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2015

Seckford FoundationAnnual Review

www.seckford-foundation.org.uk

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2015A year in numbers

At Woodbridge School Over 55% ofpapers at GCSE

received an A or A*

At A Level, the average points per candidate wasthe equivalent of better

than 3 A grades

100% of our Free School students went into further education

or training

£50,000 given towards fees for 19

residents in ourresidential care

home

3 apprentices

and 12 mentors

31 grants awardedtotalling £25,000

432 peoplein full-time

employment acrossthe Foundation

Approaching 2000 students in

full-time education

More than 72bursary awardsfor education

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We promote and support the education and care of the young and the elderly in and around the town of Woodbridge and the County of Suffolk ”“

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Chairman’s welcome...Welcome to the Seckford Foundation’s Annual Review of 2015, the year that marked the 500th anniversary of the birth of our founding benefactor, Thomas Seckford. As you’ll read in the pages that follow, we marked the anniversary with a number of celebratory events; but we were determined that this milestone should be not just a cause for celebration, but also a trigger for identifying how the Foundation can be of maximum benefit to the community it serves in the 21st century, whilst remaining true to the concerns that prompted Thomas Seckford to found what has become his eponymous Foundation.

With that in mind we have commissioned University Campus Suffolk to conduct some research on our behalf into the effects of rural deprivation on young people: in particular, the challenges they face in accessing further education, employment and cultural and social opportunities. You can read more about this project on page 5. The Foundation’s research coincides with a rural needs initiative being championed by Suffolk’s Lord Lieutenant, Clare Countess of Euston, so we have joined forces with the Suffolk Agricultural Association, the Suffolk Community Foundation and Community Action Suffolk to promote a conference to be held in the Autumn. From this conference and our own research we hope will emerge some priorities which the Foundation will then seek to address.

As a Foundation we are continually re-assessing our aims and objectives in order to meet the needs of the young and elderly in Suffolk in an ever changing socio-economic climate. Our charitable aims are still as relevant today as they were when Thomas Seckford walked the streets of Woodbridge. Contrary to popular perception and assumption, rural Suffolk is not uniformly the county of prosperity and tranquillity that it is portrayed to be in the media. Yes, there are many areas of significant wealth, where residents lead a very comfortable lifestyle and find Suffolk a delightful county to live in, and which contribute to a calculation of relatively high average annual income; but as so often the law of averages conceals pockets of real contrast – of financial, social and cultural poverty – and we in the Seckford Foundation see a large part of our purpose today as being to help alleviate the needs created by that poverty.

How we address these needs is a challenge we want to take on; but we will increasingly need the support of individuals and businesses to enable us to do so. We are honoured and privileged to carry forward the legacy of Thomas Seckford. But in order to build on the excellent work of the Foundation today we need the support of members of the local community: benefactors of the second Elizabethan age who care about deprivation and the challenges of rural living and who would like to help the Foundation in its task of meeting the needs of Suffolk people in the 21st century.

Roger FinbowChairman of the Seckford Foundation

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Celebrating 500 years since the birth of Thomas Seckford

During 2015, the Foundation celebrated 500 years since the birth of its benefactor, Thomas Seckford, with a number of special events, including a Founders Day event and a visit from Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Gloucester.

In May, the Founders Day service was held at St Mary’s Church, Woodbridge and attended by over 120 people with connections to the charity. It was followed by a reception at The Abbey, which was re-built by Thomas Seckford as his home and is now the preparatory school for Woodbridge School.

The Royal visit in June saw a commemorative plaque unveiled by Her Royal Highness at Thomas Seckford’s tomb in St Mary’s Church and The Duchess also had the opportunity to meet residents from the Almshouses, together with pupils from Woodbridge School and the Free Schools. You can read more about the visit on page 12.

