HIGH DAYSThere’s life in the Old Girl yet…

ContentsTruro High Spring Ball ….… …………

2 Rebe displays at the Tate ….. 4 Old Girls’ Events ……….. 10Get your business noticed … 2 High fashion ……………… 5 Founder’s & Speech Day … 1240th Anniversary Reunion … 3 An eye for design ………… 6 Truro High Update ……… 14BBC’s Gillian Burke ………. 3 A journey Down Under ….. 8

This year’s Amy Key Lecture promises a fabulous insight into our country’s incredible wildlife with biologist, filmmaker and the latest member of the BBC’s Winterwatch team Gillian Burke lined up as guest speaker.

Gillian joined the ranks of the hugely popular BBC2 series last autumn and you may well have seen her presenting special reports from the west coast of Scotland this January, braving the high winds on the southern top of Islay.

The Amy Key Lecture takes place on Friday 27 April so book your place now for an evening that’s sure to be a real walk on the wild side.

Tickets are priced at £35 to include a delicious three course dinner with a welcome drink on arrival. The evening commences at 6.30pm.

Book yours today by downloading a booking form by clicking here http://bit.ly/2Ga2qH7 and emailing it to Mrs Harriet Andrew on harriet.andrew1@btinternet.com

Gillian has had a fascinating career and a huge number of adventures. Find out more in her own words on page 3 in the newsletter.

Continued page 3, col 2.

BBC Winterwatch presenter, biologist and filmmaker to inspire at Amy Key Lecture

Dance the night away at Truro High’s magical Spring Ball

>> Find out more, pg. 2

Old Girl Rebe Winn exhibits at the Tate Modern once more

>> Find out more, pg. 4

Reunions, get-togethers and heading back to school

>> Find out more, pg. 10

Lent Term 2018

We also still have some vacancies for event sponsors at the Ball and would love to hear from any companies willing to get involved and offer support. Sponsors will receive extensive weekly publicity in the 10 week run-up until the event, and after it, as well as promotion at the Ball itself and online links to your business via the school website.

Event sponsorship offers a unique opportunity to receive targeted and extremely comprehensive promotion to our school community and tailored packages can be arranged to suit your needs.

Thank you to the following companies who have already pledged their support. These currently include Carrs Jaguar, Carrs Landrover, Duchy Independent Financial Advisers, Sodexo, Tarquin’s, Keltek Brewery, Scentstore, the Samphire Club, Clive Pearce Estate Agents, Burrington Estates and Camellia & Co.

Get your business noticed by Cornwall’s movers and shakers

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This time last year many of our soon-to-be Old Girls were busy getting ready to kick off the summer season in style at our inaugural Spring Ball and this year there is even more excitement in the air with a night that is set to be bigger and better than ever.

There is nothing our community enjoys more than a fabulous celebration so get your gladrags ready for Friday 25 May as teachers, parents and Old Girls from across the school join the girls for a wonderful evening of delicious food, live music, plenty of dancing and just a little touch of Truro High magic.

Tickets are priced at £55 per person to include a four course meal, unlimited access to formal and informal photographs from two professional photographers, live band, DJ, chocolate fountains and much more.

Guests will be seated as tables of eight to twelve so why not get a group of your school friends together for a magical evening back at Truro High? Spaces are limited so reserve your tickets now by emailing events@trurohigh.co.uk

Join us for a fabulous 40th anniversary reunion Want to reminisce, catch up with old friends and celebrate four decades as an Old Girl in style? We are delighted to announce that plans are in motion for a reunion for those former pupils who finished their A levels in 1978 or O levels in 1976.

Organised by Tansy Hepton, it's sure to be a fabulous celebration on Saturday 25 August 2018 so do get in contact if you would like to join us and pass the details on to anyone else you are still in touch with.

The day will include guided walking tours of the school grounds and a celebration lunch.

Our Old Girls’ reunions are always wonderful affairs so do come along for, what may be for many of you, the rare opportunity to get up-to-date with everyone’s news, rekindle fond memories and see how much has changed.

