the belvedere chronicles 2013

The Belvedere

Chronicles

The Leweston Society Record6th Edition

16591 leweston 5th september_12013 Newsletter 25/09/2013 11:27

Headmaster’s Introduction 1

Prep School Headmaster’s Address 2

Leweston Society Manager’s Report 3

Music 4

Clare Thompson 6

Diary of Events 7

Careers Day 8

Dr Debbie Shoemark 9

Holly Ritchie 10

Reunions 11

Gaudy Reunion 15

Mandy Hackland 16

Amanda Catmur 16

Class Notes 18

The OA Award 24

Jonny’s Sister 26

Sixth Form Centre 27

South Africa Choir and Netball Tour 28

The School Year in Retrospect 30

Summer Results 32

Contents

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16591 leweston 5th september_12013 Newsletter 25/09/2013 11:27

A D R I A N AY LWA R D

H E A D M A S T E R

We We are an all-girls school andunashamedly so from 11 and will remainso. This is not just about academicsalthough some of the arguments thereseem reasonably clear with, for example,some of the tougher subjects particularlybeing taken more commonly in the SixthForm than at co-ed schools, but cruciallyit is also about development of all aspectsthat make us human. One way of thenlooking at this is to say that in an all-girlsschool the girls have the space to takemore risks, the right sort of risks. Thesecould be emotional, spiritual, physical asmuch as intellectual. For example,participation in sport and extra-curricularactivities requires a sort of mental castingoff one’s bread upon the water.Participation, not to say standard, is Ibelieve exceptional at Leweston. We donot wish to be isolated and continue towork on the opportunities, cultural andsocial, with other schools, particularly ourlong-standing links with Sherborne BoysSchool.

We are a community and wish to remainso, consisting of all the differentconstituentcies of school life. It issomething remarked upon by all visitorsafter their tours. They sense the palpablebenefits of our community and oftenremark on the strong staff pupilrelationship. It is what the Head Girl oflast year told me, after she had left, thaton reflection, it was that sense ofpartnership that made Leweston sospecial, the level of support and challengein good times and bad.

Our educational tradition is dedicated tothe education of the whole person, notjust a marketing tag but one of Christianhumanism emphasising preparation for alife in the world and the responsibilities ofservice. We are a community withboarders and day girls and will remain so.Boarding has been a particular area ofsuccess for us in these last two years andwill be up a remarkable 20% inSeptember, much against the nationaltrend. We see more girls wanting to boardas full boarders, weekly boarders and flexiboarders. If this trend continues, we willhave to consider the possibilities forexpansion from Year 9 to 13.

We are an academic school, by which I donot mean selective in the sense of thetraditional grammar school but I meanone where the girls are challenged withinan academic curriculum which is workedaround their own choices to the extentpossible. We do not have option blocks.The staff have been particularly proud ofthe girls in the last year or so and it was anexcellent performance last year that ourvalue added put us in the top 5% ofschools nationally, and top of the DfEPerformance Tables for Dorset andSomerset at Sixth Form. The challenge isnow to keep helping each girl do theirbest by eschewing any complacency.

Above all, we are a school where the girls’qualities of commitment, enthusiasm andnaturalness are vital and commonly fedback to me. These habits and qualities arenot a given. They do live on in the DNA

of the school but they need to be nurturedand we need to go forward with that. Weare a school, extra curricularly, with theopportunities of a larger school althoughquite a small one.

We have a costed Business Plan which isnot easy for us to achieve but it isprofessional, it is monitorable andmeasurable and it is accompanied by aSchool Development Plan with aims andobjectives in terms of our teaching andlearning and all aspects of school life. Interms of the developments we have addeda wonderful Sixth Form Centre this yearwhich I know the girls have loved, thanksto a kind parental donation. We areplanning major capital expenditure thissummer holidays on ensuring we have firstrate internet access. We are investing inother ways in the infrastructure,particularly in the boarding areas. I hopeyou will find enclosed a copy of theLeweston Annual fund which containsseveral fundraising projects across schoollife with which we would be very gratefulfor any assistance you are able to offer.

I hope that you have sensed the positivemomentum and the good spirits atLeweston on the occasions you havereturned. As always we look forward towelcoming OAs over the comingacademic year. Do keep in touch with theschool and please keep on sending yournews, as we are always interested in thenext phase.

I AM BASING MY INTRODUCTION FOR THIS YEAR’S BELVEDERE CHRONICLES MAGAZINE ON SOME OF WHAT MY

OUTLINE THOUGHTS ARE WHEN PREPARING FOR MY OPEN DAY SPEECH. I HOPE THIS WILL BRING THOSE OAS UP

TO DATE AS TO WHERE WE ARE AS A SCHOOL AND WHAT WE ARE FOCUSING ON TO CONTINUE TO OFFER OUR

PUPILS THE BEST POSSIBLE ALL-ROUND EDUCATION.

1

16591 leweston 5th september_12013 Newsletter 25/09/2013 11:27 Page 1

I would like to take this opportunity to

reflect upon this past academic year which

will leave you amazed at just how busy and

successful the children have been ...

We made changes to our timetable and

curriculum so that the core subjects are

focused on at the start of the day. By moving

to one hour sessions we have been able to

work closely with the Senior School and

make more efficient use of staff and facilities

across the campus. Our spiritual needs have

been taken care of by Father Peter

throughout this year. He has celebrated Mass

on Wednesdays for both the Prep and Senior

School. The Masses throughout the term

have been enjoyed by everyone and have

meant so much to us at the Prep.

Music has gone from strength to strength.

Our choir has regularly sung beautifully in

Mass and the children have been very busy

in concerts and exams producing excellent

results. Year 5 worked very hard last term in

their music as they took part in the Wallace

and Gromit competition. The Sherborne

Mayor’s Concert which was performed in

May was a huge success with the children

being able to show their talents to a packed

audience. The end of year drama production

of Pirates of the Curry Bean was of a very high

standard; the pupils certainly shone forth in

their roles and it was most entertaining for

the audience.

Sport at Leweston Prep has also produced

great results. Throughout the year we have

had many matches, both home and away.

Many athlons have taken place and it has

been so encouraging to see our children do

well as both individuals and in teams. The

addition to the staff of Great Britain biathle

coach Mick Flaherty has helped to create

some outstanding results, particularly in

biathle. Children have participated locally

and nationally and we were delighted when

two of our pupils qualified to represent

Great Britain in the European Biathle

Championships.

Sailing has continued to be a popular extra-

curricular activity. Once again, Leweston

Prep was the host school for the IAPS Sailing

regatta with 200 young competitors

representing prep schools from throughout

the country. Conditions were about as

challenging as they could be with half the

fleet sadly failing to reach the start line due

to the strong winds, but our 4 team

members fought very hard and are to be

commended for everything that they

achieved.

When the school was inspected in 2012 the

results were extremely encouraging and

showed Leweston Prep to be a very good

school. This was backed up this year by a

visit from the Good Schools’ Guide who

wrote a very encouraging report about us.

However, it is important that we do not

stand still. We are always striving to move

the school forward and we have some

exciting developments for the coming

school year.

The Governors have spent a lot of time

analysing the future of the Prep School. They

have specifically been looking at our Early

Years as it is the start of many pupils’ time

with us. As a result, I am pleased to announce

that the Nursery will become an all-year

round unit from September 2013 for

children between the ages of 2 and 4 and

will be open from 8am until 6pm.

As part of our learning outside the

classroom, we have been transforming a

wood which is near the Prep School so that it

becomes an outdoor learning area. This we

look forward to using from September.

Our parent and toddler group which takes

place on a Thursday morning has grown

from strength to strength with new parents

and children joining weekly. We have also

enjoyed some wonderful Nursery activity

mornings and have recently introduced an

Aquatots class on a Wednesday morning

which is a swimming group for parents and

toddlers in our own school pool.

As we move on to the start of this academic

year we look forward to welcoming our new

pupils. Leweston Prep has many things to

offer as part of an all-round education, and

as our leavers move onto their secondary

schools we believe that the confidence and

abilities they take with them will lead them

through this next phase of education wisely.

J A M E S S AV I L E

PREP SCHOOL HEADMASTER

“Learning is essential to living life to the full -we should never stop learning”

LEWESTON NURSERY


M A R G O L I D D L E

huge thank you to all those OAs who have been intouch with their news over the past few months; it’sbeen a joy to hear from you all and wonderful to

have so much news in the “class notes section” and to be ableto have a bumper marriage page and plenty of reunions toreport on. Thank you also to those who have written articlesfor the magazine this year, these are spaced throughout and arehighly recommended read!

You will find included with the magazine a copy of Leweston’sAnnual fund; a fundraising document which I would like todraw your attention to. This has been designed around smallerbut still significant projects which will have an immediateimpact on key areas of school life.

In particular one of the fundraising items which I feel wouldpersonally interest OAs are the Chapel kneelers which we aredesperately requiring for St Antony’s Chapel. I’m sure you willall remember being in Mass and scraping the wooden kneelersout from under the chair in front of you! This is no longer, weare to replace all 320 kneelers which are to be made andcovered in Leweston House colours. Kneelers are able to bepurchased individually and House colours can be chosen.

I would like to assure you all that no gift is too small, we wouldbe very grateful for any help you are willing to give! Please dotake a minute to read through this document.

A diary date for 2014 is the Gaudy Reunion which will takeplace on Saturday 10th May at Leweston. Please see the eventssection on page 7 as to which year groups are to be invited.The Gaudy has always been well attended and a great way forOAs to catch up with one another. Do start making your plansand encouraging other peers to join you, obviously the largerthe turn out in a year group the better the occasion it becomes!Invitations will be sent out at the beginning of the New Year.

As always I look forward to hearing about the reunions whichtake place throughout the year, please email me a photographof the occasion together with a small description and I will bedelighted to add this into the next edition of the BelvedereChronicles.

Finally a message from me to you, please keep in touch, do letme know of any news, stories, articles, business achievements,and of course personal achievements which take placethroughout the year. Marriages and births are equallyimportant for us to hear about and last but not least pleasekeep your contact details up to date with me!

I hope to see many of you in May at the forthcoming Gaudyreunion. If any other year group would like to organise areunion back at Leweston at a different time throughout theyear please do not hesitate to contact me [email protected] or telephone 01963 211015.

A

L E W E S T O N S O C I E T YM A N A G E R


MUSIC

This year’s Christmas Concert will be held on Saturday 7th December 2013 at St Luke’s and St Theresa’s Catholic Church in Wincanton.

MUSIC DIPLOMA DISTINCTIONS

Congratulations to three Leweston girlswho took their ATCL (Associate TrinityCollege, London) Performance Diplomasthis year: Ellie B on the Saxophone, EmilyY on the Piano and Imogen M on theFlute. All three candidates passed theirDiplomas with both Ellie and Imogenachieving a Distinction – this is no meanfeat at Diploma level which is anadvanced exam and equivalent to thefirst year of a Music Conservatoire Degreecourse.

A CHRISTMAS CONCERTAT CHIDEOCK CHURCH

CHRISTMAS FILLED CHIDEOCK

CATHOLIC CHURCH, BRIDPORT,

AS LEWESTON’S SCHOLA

CANTORUM AND VARIOUS

ENSEMBLES PERFORMED A

CHRISTMAS CONCERT. THANK

YOU TO MRS DEIRDRE COATES

WHO KINDLY DONATED

CHIDEOCK MANOR FOR THE

REFRESHMENTS AFTERWARDS.

THE AUDIENCE ENJOYED

RECITALS FROM THE SCHOLA

CANTORUM, LEWESTON’S

STRING QUARTET, WIND

QUARTET, CELLO ENSEMBLE, THE

NEWLY FORMED SIXTH FORM

CHOIR AND JAZZ BAND. THERE

WERE ALSO MANY WONDERFUL

SOLO PERFORMANCES

THROUGHOUT THE EVENING. THE

CONCERT ENDED WITH THE

WELL-LOVED CAROL OF “O

COME, ALL YE FAITHFUL”.

THE FUNDS MADE FROM

HOSTING THIS CONCERT

CONTRIBUTED TOWARDS

LEWESTON’S CHOIR AND

NETBALL TOUR TO SOUTH

AFRICA AND ALSO TO THE

CHIDEOCK CHURCH DOME

APPEAL.

The Carol Service in Sherborne Abbey will take

Leweston ScholaCantorum CD for Sale!

Leweston’s Schola Cantorum hasrecorded a CD of tracks it has performed

throughout the year including theSherborne Abbey Festival and the

Choral Society Concert Zimbe!

These CDs are being sold through theschool at £10. Please contact

01963 211015.


Kenya, singing about life, fromplayground songs, weddings,funerals and even simply the sunrising and setting.

