster and Mr Joe
Maingot. Candidates offered light, sound,
set design, costume and make up as well as
acting. Well done to all involved.
NetballThe U16s will be busy during half
term representing the School at the
Borough stage of the National Schools’
Competition. Good luck girls.
The School ShopDuring the half term break the School
Shop will be open daily between 10am
and 3pm
16
MusicThe eagerly anticipated House Music
competition as always, lived up to and
in some cases exceeded expectations.
Item 1, the acapella part song, My
bonny lass she smileth by Thomas
Morely was presented with great care
and attention to detail from all Houses
but Penn’s and Caswalls’ won that item
with precise intonation and diction.
Item 2 saw some heavy weight
ensemble work with Penn’s winning
outright with their performance of
Muse’ United States of Eurasia
arranged and produced by Gopal
Kambo. The verve of item three was
no less diminishing, with one of the
most outstanding unison songs and
choreographs ever seen with
Lambourne’s The Lion King. Needless
to say, Swallow’s were crowned House
Music Champions.
Saturday 11th October saw some one
hundred children from twenty different
schools aged 7-11 coming to Chigwell
School for a One Day Music Festival. The
day offered the opportunity for
instrumentalists to receive professional
coaching and instruction; the occasion to
be a part of an orchestra of nearly sixty
players. Non-orchestral instrumentalists
and singers had the chance to work with
our resident song writer and voice coach;
to experience string playing on violins,
violas and celli and finally to compose
music in one of the School’s computer
suite. As well as this, the entire group of
children, directed by Mr Howard Ebden,
joined together as a united choir,
presenting the songs Let it Go and Ain’t
No Mountain High Enough. The day was
a huge success which culminated in a
spectacular celebratory concert to
family and friends.
Harry SamuelWe congratulate Harry Samuel in the
Lower Fifth who was part of the Essex U14
performance team that went unbeaten in
this year’s county competitions. The side
won two trophies – the ECB South of
England division and the ESCA Cricket
Festival. The team played fourteen
matches with 11 wins and 3 draws, and
Harry opened the bowling for the side all
year and took fifteen wickets. This was a
marvellous achievement.
17
Friends of Chigwell –A message from PurnimaSen (Chair of FoC)As I write my little piece today, I realise
that half the term has gone by and yet we
have managed just two FoC events!
However, then I realise very quickly the
reality and what this means is that we
have nine more event days to come and
they all fall in the second half of the
Michaelmas term! So it’s probably an
understatement when I say this is going
to be a madly busy time for the FoC. I
must admit I was (for the most part)
expecting to be a fancy PTA mum with
merely answering YES, NO, VERY YES,
VERY NO, when asked to run events and
then (in my fanciful mind) relaxing with a
cup of tea and an exotic cupcake
assuming that it will all happen by itself.
Boy, was I wrong!! Suddenly, now as I list
what we have coming up in the latter
half of this term, I feel like I am juggling a
hundred balls with my fellow FoC
members and all while standing in
quicksand at the same time.
We have, of course, got the 7th
November Fireworks Event where we are
expecting about 1500 people, so
arrangements for that are in full swing
and I suggest you get your tickets as soon
as possible. There is going to be a full
seventeen minute display by Kimbolton
and it will definitely be a fantastic
evening. 21st November is the FoC trip
to see Memphis at the West End where I
understand tickets are already sold out.
28th November will see our Christmas
Fayre and we have managed to get some
amazing and affordable Christmas gifts
for all ages for the children to buy. On
4th and 5th December we have agreed to
serve drinks for the Senior School play
“The School For Scandal”. 5th December
is also the Annual School Disco with two
sessions being run for the Pre Prep and
the Junior School. Finally, 11th, 12th and
13th December has us serving drinks yet
again for the much-awaited musical
arrangement “Les Miserables”. So, as
you can see, we have some very exciting
things happening in the FoC world and I
would not only urge you to get involved
and get tickets for all of the above as
soon as they go on sale, but I would also
request you to volunteer where possible
to help the FoC make all these events
successful ones. Please do drop an email
to anila_shah@hotmail.com and put
your names down if you can give us a
hand, for however short a time, so the
proverbial juggling balls and quicksand
both look conquerable. Finally, I wish all
parents a restful and much deserved
break this half term
18
Chigwell ChoirThe Chigwell Choir will be performing the
following two concerts:
100 Years Of Poppies - Saturday 15th
November at 7.30pm (Chigwell School)
Special Autumn Concert by The Chigwell
Choir to commemorate the outbreak of
The Great War featuring Sullivan’s Te
Deum, songs by Mendelssohn and
Vaughan Williams and WW1 songs. In
addition there will be a piece written and
performed by Theydon Bois Primary
School choir, and a performance of the
winning entry of our Composer
Competition. The choir will be under the
direction of Alexander Campkin and
accompanied by keyboard and brass.
Tickets £12 adults, £10 concessions, £5
under 16, available on the door, in advance
from Leonie 07958 763213 or online from
http://www.wegottickets.com/event/279553
A Babe Is Born - Wednesday 17th
December at 8pm (St. Mary’s Church)
The Chigwell Choir will present a Family
Christmas Concert of traditional carols and
readings, conducted by Alexander
Campkin and accompanied by Chigwell
Brass. There will be a retiring collection in
support of our local chosen charity, Vitalise.
Tickets/programme on the door: £8 (under
16s free) including mulled wine and mince
pies afterwards in the Church Hall to round
off a great evening. www.chigwellchoir.org
Staff NewsWe send our congratulations to Tim
and Michelle Crispin on the arrival of
Phoebe Grace, and to Kimberley
Skipper, who works for Chartwells, on
the arrival of Layla.
We also send our very best wishes to Miss
Jenny Meadows who will be marrying
David over the half term break and will be
known as Mrs Murray on her return.
And FinallyThank you for all your support of your
sons and daughters and the School over
the last half term. Whilst students in the
Upper Fifth and Sixth Forms will want to
devote some of half term to revision for
the November exams, I hope that all
pupils manage to have some rest as
well. We wish those students and staff
travelling to either Vietnam or to
Benalmádena for the Spanish tuition
homestay exciting but safe trips and we
look forward to hearing about their
adventures on their return.
With best wishes
Yours sincerely
Michael Punt
19
Chapel
It was a wonderful sight to see the area around
the altar in Chapel overflowing with food
donated to our Harvest Appeal for
“Streets2Homes”. It is an apt reminder that in
the extraordinary world that God has created
there are those who have very little or
nothing. We are also in the process of raising
money for “Send a Cow” which works with
impoverished families in Africa.
Harvest Festivals grew up in the Nineteenth
Century as industrialization separated people
from the land. It was a way of reminding
people of our dependence upon the God who
provides us with the perfect “home” in which
we can enjoy health and happiness. Today,
we are more divorced from the land than ever
and it is possible to live life without growing
any food ourselves. We rely totally on others
to grow the crops, raise the livestock and
prepare the food for our consumption. Mr
Graeme Inch has been working hard with
students to make Chigwell School a better
more environmentally sustainable place
where we also produce some of our own food.
We finished the half term with “Green Day”. A
non-uniform day raising funds for WWF and
local conservation charities. It is worth
reminding ourselves that God’s primary call on
Adam & Eve, in the Garden of Eden, was to
“tend the garden”. Remind ourselves that
growing plants, especially for food, is a sacred
calling. Few of us have the time or resources
to do this on anything but a very small scale;
however, it is good to stop and give thanks, to
celebrate all that we have and to remember
those who do not have enough. May I thank
you for your kindness and generosity in
supporting our fundraising initiatives towards
these ends.
Father Simon
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