Spaces are limited so register your interest today by emailing development@trurohigh.co.uk

Gillian said: “I was born in Kenya but have claims to African, Native American, European, Polynesian, Asian and Oriental heritage.  My forebears were slaves and princesses, pastoralists and cartographers, sailors and lawyers.  They crossed continents and pushed past social barriers.  With ancestors like these, I had little choice but to continue their journey.

From lawless frontiers in the heart of the Amazon to the Canadian Arctic and the rainforests of Borneo, my work has taken me to six of the seven continents to film animals as diverse as condors, anacondas, grey whales and funnel-web spiders. 

As a scientist, wildlife filmmaker and TV presenter, I have navigated a career that most would not consider the natural domain for a woman - let alone a woman of colour.  I am a couple of decades ahead of the girls at Truro High School for Girls and believe these are exciting times for these young women. With stories from my own personal journey, I hope to show how far we have come in realising the dream of equal opportunity and equal representation for all, and what work there is still left to do.”

Find out more about Gillian’s fascinating career at our Amy Key Lecture on 27 April. Book your tickets today by emailing Mrs Harriet Andrew on harriet.andrew1@btinternet.com

Stepping into springtime with BBC’s Gillian Burke

Whether it has been many years since leaving Truro High or very little time at all, it’s always a joy to find out from our many thousands of Old Girls where their journey has led them. This term, High Days talks to Old Girl Rebe Winn (THS 2010 - 2017) who, having waved goodbye to the school just six months ago, is taking the world of modern art by storm.

Truro High Old Girl heads back to the Tate When Rebe was at school, she was already making waves on the modern art scene when her work was chosen from thousands of entries to go on display in the Tate Modern’s iconic Turbine Hall. Proudly heading off to study a Foundation Degree in Fine Art with three A*s in hand, the future looked bright for this budding young artist. Six months down the line she saw her hard work paying dividends as her groundbreaking piece of installation artwork was created, and put on show to the public, at the world renowned gallery.

This January, students, staff, parents and practitioners from Plymouth College of Art collaborated with local primaries and Plymouth School of Creative Arts to transform the fifth floor of Tate Modern’s Switch House, into an interdisciplinary and intergenerational Pop-up School & Symposium. The project was all part of the Tate Exchange; an annual programme of international artists and collectives, working together to illuminate the value of art to society.  

Rebe’s concept was selected from a huge number of propositions submitted by artists from the University’s ‘creative continuum’ – which ranges from primary aged children all the way to MA level students – to be the interactive centrepiece of this exciting collaboration with the Tate.

She said: “It was a whole idea of production, creation and destruction so we turned human hair into felt and then got the public stitching this together. The idea aimed to bring together loads of people, literally binding them together in the piece. As everyone joined in with sewing this massive form, it was great to see them fully interacting with each other and with the artwork they had become a part of. It was great to speak with the public and get feedback as we all created the piece and I was even lucky enough to talk with the gallery’s head curator who was really interested in the use of human hair.”

Rebe is already busy working on her next pieces and is currently focussed on ‘Natural History Museum style’ collections of the human body as she drives towards her ultimate goal of studying fine art at Goldsmith’s in London.

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Since our founding in 1880, Truro High has offered young women a place where they are put first in everything they do and many of them have gone on to become well-known faces amongst Cornwall’s thriving business community. This term, High Days takes a closer look at Old Girl Helen Barnecutt’s (THS 1974 - 1984) latest venture into the world of high fashion as she brings a touch of glamour to the streets of our fabulous cathedral capital.

High fashion in the heart of Truro Tucked along New Bridge Street, Smart Exchanges Clothing Agency is a fashion lover’s paradise. Designer labels hang alongside the best of high street womenswear, all with price tags that won’t break the bank.

There are two floors of good quality items. Upstairs are the prom and long dresses, wedding dresses, coats & mother of the bride/groom outfits. The day wear, casual clothing shoes, boots and handbags are on the ground floor. Sizes available are from 6-8 up to 20-22.

Labels include Jacques Vert, Coast, Gucci, Mulberry, Radley, Karen Millen, Boden, Max Mara, Armani and many more.

