1

ASSOCIATION OF PAST PUPILS AND STAFF

DOVER GRAMMAR SCHOOL FOR GIRLS

AUTUMN 2016

PRESIDENT Margaret Pope BSc Hons PGCE - margaretpope04@gmail.comVICE PRESIDENT Mrs Bessie Newton (Laurie)

CHAIRMAN: SECRETARY:Susannah Tapsell (Bloomfield) Carol Dolbear (Gilbard)Bramhall 4 The PaddockAlkham Valley Road Vigo Village, MEOPHAMAlkham, DOVER DA13 OTE01304 822295 01732 823366tapsell.family@btinternet.com carol.dolbear@btinternet.com

TREASURER NEWLETTER EDITORMary Sherred (Todd) Sue Garlinge (Beardsell)Copthorne, Dover Road PortwayGuston 1a Lenacre LaneDOVER Whitfield, DOVERCT15 5EN CT16 3HQ01304 203548 01304 820415sherred@invictawiz.co.uk suegarlinge@aol.com

COMMITTEE

Vice Chairman Marian Ebden (Ellis)01304 375694

June Murphy (Cornish)

Dorothy Dousedorothy@ddouse.freeserve.co.uk01303 211564

Lizzie Keeler ekeeler@thelangton.kent.sch.ukJocelyn Keeler Jocelyn.keeler@gmail.com

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

AGM and LuncheonTo be held at School

Saturday 15th October 201612 noon

Speaker

Gail Swainston

2

Dear Friends

This will be the last message which I will pen for our Association of Past Pupils and Staff as I leave Dover Grammar School for Girls on 21st October to take up the role of Head Master of St Aloysius College in Glasgow. It has been a wonderful time in Dover and I am proud to have served as Headteacher for approaching six years. In those six years we have seen the school grow from 761 to its current 878 students. In particular we have been able to welcome so many new students into our thriving Sixth Form.

In late 2013 we were again awarded the accolade of being an ‘Outstanding’ school by Ofsted where we were told that ‘staff and students share a love of learning’. That love has not lessened since Ofsted left, rather the school has gone from strength to strength. This summer marked a high point in our achievements with almost 72% of all grades at A*-B ensuring that we were rated the 92nd best school in the country by the ‘Daily Telegraph’, 8 th best grammar school in Kent, and by some margin the highest performing school in Dover district, Shepway, Thanet and Canterbury. We can hold our heads high that our little grammar school in one of the less advantaged towns in the county is ranked with the super selective schools in the West of Kent. If this were not enough, at GCSE we achieved one of the highest Progress 8 scores in Kent, when 45% of our grades were at A*/A.

Our students now choose to attend the best universities in the UK with 53% going to one of the ‘Times Top 30’ universities: quite an achievement as our local university no longer features in this prestigious stable. 4 Oxbridge successes, 1 Medic and 1 Dentist added to this exceptional year. But of course the exceptional has become the norm here. No longer do I need to explain what we do at Grammar School Heads’ events, but our name is better known.In January our building project should start. Primed by a £1million from KCC, we are able to begin the construction of the new Science Building in place of our history huts. It will be a challenging time sharing our tiny (or is it compact and bijou?) site with the builders, but we will survive.

In short the school is in remarkable health at a time when grammar schools have never been more favoured. And so they should be as long as they continue to transform lives and are places of aspiration, opportunity and excellence.

My successor is Robert Benson, whom you will all have the chance to meet. Coming from another outstanding grammar school, he knows the DNA that goes into making our type of school special. I am sure that you will also welcome him as you welcomed me into a community that is truly special and will always hold a particular place in my heart.

Every good wish for your continuing success.

Matthew BartlettHeadteacher

Dear Friends

It seems no time since I enjoyed the pleasure of speaking at the annual lunch last October. The first year of my retirement has flown by and now it is almost time for this year’s lunch! We look forward to welcoming Gail Swainston as guest speaker. Gail led the History Department for many years and is remembered particularly for her role in the school’s Humanities Specialism where History is the Lead Subject. Humanities continue to be an

3

integral part of life at DGGS. Every year the special Humanities Week adds new opportunities and broaden the pupils’ experiences. Did Gail teach you or anyone you know? If she did, I am sure you will want to come to the lunch in October and hear her speak. If you have never heard of Gail, I know you will enjoy an interesting and entertaining speech. Do come and bring your school friends with you.