This was a challenge for all involved,not least for me, conducting twolots of SATB with the chorus andsemi chorus, and for the singerslearning words in Swahili, Shona,Xosa and singing without scores, aswell as clapping and moving. It waswonderful to see the pleasure thisgave to all the singers and audiencealike. I am very proud of everyone’shard work and commitment to thisproject.”

Alexander L’Estrange, composeralso commented, “It was a joy tohave such cross-age collaboration.The age range of the choir was from5 years to 90 years old and this iswhat singing is all about. You all didZimbé! proud and you rocked!Thank you.”

This year’s Choral Society raised£3000 for the choir and netball tourto South Africa.

We were delighted to welcome arecord audience to our ChoralSociety Concert on Sunday 3rdMarch. This year’s concert entitledZimbé!, sing the Songs of Africa,included vocalists from LewestonSenior School, Leweston PrepSchool and members of the localcommunity who came together toform this year’s Choral Society. Thechoir was accompanied by the ‘Callme Al’ jazz quintet which includedAlexander L’Estrange, the composerof Zimbé! and the Choir had thefantastic opportunity to work withAlexander during some of theirrehearsals.

Director of Music, Claire Hawkescommented, “My aim for this year’sChoral Society was to spread thesheer joy of what music and singinggives us through the infectiousharmonies and rhythms of Africaacross the campus and into thelocal community. Zimbé! was anunusual choice of work for thisyear’s Choral Society, but anopportunity not to be missed, inbringing together Schola, JuniorChoir, the local community andcross campus inviting the Prepschool children to form theChildren’s Choir. What better way topromote and fundraise for ourSchola and netball tour to SouthAfrica in July, than to fill people’sears with the sounds of Africa? Thelilting African harmonies took theaudience on a journey from SouthAfrica all the way to Ghana and

Please contact Margo Liddle for more information - 01963 211015

place on Thursday 12th December 2013 at 4pm. Please contact Margo Liddle should you wish to receive an invitation to this event.

LEWESTON’S CHORAL SOCIETY PRESENTS ZIMBÉ!

5


design for CLARE THOMPSON (NEE HELYAR ’82)

I haveI have thoroughly enjoyed readingabout the unfolding lives of fellow‘Old Antonians’ in previous issues, sowhen given the opportunity tocontribute myself, I was delighted.Not because I could write about whatI had ‘become’ or ‘achieved’ butbecause I passionately want to sharemy story since leaving LewestonSchool to perhaps motivate or eveninspire others. My journey has taughtme to believe that no matter whatyou might think you must do or whatlife throws at you, with patience,perseverance, enthusiasm andambition you really can live yourdreams…

At 16, whilst enjoying athletics,languages and art at school my fathertook me to a design studio, settingmy passion for creativity alight. Thisdesire saw me flourish in my firstprofessional career in London’sHarley Street working in Optometryas a private adviser to the then PrimeMinister, John Major, cabinetministers and royal family membersworldwide. I also designed eyewearcollections for Henri Jullien andBoucheron fashion houses, inLondon and France. This careercame with significant responsibilitiestoo, leading to a good understandingof magazine, TV and radio marketingcampaigns. But all of this was just

the beginning… Time came to startmy own family resulting in twobeautiful daughters, Gabrielle andJessica. I also wanted to establish myown business and couldn’t think ofanywhere better than returninghome to the West Country. With thefire of creativity still burning, Ipursued my dreams and established icatching design (ICD), a completedesign and marketing service in2005.

Even when a major back complaintthreatened to blight my life, I wasmore determined than ever to provemy doctors wrong and see myambitions take flight. I set myself agoal to climb Mt Kilimanjaro inTanzania as part of a fundraisingeffort close to my heart. Oncefighting fit, I donned my 15 kilobackpack and joined 3 Afghansoldiers and 31 others to master themountain, receiving the nickname of’Simba’ the lion from the porters,

when I was the first to reach the top.A love for Africa was born andalready I was making plans in myheart to return.

Only twelve months later I read anarticle in the Belvedere Chroniclesabout OA Charlotte Hopley - neeColtman (’91), now living inTanzania and I knew I had to get outto see her and the marvellous workshe was doing as founder of‘Grassroots Tanzania’ - a not-for-profit organisation that centres oncommunity, conservation andeducation. My time out there withher came with the realisation thatthere was a genuine need for goodpeople to help business grow anddevelop, specifically from amarketing and design perspective toopen the worldwide web doors andgive the business and people inTanzania access to all the joys(connections, expertise and funding)of contemporary business models.This meant first and foremost gettinga satellite company up andestablished, managed and run bylocal people as determined andpassionate about this as I was and wedid all this and more, with clientssuch as Orkolili School, GrassrootsTanzania and Way 2 Nature Safarisbenefitting.

Be courageous enough tohave a vision, be brave

enough to see that visionthrough and do so withpassion, determination

and integrity.


7

life

All these experiences have taught methe value of good communication andsuccessful team building where theend result is a creative, inspiringgroup of people motivated to exceed the needs of our diverse internationalclientele and who derive pleasurefrom their work; be it creating abrand for a local personal trainer,design ideas for an independent prizewinning cider producer, or a brandcollaboration for Dame VivienneWestwood’s human rights charitabletrust. I hope that my journey so far isliving proof of an ethos I hold dear.Be courageous enough to have avision, be brave enough to see thatvision through and do so withpassion, determination and integrity.

More info: Our services are open toanyone passionate about improvingtheir business’ design and marketingpresence.

Tel: +44 (0)1934 744540 Email: [email protected]: www.icatchingdesign.co.uk

Diary Dates ...2013Thursday 4th October

Joint Schools Open Day 9.45am

Tuesday 22nd October

Leweston Fashion Show 3.30pm

Tuesday 5th November

Bonfire Night at Leweston with Hog Roast 6.30pm

Thursday 7th November

Leweston Living and Christmas Fair 10am – 4.30pm

Friday 8th November

Leweston Sixth Form taster day

Saturday 7th December

Christmas Concert, Wincanton Catholic Church 5pm

Thursday 12th December

Carol Service at Sherborne Abbey 4pm

2014Monday 5th May

Joint School Open Day 9.45am

Saturday 10th May

Gaudy Reunion at Leweston for the following year

groups: 1964, 1969, 1974, 1979, 1984, 1989, 1994, 1999,

2004

Leweston has given me so much as a pupil over the past six years

When I joined Leweston in Year 7, Upper Sixth seemed a long way off. Ican’t believe that now, not only am I in Upper Sixth, but I am also Head

Girl of Leweston. It is a massive honour which I am keen to take on.Leweston has given me so much as a pupil over the past six years and I

see this role as a way to give back. I take the role as Head Girl with prideand also recognise the responsibility that comes with it. I am also excited

about leading the team of prefects and representing the school.

As I go into my last year at Leweston I realise a lot of hard work liesahead with A Levels and applying to University. I am eager to take on

these challenges and be able to look back on my last year and be proud ofwhat I have achieved as both a pupil and Head Girl.

F L O R E N C E J A M E S

A NOTE FROM THE HEAD GIRL


CAREERSDAY 2013

PUPILS IN YEARS 10 - 12 HAD THE

EXCITING OPPORTUNITY OF HEARING

FROM A VARIETY OF PROFESSIONALS

AT THEIR CAREERS DAY. WE WERE

DELIGHTED TO WELCOME BACK TO

LEWESTON CAT FOX (’00),

CHARLOTTE CARTER (’03), LOTTIE

EAGLES (’06), NICOLA WALSH (NEE

TILLEY ’00), CATHERINE HAMMICK

(’10), AND CLAIRE LOUIS-NEAL (NEE

PARROTT ’02). THESE OAS JOINED

OTHER OUTSIDE SPEAKERS TO GIVE

THE GIRLS AN INSIGHT INTO THEIR

CHOSEN CAREERS.

Pupils were given the opportunity to choose

three of their favoured career topics which

included the following: Law, Medicine, TV and

Film, Psychology, Marketing and PR, Fashion,

Engineering, Veterinary and the Armed Forces.

Each speaker provided the girls with great

knowledge on their chosen career including

helpful advice on university choices, being

totally honest with the pros and the cons of

their careers and also making sure the girls were

aware of how a typical day was for them!

This was an incredibly useful event and we were

very grateful to all those who took time out of

their working week to come and spend a day

back at Leweston. A special thank you goes to

Charlotte Carter who was working night shifts at

a London hospital and came straight from her

shift to attend the Careers Day.


9

I have two beautiful daughters Karen and Sarah, two

beautiful grandsons Thomas and Dylan (not

brothers!) and two beautiful granddaughters Rosie

and Willow. Not forgetting a kind and supportive

husband who (I think) looks a bit like Johnny

Depp if you squint a bit!

I am grateful that my time at Leweston ignited

a passion for science, although I didn’t realise it until

my youngest daughter Sarah had started school. I

attended the University of Bristol where I attained my

degree and doctorate in Biochemistry as a mature

student. Since then I have been privileged to enjoy

my work predominantly as a molecular modeller

in the field of drug discovery for conditions

including malaria, cancer, Alzheimer’s and

intractable pain. It was whilst researching for a

tangentially related grant application I

stumbled upon emerging data linking

Alzheimer’s disease with oral hygiene. Some

ideas seem rubbish when reviewed after a

week or so, others refuse to go away…

The Bristol based charity BRACE, short for

Bristol Research into Alzheimer’s and

Care of the Elderly, has kindly agreed to

fund my project. It is the first in what

we hope will be a series of studies

aimed at selecting and treating

patients in the early to middle

stages of Alzheimer’s disease (AD)

for whom oral health may be a

contributory factor. Firstly we aim

to devise a blood test to identify

patients who might benefit

from our planned therapy,

which targets oral bacteria.

Evidence suggests that

some cases of sporadic AD

may result directly or

i n d i r e c t l y f r o m a

l o w - gr a d e i n fe c t i o n

originating in the

mouth. This project lays

the groundwork for

further studies to

test the ef fec ts of

o u r t r e a t m e n t

o n d i s e a s e

p r o g r e s s i o n .

Treatment will

c o m p r i s e o f

targeted antibiotics, dental work and a dietary

supplement to maintain the brain’s protective

blood-brain-barrier.

The mouth is a rich source of bacteria, readily

influenced by changes in immune function and

diet. Poor oral health and tooth-loss in youth

and mid-life are associated with an increased

risk of AD. Gum disease increases with age, affecting

two-thirds of over-65s and often goes untreated for

decades. Oral bacteria are very good at evading the

immune system and often fail to cause the pain and

inflammation normally associated with an acute

infection. They are also remarkably good at getting

across natural barriers. As part of normal immune

defences, cells lining the mouth release chemicals

such as tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-a)

to fight bacteria. However the ageing process

results in a reliance on TNF-a to fight infection

and so levels naturally rise as we get older.

Under some circumstances this can make the

normally protective blood-brain-barrier

leaky. Oral bacteria and elevated TNF-a

levels have been found in the blood of AD

sufferers. It is now thought that the

plaques or aggregates that are seen a lot

in Alzheimer’s brains, which are made up

of a peptide called A-beta, may initially

be produced as the brain’s response

to infection but just compound

problems as they build up. In this

study we will start to engage the

help of Alzheimer’s patients and

carers to find the most effective

ways to improve oral hygiene in

this patient group. We will carry

out laboratory tests for oral

bacteria and e.g. TNF- in blood

and tissue samples from the

Dental Hospital and the

Bristol Brain Bank to establish

a blood test relevant

t o A D . I f w e c a n

develop a sensitive blood

test we can identify

AD patients for whom

oral bacteria may

contribute to their

condition and who are

therefore most likely

to respond to our

treatment.

Dr Debbie Shoemark (nee Bradford ’83)

www.alzheimers-brace.org


I left Leweston in 1995 with a strongpersonal interest in the developingworld, possibly nurtured through earlygeography lessons, and a keenness tounderstand the ‘less privileged’ - asdescribed by the school nuns - in variousfar-flung places (and of course, theultimate recipients of the churchcollection)! Yet I had little clarity onwhat to do. Medicine? Other? With aninitial feeling to stick with the sciencesof my A Levels, I went on to studyChemistry with Psychology at theUniversity of Warwick. During myuniversity holidays, I then endeavouredto travel as widely as I could throughAsia and Central America to understanda bit more about these diverse realities.After university, I took this further, andspent an eye-opening year in Brazilworking as a volunteer teacher in a cityshelter. This forced me to reallyexperience/feel poverty, violence andvulnerability up close, and to meetextraordinary people seeking to make adifference, despite strong forces opposingthem. Yet on returning to the UKbrimming with passion to pursue a careerin development, I received resoundinglyfrustrating recommendations that Ishould really firstly ‘obtain(conventional) professional experience’,before then embarking on a ‘Masters indevelopment’. What a long road itseemed! So I ended up working inbanking/hedge funds in London for threeyears - that indeed taught me invaluableprofessional skills - before taking thebrave plunge to start my MA in 2002 atthe University of Amsterdam.