Helen will also sell your good quality items for 50/50 commission. The agency can price the items for you making sure nothing is sold below your reserve price. The items are offered for sale for an initial 8-10 week period. If they are not sold, you can collect them or the agency donate to Cancer Research UK who collect from them once a week.

If you are looking for something special to wear please call in for a browse, Helen and her staff are happy to help you. Take a look at the store’s Facebook page as well as their Instagram & Twitter feeds to find out more.

Helen BarnecuttSmart Exchanges Clothing Agency www.facebook.com/smartexchangestruro

01872 276433 5

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For close on a century and a half, Truro High has been offering top quality education for girls and many of them have gone on to achieve outstanding success in a wide variety of fields. This term, High Days talks to Old Girl Leander Richards (THS 2006 - 2010) who, having found a passion for design during her time at school, has embarked on a career transforming the interiors of Cornwall’s homes.

An eye for design

For many a house is just that, ‘a house’, a place that provides basic necessities and shelter, but for myself I have always thrived on the history, architectural design and the meaning a home holds for families. This passion has translated into a career, which I would love to share with you, and how Truro High helped start me off on the journey to follow my creative passion.

Although you can study Interior Design, I feel that a ‘good eye’ cannot be taught, and the ability to pull colours, layouts and textures together is individual to each designer, meaning everyone has a different style and appeal to clients, and therefore makes the industry so interesting and broad.

Left to right: Leander’s latest project - the total refurbishment of a stunning two bedroom cottage nestled in the woodland of Bodmin Moor; Owner of Cornwall Interiors and Old Girl Leander Richards

Once graduated, I took the leap to set up my own business - Cornwall Interiors - having worked for my parent’s soft furnishings business, Linterior Design, from the age of 16. I kept getting asked if they covered full Project Management and Interior Design. I therefore saw the opportunity to work alongside their business and be able to cover all aspects of the Interior Design process, operating as a sister company.

We are very lucky in Cornwall to have a unique market of second homeowners alongside a large holiday let market and many hotels. This is a big percentage of our client base, as well as covering lovely private homes, for local owners. We design simple one-room scheme boards, through to full project management, with no project too

small, tailored to each individual client. We place an importance on craftsmanship and quality of all goods specified, with a meticulous attention to finishing.

A huge inspiration on my journey was my Textiles teacher at Truro High, Mrs Wieringa. Her lessons were always exciting, and she helped me understand that the world needs creative souls, as well as doctors and lawyers, and gave me the confidence to pursue a career in the creative industry. I would like to say a big thank you to Mrs. Wieringa and to Truro High for helping mould me into the Interior Designer I am today!

Leander RichardsCornwall Interiors - Interior Design & Project Management www.cornwallinteriors.com

Would you like to share your your career expertise, and the story of how you got there, with other Old Girls? If so please send the details to Marianne at oldgirls@trurohigh.co.uk

An incredible journey Down Under We love hearing about the amazing adventures the women in our close-knit community embark on. This month you can read all about the extraordinary journey former Deputy Head Girl Ellen Rodda (THS 2008 - 2015) took as her studies in Classical Civilisation led her to the Eastern coast of Australia.

Since leaving the High School, life has already been quite an adventure: from moving out of home to having my own student radio show, university was proving to be everything that I wanted it to be. However, when the offer of a year exchange at Monash University in Melbourne came to my doorstep, I would have been a fool to let it pass me by. So, on 8 July 2017, I hopped on a plane to Australia, nervously anticipating everything in front of me; what would the people be like? How am I going to deal with the heat? And most importantly…What if Vegemite is better than Marmite?!

As soon as I got out of the airport however, I was wowed by how vast and vibrant Melbourne is. The city is argued to be the cultural capital of Australia and in my first few days of exploring, I could see why. Nearly every street has a secret side street, where some of the world’s most famous graffiti artists have left their tags. As a vegetarian, I couldn’t have chosen a better place to settle as the foodie culture out here is so much bigger than anything I had seen at home. The same can be said for the wine: The Yarra Valley is not far from the city and has some amazing vineyards. I would definitely bring some bottles back, if customs weren’t so tight!