The occasion will be special since it will be Matthew Bartlett’s last as Headteacher. He leaves DGGS in October. We are very grateful for the support he has given the Past Pupils’ Association over the last five years and we wish him well as he takes up his new post as Head of St Aloysius’ College in Glasgow.

2016 is proving a year of change for DGGS. In March the Chairman of Governors, Diane Taylor, resigned. We all remember Di as Chairman of DGGS Past Pupils. She played a leading role for many years in the organisations lunches and other events, including a very successful party to mark Miss Kay’s 90th birthday and the unforgettable Centenary Lunch. We are very appreciative of all Di’s work for the Past Pupils and we hope to see her at future events. The new Chairman of Governors is another former pupil, Sue King, who like Di has contributed much to the Past Pupils’ Association, serving on the committee, first when her children were young and again in recent years. Sue’s daughter, Hazel, also attended DGGS. We wish Sue well in her new role in the DGGS community. One aspect of DGGS which has not changed is the excellent examination results which break records every year. The most significant record this year is gaining over 70% A*-B grades at A level, a truly outstanding achievement. Our congratulations go to our amazing students, Matthew and all the staff who taught, encouraged and nurtured them through their years at DGGS.

It is always very rewarding to see girls who join the school aged 11, mature and develop into confident young women who leave DGGS ready to enjoy the challenges of their future lives. We also appreciate the contribution they each make to DGGS, particularly through their leadership role in the Sixth Form. We hope that at some stage in the future they will be interested in the Past Pupils’ Association, read about us on the school website, and perhaps attend an event to meet up with school friends.

During the year Susannah and other members of the committee have attended various school events, including Presentation Evenings, concerts, the Year 7 Dance Show, the Sports Awards Evening, and the Art and Photography Exhibition. The high standards of work at DGGS are always impressive. We love to be invited, enjoy our visits, and appreciate the opportunity to give our support to the school and strengthen our links with the current pupils and staff. I would like to thank the committee for all their hard work over the last year. Every member has an individual role, but all contribute far more, working together to ensure the success of the association and all our events. This year’s annual lunch and the tea in May both ran smoothly and were enjoyed. There are always one or two former pupils who are coming back for the first time since they left school years ago. We would love to welcome more, so please come yourself if you can and, if any of your friends and family are past pupils, please do encourage them to come too. Please also ask them to write a few sentences about themselves for us to include in the next newsletter. We are always delighted to receive news of past pupils.

I look forward to meeting as many of you as possible on Saturday 15 th October for the annual lunch. Please bring to the AGM any suggestions you would like to make as the association moves forward to another year.

4

With best wishes to everyone,

Margaret (Pope)

What are you doing now?

Susannah Tapsell (Bloomfield 1958-62) It hasn’t been the best of years for me, as my husband and I have been dealing with Prostate Cancer. I know that many of you have experienced the same situation and will identify with me. I have been very grateful for the support and understanding of the committee. On a happier note, Sue has asked me to tell you about Charlotte Tapsell, the fourth of my five grandchildren and a pupil at DGGS, who was selected for the England U16 Alpine Ski Squad and has been representing her country at events in Austria, France and Italy. She recently was also honoured to be selected as the Snow Sport Dry Slopes ambassador and as such represents the sport at venues to encourage and help younger children in the sport.

Maureen Arkwright (Catt 1956 – 63) Maureen writes of her cousins Mary Morey (Catt) and her sister Brenda Tomsett (Catt). They recently lost their older sister Dora Pearson (Catt) who became a new teacher at Deal Parochial when Maureen was in Year 2, and as teachers then couldn’t teach a family member, Maureen was put up a year, so thought she was clever!

Mollie Simpson (Ash 1949 – 55) Mollie is a long serving member of the WI and who regularly arranges an annual trip to London to see the Classical Spectacular. So she particularly welcomed the piano playing during our Annual Luncheon, reminding her of the assemblies that Gam encouraged us to play, as we entered the hall in the mornings.