I threw myself into my Master’s degree inInternational Development with true zestand determination. And in the latterphase of this study, I returned to Brazilfor 6 months of tough but rewardinganthropological fieldwork with streetchildren. I finally graduated in 2004 withan overall Cum Laude! With my MAcomplete, I could now start to work inthe field. Yet ‘getting in’ proved muchharder than expected. After severaldisheartening applications, I managed to

finally obtain a job in Afghanistan withthe well-known British NGO,Afghanaid, despite facing a series ofdifficult interviews in London. MostNGOs expect candidates to have 2-3years of developing country experiencemaking it very difficult for newcomers to‘break in’! Whilst lacking this extensiveexperience, I was described as the ‘mostdetermined’ of the interviewees, and theytook the fateful risk! A new era hadbegun taking me at last from a career infinance to development, and a deepemerging love for a war-torn, but trulycompelling country.

Mountainous and landlocked, borderingChina, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Iran andPakistan, Afghanistan is characterised by‘a combination of remoteness andaccessibility, stability and resilience, andmarginality and diversity’ (Adam Pain,2007). After three decades of protractedconflict, the country stands as one of thepoorest and most underdevelopedcountries in the world with some of thelowest human development indicators.Illiteracy is particularly high: less than 40percent of men are able to read andwrite. Amongst women, this can be aslow as 12 percent. Since the fall of theTaliban in 2001, large-scalereconstruction and development efforts

have been rolled out in Afghanistanunder an ambitious state-buildingagenda. Whilst school education levelsand health indicators have indeedimproved, formal governance and therule of law continue to be weak, withpersisting regional-based conflict,particularly in the South. Despite severalyears of intensive international aid andmilitary support, the western-backedgovernment has now largely lost publiccredibility due to endemic corruption,and the lack of (sufficient) tangibleprogress in social and economicdevelopment, particularly outside of thecities. With political uncertainty, risinginstability and increasing levels of wealthdifferentiation, the situation todayremains perilously fragile.

Over this increasingly turbulent period, Iwas to spend my first three formativeyears with Afghanaid, with travelsthrough the North and West of thecountry, culminating in a position as adirector. I then decided to sharpen mytechnical focus on a particular area ofdevelopment: micro-enterprise andmarket development. Following severalinternational training courses on ‘pro-poor’ business/enterprise, I boldly set up aworking group in Kabul called ‘MakingMarkets Work for the Poor’ with

REFLECTIONS ON A ROAD LESS TRAVELLED

IN INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

(… PARTICULARLY IN ONE WAR-TORN BUT MUCH LOVED COUNTRY!)

HOLLY RITCHIE (’95)


participation of both NGOs and theprivate sector. And in 2007, I began workas a freelance development consultant inAfghanistan, with a special focus on localeconomic development. Through NGOsand government agencies, I worked withfarmers’/women’s associations, analysedmarket chains (including medicinal andwild plants, potatoes, almonds andcarpets), developed market assessmenttool kits, drafted business plans, andevaluated business services.

Yet I struggled with integrating the so-called theory with a more complex andchallenging reality. In 2009, I thus beganmy PhD research with a view to betterunderstanding these more deep-seatedissues shaping markets and localdevelopment, particularly in volatileenvironments. The research aimed tospecifically examine socio-cultural/religious issues in women’senterprise in Afghanistan, trajectories ofsocial change and implications for localeconomic development. Taking a casestudy approach and drawing once moreon anthropological methods, I exploredthis through the lens of three women’sbusinesses: a food-processing associationin West Afghanistan, a set of vegetablecooperatives in Central/East Afghanistanand an electronics business in Kabul.

These exceptional ‘business’ womenallowed me, a foreign stranger to enterinto their lives, to ask often peculiar anddifficult questions (and sometimesseveral times over!), and to spendextended amounts of time in theircompany. They shared the often-emotional journeys that they hadendured (and were still enduring) inslowly overcoming local prejudice andtradition. They permitted me to exploretheir fragile worlds, and talked candidlyabout their experiences, ambitions, andstruggles and hopes for the future. Notonly did I learn about their complexlives, but I also began to betterunderstand the layered Afghan reality,and to appreciate the ways that thewomen had negotiated their (own)changing dynamics. They taught me thevalue of patience, attention to detail,commitment and determination in bothfruitful social science research, andmeaningful development work.

As I reflect more broadly on this time ina war-torn and turbulent country, close toa decade in Afghanistan has brought mein contact with countless inspiring andcourageous people - Afghans andforeigners alike - dedicated todevelopment and to understandingAfghanistan in all its challenges and

uncertainties. These local leaders,practitioners and friends alike havesupported me in realizing mywork/research, provided me withvaluable insights, and forced me to(continually) re-evaluate assumptions, todig beneath the surface, and to considerdiverse perspectives (and to keepthinking outside of the proverbial box!).These lessons remain critical as I explorefurther realities in both Afghanistan andbeyond, and endeavour to co-developcreative, inclusive and sustainableapproaches to local development infragile environments.

A passionate aid worker, Holly Ritchie isdefending her PhD (Development Studies) inSeptember 2013 at the InternationalInstitute of Social Studies, ErasmusUniversity Rotterdam, the Netherlands.With extensive experience in Afghanistan (9years) and Brazil, she currently consults forvarious development agencies (includingOxfam, Tearfund and FAO) with a strongfocus on livelihoods, gender and marketdevelopment, conducting research,evaluations and training. In 2012, she wonBest Paper at the International Symposiumon Entrepreneurship and Innovation(University of Padua, Venice) for an articlebased on one of her PhD cases inAfghanistan. She has written several broaderpapers on women in business inAfghanistan, economic development, foodsecurity and market chains, in addition tokey aid effectiveness briefs. Her currentresearch explores Somali womenentrepreneurs in Kenyan slums. Longer-term post-doctoral research intends to buildfurther on her PhD, incorporating otherfragile states, including Somalia, Congo andColombia. She is an active member of the ISAcademy on Human Security in FragileStates, at Wageningen University in theNetherlands, supported by the DutchMinistry of Foreign Affairs. She currentlylives between Kabul and Nairobi, Kenya.

Holly can also be reached by email on:[email protected], For further information on Holly’s work,www.hollyaritchieconsulting.com


Class of ‘91

OAs from 1970 gather in La Isla, Northern Spain for their reunion!

“We were celebrating 60! Tania Linares asked us to go to La Isla in Northern Spain. Hermother Pilarina (89 this year) was a fabulous host to us all and ended up mothering usfor the holiday. She was amazing at producing wonderful meals, food like you have never eaten – it was heaven!

One of the girls summed it up perfectly: What an injection of friendship which has leftme with a glow and grin. How diverse our lives are and yet the touchstone of Lewestonhas bonded us with such a strong rope.”

Anne Cronin (nee Weaver ‘70)

Suzie Ruse (Oliver) who lives in Sydney, Catherine Broadbent (Fairlie) living inMarlborough and Isobel Williamson-Jones (Williams), all 1988 alumni, enjoyed theday together at Isobel and Andrew Williamson-Jones’ house, in Hampshire on a hot Julyday with their children.

Ursula (Ursy) Morrissey ( ’67) andMary Waltham (’67) both of whomwent to Leweston in 1960 (and leftin 1967) met for lunch in London inAugust, and would like to follow-upthis enjoyable reunion byconnecting with others in the sameyear. Please email [email protected] if youwere part of this year group andwould be interested in meeting upat some point in London.

Back left: Sarah Ainslie, Sara Hay, Victoria Gillies (nee Wroth), Mary Clare Maunder (nee Pyne) ,Sarah Fradgley (nee Lamb), Annie Aarons (nee Pensabene), Jane Wharton, Rosemary Vallejos(nee Cotter) and Rachel Carter (nee Bevan). Front row left to right standing: Tania Linaresand Louise Barlow. Sitting: Anne Cronin (nee Weaver), Pilarina Linares and Veronique Nelson

Families from the year group of 1990 meet for their yearly reunion

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Melanie Moore who now lives in Perth,Australia was over in the UK visiting inAugust and had a mini celebration forher 40th birthday with friends fromLeweston; six of them met up and haddinner at Yauatcha in London.

From bottom left going clockwisearound table: Rachel Hepworth (neeKershaw), Kate Burkey (nee Mitchell),Kate Dawson (nee Parsons), MelanieMoore, Victoria Ridgewell (neeBroughton), Fiona Ward (nee Dalzell)and Hermione Evans (nee McEwen).

Merigon Steiger-Jarvis(nee Steiger’78)After a very long gap between visits, Ivery much enjoyed the opportunities toexplore the school and grounds affordedboth by my niece doing her exams as anexternal student and the class of ’78reunion. Some things were still sofamiliar, some impressive newdevelopments. My thanks go out toLucinda Fraser (nee Rayment) andSusan Carter (nee Bryan) for theencouragement to join the reunion, itwas so good to catch up with the groupwhich went, and I would definitelyrecommend it to everyone else when theopportunity arises again!


THE RAIN HELD OFF AND IN FACT THE 1ST JUNE TURNED OUT TO BE THE MOSTWONDERFULLY SUNNY DAY. BALLOONS AND BUNTING PROVIDED THE DIRECTIONS FROMTHE FRONT GATE TOWARDS THE PICNIC VENUE NEXT TO THE OLD DINING ROOM.

OAS CAME FROM AROUND THE WORLD, SOME WE HADN’T SEEN SINCE WE LEFT ALL THOSE

YEARS AGO BUT THERE WASN’T ANYONE WE DIDN’T RECOGNISE IMMEDIATELY. IT WAS THE

MOST SPECIAL FEELING AS MANY AN ANXIOUS FACE APPEARED FROM THE FORMAL GARDENS

TO A SEA OF OLD FRIENDS AND THEIR FAMILIES BUT ALL THE MEMORIES AND LAUGHS CAME

FLOODING BACK.

CHILDREN WERE PLAYING EVERYWHERE AROUND US AS HUSBANDS TRIED TO KEEP THEM

AMUSED AS WE CHATTED AND REMINISCED FOR HOURS. AS THE AFTERNOON WORE ON MOST

OF US HAD A STROLL DOWN TO THE BELVEDERE AND AROUND THE GROUNDS.

LATER SOME OF US WENT INTO TOWN AND MET UP WITH THE SHERBORNE BOYS OF 1993 WHO

WERE ALSO HAVING A REUNION AND HAD TEA WITH THEM IN THE QUAD IN SHERBORNE SCHOOL.

OUR EVENING FUNCTION WAS IN TRUE LEWESTON STYLE WITH A BLACK TIE DINNER BEING HELD IN

THE PENSEBENE HALL (NOW DINING ROOM) WHICH THOSE OF US FROM OUR ERA WOULD REMEMBER

AS THE OLD STUDY AND EXAM HALL. MARGO LIDDLE AND THE CATERING STAFF LAID ON THE MOST

FABULOUS EVENING FOR US WITH PRE-DINNER DRINKS AND A THREE COURSE MEAL. THE EVENING

CULMINATED WITH MUCH DANCING AND THE RESURRECTION OF SOME DANCE MOVES MADE UP OVER

20 YEARS AGO!

IN TOTAL WE HAD 37 OAS ON THE DAY PLUS HUSBANDS AND CHILDREN, WHICH MADE IT A TRULY

MAGICAL ‘BIG REUNION’. CAMILLA HULF (’93)

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Due to a minor logistical problem(she lives in Brisbane), Mary(Whelan) Baker was unable to makeit to our original reunion in March2011. So she decided to put theorganisational potential of Facebookto the test.

Knowing she would be in the UK forChristmas and New Year 2013, sheasked if any of us would be preparedto go to London for a mini-reunion.In the event, seventeen of us couldnot resist.

We had a last-minute venue crisis,but thanks to Madeleine (Bailey)Waters we all had a very “jolly” timeat her club, The Soho House. Theclub were not keen on photos beingtaken in case we snapped anyonefamous and sold the results to thetabloids, but we were not to bedeterred – and in fact we were far too

busy catching up to notice any celebs.Many trains home were missed, andwe were finally kicked out of the clubat 7pm after a very good lunch!Those who made it:Angie Tennant, Vicky (Elliott)Cowan, Henrietta (Cracroft) Speirs,Miranda (Cracroft) Granger, Laura(Dewey) Asquith, Vicky (Noel)Hindmarch, Helen (Birch) Fleming,Madeleine (Bailey) Waters, Louisa(Merton) Tumin, Mary (Whelan)Baker, Siobhan (Collins) Keeling,Luci (Leigh) Downing, Wendy Best,Emma (Ashenden) Jarrett, Ruth(Thompson) Weighill, Miranda (StMaur Seild) Spooner, Vicky (Seaton)Lindhart.

