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LWC News

  • 16 October 2024

  • Issue: 10

Welcome to LWC News

 

Dear Parents and Guardians,

 

Half-term is here!

 

It’s been a whirlwind start to the school year at LWC and as you’ll see from this week’s issue, the campus will still be buzzing throughout the two-week break, as we play host to a variety of visitors.

 

For now though, you can look back on the last six weeks with our Heads of College, Grace and Jensen. Also in this issue, we explore LWC’s international community of students and staff, spend a night wild-camping with 2nd Form and learn why our Artist in Residence, Mark Spray feels a connection to the 1200.

 

Have a restful break and keep your comments and contributions coming via stories@lordwandsworth.org

Calendar & Sports Schedule

The school calendar can be viewed using the link below:

  LWC Calendar  

The school sports calendar can be viewed using the link below:

  LWC Sports Calendar  

Please view the Sports Weekly Schedule here:

  Sports Weekly Schedule  

As arrangements can sometimes change due to factors outside of our control, we recommend checking the calendar routinely.

LWC-2023-05-24-0121

News

Heads of College….

 

It’s been 1,032 hours or 43 days since the start of the new LWC academic school year (Sinead O’Connor’s version was almost certainly catchier). This year’s Heads of College, Grace and Jensen have been looking back at their first six weeks and what led them to their positions in the first place.

 

“I applied to be Head of College because I felt that I’d benefitted so much from LWC’s support and encouragement,” Grace explained. “I know who I am because I was given the space to figure it out for myself and I wanted to give back to the school.”

 

Jensen’s route to becoming HoC may have differed to Grace’s, but his motivation to apply was similarly altruistic: “I was always inspired by the Heads of College who were Foundationers, because I’m a Foundationer myself. I wanted to give other Foundationers the understanding that their circumstances or background may be different, but they can still achieve and make the most of opportunities at school.”

 

So now they’ve both been in place for a half-term, how have they found it? “The first few weeks have been really rewarding,” Jensen enthused. “It’s shown me that the more I put into the role, the more I will get out of it.” Grace revealed, “I was pretty intimidated by the idea of having to sit on the stage in assembly to begin with, but it’s definitely helped to improve my confidence. I never thought I’d say this, but I’ve really enjoyed writing and giving speeches because I’ve been able to talk about the things I really care about and share some of my experiences.”

 

And what of balancing the responsibility with their Upper Sixth workload? “We get a lot of support from teachers,” admitted Jensen. “Many of them understand that we’re still students first and our A-levels are still a priority. This means we’re not overloaded with other tasks. They’re always happy to offer their support.”

HEADS OF COLLEGE HALF TERM 5

A Legend-ary Performance by Hazelveare

 

Hazelveare emerged victorious at last week’s Interhouse Music, with Park coming second and Gosden tying with Sutton for third.

 

All of the houses put on a stunning show that lit up Sutton Hall and featured eclectic and rousing performances.

 

Hazelveare’s Thomas performed a spectacular rendition of Chopin’s Fantasie-Impromptu on the piano, followed by a fantastic ensemble piece by Oscar, Jamie and Josh with Piazzolla’s Libertango. The Hazelveare offering was rounded off by their whole-house version of John Legend’s Love Me Again to seal the win.

 

We’re very grateful to Director of Music at Edgeborough School, Holly Cowan who was guest adjudicator. Holly told us, “It was a truly joyful and inspiring event to be involved with. The warmth and comradery of the pupils was evident from the way they supported one another and I was impressed by the musicianship shown. The only tricky part was having to declare a winner!”

 

LWC Director of Music, Aaron Parker added, “Interhouse Music highlighted the wealth of musical talent that we have at Lord Wandsworth. Student Heads of House and Deputy Heads of House take the lead in the organisation of this, which gives them excellent leadership experience and encourages a sense of collaboration and creativity within the boarding houses.”

INTERHOUSE MUSIC OCT 24 14

Uniting Nations

 

LWC welcomes students from around the world, which is why next week’s United Nations Day holds particular significance. The day (on 24th October) marks the anniversary of the UN’s inception back in 1945. Since then, the organisation has become a symbol of global unity and now comprises 193 member states.