Pamela Hopkins (Sayers 1943 – 50) Pam has eight grandchildren, two of them French. Four of her grandchildren went off to University this year. Ella is attached to the hospital in Bordeaux and having passed her exams is now continuing her training with little children. Daisy-Mai (Ella’s sister) has come to the UK to study Biology at York University, and Harry has gone to Canterbury University. Polly has gone to Brighton to study nursing.

Lesley Smith (Reeve 1963 – 70) Lesley enjoys helping at her local church, St Mary’s in Walmer, - she helps with the pre-school play group, working in the flower team and with the children’s activities throughout the year. She also enjoys fundraising for local charities and being with family and friends. Her niece has passed both the Kent Test and the DGGS test. (This being news from our annual lunch, I presume Lesley’s niece is now in Year 8!)

Christine Pirt (Dyer 1956 – 63) Now 70 and enjoyed spending the year celebrating! Christine has spent time travelling the country, - Suffolk, Kent and Bucks to visit her six grandsons.

Verity Irvine (Hitchin 1956 – 63) Lecturing in classics at University of Kent.

Christine Hall (Marriott 1957 – 64) Now a widow, still working as a part-time Optometrist. Chairman of Deal and Walmer Macmillan fundraising committee, Chairman of Deal Ladies Unlimited Club and a volunteer at Citizens Advice.

5

Christine’s daughter Lucy Hall (1995 – 2002) is an Optometrist/Manager of Vision Express in Dover, also a tutor at City University and studying for MSc in Optometry. – And her stepdaughter Liz McNassor (Hall) lives in Solihull and is a Senior Sister at Birmingham Heartlands Hospital.

Rosemary Davey (Redington 1957 – 64) Retired from teaching at DGGS in 2007 and enjoying her retirement doing all the usual things – golf, Pilates, walking, gardening and of course family and grandchildren. Rosemary is also taking advantage of plentiful holidays outside of school holiday dates.

Heidi Mason (Coomber 1983 – 90) Gained a BA Hons in Modern Languages, PGCE in Modern Languages and became a teacher of Modern Languages (1995 – 2016). She is currently working as an Education Consultant.

Molly Fagan 2008 – 2015 Studying Psychology at Sheffield Hallam University and enjoys travelling between semesters.

June Murphy (Cornish 1956 – 62) June travels widely with Kate Lumbers (Hayward). Friends at school and still best friends after over half a century! The two travel a lot, but always come back to husbands, children, grandchildren (and a dog). Both praise the education they received at DGGS and practise Optima Tenete!

June writes regularly in the Dover Express, and has her own page of the life in the town and especially in Tower Hamlets. A page I always read, and love June’s wit and anecdotes of the local residents.

Elizabeth (Betty) Parks (Giddings 1945 – 52) Happily married for 61 years, with 4 sons, 8 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.

Sarah Mahire (2003 – 2008) Sarah works as a Finance Administrator at Dungeness B Power Station, and is studying Level 2 AAT Accountancy.

Shauni Pope (2003 – 2010) Shauni is working as a Study Support Manager at a primary school, and is completing level 2 British Sign Language.

Rebecca Howson (2003 – 2010) Rebecca has finished a foundation degree in 3D Design from UCA and is going to teach English in Japan.

Alison Arthur (Romney) Alison writes that 2015 proved to be a year she had to deal with breast cancer, but reports that all went very well and thinks the NHS is wonderful.

Sarah Jeevons (1992-98) Sarah retrained as a midwife in London and now lives in Ashford and has an adorable little boy – Alexander, who will be one in October.

Karan Turnbull (Shopland 1992 – 98) Karan lives in Canterbury and works for a small pharmaceutical company. She tried teaching for three years, but went back to her original career choice.

Karan’s is delighted to be having her first child is due in October.

She and her husband Chris, have recently both gained an MSc from Greenwich University.

6

O M Linda Bradley (1945 – 48) Linda studied at the Royal College of Music and became a music teacher. Now aged 85, Linda continues to be a resident at the Yoakley Home in Margate.