Huge thanks to Mary and Madeleinefor making it happen and a messageto anyone out there who missed it –I’m afraid you’ll have to get onFacebook.

The Sisters of Leweston Celebrate their Gold, Silver and Diamond JubileesSister Carmel, Sister Brede and Sister Josephine, who all reside at St Antony’sconvent, Sherborne, celebrated their Jubilee years in May at the Church of TheSacred Heart and St Aldhelm in Sherborne.

Sister Carmel celebrated her Golden Jubilee, Sister Brede celebrated her SilverJubilee and Sister Josephine celebrated her Diamond Jubilee. The Church wasfull with all the Catholic parishioners, friends and family for this specialoccasion. The Sisters had their own celebration afterwards and were each givena peace lily by their parishioners.

GAUDY REUNION2013

In May of this year, the ‘Class of ‘83’ attendedtheir 30 year school reunion, a ‘Gaudy’ hostedby Leweston at Leweston along with other yeargroups who had also been invited. 1983 hadthe largest turnout of OAs and written belowis an article about the day by DeborahBoitel-Gill (nee Courtnell ’83).

THE SCHOOL REUNION AND A PUNK ROCK PYRAMIDWhen we left St Antony’s Leweston, at the ageof 18, we were young impressionable sixthformers. We had grown up in a fairly cloistered,protected and privileged environment and Iknow that I was impatient to be out in theworld and more than ready for theuncertainties, thrills and responsibilities ofadulthood and independence.

Suddenly, as if those three decades had passedin the blink of an eye, there we all were again.Only this time we were drinking coffee in thelibrary, sipping wine in the music room... andusing the ‘visitors-only’ loos in the once-forbidden environs of the Black Hall. All thisbefore lunch! After lunch we were invited todiscover the very different and sometimeswildly familiar spaces that are 21st centuryLeweston: the suitcase cupboard that passedmuster as our careers’ office... the chicboutique-hotel-inspired sixth form hangoutthat was once our very congested First Yearcommon room. And the piano cells and meshlockers which still look (and smell) the same.

Out of a year of some 60 -70 girls, a good 50percent of us made it to the Gaudy.

Each of us had an entire planet’s worth ofvastly different life experiences on board: thenot-so good, the bad and the ugly as well asthe good, the very good and the trulywonderful.

But, as one friend commented, she felt sheinstantly had more in common with any one ofus than most women she meets nowadays.

I suppose the particular intensity andproximities of our boarding school educationmeant that we were not merely schooledtogether but we did a lot of growing uptogether.

Certainly the reunion was very noisy and aswarm and fond as a family gathering. And, likeany family gathering, the talk revolved aroundabsent and missed classmates who wereunable to make it, as much as it centred on thefrantic catching-up-in-a-short-time that wewere able to manage in a single day.

1985 GATHER FOR A REUNION AT SOHO HOUSE

SISTER CARMEL SISTER BREDE SISTER JOSEPHINE

Luci Downing (nee Leigh ’85)


For some reason, when I thinkabout our May reunion now Ikeep remembering a Mayrather longer ago – 1977 to beprecise. It was our firstSummer term together: theyear of the Queen’s SilverJubilee and also, the era ofpunk rock. School kilts wereartfully frayed and illicitlystudded. Uniforms, especiallyas worn by the older girls,became a kind of canvas for apunk rock graffiti of safety pinsand holes.

Hits by bands like Blondie andThe Stranglers rang out fromthe common rooms. And girls-who-shall-remain-nameless in

the Upper Sixth, who wereabout to leave school forever,hatched a Big Jubilee surprisefor Open Day.

The Jubilee surprise involvedus little First Years, new,compliant and eager to please,astonishing parents and staffby performing a dance whichwas to culminate in a giganticand perilous human pyramid,set to the rousingaccompaniment of God SaveOur Gracious Queen sung notby some angelic choir, butloudly and very subversivelyby Johnny Rotten and The SexPistols.

Inevitably, there was a whistleblower and the pyramid’sarchitect was caught red-handed by Reverend MotherEleanor, just as we were allobligingly crashing from eachothers’ shoulders and landinghard upon Capability Brown’sgreen lawns.

The pyramid and The SexPistols were banned.Outlawed. The architectdisgraced. But the memory ofour pyramid endures, notunlike the friendshipsrenewed in May.

Today, pictures of us topplingand falling would have been

posted on Facebook, where,by the way and entirely thanksto Annabel (Dewey) Mosse, apage created in advance of thereunion helped do so much torekindle those friendships inadvance of the day.

Thanks must also go to MargoLiddle, Leweston SocietyManager, Headmaster AdrianAylward and Leweston itselffor hosting such a memorableand successful event.

Deborah Boitel-Gill (nee Courtnell ’83)

An alternative version of thispiece will appear in my blog,mudontheroad.com

GAUDY REUNION 2013

ALL OAS AT THE GAUDY REUNION

1983

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MANDY HACKLAND (NEEDONCASTER ’70) This year Ihave fulfilled a dream I have hadsince I was seven years old! I havebecome a published author. In 2007 my husband Nigel wasdiagnosed with cancer and thebook ‘And Always God …’ is thestory of God’s faithfulness to usboth. It relates our struggle tobelieve the God who promiseshope in the light of an illnesswhich predicted death. AlthoughNigel was the one whoexperienced the physical pain thisis my own story as the time spentby his side became a personalchallenge. It tells of my walkalongside Nigel as cancer grewinside him, but even more … it isthe story of God’s faithfulness aswe prayed and believed, struggledand doubted, cried and shouted inanger, surrendered and marvelledat God. It is an amazing accountof God’s tangible, audible presencein a time of pain as He fulfilledevery promise He made – even ifnot as we expected.

I have kept a journal for manyyears and have used these journalsas the foundation of this story. Ialways dreamt of a shared ministrywith Nigel, and I believe that thisbook is the fulfilment of thatdream too.

My prayer is that others maydiscover that, whatever theirstruggle, emotions, belief, or doubt,God loves them and is waitingwith arms stretched wide inwelcome… always.Mandy’s book is available throughAmazon via the link below.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Always-God-Story-Faithfulness/dp/1483667782/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377007658&sr=1-8&keywords=And+always+God

GOD BLESS YOU

ITS NEVE Amanda Catmur

Adecision that hadbeen brewinginside me for a

couple of years translatedinto action: a letter on theHeadmaster’s desk handingin my resignation. I hadworked at the same prepschool for 13 years, hadbeen teaching for 16, and Ibadly needed a break. As isoften the case there was acatalyst: I had just had a bitof a scare and had almostlost the sight in my lefteye. It was the wakeup callI needed; no more 14 hourdays, 60 hour weeks,Saturday teaching andSunday duties to adhere to.

For years you’ve been usedto a full on timetable andequally full on holidaysduring which you try tocatch up with your fourchildren, your husband,family, and even somehousehold chores!

It was the beginning of anextraordinarily interestingjourney: how to deal with‘non directed time’successfully, how to setoneself a reasonable numberof tasks to accomplish in 24hours, how not to feel guiltythat your salary haddisappeared. It wascertainly not easy to beginwith and you learn slowlyhow to turn the negativeinto a positive and feelcomfortable withyourself. Luckily I was stillcalled on to take childrenfor interview practice, and Ihad several requests forprivate tutoring in Frenchand Spanish. It certainlyhelped!

On December 31st, 2011,the fun part of the journeystarted. Andrew, myhusband, and I had decidedto visit our youngest

daughter, Emily, and herhusband, Simon, inRio. We had three and ahalf glorious weeks in whatmust be one of the mostexciting and vibrant citiesin the world. We hit theground running: landed at08.30, taxi to Ipanema,lunch, siesta, and then thecelebrations started for theBrazilian New Year!

Everyone dresses in whiteand there are street partieseverywhere as people headto Copacabana for the piècede résistance, the 16minutes of continuousfireworks that see in theNew Year. What aspectacle it was! Emily wasa first class organiser andtour guide as we exploredmany wonderful places thatBrazil has to offer: Paraty,Niteroi, the botanicalgardens, to name a few.

We then headed forArgentina and the famousIguazú Falls - anothervisual, cultural and culinarytreat! Early January was agood time to bethere: warm to hot, and,yes, there were tourists but

At the conservation project in Argentina Rio


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not in uncomfortable numbers. It is such an incredible visualspectacle; unimaginable quantity of falling water, the power of it,the noise, the spray, the rainbows, a thrilling boat trip that takesyou perilously close to the ‘Devil’s Throat’ falls, the stunning floraand the unexpected fauna. Beautiful butterflies land on you,coatamundis (snuffle monsters) follow you hoping that you’ll dropsome food, stunning colourful birds add their tropical music to thespectacle, and we were even treated to a squabble between afamily of coatimundis and two large tegu lizards.

Having viewed the waterfalls from the Brazilian side at Foz doIguaçu, we passed the ‘Parque das Aves’ and decided it could beworth a visit. Birds of all shapes and sizes and hues, butterflies,turtles, caymans it was a must! It transpired that it was part of aconservation project, they take in birds that have been rescuedfrom animal trafficking or, for some reason, are no longer able tosurvive in the wild; then they breed a new generation of birds thatare capable of being released back into the wild.

There is still so much more I could touch upon from Brazil andArgentina: the people, the food, the music, the ‘favelas’, but thenmy article would need an entire magazine all to itself!

I shall now take you through a whistle-stop tour of three morecountries and experiences which made my ‘gap year’ so special.

February was time to experience a ‘girls trip’. We went to Haro, asmall town in northern Spain, in the province of La Rioja. Jill,the friend who had masterminded the trip, had been visiting Harofor years so we were immediately thrown into a well-establishednetwork of friends and parties - a lot of Spanish was spoken,excellent Rioja flowed, delicious tapas were consumed andvineyards were visited.

The next trip ranks amongst the highest in level of importance:our son’s wedding in the stunning Tuscan countryside of Volterra.For those of you who have experienced the wedding of one of yourchildren I need add very little in the way of text! It was trulyfantastic.

And finally… a phone call all the way from New York from oureldest daughter, Kathryn, brought about another ‘gap year’journey. New York in early June is beautiful. Not too hot, verycolourful, and despite being ‘one of the most populous urbanagglomerations in the world’, it did not feel overcrowded.Kathryn had to work for some of the time so I exploredManhattan, Fifth Avenue, street markets, ginormous superdepartment stores, bijou coffee houses, and a lot more. Kathrynhad always wanted to visit The Cloisters, a branch of theMetropolitan Museum of Art, and that is where we decided to gofor her birthday. What a visual, cultural and historical feast itproved to be - it was like taking a walk though medieval France.

I could go on, but I fear I have already exceeded my word limit athousand times over. I know that I have been extremely fortunateto have been able to afford the luxury of a gap year at this stage ofmy life and I have now returned to a full timetable with renewedvigour and enthusiasm. If any of you feel that you can take three,six, or even just one month off, I heartily recommend doing so - itis an instructive and beneficial experience in very many ways!

R TOO LATE (nee Birch’75)

Iguazù Falls

Boat trip in Paraty

An incredible mural in Vittoria-Gasteiz


C L A S S N O T E SALEXIA ROBINSON (’87)is living on a farm betweenCirencester and Cheltenhamwith her ‘other half’ Charlesand his children. She is stillvery much a Dorset girl and hasjust bought a little cottage nearSherborne to keep in touchwith her Dorset roots. Sheloves seeing Leweston friendswho live in Glos: Tuft Dobson(de Salis) whose children go tothe same pony club; TarquinEdwards, whose sisters Millaand Lissa went to Leweston;and Vanessa Buchan (Birrell).She is still running the LoveBritish Food campaign andBritish Food Fortnight whichshe founded 12 years ago. Aspart of this, she is organisingthe first Harvest Festivalservice to be held inWestminster Abbey in livingmemory with hundreds ofschool children presentingharvest boxes of food they havegrown themselves. Working inLondon means she seesHannah Strickland and JessicaFulford-Dobson a lot and had alovely reunion supper with Phil

Webb recently. Alexia’s sister,Emily, is also in London. AliceFirks (Leigh) came to stay withAlexia this year from Zambia –Alice comes to England a fewtimes a year so is easy to keepin touch with. And there isalways huge excitement whenCaroline de Pelet Abrahamcomes over to England everyAugust with her children.Alexia still rides horses and lastwinter galloped through theLeweston woods and pastWhite Ladies whilst outhunting with the BlackmoreVale; it bought back manymemories of mud-splatteredcross-country runs with PicolKopanski always miles ahead ofeveryone else!

ALI BHARGAVA (NEEDALE ’90) Ali lives in Penn,Buckinghamshire with herhusband Doctor Raj and herchildren Hermione (9) andNikki (6). She still enjoyssport and runs half marathonsregularly and plays tennis dailywhilst juggling working in herhusband’s surgery.