To mark the anniversary with something longer lasting than a series of celebratory events, the Foundation also commissioned University Campus Suffolk to conduct a research project looking at the effects of rural deprivation on young people, the extra challenges they face and what steps can be taken to improve their chances in life. The findings will be published later this year and will help to guide the Foundation’s future strategy in addressing the needs of the disadvantaged in rural Suffolk. The research will highlight barriers for young people living in rural Suffolk seeking to make the transition to employment or higher education.

Suffolk has a smaller proportion of young people progressing into higher education than the national rate, and a greater proportion recorded as

not in employment, education or training. The research project, which began in September 2015, will aim to unravel the reasons behind these figures and explain how living in a rural location can affect young people on their pathway to success.

Graham Watson, Director of the Seckford Foundation, said: “we know that young people in rural areas can face a range of additional barriers and costs when progressing to higher education or employment. This research will help us to identify what those barriers are, so we can help young people better overcome them. ” 5

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The Seckford Foundation has created two categories of supporter, Patrons and Alumni, to acknowledge and celebrate those who have given exceptional service to the Foundation over the years. The announcement of the first Patrons and Alumni coincided with the 500th anniversary of the birth of Thomas Seckford.

Seckford Patrons are those who are influential members of the Suffolk community and have a strong interest in, and record of, promoting the Foundation and its work. Governors, volunteers and long-serving former members of staff may also be invited to become Patrons.

Seckford Alumni are those who have given voluntary service to the Foundation as a Governor, or a committee member, as well as members of staff who have served with distinction for many years.

At the time of the Patrons and Alumni launch, Chairman of the Seckford Foundation, Roger Finbow, said: “on this 500th anniversary year of our benefactor, Thomas Seckford, we want to recognize those who have supported the Seckford Foundation through the years and who are committed to supporting our work going forward. Their achievements and dedication have helped the Foundation to grow and they will continue to help us as we look to the future.”

The names of all current Patrons and Alumni can be found on the Foundation website:www.seckford-foundation.org.uk

PATRONS AND ALUMNI

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The Foundation aims to help younger people achieve their potential and lead financially independent and productive lives”“ 7

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Woodbridge School had another very successful year both academically and outside the classroom. At A Level the School achieved the highest percentage of A* grades ever (19% of all grades) with 39% of pupils obtaining at least one A*. Over a quarter of pupils secured at least three A or A* grades with the average points per candidate across the whole year being the equivalent of better than three A grades. At GCSE this year’s results were the best for many years; 55.1% of grades were awarded at A* and A grades and just under a quarter of all GCSE grades were A*. 40% of pupils obtained the equivalent of all A grades or higher.

Away from the classroom the international exchange programme continues to flourish and is something quite unique to Woodbridge allowing pupils to exchange with other young people in ten different countries.

In September 2015 John Brett, formerly Headmaster of Old Buckenham Hall School, was appointed Head of The Abbey and Queen’s House and succeeded Nicholas Garrett, who served as Master of The Abbey for 18 years. During the year a review was carried out of the School’s management structure, which resulted in the appointment of a Deputy Head (Pastoral) and Deputy Head (Academic) at the Senior School and a Director of Sport with responsibility for sport across the whole school.

Woodbridge School

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In music the highlight was the wonderful concert at Snape Concert Hall in which 270 pupils took part. It typified the high standards of music and singing across the School.

In sport, the hockey U14 girls team reached the regional finals, the U18 boys reached the last 16 of the National Hockey plate competition and the U19 girls netball team also reached the Regional finals. At the National Prep Schools Cross Country championships, held at Woodbridge for the first time, the School won 9 out of 11 trophies. Over 360 pupils from 19 prep schools took part.

Many staff at Woodbridge School volunteer their time to help members of our community. Such activities include arranging fundraising events for the Bridge School and the Hunger Project. They also act as coaches and tutors to young people who are not pupils of Woodbridge School. Where appropriate our international exchange programme is offered to pupils of local schools too. We have continued our Combined Cadet Force partnership with the Felixstowe Academy, as well as Beccles and Saxmundham Free Schools allowing students from these schools to join our contingent, with Beccles and Saxmundham having their own platoon.

