Dear ParentsWelcome back after the Easter holiday and to the start of the Trinity term. I hope you have managed to enjoy some of the good weather and some time off together.

Dear ParentsWelcome back after the Easter holiday and to the start of the Trinity term. I hope you have managed to enjoy some of the good weather and some time off together.

APRIL 2015APRIL 2015

HEADMASTER’S LETTER

T0 PARENTSHEADMASTER’S LETTER

T0 PARENTSCHIGWELL SCHOOLCHIGWELL SCHOOL

Contents

Page 1 Careers Convention

Summer Ball

Blue Calendars

Gopal Kambo

Emma Cadman & Lauren Keiller

ISFA

Page 2 Olympiad Physics Success

Page 3 Choir - Oxford & Canterburyin One Weekend

Page 4 Duke of Edinburgh

Page 5 Trip to Nice

Page 6 Speech DayStaff NewsSchool Fixtures

Page 7 And Finally

Careers Convention As I mentioned in my last letter, we will

be holding our careers convention on

Thursday 23rd April. There will be

representatives from a range of careers

and we hope that students will take the

opportunity to learn as much as possible

about the potential opportunities

available to them and how they can best

make themselves attractive to potential

employers. Students from the Upper

Fifth should attend but those from the

Sixth Form and other year groups are

also very welcome. We are grateful to

parents, Old Chigwellians and friends

who have given up their time to make

this event possible

Summer Ball A ticket order form and details of the

Summer Ball to be held on the evening

of Saturday 4th July are being been sent

out by e-mail. This is always a very

popular event and you are urged to

apply for tickets as soon as possible as

they are allocated on a first come first

served basis.

Blue Calendars As usual, the Trinity term calendars are

being distributed to pupils who should

also bring home a copy.

Gopal Kambo Gopal has a conditional offer to study

modern languages at St John’s College

Cambridge. In addition, we heard just

before Easter, that he has also been

offered a choral scholarship. This is a

marvellous achievement and it is the

fourth Oxbridge choral scholarship in

four years.

Emma Cadman &Lauren Keiller Congratulations to Emma and Lauren

who have been selected to spend a week

at a university in July as part of the

‘Inspire’ scheme. These courses are

heavily oversubscribed and we look

forward to hearing about the girls’

experience when they return.

ISFA Congratulations to Jake David and

Tommy Redhead who represented the

ISFA U14 side and to Alec Osborn who

played for the U15 side over Easter, both

teams against a Notts County side. As a

result of his performance, Alec has been

selected to play against Aston Villa and

Manchester United later this term.

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Olympiad Physics SuccessAs I have mentioned before, Bianca Andrei performed very well in her physics Olympiad

competition and was one of just fifteen A level physics students from across the country

selected for a final assessment in Oxford over Easter. The purpose of that assessment was to

select the physics team of just five students which will compete on behalf of the UK at the

International Physics Olympiad in Mumbai in early July. Bianca was selected to be part of that

team which is an outstanding achievement. She and her four team members will compete

against eighty other countries in the event which has been running since 1967.

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The families of many members of the choir

travelled a considerable distance this

weekend. Many went to Oxford where the

Chapel Choir sang evensong at St Michael

at the North Gate, before an Old

Chigwellian gathering at Trinity College.

Without fail, all those who heard them

commented on the quality of their singing.

The following day, however, the choir

headed south to Canterbury where they

had been invited to sing Evensong at

Canterbury Cathedral. The performance

was possibly the best performance the

choir has given in recent years; the boys

sounded mature, the girls sang as one

flawless line with a full sound that filled the

cathedral and the overall ensemble, even in

the psalm, was immaculate. The

comments and reports that followed the

service from clergy, parishioners and

visitors from around the world, exclaimed

the brilliance of the choir. They now

prepare this term for their tour of Andalucía

in July.