Margaret Pope – Margaret, who retired at the end of the Summer Term 2015, has very kindly given me her speech which she gave at our luncheon last year. I have reproduced it in full as it contains so many memories for me and I’m sure for all those who were unable to attend last year.

I retired at the end of August (2015) after 42 very enjoyable years at DGGS. I’m not sure I’ve really got used to being retired yet – sometimes it’s quite hard to remember that I’m not still here! Going shopping during school time, making appointments during the day, going on holiday in term time are all still rather a novelty! Not to mention just not doing the work!

I’m planning to tell you a little of the changes I’ve seen at DGGS. The strange thing for me today is that, unlike most people I speak to, you were almost all here before I came. At Past Pupils’ events I always learn something new from you, something I didn’t already know about the school’s history.

I joined DGGS as a young Maths teacher in 1973. Before that I’d spent three years as a volunteer teacher in Jos in Northern Nigeria. VSO, Voluntary Service Overseas, gave me a wonderful experience and a great introduction to teaching with opportunities not available to a young teacher here. Very soon I knew teaching was definitely the right career for me. The school I taught in was a bit unusual in that it was a girls’ secondary school with a mixed Sixth Form. Yes, rather like DGGS now!

The main difference was that it was a boarding school, which of course added to my duties. I taught maths and in fact was soon Head of Maths. I was also responsible for one of the school houses, and taught PE, training various teams. I was fine with Netball and Ok with Athletics but a little challenged with volleyball which I’d never played. I did, however, learn something surprising – no experience is needed to train a successful team. I just learned the rules and got a little help from a teacher in another school!

Running the school’s Debating Society was another of my responsibilities. The boys were a real asset with their contributions to debates. Interestingly we debated whether or not the capital should be moved from Lagos to Abuja, a change which eventually happened. It was very much a time of change in the country. The start of the school year moved from January to September. Decimal currency was introduced, but instead of a £, 10 shillings became the new unit, the Naira. I experienced a country changing from driving on the left to driving on the right. That happened surprisingly smoothly overnight at Easter. Can you imagine the same change here?

In another debate, I remember being very disappointed when the motion “A woman’s place is in the home” received overwhelming support and not just from the boys. But education does changed attitudes and many of those girls, whatever they thought then, did go on to have interesting careers, including high positions in business, politics and the media. They were very much pioneers. And of course those who stayed at home passed on the benefits of education to their children. Then only 2% of girls in that area received any secondary education. They knew how fortunate they were, they worked hard and were determined to learn.

7

VSO was an amazing experience. Where else would I see a snake in the bush just outside the open classroom window? I kept my head, walked over and calmly closed that window, then all the others and the door to the veranda and of course continued the lesson. Where else would lessons be interrupted when the water came on and so the girls could have their breakfast? Where else would a national holiday be announced after the school day had started? Where else would I sit on a river bank and watch loaded camel trains cross the river? The bridge was very narrow and everyone seemed to start their long journey home from the market at the same time. It was rush hour! It seemed the sun always shone, it was bright and everyone seemed happy and cheerful. The news now from Northern Nigeria is so different and very sad.

Coming home to England in the middle of winter was a bit of a shock. It was cold and damp and just so grey! Luckily I came to Dover for interview on a warm, sunny day in June. My first impressions of a friendly, purposeful school were correct and I was very pleased to join DGGS.

So how has DGGS changed? Most significant for the pupils are the changes to the curriculum and uniform. Many of you wore the uniform I saw when I came in 1973, gymslips, ties, summer dresses, hats and indoor shoes. I remember well how unpopular the last two, the hats and indoor shoes, were. Sadly, they are the two things which girls from that era mention first when they talk about their school days.