ALICE COWEN (’97) with Indigo and EMMA GIBSON(NEE CHARLES (’97) with Lola.

ALICE COWEN (’97) hasmoved her personal trainingcompany back to the UK alongwith the boot camp she runs,which is now based inSomerset. Alice’s new website:www.alicecowen.com

ALICE WEDGE (’07) isnow design assistant atVivienne Westwood.

AMANDA MIRFIN(NICHOLSON ’91) InNovember 2012 Amanda andher family took the plunge andmoved to Adelaide, Australia.They have now been there fornine months and are settling in

nicely. Their son Zac does sport6 days a week, so they arealways busy. Amanda has goneback to teaching part time asan ESL. They love being inAustralia and are hoping to buytheir own place next year.

CLARE DEWAR (NEENORTH ’90) Clare lives inNew Malden, Surrey with herhusband Pete and childrenJames (7), Chloe (5) andCharlotte (2). She is veryactive in the children’s schoolPTA and has recently beendeveloping a school wildlifegarden.


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CAROLINE KAY (’98) isnow based in Seattle, USArunning a global leadershipdevelopment and businesscoaching firm. She moved toSeattle 2 years ago to set up theconference and events divisionand took up an offer to becomeCOO for 3 years.

CAROLINE MATTHEWS(NEE WHITE ’90)Caroline had a very exciting2012 with the birth of herbeautiful daughter Ella Roseand the launch of her newanimation and design agency,Rupert Ray. She lives in SELondon with her family andenjoys her times together withTamsin, Clare, Theresa andAli.

CATHY VEALE(NEE GIBSON ’77)Cathy works as a professionalartist living in the Purbeck areaof Dorset, working mainlytowards her solo exhibitions,specialising in largewatercolours, and regularlyexhibiting with the RoyalInstitute of Painters inWatercolour in London.Cathy continues to raise moneyfor the Cystic Fibrosis Trust ather exhibitions as Sarah, herniece, Virginia Dorey’s (neeGibson) daughter, suffers fromthe disease. She has also takenpart and completed theinaugural Purbeck marathonlast year, and in October thisyear she will be running theRoyal Parks half marathon withher sister, Tish Alberry (neeGibson). Cathy would hugelyappreciate any donationsreceived atwww.virginmoneygiving.com/cathyveale

CHARLIE CRONEY (’12)COMPLETES GOLD DofECharlie has completed her finalpart of her Gold DofE award byclimbing Kilimanjaro. She willbe presented with her award atSt James’ Palace this year.Charlie flew to Kenya beforetravelling south overland toTanzania. She lived on themountain for 7 days and hiked100km. Charlie summited at07.21 in the morning after a 7hour assent in darkness toreduce risk of dehydration fromsun exposure. It was -21.5C atthe peak. Congratulations toCharlie who is now studyingLaw at York University withan intention to climb theMatterhorn next!

CHARLOTTE HYSLOPTEACHER OF MATHSFROM 1993 - 2008SKYDIVES FORPARKINSON’S. CharlotteHyslop who taught Maths atLeweston from 1993 - 2008 hasbeen suffering with Parkinsondisease for over 10 years now.Charlotte has made greatstrides in her fundraising effortsand has now taken on themassive challenge of a tandemsky dive in September to raisemoney for Parkinson’s UK.This is quite an amazing taskfor Charlotte to commit to and

she would be delighted if OAswere to sponsor her. She says:“There comes a time whencoffee mornings are not enoughand one has to do somethingdifferent, as is my way!! To thisend on September 21st 2013, Iam going to do a tandemparachute jump in aid ofParkinson’s UK. The jump from10,000+ft will include 30-45seconds free fall before theparachute is deployed and thenI will float gracefully down tothe ground, strapped tightly toan expert, who will carry out agentle landing! Should youfeel inclined, you can sponsorme online at:www.justgiving.com/Charlotte-Hyslop

EMMA GIBSON (NEECHARLES ’97) is currentlyliving in Wandsworth, Londonwith her husband Angus anddaughter Lola. Emma hasrecently returned to work as aPersonal Assistant at ImperialCollege.

CONGRATULATIONS TODIDO HARDING (’85), whohas been voted one of thenation’s top 100 most powerfulwomen by BBC Radio 4Woman’s Hour.

Dido Harding was appointedCEO of TalkTalk in 2010.After her time at Leweston,Dido studied at the Universityof Oxford. On graduating shejoined McKinsey & Co as aconsultant in 1988, beforetaking on a number ofdirectorial roles in marketingfor high street names such asThomas Cook, Woolworths,Tesco and Sainsbury’s. She hasbeen a Non-Executive Directorof The British Land CompanyPLC since 2010.

Leweston has been delighted towelcome Dido back to theschool on numerous occasionsincluding school Speech Daysand Careers Days. She remainsan inspirational figure for manyof our girls and we aredelighted that her outstandingachievements have beenrecognised.

ELIZABETH CHAMBLER(NEE CAIN ’01) is living inPoole, Dorset and is enjoyingthe challenge of working as adoctor in Emergency Medicine(A&E). She is currentlytraining to be a consultant inEmergency Medicine with dualaccreditation in PaediatricEmergency Medicine.

CHARLOTTE(DEBORAH) TRIM(’85) is now living inLincoln, Massachusetts,with her husband and twochildren, Phoebe andSerena, 11 and 7, alongwith her horse, Irish setter,chickens and a dozenbeehives. In September2011, her horse trippedand fell; it was quite a badaccident, but Charlotte isslowly recovering. Overthe past 9 years, she hasturned a two acre propertyinto a mini-farm, and thisyear is leasing town land toplant a peach orchard.There is a stronglocal/organic foodmovement brewing inAmerica, and with a littlehelp from her friends sheremains active in thismovement, teaching,consulting and producing!She is also home schoolingher eldest daughter, somemories of her early yearsat Leweston come floodingback!


EMMA ROOKE (NEEMERVIK ’98) has beenpractising as a lawyer for nearly10 years. After a yearsmaternity leave Emma is nowworking “in-house” at Burberry(the fashion house).

HANNAH O’CONNOR(’08) Hannah qualified as adoctor in May this year.Congratulations to Hannahafter all her hard work!

JEMIMA PETTIFER (NEEWESTWOOD ’06)graduated from ReadingUniversity in 2012 with a 2:1in Ancient History andArchaeology and this summerhas graduated from her PGCEcourse at Oxford Brookes tostart her job as a primary schoolteacher in September this year.

JO TAYLOR (’04) Jo is busyworking in London as ascientist for GlaxoSmithKline.

JOANNA CUNNINGHAM(NEE MCCARTHY ’01) is aqualified accountant throughthe ACCA but is currentlyundergoing a career change andis at Reading Universitystudying a degree in Dietetics,with the goal of working withinthe NHS as a dietician whenshe qualifies in two years. Tokeep herself afloat throughout

her studies she has aphotography business doingbaby, children and familyportraits, and occasionallyweddings. Joanna was thephotographer for OA BeckyEvans’ (Stones ’01) wedding.

KATIE SMITH (NEEPARFITT ’01) marriedMichael (Smith) in May 2011and this year their son Arthurwas born. Katie is still workingas a dentist in the Army and on1st January 2014 will havecompleted 10 years in greenkit.

KIMMY COLOMBO (’11)has just completed her first yearat Keele University, and hadthe time of her life! She nowhas returned to Geneva for asummer job working for amedia company.

KIT KNOWLES (NEEBRIGSTOCKE ’83) is aHorse Whisperer! She workswith horses that have beenabused and rehabilitates them.She also looks after childrenthat are either young carers orhave troubled family situationswho she introduces to thehorses, and has ended up doinga double rehab kind of thing.Kit comments, “This has beenwonderfully rewarding from allpoints of view!”

LEXI MANNING (NEESTAVELEY-HILL ’02)is now living in London withher husband Daniel and theirson Henry born in September2012. She is taking a year outon maternity leave fromworking in a hedge fund whichwas where she met her nowhusband!

LINDA READEBELTRAMINI (’64) is livingagain in Brazil, after ten yearsin Geneva, Switzerland andthirty years in New York.Linda is a financial consultantin M&A (mergers andacquisitions) of hi-techcompanies and real estateventures (mainly shoppingcentres and hotel/resorts for theinternational market).

MARGARETMCDONNELL (‘94) hasjust moved to Hungerford withher husband and toddler son.Margaret set up a small PR firmearlier this year and is justabout to publish a children’sbook.

MARTA FONTANALS-SIMMONS (’04)Congratulations to MartaFontanals-Simmons (MezzoSoprano) who performedbeautifully as a soloist atSherborne Abbey in a musicalact of remembrance on the eveof Remembrance Sunday.Marta was a former musicscholar at Leweston and nowlives in London studying Operaat the Guildhall School ofMusic and Drama.

MOLLY KNIGHT (NEESHERWOOD TAYLOR’03) lives in Lymington andteaches technology at theArnewood School in NewMilton which has just beenjudged as outstanding. Molly isthe lead practitioner fortechnology. Molly and herhusband are expecting theirfirst child in March 2014. Bothsisters Helen and Mollyrecently returned to Lewestonfor what may be their last timefor Speech Day, for JoeSherwood-Taylor’s retirement.

NIKKI SCALE (NEETAYLOR ’99) is being keptvery busy with her 16 monthold son Freddy and is expectingher second child in December.

OLLY KYBETT (LOFTS’87) has returned to the UKfrom the Cayman Islands and isnow back enjoying working fortwo busy MPs at the House ofCommons. She is still in touchwith Vicky Milliken-Smithwho she met up with inLondon in July.

PEP BARDOUILLE (’93)is currently working for theWorld Bank (on renewableenergy and energy accessissues), and is in various partsof Africa and Asia most of thetime but Washington DC is herbase.

PETA WALMISLEY(WALKER ’62) had a greattrip last winter, leaving the UKon 6th December 2012 andreturning on 20th January2013. She started with a visitto a Chinese friend in Tokyo,with whom she visited the tworemaining Imperial Post Townsin the Japanese Highlands,Magome and Tsamagojuku, 8.5metres apart – an army’s daily

EMILY FRENCH ULLAH (’94) continues to live and workin London, doing brand licensing for children's television. Sheis married to Sana and is a mum to two boys aged 5 and 7.Emily visited Leweston this summer with her sons and one of‘Maria Torro Vedu (nee Torro’s)’ sons who was staying with herfrom Madrid. Maria was at Leweston 1989-90 and they havekept in touch ever since. Maria has three boys. The photo is ofEmily and the 3 boys, 2 hers and 1 of Maria’s.

MILLIE YAKTEEN(NEE BALL ’91) is inher ninth year of workingfor Horse Racing TV, thenetwork for horse sports.She is living in Californiawith her husband Tim andtwo boys Sam and Ben.


Class

Note

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march (none of her Japanesefriends had heard of them!) andfour temples in Kyoto, stayingthe night in one. She alsovisited the Railway Museum inTokyo (the railway system, ofcourse, was built by theBritish).

On to New Zealand, where shespent Christmas with herhusband’s brother, sister-in-lawand nephew (‘Little Richard’ isnow 18), who gave her a flightin a Tiger Moth as her present.She visited other friends andrelatives in Auckland andWellington, as well as a newly-found second cousin inTauranga. Australia next, witha visit to Canberra with cousinsof Richard’s, several days inSydney (very hot) and a 4 daytrain trip across Oz to Perthwith a very longstanding friend(even longer than schoolfriends!); more friends andcousins to see before flying toSingapore for 3 days on the wayhome. In Singapore she visitedthe amazing Marina Bay Sandscomplex: three towers with a‘boat’ on top.

Peta is hoping to visit her niece(Claudia Beach’s daughter),Matilda in Buenos Aires inNovember this year.

RACHEL HEPWORTH(NEE KERSHAW ’91) metup with Hermione McEwenand their children. Picturedabove is Rachel on the leftwith her children Lilah andCharlotte and Hermione onthe right with her childrenAmelia and Solomon.

RAYNE ROBERTS (NEETOMPSON (’88) Rayne livesin Somerset and is married toAndrew and has two gorgeoussons, Louis (11) and Ben (9).She runs her own business nearBath called Law League. Itprovides law firms with onlinecustomer and staff satisfactionsurveys, the results of which arebenchmarked into leaguetables. Rayne hasn’t been doingthis for long but it’s all goingvery well.

SARAH LESAGE (NEEMONEY ’81) Sarah recentlyhad a visit in Alsace from RosieCunningham (nee Coubrough‘81) and her lovely family;husband Ed and children Finnand Lilly. They had a lovelytime catching up on old timesand visiting the area. Sarah hasalso heard recently fromLucinda Bosworth (neeArrundel) who is now living inMarrakech!