 

A number of those states are represented here at LWC by both staff and students. “Originally, I come from Bulgaria,” explained Upper Sixth Former, Hristo. “I came to study here because I felt the quality of education and teaching was better. There are amazing landscapes and beautiful buildings here in the UK.”

 

The quality of a British education was also appealing to Lower Sixth Former, Anne from Korea. “I wanted to experience something different, outside of my familiar environment,” she said. “I love the architecture, but the weather is worse than I had expected!”

 

Head of English at LWC, Chris Radmann had a very different motivation for leaving his home nation of South Africa in the nineties. “After my brother was car-jacked at gun point and too many of our friends and family experienced some form of violent crime, we considered moving to somewhere safer,” he revealed. “When we got here, we loved the polite UK drivers, efficient postal service and discovered the joys of a rich tea, cream teas, BLT’s and a pulled pint!”

 

Mr Radmann continued; “I was used to teaching very academic, polite, enthusiastic pupils in South Africa – and having moved 5,000 miles to a different hemisphere, I am still teaching Shakespeare, Keats and Donne to academically enthused, very polite pupils.”

 

LWC may be home now, but what do our international contingent miss about their home countries? “Family, friends and my dogs,” explained Hristo. “but I am used to it now.” Anne similarly explained that she misses mealtimes with parents and hanging out with friends. “But there’s more emphasis in the UK on individual independence and autonomy,” she added. “We’re encouraged to ask questions and students are expected to think critically and express their opinions.” Meantime, for Mr Radmann, “We feel at home here. I miss the scalp-tingling heat of the African sun and the drama of a thunderstorm. But we can buy biltong and boerewors just down the road, and Springbok rugby is in reasonable shape.”

 

You can read more about the opportunities offered to international students at LWC here

UN 6

Tolu on Top

 

When 2nd Former Tolu talks about football, her face breaks into a beaming smile.

 

“My team is Arsenal,” she explains. “I’d love to play for Arsenal Women one day.”

 

Striker, Tolu would make the likes of Alessia Russo and Beth Mead proud, having now been selected for the Under 13 Girls A Team in the Prep Schools’ Lions Squad.

 

The selection follows trials at Wellington College earlier this month. “My teacher, Miss Bowers told me about the trial. I then went and played my football,” said Tolu. But the game has begun to face some stiff competition in Tolu’s affections. “I’ve started doing a lot more sport since coming to LWC,” she revealed. “Football is still my main sport, but I think athletics is coming into the picture a bit more. I’ve been doing well at sprinting.”

 

LWC Head of Football, Georgia Bowers added: “It’s an amazing achievement for Tolu to be picked for the Lions representative squad and we’re immensely proud of her. She’ll get a chance to showcase her talent and passion against some of the best academy teams in the country and in the prestigious Gothia Cup next summer.”

TOLU 3

PSHEE Focus Days

 

PSHEE is an invaluable way of giving our children an understanding of the world in which they live.

 

This week, students across LWC have been taking part in PSHEE Focus Days. 3rd to Upper Sixth have been learning about consent, with two lawyers from the Schools Consent Project.

 

Voicebox led a workshop on healthy masculinity and gender equality for 1st-3rd Form and 2nd Formers were transported into a mock court room in Gavin Hall by All Rise Workshops.

 

A solicitor led a mock trial to judge the guilt of a defendant, with students assuming the roles of all concerned from barristers and court reporters, to witnesses and members of the jury.

PSHEE COURTROOM 2ND FORM 6

Forge-ing Ahead…

 

Wearing full PPE isn’t a usual prerequisite for a school trip….but LWC isn’t your ‘usual’ school.

 

A group of Lower Sixth Design and Technology students were fortunate enough to get an introduction to blacksmithing at Parmenter Forge near Hook last week.

 

Ian Parmenter is a renowned teacher, having spent his career in the industry, since training at the British Army’s Royal School of Military Engineering.

 

He was on hand to teach students about working with metals and heat before they each produced a piece of their own work.

 

The experience was integral to their knowledge-building around working with different materials.

BLACKSMITHING 1

2nd Form Sleeps Out!

 

From one trip with a difference to another….

 

Straight after Interhouse Music last week, 2nd Form headed up to the copse behind Sutton House to spend the night under the stars.