I always thought indoor shoes were worn to protect the floors which were always clean and well polished. But on Wednesday evening I was given the real reason – apparently when Mavis Champion (Gillingham) was caught wearing the wrong shoes in a lesson, the teacher told her “Mavis, you can’t possibly learn if you’re wearing outdoor shoes”! That seems mad now, but during my 42 years here I have heard many similarly strange claims that learning is linked to what students wear. I’m sure many of you will have been given the equally strange argument for gymslips – younger girls don’t have waists and so can’t possibly wear skirts. Only the Sixth Form were allowed skirts, and trousers were unheard of, banned even for the staff! Phil Kennedy, the Head of Art, was sent home to change when she rebelled and wore a very smart red trouser suit. Fairly soon after that the rule changed.

When Miss Kay retired in 1977 and the new head, Miss Hasler, changed the school uniform – skirts replaced gymslips and hats and indoor shoes disappeared. Later trousers were added as an option in the main school, but remained an issue for the Sixth Form where change was slow, with opposition, particularly from governors. A new blue blouse was introduced to distinguish the Sixth Form from the main school, but it was not popular and considered to look too much like the police uniform. The big break-through came when the next head, Elizabeth Davis, was off sick, but gave instruction to her deputy, Mary Taylor, to announce that there would no longer be a Sixth Form uniform, girls could wear any skirt, but not trousers. I think Mary’s description of “dress appropriate for a day at work” is still included in the Sixth Form dress code. Some governors, who claimed they had not been consulted were not impressed, but by then it was too late.

The argument over trousers for the Sixth Form continued for a long time. I don’t think they knew about Phil Kennedy, but at one point the girls threatened a mass protest when they would all turn up in trousers! Eventually the rule changed. Anyway strangely results were not affected. The girls did not fail their exams!

8

Looking back, it’s interesting that curriculum changes have been introduced much more smoothly than the uniform changes with very little argument. Every change has increased the options for students, giving them more and more choice. If for a moment we look back even further to the 1930s before the war this pattern of increasing choice is very clear. Miss Kay’s only choice in the Sixth Form was to take either the Arts combination of English, History, French and Latin or the Science one of Pure Maths, Applied Maths, Botany and Geography. By 1973 girls had somewhat more choice, but subjects were still limited.

Miss Hasler made the biggest and most far reaching curriculum change. Until 1977 girls were streamed and the subjects the girl took depended on the stream she was in – the top stream took a very academic programme, the middle streams less so and the bottom stream was the least academic – these girls took fewer O level subjects, they did Needlework and Human Biology, but no Physics or Chemistry.

Miss Hasler’s option system was revolutionary – every girl could choose the option subjects she wanted to study for O level and for A level. That was certainly the greatest curriculum change of the last 40 years, the change which has made the most difference to individual students. GCSE has replaced O level, we now have a National Curriculum, there’s coursework, and now controlled assessment, A levels changed, new subjects have been introduced, often requested by the girls themselves, but in 2015 DGGS still works on an option system similar to the one Miss Hasler introduced.

My subject, Maths, has seen little change in content. Last year I was still teaching Maths I learned at school. However, I know that just as I did, most of you spent hours at school calculating with log tables. Soon after I came to DGGS the first calculators appeared and transformed the subject – it became much easier and quicker – calculations at the press of a button, well a few buttons – it was incredible! Videos, DVDs, whiteboards, computers and smart boards have all had a huge impact on lessons. You may be surprised that teachers no longer use chalk to write on the blackboard. Printing and photocopying have reduced the need to copy into exercise books, but they do use up much, much more paper.

Throughout the last 40 years DGGS has been short of rooms, a constant problem for organisation and timetabling. I’m sure many of you spent your mornings based a Cobham House in your first year here. You will remember walking up to the main building every day for lunch. You’ll also remember walking up to the field for Hockey in winter and Athletics and Rounders in the summer. You did a lot of Walking! The field is now rarely used and all school buildings are now on the one site. Those of you who have toured the school will have seen that we have lost all the top Tennis courts and the space around what was the L6 House, but since 1973 we have gained the Drama Studio, a Science lab, the Music hut and hub, and 12 other classrooms.

Sadly the new Sixth Form building promised when Miss Hasler was Head never materialised – I still remember being shown the plans, but the Sixth form centre opened by Miss Kay is a great improvement, although still not really adequate for the current Sixth Form of well over 200 students.