SARAH SANDERSON(’05) has just finished herfoundation training in Devonand is off to New Zealand fortwo years. She will be workingfor the Nelson andMarlborough District Healthboard on South Island - happilyclose to lots of vineyards! Sarahwill be working full time as adoctor in the hospital and inher spare time doing as muchoutdoor adventuring aspossible! Visitors are verywelcome if anyone is passingthrough!

SOPHIE TUPPEN (’11)Sophie is at Cardiff Universitystudying Zoology. Next yearshe has her ProfessionalTraining Year, and is hoping towork at the University ofCalgary in Alberta, Canada onwild big horn sheep with DrKathreen Ruckstuhl.

SUZIE RUSE (NEEOLIVER ’88) who lives inSydney, Catherine Broadbent(nee Fairlie) living inMarlborough and IsobelWilliamson-Jones (neeWilliams), all 1988 alumni,enjoyed the day together atIsobel and AndrewWilliamson-Jones’ house inHampshire on a hot July day2013 with their children.

TAMSIN CLARKE (NEEWIGLEY ’90) Tamsin is stillrunning her experientialagency ITCH, eleven years onworking for clients such asVirgin, Google, Nike andUEFA. She moved out ofLondon over 3 years ago tobeautiful East Sussex where hersons Zach (6) and Jake (2) areenjoying country life and theirschool years!

She is still in regular contactwith Clare Dewar (nee North)Alison Bhargava (nee Dale)Caroline Matthews (neeWhite) and Theresa Osen (neeEly) who meet regularly inLondon and twice yearly withall their families in tow!

THERESA OSEN (NEEELY ’90) Theresa welcomed anew arrival in 2012 when herdaughter Olympia was born.She also has a son, Milo. Theylive in Surrey, from whereTheresa runs her own PRconsultancy working witharchitects and designers onprojects including the ChelseaFlower Show. She regularlysees Clare Dewar (nee North)who lives close by and lovesmeeting up with Tamsin, Ali,Caroline and Clare especiallywith all 10 of their childrenwho also enjoy seeing eachother and are fast becominggood friends themselves!

VALENTINE SIMSON(NEE COOPER ’77)Valentine and family continueto enjoy life in Dorset.Valentine has a new and busierjob at Bovington Camp whereshe has worked for 17 years.She sees many OAs quiteregularly - Judy Dodworth (neeSeymour) lives in the nextvillage, Lucinda Fraser (neeRayment) who also lives locallyand she keeps in touch withseveral others including JanePridham (nee Stibbon) whobecame a granny for the secondtime in July 2013, MirandaFord (nee Morgan) and familynow living in Poole, Fo Parker(nee Moseley) living nearPeterborough, and FionaCierach (nee Vickers) whostarts a new head hunting jobin London in the autumn.

Valentine’s son Jos will marryKlara in May 2014 in Poland,and her daughter Olivia - alsoan OA - is in regular contactwith her Leweston friends andabout to go on holiday toTurkey with four of them!Olivia graduated from LeedsMet with a 2:1 in PR in July2013 and starts a PR job in lateAugust which will involveworking in both London andDorset. Her other daughterLucy continues her work as afreelance chef which involvestravelling the world.

ZOE NICHOLLS (NEENICHOLSON ’93) After agreat nine and a half years inAustralia, Zoe was given a greatopportunity through work tomove to Singapore. She andher husband have settled inand are spending a lot of timeoverseas as Zoe now runsprogrammes across Asia, Pacificand Japan. They love thecultural change and theexperience of Asia.

JULIA STEWART (NEE SAMPSON ’81)Earlier this year Julia completed her Doctorate in Education and is nowDr Julia Stewart. Julia left Leweston in 1981 and had her family whenshe was quite young. She returned to study as a mature student,graduating as a Speech and Language Therapist in 1998. Julia leftclinical practice in 2005 and moved into lecturing and is now theProgramme Lead for the BSc (Hons) Speech and Language Therapy atthe University of St Mark and St John, Plymouth.

Stop Press ...


MarriagesLIANNA ORDE (’99) married Tom Fairhurst in September 2012. HarrietWright-Morris (nee Stavely-Hill) and Anstice Murray were both bridesmaids. MELANIE FOX (’99) married Brian Heyel in September 2012. There was agood group of OAs who attended including Rachel Johnson (nee Perrow),Camilla Sulivan, Caroline de Lisle (nee Budge), Katie Thomas (nee Phayre),Tabitha Warton, Lianna Fairhurst (nee Orde), Maggie MacDonald, Becky Wrenand Anstice Murray.

LEXI STAVELEY-HILL (’02) married Daniel Manning on Saturday 22nd June2012 in London at Chelsea Old Church followed by a reception at the Oxford andCambridge Club on Pall Mall.

EMMA NUTTALL (’06) married Joe Tizzard at Sherborne Abbey on Saturday25th May 2013.

SOPHIE CROSBIE DAWSON (’02) married Mark Salvidge on Saturday 15thJune 2013 at St Mary’s, Overton. Lexia Manning (nee Staveley-Hill) was matronof honour.

EMILY PORTER (’05) married Oliver Hearn in Haddenham, Buckinghamshireon Saturday 6th July 2013.

JESSIE COOPER (’98) married Ashley Stones on Saturday 25th May 2013 atSt John’s Church, Milborne Port.

GINA MOSSE (’99) married Marc Whiting in the Dominican Republic onFriday 13th May 2013. There was a blessing in Hampshire on Saturday 6th July2013.

ANNIE CHAN (’94) married Sean Gulliford on 25 May 2013 in Bristol. Alsoat the wedding were Sibylla Lofts and Marged Tucker (James).

JOANNA MCCARTHY (’01) married Giles Cunningham on 22nd June 2013at Latimer Place, Chorleywood, Hertforshire.

PHILIPPA CLIST (’06) married Tom Hunt on Saturday 1st June 2013. JessYeates, Louise Ashmore and Camilla Broome (nee Barber) were her bridesmaids.

REBECCA STONES (’01) married Simon Evans on Saturday 10th August2013 at St Mary Magdalene Church, Sherborne. They were married by Rev MarkAitken (previously priest for Sherborne Boys School) and had four OAs asbridesmaids - Katie Oliver (nee Everard), Kate Drew (nee Huxtable), Jess Greenand Elle McMahon.

CHRIS COCKERAM (’03) married Anthony Robert Penson on Saturday 4thMay 2013. OAs Demelza Elgee, Emily Bednall, Hannah Parmley and GeorginaBesent were present at their wedding. Demelza was a bridesmaid and Emily did areading during the service.

LIZZIE CAIN (’01) married Duncan Chambler on Saturday 23rd March at St Peter’s Church, Long Bredy, Dorset. OAs Anna Bowditch and VictoriaCain were bridesmaids.

LUCY GRASSBY (’02) married Kevin Haseldine in September 2012. OAsEmily Grassby and Roma Loukes were bridesmaids. Chloe Nash (neeGallimore) and Rachel Roberts (nee Bussey) attended the wedding.


BirthsNIKKI SCALE (NEE TAYLOR ’99) a son Freddy Scaleborn on Friday 1st April 2012.

KATE THOMAS (NEE PHAYRE ’99) a daughter IndiaRose Phayre Thomas.

CHARLIE HOPLEY (NEE COLTMAN ’93) a daughterIsabel Kemirembe Hopley, born 19th October 2012.

GINA MOSSE (’99) a daughter Bella Rae born 14thDecember 2012.

LEXI MANNING (NEE STAVELEY-HILL ’02) a sonHenry born 23rd September 2012. Lexi is expecting hersecond child in December this year.

CLAIRE WORSLEY (’93) a daughter Thea GillisWorsley-Howlett born 26th February 2013.

TIFFANY DUFTON (NEE HENSMAN ’92) a daughterLucy Faith born 25th May 2013, a sister for Grace andMolly.

CAMILLA BROOME (NEEBARBER ’06) a daughter Daisy EllenBroome born on 7th December 2012.

HANNAH BRAGG (NEE LUARD’93) her third child, a daughterAlexandra Julia Luard born 1stOctober 2012.

KATIE SMITH (NEE PARFITT ’01) a son Arthur born20th March 2013.

SARAH O’GRADY (NEE MOTT ’99) a son GeorgeEdward born 17th February 2013. Rachel Johnson (neePerrow) is Godmother.

MARGED TUCKER (NEE JAMES’94) a son Jacob Theo Gareth bornMay 2013, a brother for JamesWilliam North.

ALICE COWEN (’97) a son IndigoBlaise Erskine born 28th October2012. Alice is expecting her secondchild in January 2014.

ALICE FREYMAN (NEE BABINGTON HILL ’96) herthird daughter Louisa Sophia Babington born 17thOctober 2012, a little sister for Sasha and Lottie.

CAROLINE THOMAS (NEE BIGGART ’98) adaughter Annabelle Sarah Grace born February 2013.

JULIET CLEMENTS (NEE BIGGART ’95) welcomeda second baby, a son Felix Arthur Willoughby on 15thJuly 2013.

EMMA GIBSON (NEE CHARLES ’97) a daughterLola born on 25 May 2012.

DeathsJUDY FACER teacher of French for many years atLeweston until she left in 1990 died 21st September2012. Judy very kindly last year made it possible forthere to be a French Prize awarded to a pupil in Year 11and this will continue for many years to come.

DIANA BOMBIE CLARK (NEE BROOKS ’68) died 25th June 2012.

JOE RALPH teacher of Biology at Leweston from 2002 – 2013 died 2nd September 2013. 23

RetirementsMAGGIE NIGHTINGALE retired at the end of this academicyear after teaching recorder at Leweston for 34 years.

CHRISTINE HAWKYARD (MATRON) I joinedLeweston in 1980, I was looking for a nursing job thatgave me the school holidays as my husband was in theNavy. None were available but Mother Eleanor gave me ajob and I could work the hours that fitted in with havingsmall children at the Prep School (which was then inSherborne). I helped out in the science labs workingmainly for Joe Sherwood-Taylor which I did for 7 years. Ithen moved over into the nursing role which I was far

more suited to. I left Leweston at Christmas 1992 to accompany Nick on anoverseas posting to St Lucia (Jill James a Leweston mother took over my role). Ithen returned to the post in 1996. I have been associated with Leweston for 33years and have worked there for 29-30 years.

The nuns were a pivotal part of school life and mine. I am very grateful for all theirsupport and the kindness shown to me over the years.

I always enjoyed my nursing post at school and never wanted to change or doanything different; I have been fortunate to see two generations, mothers anddaughters through the school. This year’s head girl is a fine example! There issomething special about Leweston girls and I have had the privilege to enjoy theircompany and see them grow up and move on – as I have recently done, into myretirement! I leave a really happy school and have many fond memories.

JOE SHERWOOD-TAYLOR, teacher of Chemistry retires after 40years! We sadly said goodbye to Joe this summer after a very longteaching service to Leweston. Joe taught at Leweston from 1973 – 2013.

After celebrations and gifts,Joe wanted to thank OAs fortheir generous donations:“I would like to thank the Old Antonians for theirextraordinary generosity incontributions to my leavingpresent. It has enabled me to buysome very nice woodworkingequipment with which I havealready started to make somegarden furniture.

I was also fortunate to have been allowed to institute the ‘Sherwood-TaylorPrize for Practical Chemistry’ which consists of two old retorts which had beenin the lab since before I came, mounted on an oak base made by my daughterMolly. This will be awarded to any girl in the school who shows particularpromise in practical chemistry.

Dr Kemal prepared an album for me which had many photos from the pastincluding old girls, and also presented me with an old Kipp's apparatus. Someof you from the 70s or 80s may remember this which was used to generatehydrogen sulphide (bad egg gas) for sixth form analysis and used to sit stinkingquietly in the fume cupboard. It now graces the corner of our sitting room.

Thank you also for making my time at Leweston such a happy one, I havemany fond memories of you.”


THE OA AWARD IS a sum of money available annually to assist apupil or former pupil of Leweston School whose project developsthe School’s mission statement to those less privileged.

The chosen project could be overseas or in the UK. It could beinspired by the Sisters of Christian Instruction or any other religiousor charitable organisation. When applying for the award applicantswill detail how they became interested in their chosen charity, whatthey want to do to help the charity and how they propose to raisemoney for their chosen project. If there is no suitable applicantfound for the award in a year the committee can consider awardingan “OA Grant” to a pupil at the school who needs money for acharitable project.

The sum of money awarded will contribute towards the travel andliving expenses of the successful candidate so that she is able tolive and work with the community of her choice for a minimumperiod of six months (a shorter period would be considered for agap year candidate). It is not envisaged that the Award will be useddirectly to assist the community or those in its care.