Woodbridge School offers between 1,500 and 2,000 children in local primary schools the ability to participate in a variety of sports activities through the provision of over 30 Sports Leaders. Other activities which included pupils from local primary schools were an Anglo Saxon day in June, a crime scene investigation event in April and in May 2015 Sixth Formers hosted a joint General Election hustings in the Seckford Theatre with Farlingaye High School.

In June 2015 over 1,000 pupils from 15 primary and secondary schools across Suffolk were invited to The Abbey to see a series of shows from the Science Museum. In March of that year The Abbey also hosted the first Woodbridge Junior Musician of the Year competition, to which we were delighted to welcome 31 contestants from 16 different Suffolk schools. The adjudicator was Clio Gould, Leader of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Professor of Violin at the Royal Academy of Music.

The Foundation is committed to maintaining the breadth of access to Woodbridge School by offering to eligible families means-tested financial support for the payment of school fees. In the year 72 bursary awards were made to help pupils join or continue to be educated at Woodbridge School. Of these awards 40% represented fully remitted fees and 87% received more than 50% remission of the full fee.

During the year, the School received a legacy from Richard Ward (an Old Woodbridgian) to create an endowment fund to be used specifically to fund bursaries for Sixth Form pupils studying STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). The first Richard Ward bursaries were awarded in 2015 to Jamian Stephan and Emelia Cole (above)

www.woodbridgeschool.org.uk

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The Free Schools continue to grow and develop as the number of students enrolled increased to 679 by the summer census, an increase of 314 on the previous year. The Trust’s third school, Ixworth Free School, successfully opened in September 2014 and has just come to the end of an exciting programme of refurbishment and building works.

The first public examinations for students at Beccles Free School and Saxmundham Free School were held in 2015. At Beccles, 43% of students achieved 5 GCSEs at A*-C including english and maths and 30% achieved the English Baccalaureate (EBacc). At Saxmundham, 30% of students achieved 5 GCSEs at A*-C including english and maths. 21% of students achieved the EBacc performance measure.

Although the headline results were disappointing, they were in line or above national expectations for the students in relation to their attainment at the end of Key Stage 2. It is also the case that both schools have added considerable value to students’ education since opening in September 2012, as reflected in the Progress 8 results for

both schools, and there were some fantastic individual results for students. 100% of students leaving both Beccles and Saxmundham Free Schools went on to further education. An external review began in September 2015 so that the Trust can put in place and take all the actions it needs to seek to improve on the headline results in 2016.

Free Schools

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World Class Achievement for BecclesIn July 2015, The Beccles Free School RoboCup team, having already won the regional and national competitions, headed over to Hefei in China to compete against the best robotics coders in the World Championships. They spent an enriching week in an Xplore camp prior to the competition, before heading to the Olympic stadium for 5 days of intense competition. The team did fantastically well and finished as runner-up, only narrowly missing out on the top spot. Since returning home, the team have used their experiences to set up an enrichment club for local primary school children, which teaches them how to code. They are in training again for the 2016 championships, so good luck!

Saxmundham Students Clean Up Our CoastSaxmundham students from Year 7 took part in a ‘beach clean’ event at Sizewell beach in 2015, to help clean it up and make it a safer, more enjoyable place to be. Their amazing efforts were so good, they even made it onto ITV news!

The ‘beach clean’ was part of a wider schools initiative from Touching the Tide and the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) aiming to give students first-hand experience of beach litter issues in Suffolk and to explore local solutions on how to tackle the problem.