The issue is always financial and that brings me to one of the greatest changes I’ve seen at DGGS, the change giving schools responsibility for their own spending. In 1973 the local authority managed all our finances from its office down in Cambridge Terrace. They paid all salaries and bills. The slight downside was that we couldn’t appoint teachers without their

9

agreement, but there never seemed to be a problem and we were always fully staffed. Money was never mentioned. We were a school and our role was to educate.

In 1989 that all changed. The school received a budget and could decide how to spend the money. Looking back it was a huge change with considerable extra responsibility for head teachers and governors. I don’t really remember much preparation, it all seemed to happen very suddenly, but I do remember arguments that there wasn’t enough money to cover the extra admin. In most schools initially head teachers worked on the budget with one of the school secretaries. I took over as Acting Head in 1990 and managed the budget, a very interesting challenge! The first thing I had to do to make ends meet was reduce staffing. I was very relieved that we managed without redundancies and with no loss to the curriculum, so no impact on the girls. I remember being told at the end of my first year that the previous year 1989/90 a pilot year for the new system, the school had saved £17,000, so we were better off than I thought! I’ve often wondered how it could take more than a year to work out and tell me. Now of course the system is much more efficient and schools have Site Managers and Finance Officers.

Budgets and buildings, uniform, equipment and the curriculum all contribute to DGGS, but DGGS is much more – it’s really about people. And perhaps the greatest, most significant change of the last 40 years is in relationships with one another in the school community. The relationship between pupils and teachers is now much less formal; it is more open and friendly. This reflects the way society has changed.

Yes, DGGS is now very different from the school I joined in 1973, but there are some aspects of school life which have hardly changed. The traditional House Sports and Drama competitions and the Friday Form assemblies have continued every year. The House system has been maintained and is now stronger than ever. The names were chosen by the girls back in 1913, very soon after DGGS opened in 1910. As in 1973 and every year since, we are proud of the work DGGS students do to support the work of charities. Cake sales, talent competitions, sponsored events and other more inventive, imaginative ideas raise thousands of pounds for local, national and global charities. There has been very little change over the years, but tag days or non-uniform days seem to have replaced the slave sales popular in the 70s.

I am very proud of Dover Grammar School for Girls. Looking back over the years, it has always been a very special community. The most important aspects which never change are the values of DGGS and the strength of our community. In 2015, as in 1973 and in fact in every other year, DGGS raises girls’ aspirations, gives them an education to fulfil their potential and turn them into caring, young women ready to go out into the world, enjoy exciting careers, fulfil their dreams and play a full part in society. There is though one difference, the opportunities are now extended to include boys who are welcomed into the Sixth Form.

This really takes me back to where I started, in Nigeria we were doing the same, encouraging girls and boys to aim high and giving them the education they needed to prepare for fulfilling futures.

I’m so lucky myself to have had such an amazing career and to have worked for so long at DGGS, a truly outstanding school. My role as Deputy Head was wonderful, at times challenging, but always enjoyable and varied, never a dull moment. I treasure many, many wonderful memories of DGGS.

10

Looking for Emily

We have had a request to ask if we know of an Emily (aged about 40) who has a twin sister Laurie. If anyone out there does, we have a contact email address: rsaar8870@gmail.com

New members

We’d like to welcome members who have recently joined us. They are:-

Victoria Birmingham (Baldwin), Hannah Collins, Rachael Devlin (Raboud), Elizabeth Keeler, Jocelyn Keeler (Sims), Heidi Mason (Coomber), Valerie Nadin (Hill) and Katie Rose

Deaths

Elaine Hill Stewart (Romney 45-48) Elaine died on 19 February 2015 at the age of 83, in Auckland, New Zealand, having just returned from a happy holiday in Fiji. She had lived in NZ since 1957, and was still very active in the Orchard business which she ran with Hamish, her second husband, near Hastings. She died peacefully, surrounded by her family, and is greatly missed, not least by their Samoan orchard workers, who have made her an Honorary Somoan Chieftain, and sang a Somoan lament at her funeral.

Elaine and her husband made regular visits to the UK – a part of her remained deeply attached to England, and she looked back with affection to her school days in Dover, and to the friends she made at DGGS.