At the beginning of each academic year the Award will belaunched at the school and made known to OAs through theLeweston website www.leweston.dorset.sch.uk and the OldAntonian Magazine which is produced annually. There will becontinual reminders and advice for applicants during the scholasticyear.

ELIGIBILITY The Award is open to any former or present pupil of LewestonSchool aged between 18 and 30.

DISCLAIMERThe successful applicant for this Award will be required to sign thisform as a statement absolving the Old Antonian Association andLeweston School from all responsibility. Neither the Old AntonianAssociation nor Leweston School can be held responsible foraccidents to the applicant whilst working with her chosencommunity.

CONDITIONS FOR GRANTING THE AWARD• The successful applicant will be at least 18 years old when she

takes up the Award.

• She is expected to take up the Award within a period of 12months from the date of the offer.

• The successful applicant will be required to provide proof of:adequate travel and personal insurance cover; satisfactorypersonal health; completion of a course of appropriateimmunisation and vaccination.

• She will be required to undertake, on her return, a presentationof her experiences during the time she was receiving theAward by personally visiting Leweston School to give a talk.

APPLICATIONOAs wishing to be considered for the Award will be required tosubmit the following: • A completed application form including the names of two

referees.

• An explanation of the nature of the work she would envisagedoing and the benefits which the applicant and the communityshe intends to visit would expect to gain from her stay.

• Written correspondence indicating acceptance from the headof the community the applicant plans to visit.

• An estimate of the total cost.

To obtain an application form please [email protected] or alternatively, visit thewebsite www.leweston.co.uk where an application form can befound under Leweston Society and OA Award. Applications shouldbe made before the end of March. This will enable all applicationsto be carefully considered, and shortlisted applicants interviewedby the Chairman of the OA Association at Leweston.

The successful applicant will normally be announced at SpeechDay, which is held at the beginning of July each year.

APPLICATIONS SHOULD BE SENT TO: The OAA Chair, Mrs Shirley Hewson, Leweston School, Sherborne,Dorset DT9 6EN.

T H E O A AWA R D


Imogen Massey is to take part in a ten

week Raleigh International project in

Tanzania which will be split into three

phases: a community project, an

environmental project and a trekking

challenge. Imogen chose to travel with

Raleigh International, a non-profit

making charity as she was impressed

with their powerful and positive mission

statement “To bring together people

from around the world. To inspire,

challenge and develop them to work in

partnership as active global citizens.

Learning how to build sustainable

communities and conserve the

environment.” Imogen felt that, having

been educated at Leweston where

concern for others and charity are part

of the core ethos, she is very aware of

the importance of making a difference

to the less priviledged and is

determined to do so.

Imogen will go onto read History of Art

at Bristol Uni. •

Isobel Worrall will be going to the

Solomon Islands to help teach young

people the new liturgical music for

weekly masses. Isobel will also be

regularly helping out at the local school.

One of her aims before she travels is to

raise money for the John McEvoy

Scholarship for Girls Charity which will

help provide funds for a group of girls to

attend the school where Isobel will be

working. This Charity was set up by

Patricia McEvoy and her four daughters

after her husband John died who was a

Marist Father - a priest and teacher on

the island for almost eighteen years. He

ran a four hundred strong school on

Malaita in the Catholic Diocese of Auki.

Isobel feels this is a fantastic

opportunity to have been given and a

great way to use the confidence and

knowledge she has acquired whilst

being at Leweston.

Isobel will go onto read History and

Archaeology at Southampton

University. •

Ellie Byfield is going to the Kampala

Music School for three months to teach

the saxophone. She will also be taking

small clarinet classes and offering

singing tuition. Ellie hopes to have the

opportunity to assist with leading the

school jazz band and to also take part in

the community choir.

She will also be involved in their

outreach programme where children

come from the poorest parts of Uganda;

many have lost their parents to AIDS and

have nothing. This project provides

them with training in many different arts

such as music and drama. Ellie hopes to

benefit these children in the school by

inspiring them to take up or continue

with music.

Ellie will go onto Royal Holloway

University to study Music. •

THREE PUPILS FROM THE RECENT YEAR 13 LEAVERS WEREAWARDED A SHARE OF THE OA AWARD THIS YEAR. THIS AWARD ISAVAILABLE TO CURRENT PUPILS IN YEAR 13 TOGETHER WITH OAS.THE ARTICLES FOLLOWING DESCRIBE THE DIFFERENT CHARITIESAND WORKS THESE THREE GIRLS HAVE DECIDED TO SUPPORT.

T H E O A AWA R D S


UNIQUE, PERSONALISED AND HANDMADEIN GOOD OLD BLIGHTY BY OA JANE FIELD(NEE WALLINGTON AKA WALLY! ’75)

Jonny’s Sister is about to have its 8th birthday and it seems that it hasa lot to celebrate about. Started in a room not much bigger than atelephone box, Jonny’s Sister was founded by Jane Field (who is actuallyJonny’s sister!) in 2005 and has since gone from strength to strength. Aswell as its products appearing on a number of TV shows, it also has a veryloyal celebrity following and is even resident in Buckingham Palace!

After leaving Leweston many moons ago, training as a nurse in London,many years spent overseas working and then back to London again, Janeand her family moved back down to her home county of Dorset in searchof a better quality and slightly slower pace of life. She had always dreamtof sending her daughter, Hattie, to her alma mater and so was thrilledwhen it all became possible.

She had always wanted to have her own business and, after muchresearch, decided that personalised products had the potential that shewas looking for. It soon became obvious that the idea behind Jonny’sSister was working and within 18 months its award winning Love Letterswere in Harrods.

Whilst it has its own team of seamstresses making all its textile productsit also uses many local crafts people for its signwriting, fabric printing andjoinery. “Manufacturing in England has always been very important tome” says Jane. “When we first started, lots of people were quick to tell methat we could be making so much more money if we moved theproduction out to the Far East. But I really believed then, as I do now, thateventually people would start to really value having British madeproducts and so dug my heels in (but also crossed my fingers!). Yes it ismore expensive, a lot more expensive, but you only have to look at ourproducts to see the amazing quality that you get from being British made.With all the recent positive media coverage on manufacturing in EnglandI know that we made the right decision”.

As well as supporting British made, Jane is a huge supporter of theapprentice scheme having got two already and now about to welcometheir third. “Although my daughter chose to go to university, withthe recent hike in fees along with people starting to actually questiontheir reasons for going rather than just following their friends, theapprenticeship scheme is a fantastic alternative”. Jane has offered tospeak to any OAs that would like to hear about her company’s experience.

To celebrate its birthday Jane is offering all OA magazine readers anexclusive 15% discount until 22nd November 2013. Just enter Lewestonat the checkout www.jonnyssister.co.uk

www.jonnyssister.co.uk


27

Both the girls and staff at LewestonSchool are delighted with the latestcampus development project, a newSixth Form Centre which opened foruse on the first day of this pastsummer term!

The Centre is located at the heart ofthe school, close to the PensabeneLibrary (which was the dining room)and careers resources. This wonderfulnew resource offers Sixth Formers aplace to socialise and relax, hostguests and events, as well as accesstheir emails using the wi-fi facility. Italso incorporates a courtyardallowing girls to socialise outdoors.

The decision over the location,purpose and use of the Centre wasdecided upon after consultation withgirls in Years 11 and 12, some ofwhom then had the excitingopportunity to work withinternationally renowned design andinterior refurbishment specialistsResolution Interiors whose clientsinclude Bose, Links London andMolton Brown, to come up with thefinal design.

This latest piece of campusdevelopment comes at the end of ayear of exceptional academic successfor Leweston. Mrs Jessica Miles, Headof Sixth Form commented: “Thecompletion of the new Sixth FormCentre will undoubtedly benefit boththe existing and future Sixth Formersat Leweston and will complementthe excellent teaching and socialopportunities that our girls alreadyreceive. We look forward to the girlsmaking the most of this exciting newresource which will help us to meetour aim of enabling them to achieveto the best of their ability, going onto take their place in the world withconfidence.”

How the girls did it…

Alice Hague, Harriet Woodland, DashaKorznikova and Isabella Thompsonexplain the design process...

“Alice, Harrie, Dasha and Ivolunteered ourselves to design thenew Sixth Form Centre. We brieflyhad a meeting about the size of theroom and how it could all be laid outbefore meeting with the team fromResolution Interiors a few days laterat their offices. All four of us wentthrough hundreds of photos that weplaced on three boards: ice cool, cooland not cool. We wanted to go for ahomely feel so we can relax in thespace and enjoy the room. We alsowanted to have a vintage theme thatwould last for years to come. We hada lot to think about in terms ofsetting the room out with four keyaspects to account for studying,eating, relaxing and entertainment.There were a lot of emails and ideassent back and forth throughPinterest, an online mood board,which helped us to finalise the ideaand choose the main objects andfurniture we preferred.

Over the Easter holidays buildingwork went ahead and was completedfor the beginning of term. We havehad a huge amount of greatfeedback from the students andteachers, and it is now beingconstantly used and enjoyed by allthe Sixth Form. We are all so pleasedwith the outcome and hope that thisroom will be respected and used asmuch as possible in the future.”

Isabella Thompson

Yr12 Design Student

LEWESTON OPENSNEW SIXTH FORMCENTRE


SOUTH AFRICA CHOIR & NETBALL TOUR 2013

LEWESTON’S INAUGURAL CHOIR AND NETBALL TOUR TOSOUTH AFRICA SET OFF ON 15TH JULY 2013. DURING THE

TOUR’S 12 DAY DURATION, THE 30 GIRLS INVOLVED VISITED

DIFFERENT SCHOOLS IN THE SURROUNDING AREA, SINGING IN

THE CHOIR AND PLAYING NETBALL FIXTURES AT ALL

AVAILABLE TIMES OF THE DAY! THE TRIP ALSO INVOLVED FIVE

PUBLIC PERFORMANCES BY THE TOUR CHOIR AT HOST

SCHOOLS, LOCAL CHURCHES AND THE VICTORIA AND ALFRED

WATERFRONT IN CAPE TOWN. THE GIRLS WERE ALSO VERY

FORTUNATE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY FOR PLENTY OF

SIGHTSEEING AND A TRIP TO A GAME RESERVE WHERE THEY

STAYED OVERNIGHT. THE TOUR WAS A HUGE SUCCESS FOR

BOTH THE GIRLS AND THE SCHOOL AND WE LOOK FORWARD

TO ANNOUNCING AND PLANNING OUR NEXT TOUR FOR 2015!

THANK YOU TO THOSE OAS WHO KINDLY ADVERTISED IN OUR

TOUR BROCHURE WHICH WAS SOLD TO GENERATE FUNDS FOR

THE TOUR AND A BIG THANK YOU TO NICKY RUTHERFOORD

(NEE DANCASTER) AND HER SISTER AMANDA HACKLAND (NEE

RUTHERFOORD) WHO FLEW DOWN ESPECIALLY FROM

JOHANNESBURG TO LISTEN TO THE GIRLS SING IN A CONCERT

AT ST GEORGE’S CHURCH IN

KNYSNA.

THE PHOTOGRAPH HERE SHOWS

THE LEWESTON CHOIR WITH

AMANDA HACKLAND AND NICKY

RUTHERFOORD WITH LEWESTON’S

DIRECTOR OF MUSIC CLAIRE

HAWKES.

NICKY COMMENTED: “WE CHATTED AFTERWARDS TO SOME OF

THE GIRLS AND THEN TO CLAIRE HAWKES DIRECTOR OF MUSIC

AND SOPHIE ELLIS MUSIC TEACHER BOTH AT LEWESTON; WHAT

CHARMING AND TALENTED YOUNG WOMEN THEY ARE. BOTH

MANDY AND I WERE SO PROUD TO BE LEWESTON OLD GIRLS,

AND THE SCHOOL CAN BE VERY PROUD OF THEIR DELIGHTFUL

YOUNG AMBASSADORS”.

OPPOSITE IS A COPY OF THE ITINERARY WHICH THE GIRLS

FOLLOWED:


29

Monday 15 JulyMeet at London Heathrow Airport where a representative fromthe tour company will assist with your check in prior to yourscheduled flight to Cape Town.

Tuesday 16 JulyOn arrival in Cape Town transfer to the Lord Charles Hotel, whereyou will be staying for two nights. During the afternoon transferto Parel Vallei High School to play your first set of matches.

Wednesday 17 JulyBoard the coach to Langa Township where you will undertake anescorted tour as well as perform your first choir recital to MokonePrimary School. After this your Langa Township tour begins. In theafternoon meet your next set of opponents which will be against‘Community Sides’. During the tour you will see the township’sfour different types of development, whilst learning about thecommunity’s history and culture. In addition to visiting some ofthe main buildings and organisations within the community, youwill enjoy lunch at Sheila’s Café. The tour is an amazing experience,remembered as one of the highlights by most groups. After yourmatches return to your hotel for the evening where you will enjoydinner.