I knew there was so much of this varied country that I wanted to see, and I was lucky enough to make friends who wanted to travel it with me. Flights are definitely the most efficient way to travel around this huge country, but unfortunately, they are not the kindest to a student budget. As a quick solution, we often opted to road-trip it out, using kooky coloured campers from a company called “Wicked Campers”. We definitely stood out wherever we went; even the wombats took a liking to our van, deciding to scratch their backs on it in the middle of the night, waking us up and scaring us half to death! On that topic the animals out here are definitely a lot scarier than those found in Cornwall… Shark alarms go off on beaches if one is spotted by the lifeguard’s helicopter and huntsman spiders have been found crawling around our residential kitchens on warmers days (they are harmless, but are as big as your face).

Despite these scary animals, the human residents of Australia have been nothing but fun: I was really made to feel welcome when I arrived in my hall on the first day and in fact have made more Australian and international friends than British ones. This was one of my main aims upon travelling here and is the reason I think that every student should go on an exchange if they get the chance: making connections all over the world helps you to learn outside of your comfort zone and experience other people’s stories…It is definitely going to be hard leaving those friends in June but, hey, at least I have places to stay in Sydney, New York and Helsinki (to name a few)!

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Some people questioned my motives in wanting to head down under, arguing that it would not be much of a culture shock in any sense. Having now lived here for 7 months, I would beg to differ: Australia has a huge “work hard, play harder” culture and in this, they take everything in their stride and simply enjoy the ride. In the UK, I sometimes feel that everyone is so work-driven and money motivated, that we don’t lift our heads up from the grindstone to enjoy the view. Australians would hate to live their life that way, and are always so keen to try new things and push their physical limits; I reckon some of that must have rubbed off on me, as I can now tick both a bungey jump and a skydive off my list!

This exchange has helped me to find a better balance within myself and I am hopeful to put that into practise for my final year. I have made so many great memories and, although I miss my family and friends, am dreading the end of my trip coming so soon! So, to anyone in the school who is contemplating a year abroad, my advice to you is simply this: Do it!

…But please remember to buy plug adapters before you go because, trust me, they are a nightmare to find on the other side!

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Old Girls’ EventsClass of ’87 Reunion The corridors echoed to the sound of shrieks of laughter as 35 of our Old Girls returned to school, 30 years after they last left. The lunch was the latest in the school’s series of reunions and gave the visitors the chance to swap stories and catch up on three decades of news.

Old Girls head back to school Some of our Old Girls who didn’t get enough the first time round came back to school last term and took the rare opportunity to experience first-hand what has changed since they were last here. Amongst the crowd were best friends returning to school for the first time in 30 years and mothers whose daughters have followed in their footsteps to Truro High – all past pupils of Cornwall’s top girls school. Best friends Alicia Sullivan (nee Sowell) and Rachel Siviter hadn’t visited the school since they left in the mid-eighties, and were delighted to experience life and learning at Truro High 30 years on. Rachel said: “The atmosphere of the place hasn’t changed, it feels just like it did when I was here. I had such a good time at school and it really feels like the girls are still having that same experience.”

Catching up with the Class of ’09

Travelling from Cornwall, London, Manchester and even as far as Dubai, Old Girls from the class of 2009 celebrated in style as they got together this winter for one of their regular reunions. Since leaving Cornwall’s top school nearly a decade ago, the ladies have gone on to a huge range of exciting careers all across the world. The group counts amongst its ranks an actuary, primary teacher, secondary science teacher, recruitment consultant, accountant, various business owners, engineer, vet and also quite few doctors, who sent their apologies for absence on this occasion.

25th Anniversary Reunion Catching up with old school friends over two decades down the line is always an exciting prospect, so former pupils who left the school between 1990 and 1992 were overjoyed to join us for a sensational summer celebration for their 25th Anniversary Reunion. Our Old Girls travelled from near and far to take this rare opportunity to catch up with their former classmates and there was plenty of laughter and smiles as they rekindled fond memories of their schooldays and got up-to-date with everyone’s news.