Julia Wells (Hunnisett 48 – 53) Julia died earlier this year.

Hazel Shapland (Datlen 36 – 41) Hazel married in 1957 to John who worked in the aviation world. His work meant they lived, or Hazel visited, many places abroad. They include Libya (Benzhazi), Sierra Leone, Ghana and finally three years in Malta. She finally settled in Alton, Hampshire and lived there from 1977. Hazel had three children, but unfortunately her son Timothy died at the age of 36. Hazel died in December 2015 and is buried next to him in Four Marks, Hampshire.

She leaves a husband, two children, 5 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. They remember her as a caring soul, who never had a bad word to say about anyone and was always happy with a smile on her face.

Helen Elisabeth Bradley (1936 – 44) Helen has become a permanent resident at the Yoakley Care Home in Margate. She had been suffering from Alzheimer’s for some time and her health sharply declined in April this year. She continued to receive excellent care at Yoakley Home but died peacefully on 15 June this year, three months before she would have been 90.

Helen was born in Temple Ewell in 1926 and was one of the pupils evacuated to Caerleon in 1940.She experienced an unlucky succession of billets in Caerleon, but enjoyed her time there much more when several teachers opened a house for a dozen or so of the girls. They also introduced Helen to the girl guides, in which she was very active after leaving school, for a time running a ’lone ranger’ troop in London. Helen studied at the London School of Economics from 1944 to 1947, graduating BSc (Econ). Although she did not at first intend to

11

take up teaching, she spent four years in Australia, where she qualified at Brisbane University and taught at a girls’ school in northern Queensland. Thereafter she had a succession of teaching posts that included four years as a teacher and bursar at a boys’ school in central Kenya.

After returning to England, she took a Diploma in Religious Studies at Woodbrooke College, Birmingham, and in 1967 she became a teacher of RI in a girls’ technical school in Broadstairs. In 1970, the school became what is now the Dane Court Grammar School, and there she became head of Sixth Form studies. Early retirement in 1985 enabled her to give time to many other interests, that included gardening, painting and calligraphy, adult literacy work, and family history (systematically tracing records in Kent relating to her ancestors). She kept in touch with other retired teachers, and with the DGGS Past Pupils Association. She was an active member of the Society of Friends and for many years was treasurer of the Broadstairs Quaker Meeting. She served as a trustee of the Yoakley Home, and that is where she spent her last years, receiving excellent care until the end. We remember Helen as a very warm-hearted, intelligent and generous person, an excellent letter-writer to her family and friends, and endowed with a great sense of humour.

Helen is survived by her younger brother and by her sister, O M Linda Bradley.

Dr Rosemary Dunn – (Head of Music DGGS)

Mary Sherred (Todd) wrote: –

Rosemary Dunn was unflagging in her desire to give every young person the opportunity to take part in and be actively involved in music, and particularly to understand that composition was for everyone. You did not have to be male and dead(!), but young, imaginative and daring enough to give it a go.

Ahead of her time in her understanding of music education, Rosemary’s visionary approach was an inspiration to me as a newly-qualified teacher. She believed wholeheartedly that music was for everyone, not just the privileged. Indeed she had a bit of a chip on her shoulder about the advantages privately educated students had and she did her utmost to ensure that all girls at DGGS had the best opportunity to discover their latent talents. Rosemary took full advantage of the limited facilities for Music at DGGS and commandeered the use of not just one music room but persuaded the powers that be to allow (when we still had four-form entry) to timetable two forms together and then promptly split them into three sets enabling those who had already had a good start in music, many of whom had achieved Grade 5 before entering the school, those who had had an introduction to learning an instrument and those who had not yet had much experience in practical music to be taught separately and in groups of similar standards. This had an unprecedented success rate in entries for O level, when on one occasion we had 45 students entered with equal numbers from each of the three groups, and frequently two groups of 15 or so students in each. This system utilised the full resources available to us including the Hall for lessons and the groups rotated around N2 (the official music room), N1 and the Hall enabling different musical activities to take place in each. This system only ceased when the school increased to 5-form entry and made this timetabling facility impossible.