Ixworth Continues to Grow2015 saw the introduction of a new Year group at Ixworth (Year 10) and in preperation for the school being at full capacity as those students continue into Year 11 in 2016, there have been extensive building works and improvements carried out: four new science labs, two dedicated art studios, an engaging 4D Immersive room, and a new ICT suite have been added, along with new restaurant facilities, a multi purpose hall, a new external courtyard and a new main entrance. New furniture and a total refurbishment of all learning areas complete the works to transform the old middle school site.

www.sffst.org.uk

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A special commemorative plaque was unveiled in Woodbridge on Wednesday 10 June 2015 by Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Gloucester, in celebration of 500 years since the birth of the town’s famous benefactor, Thomas Seckford, in 1515.

Roger Finbow, Chairman of The Seckford Foundation, said: “we were honoured to receive a visit from The Duchess of Gloucester, and pleased that Her Royal Highness was able to see all the great work that is ongoing at each organisation within The Seckford Foundation today, as well as our plans to carry the legacy forward for generations to come.”

Royal Visitor Marks 500th Anniversary ofThomas Seckford

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“Thomas Seckford has had an enduring impact on Woodbridge and across Suffolk, and his legacy is as powerful today as it has ever been. We are delighted that the great man has been recognized further with this special visit from The Duchess and the unveiling of the commemorative plaque.”

During Her Royal Highness’ visit, The Duchess met with representatives from The Seckford Almshouses and Jubilee House in Woodbridge, including 94-year-old Almshouse resident Patrick Warren, who earlier in the year, was presented with the Ushakov medal by Therese Coffey MP for his involvement in the Arctic convoys during World War Two. The Duchess also met six young students from the Seckford Foundation Free Schools Trust and two former Seckford Apprentices, Mellissa Postma and Joley Williams, who successfully completed their training during 2014. She was presented with a posy by Phoebe Bell, aged 11, from The Abbey at Woodbridge School.

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“ The Foundation strengthensthe communities in whichthose we support live,aiming to reduce the effects of rural isolation”

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The Seckford Apprenticeship scheme, which aims to help into employment young people who have found it difficult for a variety of reasons to access further education, employment or training, is now in its third full year, with three apprentices having now completed the scheme and successfully moved into employment.

The second cohort of apprentices, who started in September 2014 with support from the Jackson Foundation, will finish their apprenticeship during 2016.

Seckford Springboard

During 2015 the Foundation also launched its mentoring programme to support young people who may be struggling to support themselves independently and older people to maintain their independence. More than a dozen volunteer mentors have been recruited and trained and a number of young people are now being supported through regular mentoring sessions.

The third aspect of Seckford Springboard is grants and during the year 31 grants were awarded, totalling £25,000. Pupils at Farlingaye High School also received assistance to the value of approximately £3,600 enabling them to attend curriculum enhancing activities in a variety of academic subjects.

www.seckfordspringboard.org.uk

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Jamie was awarded with funding for the loan a scooter for six weeks. This transport enabled him to attend interviews and find employment, when previously the poor transport links from his home made this impossible.

Jamie is pictured collecting his fully insured, serviced scooter, with the proper safety equipment issued. Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) completed and paid for, Jamie was equipped to start the hunt for work.

Shaun had a temporary job working in a pub, but couldn’t take on a full-time role due to the lack of transport options available to suit his shift work pattern.We funded Shaun for the loan of a scooter for six weeks, enabling him to take a full-time role and continue on his chosen career path.

Wheels 2 Work

Wheels 2 Work is a nationwide scheme that helps youngpeople into the workplace by removing the obstacle oftransport that may be getting in the way of their job search.

In Suffolk, the scheme is facilitated by Community ActionSuffolk and is open to anyone aged 16+ who has difficulties getting to work, training or college due to a lack of suitable transport, working patterns outside of public transport timetables,or who lives or works in a rurally isolated location.

During 2015 the Seckford Foundation provided funding for two young people on the scheme, and as well as the loan of a scooter they also recieved a pack of essentials needed to help them on the road to work (insurance, road tax, MoT, Compulsory Basic Training, full maintenance and repair service, breakdown cover, support and advice and safety equipment.)