 

“It started and ended pretty much in darkness,” explained Junior Houseparent, Pete Maidment. “It was also super-cold overnight but that didn’t dampen spirits. The s’mores and hot chocolate at bedtime were an absolute highlight.”

 

You can read more about the Junior House experience and Mr Maidment’s new-found love of wild camping here.

JUNIOR SLEEPOUT OCT 24 2

Supporting our Local Community….

 

Thank you for your contributions to the Harvest Festival collections running across all boarding houses.

 

Each year, LWC supports the Basingstoke Food Bank by collecting items that can be distributed to families in need.

 

Last year, we managed to collect a phenomenal 600 kilos of food.

 

The items will now be collected and delivered to the food bank. You can find out more about the incredible work it does here.

 

HARVEST FEST 1

Recognising the Remarkable

 

It may be half term next week, but the LWC campus will continue to be a hive of activity.

 

Three camps are being hosted by the College (details below) and on Thursday (24th October) we are honoured to provide the setting for His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Hampshire Awards 2024.

 

The ceremony is a formal and prestigious event that recognises those who demonstrate the volunteer ethos, whilst at the same time building county-wide relationships.

 

This year, there will be 19 Meritorious Service Awards presented by HM Lord Lieutenant, Nigel Atkinson, Esq, one Best Reservist of the Year Award and five Lord Lieutenant’s Cadets will be appointed. The latter come from the Combined Cadet Force and each of the community Cadet Forces and will have the opportunity to support the Lord Lieutenant on official engagements throughout the year.

 

A spokesperson for the SERFCA (Reserve Forces and Cadets Association for the South East) added: “We are incredibly grateful to Lord Wandsworth College for allowing us to host the event there this year.”

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON www.stphotos.co.uk

Lending LWC Support…

 

There are nine student-led committees here at LWC, tackling everything from mental health to gender equality and neurodiversity to the environment.

 

The Charity Committee have now come together to decide on the organisation they would like to support over the course of the autumn term.

 

“We have chosen the national young carers charity, Honeypot”, explained committee member and Upper Sixth Former, Emily. “It helps to provide respite breaks for children between the ages of 5 and 12 who have to care for a parent whilst in full time education. As a charity, they receive no Government funding and so the donations from LWC will be hugely appreciated.”

 

The Charity Committee plans to donate the proceeds from the next non-uniform day to the organisation, along with the money generated from other fundraising ideas between now and Christmas.

CHARITY COMM 3

Aiming High…

 

It’s the first year that LWC has entered the SnS National Netball Knockout and three of our four sides taking part have now made it through to the next round.

 

The U18, U15 and U13 teams have all progressed, much to the delight of LWC Head of Netball and Girls’ Sport, Poppy Lake: “The girls have played some brilliant netball and showed resilience and determination,” she said. “We can clearly see that their training is paying off, as they implemented lots of training elements into their games.”

 

We look forward to seeing how the girls get on in the knockout run after half-term!

NETBALL TOURN 4

Baked to Perfection…

 

Nearly 80 per cent of us bake at home and we’ve been encouraged to embrace the joy of baking during National Baking Week this week.

 

LWC students need little encouragement to embrace the freshly baked goods on offer in Julyans every day. Head Chef, Roger Cole is clear about which cakes and biscuits are quickest to fly out.

 

“Our most popular is always our chocolate brownie,” explains Roger. “Second is Mississippi Mud Cake,” (chocolate cake, topped with marshmallows and chocolate icing) “and the third is definitely our cookies.”

Pile of Delicious Chocolate Brownies

Season of Mists…

 

The 1200 acres look glorious in all seasons and the autumn morning light fell beautifully across the rugby pitches this week, as students made their way to Sutton Hall for assembly.

 

If you have a great photo of the 1200, we’d love to see it via stories@lordwandsworth.org.

STUDENTS WALKING 3

Unveiling LWC’s Artist in Residence

Imagine spending five years living outdoors in the pursuit of your work.

 

We’re talking all year round, in all weathers, for the sake of your art.

 

“It was phenomenal,” admits LWC’s new Artist in Residence, Mark Spray. He would know, having spent half a decade in the wilds of Cornwall in order to create his collection, The Long Silences.