Rosemary made professional contacts outside the school and we had the benefit of a long-standing partnership with Paul Patterson, Professor of Composition at the Royal Academy of Music, who made regular visits to the school and with whom Rosemary had a personal

12

friendship, the Finchcocks Museum at Goudhurst where again we made regular visits and the Chamber Choir and Recorder Ensemble took part in several public concerts, and during her later years at the school and ever closer relationship with the Deal Festival where we regularly benefitted from Composition Workshops taken by aspiring young professional composers and enabling our students to have their work performed by professional musicians, including on one memorable occasion The King Singers.

The teaching of composition to all and not just the apparently musically talented was new thinking in the 1970s and 1980s but this approach meant that the school was very well placed when this became a compulsory part of the new GCSE specification in 1987. The department was ahead of the game in adapting to the new approach and in many ways Rosemary regarded this as a just reward for her hard work in making composition an acceptable aspiration for all. She had an article on her methods published in the “Music Teacher” magazine. Performance opportunities were assisted by the many former Royal Marines civilian professors living locally who taught generations of DGGS students to a very high standard and helped to produce a constant stream of musicians for the Kent County Youth Orchestra. Rosemary set in motion a steady train of students choosing Music as a career and electing study of the subject at universities and conservatories, including the Royal Academy of Music, Trinity College of Music, the Birmingham Conservatoire as well as Oxford and Cambridge, York, Royal Holloway, Cardiff and many other universities.

Rosemary always had a soft spot for the underdog and less popular student and went out of her way on many occasions to ensure they were included. She never let anyone feel they were a failure – indeed the word was anathema to her. She totally believed that everyone had unique abilities and all they needed was a chance to discover and use them. In 1992 she decided that she needed a change of direction to satisfy her energy and dedication to music and especially to young people and her work in the community continued until her death on 29 July 2016 at the age of 77.

Margaret Pope wrote:- Rosemary Dunn – 25.11.1938 – 29.07.2016 Sadly Rosemary died at the end of July after several months of illness. Her association with DGGS began in 1968 when she worked as a peripatetic Music Teacher. An inspirational teacher, she joined the staff in 1970 and taught Music part-time for three years until she was appointed Head of Music in 1973, a post she held until she left DGGS in 1992 to further her studies. She achieved her long-term ambition when she gained her PhD. Mary has written about her Music and I will mention only her determination that every child should have the opportunity to compose their own Music and her mission to support children at the Aspen Unit (for Special Needs Children) working through Music.

Rosemary is rightly remembered as a passionate musician, but she also contributed to DGGS in many other ways. She represented the staff as a teacher governor for 6 years from 1985. Girls lucky enough to be in her form have fond memories of a teacher who showed great care for every individual girl. Many of her pupils will remember with pride their First Year Productions, concerts and other activities. Rosemary even found time to work with a colleague to produce staff pantomimes!

Susan Chadwick - 18.11.1950 – 29.10.2015 Sue Chadwick joined the staff at DGGS in 1983 and stayed until she took early retirement in 1997. Many past pupils will remember her as their Head of Year when they were in Year 9. A scientist, Sue taught a range of subjects: Biology, Chemistry, Health Education and Geography. She was a diligent teacher who showed care and concern for her pupils and her colleagues. She lived life to the full and

13

enjoyed being active on holidays, cycling, walking and canoeing. Unfortunately she suffered from poor health and after a long illness she passed away in October last year.

Dover Grammar School for Girls

Annual Luncheon15th October 2016

To be held at the schoolCastle Avenue Entrance

Tours of the school from 11.30 am

AGM at 12 noon

Guest SpeakerGail Swainston

Buffet Lunch

Coffee or tea

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

If you have any old school friends who may wish to join us they would be very welcome.

Please return the tear off slip and enclose with your cheque for £12.50 made payable to DGGS Past Pupils Association by 9th October 2016 and send to:

Mary Sherred, Copthorne, Dover Road, Guston, Dover CT15 5EN.

Name ……………………………………………………(Nee )

Address ……………………………………………………

……………………………………………………

If you are able to donate a raffle prize it would be much appreciated.