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“The Foundation enables elderly people to lead safe, secure,independent and fulfilling lives and cares for them when in need”

A special photobook commemorating the legacy of Thomas Seckford, in the 500th anniversary year since his birth, was created by members of the Almshouses’ photography club (pictured) and showcases the historic Almshouse building from the inside, capturing some of its unique features and historic character. The original Seckford Almshouses were built by Thomas Seckford in the 16th century and have since provided accommodation, care and support for older people in Woodbridge.

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The Foundation’s care of the elderly is centred on the Seckford Almshouses and Jubilee House, where it provides sheltered, very sheltered and residential accommodation, as well as small grants to aid independent living.

During the year Jubilee House received a “good” inspection report following an unannounced inspection by the Care Quality Commission.

At the end of year, the Day Club facility succesfully moved from the Almshouses to the Methodist Church in the town, to provide easier access for the elderly population of Woodbridge.

The staff at the Almshouses ensure that there is always a full programme of activities and events on offer and these include various craft clubs, regular lectures and film showings as well as outings to local places of interest, shopping and theatre trips.

Highlights during 2015 included the visit of the Duchess of Gloucester in June (read more on pages 12 and 13), a garden party in the sunken garden, and some fantastic individual achievements which you can read more about on the next page.

Seckford Care

The Foundation continues to ensure that vacancies at the Almshouses or Jubilee House are offered to Social Services so those without the financial means can continue to access our services. Of the 19 residents in our residential care home, £50,000 has been remitted from the fees, representing approximately7.5 % of the gross fees.

www.seckfordalmshouses.org.uk

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94 year-old Patrick Warren, a resident at The Seckford Almshouses received further recognition for his efforts in World War Two with a special medal presentation that took place in May 2015. Patrick was presented with the Ushakov medal, which is awarded to sailors who were part of the Arctic convoys during World War Two by Suffolk Coastal MP, Therese Coffey, during a coffee morning event at Jubilee House.

The Seckford Almshouses has a regular and varied entertainments programme and one such event saw residents experience an excellent in house performance by the Glass House Dance Company. In less than an hour, its team of four had transformed the Day Centre, transported the imaginations of the residents and set the scene for the play - a magical attic, complete with boxes, trunks and the usual clutter you may find in a dusty, old loft!

Within minutes, the performers had the audience captivated with their expertly chosen music, dance, and use of intriguing props. The props ranged from a light up umbrella filled with

beautiful white feathers, to large sheet materials that the dancers skilfully transformed into a stormy sea through their dance, as well as an extraordinary array of small, globe lights that were passed around the audience throughout the show.

A special iris has been named after Jubilee House resident and local horticulturalist, Norman Smith, for his continued love of gardening and for his many years of sharing horticultural knowledge with the younger generations. Norman, aged 98, was presented with the ‘Norman Smith’ iris in June 2015 by President of the British Iris Society, Barry Emmerson.

As part of the grants scheme, we provide assistance to projects that help improve the lives of older people, such as the £5,000 that was granted to Aldeburgh Music’s Dementia and Community Project. Drawing clients and their carers from a wide radius, including Aldeburgh Community Hospital’s Dementia Day Care Facility, clients and staff worked together over 15 weeks using music as a tool to develop communication skills. Community events such as the Tea Dance (pictured) were held, and monthly open music-based workshops for carers and cared-for of any ability were offered as part of the scheme.

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The Seckford Foundation

01394 615 100

enquiries@seckford-foundation.org.uk

Charity Registration No. 1110964

President - Baron Neuberger of Abbotsbury

Governors - Roger Finbow, Jude Chin, Wendy Evans-Hendrick, Inga Grimsey, The Revd Canon Kevan McCormack, Jeston Na Nakhorn, Judi Newman, Jonathan Ripman, Martin Sylvester, James Wellesley-Wesley, John White, Professor Jane Wright and Stephen Wright