 

“I’ve had experiences that I can’t explain, that are beyond my understanding of the world. I slept on a pier outside Newlyn for three days and was completely shrowded in mist. Nobody saw me for that time on the end of the pier, watching and observing that balance between two elements of water…the sea, the mist and the colours that mix between the two. It was just incredible.”

 

After half-term, Mark will begin his residency at LWC; a place he feels a firm affinity for. “There are things that I feel on this site, which is why I agreed to come and do this residency. There’s something within the geology of this place, within the set-up of the landscape. If I didn’t connect with it, I wouldn’t agree to do a commissioned piece here. I wouldn’t be able to tap into that ‘other’ that feeds into what I’m doing. Lord Wandsworth sits really comfortably with me in terms of otherness.”

 

Mark will spend three weeks working alongside students at LWC. He will also exhibit his collection, The Long Silences in the Prideaux Gallery between Tuesday 5th and Saturday 23rd November. On Friday, 8th November, all are welcome to a private viewing of the collection as poet, Mark Goodwin accompanies him, reciting the words he has written as a response.

 

For parents inspired to find their own artistic voice, Mark will then lead a workshop at the LWC Art School from 10am until 4pm on Saturday, 9th November. A limited number of places are available here.

 

Mark’s time at LWC will culminate in a commissioned piece for the College. “I want it to be about trees,” he admits. “Lord Wandsworth is over a hundred years old and some of the trees here will have been a similar size to the size they are now, whilst all of the students who have ever been through this school have been here…. I love the idea that we meet everyone’s gaze through looking at a tree.”

 

When asked how he hopes to help the students he works with at LWC, Mark is quick to point out: “I never want to inspire anyone to try and emulate my voice. It’s got to be about them finding their voice. It’s about triggering something in them to find that voice.”

 

We look forward to hearing those voices, when Mark joins us in November.

 

You can read the full article here.

 

School Photos….

 

Parents have until next Thursday (24th October) to take advantage of the exclusive prices offered for whole school, house and prefect photos.

 

You can access all via The School Photography Company, by clicking on the following links:

 

Whole School Photo

 

House Photos

 

Prefect Photos

Half-Term Camps….

 

We have three camps running over the half-term break and all are open to LWC students.

 

Next Level Camps are here from Monday, 28th October-Friday, 1st November offering children between the ages of 4 and 14 a variety of activities. To book or find more information, click here or email. LWC staff and parents should use the code VNB707 at the checkout for 20% off.

 

From Monday 28th to Wednesday 30th October, Activate Camps is running a three-day hockey camp for 8-16 year olds. Bookings can be made here.

 

And Pentathlon GB South is running a 2-day pentathlon camp for 8-16 year olds on Thursday, 31st October and Friday, 1st November between 9.30am and 3.30pm. Beginners are welcome alongside more experienced pentathletes. More details can be found and bookings made, here.

Understanding the Sporting Calendar…

 

At this stage in the term, you’re hopefully a little more familiar with our wide and varied sports schedule.

 

If you need some assistance to navigate the information you need, LWC Director of Sport, Mr Singh and Head of Girls’ Sport, Miss Lake have put together a handy visual guide.

 

Here you will find details on how to view fixtures and team sheets, along with guidance on squad selection and kit requirements:

  LWC Sport Guide for Parents      

Key Dates

Half Term

4pm Friday, 18 October – Sunday, 3rd November (Boarders return from 6pm)


Mark Spray Exhibition – The Long Silences, Prideaux Gallery

Tuesday, 5th November – Saturday, 23rd November


Remembrance Service

Monday, 11 November


Autumn Term Sports Photos

Wednesday, 13 November


LWC Music Department in Concert, Nadine Uppal Theatre

7-9pm, Thursday, 14th November


LWC Connect Networking Drinks, The Castle Pub, Farnham

7-9pm, Thursday 14th November


Parental Engagement Programme Webinar led by Alicia Drummond: Parenting Teenagers; Relationships, Consent and Porn 

7-8.30pm, Tuesday 19th November 


Student-Led Cabaret Evening, Gavin Hall

7-9pm, Thursday, 21st November


Exeat Weekend and Non-Uniform Day

Exeat begins from 4pm Friday, 22 November


Carols and Christmas Market

Thursday, 12th December


End of Autumn Term

Noon, Friday, 13th December