Want to celebrate with school friends and see how much has changed?

Whether it’s a celebratory lunch, canapés and cocktails or even a special one-off workshop with one of our resident artists, chefs or engineers, we have a huge range of tailored events on offer to give you the chance to catch up with former classmates and have an utterly fabulous time along the way. To find out more about organising a truly special get-together please do contact our Development Officer, Fiona Osman by emailing development@trurohigh.co.uk or call 01872 242903.

Speech Day will see Lieutenant Colonel Lucy Giles, the first female College Commander at Sandhurst, take to the stage to inspire our community as guest of honour.

Lieutenant Colonel Giles is an officer in the British Army's Royal Logistics Corps and made headlines when she became the first woman to be made commander at Sandhurst New College Military Academy in its 300-year history.

She took command of New College at the world famous military institution and has been hailed as a role model for other

female members of the armed forces. Lieutenant

Since her history-making appointment in 2015, she has been humbled to receive an entry into the Debretts’ People of the Day in 2016 and was the winner of the ‘Inspirational’ and ‘Woman of the Year’ awards at the inaugural Women in Defence event in the same year.

Founder’s Day will also champion the incredible achievements of women today as we welcome award-winning photographer and founder of the First Women Project Anita Corbin as guest of honour.

Anita will offer a fascinating insight into her unique collection of 100 portraits which captures women in the UK who were “first” in their field of achievement. The portraits aim to provide inspiration and insight for a new generation of women seeking an understanding of their own roles in a rapidly changing world in which equality is still an issue.

Founder’s Day will take place on Thursday 22 March at 2.30pm whilst Thursday 5 July will see us celebrating Speech Day. Don’t forget to save the dates and join us in Truro Cathedral to celebrate the importance of putting ‘girls first’ in everything they do.

High profile guests to celebrate putting ‘Girls First’ at Truro High This year’s Speech Day and Founder’s Day are set to be inspiring celebrations of putting ‘girls first’ in everything they do with high profile guests lined up for both events.

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Please do get in touch

If you’ve moved on to pastures new, started a new job, graduated, retired, got into university, had a baby, had a grandchild or just climbed Mount Everest then we would love to hear from you!

Would you like to share your career wisdom with our community? Have you been recognised as excelling in a specialist area?

Want to share stories about an exciting journey or travels to distant parts of the world? Have you taken part in an amazing feat of daring for charity or just for fun?

Whether it is exciting news such as this or even your memories of Truro High School, we would love to hear about it.

Let us know at oldgirls@trurohigh.co.uk so that we can share this with others in the Newsletter.

Photos with any articles would be very much appreciated.

Our Old Girls’ Association is a thriving and vibrant body through which past pupils can keep in touch and be up-to-date with everyone’s latest news.

Chairman Sue Dowding (nee Webb)

Vice Chairman Helen Corrigan (nee Fogarty)

Treasurer Sarah Clarke (nee Jenkins)

Meetings Secretary Bridget Cook (nee Waters)

Database Secretary Marianne Inskip (nee Petersen)

Archives Daphne Ruddiman (nee Stearn)

Committee Harriet Andrew (nee Hancock)

Janet Bell (nee Reed)

Angela Brock (nee Crabb)

Judith Hancock (nee Pike)

Sue Holman (nee Betty)

Diana Nelson (nee Martin)

Anneliese Polkinghorne (nee Cocks)

Clare Harris

Our team

Truro High Update

Nearly 500 children from schools across Cornwall got the chance to meet Dr Imber as she led hands-on workshops and lectures on space science. As well as introducing pupils to the fascinating world of astrophysics, the scientist spoke about the journey that led her to win the BBC’s search to find the best candidate to send to outer space.Dr Imber, who is an associate professor in space physics at Leicester University, triumphed over 11 other contestants to win the BBC’s ‘Astronauts: Do you

have what it takes?’ programme.She was put through a series of gruelling tests by former astronaut Commander Chris Hadfield, who was so impressed by her performance that he has formally recommended her to join the European Space Agency.  Hoping to inspire the public to match her success, Dr Imber is touring the UK to talk about her experiences and to promote space exploration. Truro High was the only school in the county to host the would-be astronaut on her visit to Cornwall, which also saw her visiting Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station. 