Thursday 18 JulyDrive back to Cape Town and transfer to the Waterfront for a

boat trip to visit Robben Island for a tour of the islandand prison where Nelson Mandela was held. Back

onto the mainland; gather at the Victoria andAlfred Waterfront Amphitheatre for your

next choir performance: Transfer tomeet your first hosts; Wynberg Girls’

High School for a two nightstay.

Friday 19 JulyThis morning you will perform as a Choir at an assembly at theschool. After your performance transfer to Cape Town to take acable car trip to the top of Table Mountain for great views of theCity and Table Bay. Later this afternoon transfer to the V&AWaterfront for a performance to the public at the Amphitheatre.You will be performing with Wynberg Girls’ High School. Returnwith your hosts for the evening.

Saturday 20 JulySay goodbye early this morning to your hosts and board yourcoach for the long drive to Wilderness. This afternoon visitOudtshoorn and one of the ostrich farms, then the Cango WildlifeRanch and the Cango Caves. Continue to Knysna and check intothe Log Inn for two nights. Dinners will be arranged for you inlocal restaurants.

Sunday 21 JulyThis morning you will go on a cruise around the Knysna Lagoon.Make your way on foot to St George’s Church where you willperform a one hour concert for guests invited from all theAnglican Churches in Knysna. After the concert make your wayback to your hotel. This evening enjoy Dry Rock Restaurant one ofthe local restaurants in town.

Monday 22 JulyCheck out of your rooms and transfer to Port Elizabeth. On arrival,transfer to Linkside High School where you will be met by hostsand given time to warm up for your match. Enjoy post matchhospitality with your hosts. Afterwards, transfer to Collegiate Girls’High School to meet your final hosts for a two night stay.

Tuesday 23 JulyThis morning you will perform as a choir during morningassembly. After your performance you have the morning tosightsee. During the afternoon transfer back to your hosts andprepare for your matches. Enjoy your last evening with your hosts.

Wednesday 24 JulySay goodbye this morning and you will be taken to visit the AddoElephant Park. Continue onto the Kariega Game Reserve for a onenight stay. In the late afternoon there will be an escorted gamedrive into the Reserve to hopefully spot the ‘big five’. Enjoy yourfinal evening tour dinner at the Lodge. Overnight at the GameReserve.

Thursday 25 JulyRise early for a final Game Drive at sunrise to see more wildlife.Return for breakfast and transfer to Port Elizabeth Airport for yourreturn flight to London Heathrow Airport, via Johannesburg.

Friday 26 JulyArrive at London Heathrow Airport and transfer to Leweston bycoach.


RETR OSPECTTHE SCHOOL YEAR IN

A LETTER OF THANKS FROMVENERABLE COLIN PAINE,

ST GEORGE’S CHURCH, KNYSNA

Dear Mr Aylward

We would like to thank you for the outstanding Choirperformance that your school girls rendered at St George’sAnglican Church in Knysna. The girls were wonderful andstaff were fantastic. Our community really enjoyed theafternoon and the blend of new and old music and worship.We took a collection at the end and raised R 2935.00 whichwas to assist a coloured lady in our community that runs asmall orphanage of 12 children who now all come to ourSunday School. This was much appreciated. We also had thedelight of having two former students from Leweston Schoolwith us in the audience.

The gift of the pattern is much appreciated and we will beusing it on our Tuesday Communion Service which fits oursmall chalice beautifully.

Once again, well done to all and thanks for the greatafternoon.

NEW FOREST RETREATA group of girls were luckyenough join the Dominicansisters deep in the heart of theNew Forest whilst on retreat atSt Dominic’s priory.

Warmly welcomed, the girlswere made to feel at home fromthe start and invited to join inthe daily rhythm of prayer. SrHyacinthe, internationallyrenowned speaker last seenteaching catechesis to 5000 inDubai, took the group throughthe finer points of ‘The MoralLife’ using artworks projected onthe wall. The evening was spenteating pizza, watching Sister Actand quizzing other sisters fromNigeria, USA and France on ‘anun’s life’!

During the second day the girlsventured out for a wanderthrough the New Forest,spotting wild ponies and discovering a nearby lake.

After Mass they joined thesisters for prayer, singing psalmsin the exquisite oak-beamedchapel.

LEWESTON CATHOLICCONFIRMATIONSForty two girls and boys fromLeweston, Sherborne Boys andother local schools wereconfirmed during the summerterm at a service led by BishopChristopher of the Diocese ofPlymouth. For some of thecandidates it was also theoccasion of their First HolyCommunion. This occasion waswonderfully supported byfriends and family of theconfirmation candidates;Leweston’s Chapel was full tobursting. We were delighted tohave our own Schola Contorumperform throughout the servicewhich made it all the morespecial for those taking part.

FROM LUCY MACKAIN-BREMNER CHAPLAINCY CO-ORDINATORI was delighted to take up the newly created role of ChaplaincyCo-ordinator in early February 2013. Since then my feet haven’treally touched the ground for retreats to organise, prayer groupsto launch, confirmation classes taking place weekly and kneelersto replace.

After the wonderful era of Father Richard (Resident Chaplain2002-2010) who moved on to parish work and is well-loved bythose who know him, I find it rewarding, together with localclergy, to carry on his important work and the work of manyothers to keep Christ at the centre of the Leweston school day.


RETR OSPECT

RISE THEATRE YEAR 9 RETREAT DAYA travelling Christian theatre group, RISE,came to Leweston to entertain, encourageand challenge Year 9 in thinking about‘Friendship and Identity’. They spent theday working in teams, discoveringdifferences and similarities, and laughinga lot.

RISE began the day with high-energycreative exercises including forming a‘tableaux’ where teams of 6 or 7 weregiven just 10 seconds to arrangethemselves into a still-scene, based eachtime on a different letter of the alphabet.This was followed by some reflection timeon what makes true friendship, discussingin groups various role models, what theyvalue and aspire to, and what negativeand positive forces influence our identity.The afternoon mission was to create andact out a film trailer; “You’ve got a friendin me – coming to cinemas near you!”Wonderful insights came from the girls asthey pondered the meaning of buildingyour house on rock or sand and whatconstitutes the ‘rock’ and the ‘sand’ in ourlives. The day was rounded off with aquiet prayer time in the Chapel before tea.

SIXTH FORMER WINS INTERNSHIP WITHTOP LONDON FASHION DESIGNERCongratulations to Dasha who secured asummer internship with top Londonfashion designer, David Koma. Dasha wasawarded the position after attending aninterview with David. David commentedon the quality of her textiles samples andon how well her Leweston sketchbookswere presented and organised. He alsogave Dasha some useful feedback on herwork. We look forward to hearing more ...

TOP OF THE DfE PERFORMANCE TABLESFOR DORSET AND SOMERSET 2012/13Staff and pupils were delighted to havecome top of the Department forEducation Performance tables for Dorsetand Somerset. Leweston’s A Level and Pre-U students achieved an average UCASpoint score of 976 per student, the best ofall independent and maintained schoolsin the two counties.

“We are delighted that theDfE data has placedLeweston as the top school inthe area for its performance atA Level and equivalent. It isa tremendous reflection on thegirls, our committed staff andthe vitality of the all-roundeducation offered atLeweston. This tops off anexcellent year which has seenLeweston ranked in the top5% of schools nationally forvalue added and our third setof record GCSE results in 4years.”

LEWESTON BIATHLETES QUALIFY FORBRITISH TEAM!Congratulations to the Leweston girls whohave been selected for the British teamfollowing their performances at theNational Biathle Championships at SalfordQuays, Manchester. In the Youth E GirlsU10, Year 5 pupil Anya E came 5thindividually with Year 6 pupil Elektra Cfollowed close behind claiming 6thposition, and Year 12 pupil Victoria H whocame 6th individually in the Youth B Girlscategory. These sterling performancesmeant that three girls qualified for theBritish team! Leweston’s two othercompetitors, Poppy B (Year 8) and Olivia M(Year 10) came 8th and 10th in their racesand have been named as second andthird reserves respectively for the Britishteam. We look forward to the WorldChampionships in Cyprus taking placethis term.

THE INTER-HOUSE SWIMMING GALAAND SPORTS DAYThe inter-house swimming gala was onceagain this year a huge success, with manyschool records broken! The overallwinning house was Mayne andcongratulations goes to them for theirfabulous efforts and their outstandingability to win so many of the individualraces. Sports Day was another triumphheld on the arranged calendar date thisyear with no rain to be seen! The girlscompeted to a very high standard and alldid extremely well. The overall winninghouse was Mayne! This academic year hasbeen a terrific sporting year for Mayneand we wish them luck this autumn termwith the inter-house cross country.

Adrian Aylward

31


FOURTH SET OF RECORD BREAKING GCSERESULTS IN FIVE YEARS AT LEWESTON!Leweston is celebrating its fourth set of record GCSE results infive years. An unprecedented 41% of examinations were passedat A* with 69% of all entries passed at A* or A. 91% ofexaminations passed at A*, A or B, also a record.Congratulations to the 41% of all candidates who achieved 9 ormore A or A* grades and to the 17% of girls who got 9 A*grades or more. 98% of all examinations were passed at gradeA* to C. These record results, particularly at A* (41%), arenotably impressive in the light of the national fall in thepercentages of A* and A grades and the overall pass rate.

Year 11 pupil Eleanor Evason achieved 12 A* grades followedclosely by her classmates Rosie Frampton, Maddie Kirby andGrace Thorner who all achieved 11 A* grades.

Once again Leweston’s girls have

excelled themselves and I am delighted

with their outstanding performance in

their GCSE exams. The results across

the subjects were excellent and highlight

the all-round academic strength of the

school and the benefits of an all girls’

education where the pupils are

encouraged to take risks and achieve to

the best of their ability.

ANOTHER YEAR OF RECORD BREAKING RESULTSFOR LEWESTON'S SIXTH FORMERS.Record AS and A Level results for the second time in threeyears! Sixth Form girls achieved a 100% pass rate and 72% ofA Levels were passed at grade A* to B or Pre-U equivalent witha record 20% of the results passed at A* grade or Pre-Uequivalent. 52% of the results were passed at A* or A grades orPre-U equivalent, double the national average and Leweston isdelighted that a pupil has achieved the school’s first ever D1 atCambridge Pre-U. This exceptional grade is above the standardrequired for an A* at A Level and is a truly outstandingachievement. An impressive 34% of students achieved 3 ormore straight A or A* grades across a range of subjects. AverageUCAS points per candidate were 383, the equivalent of overthree A grades per candidate. It was also a record breaking yearfor Leweston at AS Level with 73% of examinations passed atgrade A or B.

These results have enabled all Leweston’s leavers to win placesat their chosen universities or specialist colleges. Many girls willbe going on to the more selective institutions, Oxford, LondonSchool of Economics, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Nottingham,Newcastle, Cambridge, University College London and York tostudy degrees such as Accounting, Biological Sciences,Economics, English, Drama, History, History of Art,Mathematics, Medicine, Nursing, Philosophy and Politics,Physiotherapy and Spanish.

“I am delighted with what is another strong set ofresults at Leweston across the whole ability range. Iam particularly pleased that all our Oxbridge andmedical school candidates have been successful inmeeting their offers, further building on our recordof success in this area. These outstandingachievements pay testament to the hard work of thepupils and the work ethic of the school. These pupilsshould be justifiably proud of their success and theywill undoubtedly continue to thrive in their furtherstudies.”

Adrian Aylward, Headmaster

GCSE A LEVEL

Geoff Smith, Director of Studies

“SUMMER RESULTS 2013

“


SUMMER RESULTS 2013 The Leweston Society

THE LEWESTON SOCIETY IS THE UMBRELLA STRUCTURE UNDER WHICH ALL ASSOCIATES

OF THE LEWESTON COMMUNITY CAN COME TOGETHER INCLUDING SCHOLARS, OAs, PARENTS AND

FORMER PARENTS, PARISH MEMBERS, PAST AND PRESENT STAFF AND GOVERNORS.

ADRIAN AYLWARD

Headmaster

MARGO LIDDLE

Leweston Society Manager

THE LEWESTON SOCIETY PARENTS COMMITTEE

Year 7 – Claire Godman-Dorrington

Year 8 – Diana West

Year 9 – Janie Garnon

Year 10 – Lisa Glydon

Year 11 – Fiona Maguire

Year 12 – Kate Guy

Year 13 – Aggela Carpendale

GOVERNORS

Mary Head (Chair)

Nick Bathurst

Charles Comyn

Mark Hudson

Eddy Newton

Keith Newton

Emma Treichl

Belinda Wingfield-Digby

The Leweston Society Sherborne Dorset DT9 6EN

Tel: 01963 211015 Email: [email protected]

www.leweston.co.uk


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