Choir – Oxford & Canterbury in One Weekend

Duke of Edinburgh For five days during the Easter break,

seven Upper Fifth students took time

out from revision in order to participate

in their practice expedition for the Silver

Duke of Edinburgh award. They chose

canoeing and were trained at the Essex

Outdoor Centres. The students were

required to canoe several miles each

day, taking all their kit, food and tents

with them. After a gruelling paddle,

they then had to set up camp and cook

their own meals. They responded to this

with good humour and a sense of fun,

and coped extremely well with the

physical challenges. They are now

looking forward to doing the assessed

expedition, which will take place after

they have sat their GCSEs.

Meanwhile, sixty six Lower Fifth

students took part in a two day training

expedition for their Bronze award. This

training focused on all the basic

expedition skills: camp-craft, cooking,

equipment, and navigation training. All

the staff were impressed with the speed

with which the group learnt new skills.

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Trip to Nice Mrs Leyla Chéry, Mr Paul Fletcher and

Mrs Elise Feeney accompanied a group

of Senior School pupils to the South of

France over the Easter break. The group

visited Cannes, Monaco and attended

morning classes in the "France Langue"

school in the heart of Nice. Some Sixth

Formers were on work experience in

restaurants and hotels. This was a great

opportunity for them to be immersed in

French daily life as well as enhancing

their language skills. The students also

learnt about the history and the culture

of the Provence region. They enjoyed

learning French in a relaxed atmosphere

and lovely sunshine.

Staff NewsWe are delighted to welcome Mr Andrew

Bewick who joins us as Outdoor Pursuits

Leader. He will develop outdoor

education across the School and some of

you will have met him already through

the Duke of Edinburgh training that he

has carried out this holiday. We hope he

will be very happy here.

We are also pleased to welcome back

Ms Emmy Creber who returns from

maternity leave this term.

Our congratulations go to Miss Charlotte

Nairac and Mr Jamie Sliwa, and to Miss

Hannah Spark and Mr Will Tomsett who

got married over the Easter break. Miss

Spark will now be known as Mrs Tomsett

but Miss Nairac will keep her maiden

name for the time being.

School FixturesDuring this busy time of year when many

students have important public exams,

we would appreciate your continued

support in encouraging your sons and

daughters’ commitment to sporting

fixtures throughout the term.

Speech Day

The programme for Speech Day and its related activities will follow the usual format:

Friday 3rd July 2.15pm Pre Prep, Lower I and Upper I Service in St Mary's Church

3.30pm Pre Prep Garden Party

Saturday 4th July 9.45am Junior School Service at St Mary's Church

11.30am Senior School Service at St Mary's Church

2.30pm Speeches and Prize Giving in the Marquee

The Guest of Honour at Speech Day this year will be Michael Marshall Smith O.C. (1974-1983).

Michael studied at King’s College Cambridge and became a writer and performer with the BBC.

His first novel, ‘Only Forward’, won the August Derleth Award for best novel and his more

recent novel ‘Intruders’ was made into a BBC series. Michael lives in America with his family

and we look forward to welcoming him back to Chigwell.

The preacher at the services on Saturday morning will be Father Tony Chantry O.C. (General

Superior of the Mill Hill Missionaries). The preacher at the service on Friday afternoon is

Professor David Hatch of the Woodford Wells Ecumenical Church.

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I look forward to seeing you

over the coming weeks and

thank you for your

continued support of the

School and your children.

With best wishes

Yours sincerely

Michael Punt

Term Dates Half term: Saturday 23rd May to Sunday 31st May (INSET day Monday 1st June)Term ends: Wednesday 8th July 2015 Michaelmas TermFirst day: Thursday 3rd SeptemberHalf term: Saturday 17th October to Sunday 1st NovemberTerm ends: Wednesday 16th December 2016 Lent TermFirst day: Thursday January 7th Half term: Saturday Feb 13th to Sunday Feb 21stTerm ends: Wednesday March 23rd 2016 Trinity TermFirst day: Monday April 18th Half term: Saturday May 28th to Monday June 6thTerm ends: Wednesday July 13th