BBC Astronauts star Dr Suzie Imber touches down at Truro High Top space scientist and star of BBC Two’s ‘Astronauts: Do you have what it takes?’ Dr Suzie Imber inspired the space travellers of the future to reach for the stars when she landed at school.

“Women are underrepresented in the industry generally and, whilst it’s a difficult question to solve, I think the first step is for girls to see someone who’s a scientist and a woman – a role model who you really believe you could be in 10 years’ time. Hopefully I’m achieving

that just by standing in front of them.”BBC Astronauts star, Dr Suzie Imber

“It’s the course I’ve always wanted to do but with only a handful of places available I knew the competition would be fierce.”

Sixth Former, Eugenie

With around a one in six chance of acceptance per application, admissions to Oxford are extremely competitive. On average only 11 students from around the world take up places to read History and English at the university each year.

This year was a landmark in gender equality for Oxford which offered more places to women than men for undergraduate courses for the first time in the history of the institution.

Eugenie said: “I couldn’t believe it when I opened the offer letter – it’s the course I’ve always wanted to do but with only a handful of places available I knew the competition would be

fierce. The interview process was pretty terrifying but definitely worth it. Although I haven’t got the grades yet, I’m so excited to get this opportunity.”

Once the results of her ‘A’ Level exams are available in August, Eugenie hopes to be taking up residence at one of the university’s oldest colleges, Corpus Christi.

Offers to study at some of the country’s top universities are beginning to come in for many of the school’s Sixth Formers including Mechanical Engineering at Manchester, Natural Sciences at Durham, Music at Nottingham and History at Exeter.

Oxford’s dreaming spires call for Truro High’s Eugenie Oxford's dreaming spires are calling for Truro High Sixth Former Eugenie whose hard work has resulted in her being offered a place to read History and English at one of the world’s top universities

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Book your place today by emailing oldgirls@trurohigh.co.uk

Truro High tops the tables once again It’s official… we are delighted to announce that the Sunday Times Schools Guide 2018 has ranked us as Cornwall’s top school and well within the top 200 independent schools in the country. It’s been an exciting start to the year at the School which has also, once again, been named as the best performing provider of A Levels in Cornwall by the government’s latest annual league tables.

Truro High placed 183rd nationally in the league table published by the Times. The School was also the only educational establishment in the county to be named in the table’s list of the South West’s top 20 schools. 

Published annually, the Parent Power Schools Guide league tables identify the 2000 highest-achieving schools in the UK ranked by their recent examination results.Commenting on the news, Headmaster Dr Glenn Moodie said: “This is an absolutely fantastic achievement of which we are all tremendously proud. It highlights the hard work put in by the girls and their teachers and is a well deserved reflection of their commitment. To be ranked as the only school in Cornwall in the list of the South West’s top 20 schools is a real honour and one that I hope will prove useful to parents when it comes to choosing the right school for their children.”“Given that we also offer a diverse and comprehensive programme of extra-curricular activities, the new ranking is the icing on the cake in our endeavours to provide the best all-round education to girls.”

There was even more good news to come when the latest government league tables were published this January, and Truro High was rated as the highest-performing school or college in Cornwall for its A Level value added score, highest grades and overall point score of 40.9.The league tables list an impressive number of accolades for the school including:• The highest A Level grade and points score for any school or college in Cornwall• Cornwall’s top educational establishment for the amount of progress made by pupils at A Level with figures ‘well above’ the national average• Ranked in the top 5% of schools and colleges in the country for value-added at A Level• Top out of all schools and colleges countywide for grades achieved by pupils in their three best A Levels subjects The news rounds off a fantastic year at the school which achieved a 100% pass rate at A Level with the number of passes at the very top grade more than double the national average. Pupils also celebrated an impressive crop of GCSE results with almost half of all passes achieved at the top grades of A*/A or equivalent.

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To book your place please email Contact us by emailing oldgirls@trurohigh.co.uk