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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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.