Gold CAP Award for the Continuous Advancement Programme (CAP).

Following in the footsteps of the College Catering team, who have won six successive Gold CAP Awards, the Housekeeping and Cleaning team of 25, including staff from partner contractor, Nightingales, have also achieved the Gold standard.

The CAP Awards are only presented to organisations who meet the highest standards in housekeeping in the catering and hospitality industry. The College underwent an unannounced assessment earlier this month scoring 91.4% for cleanliness and compliance. The benchmark level for Gold is 75%.

Having reorganised their cleaning operation, a process which has taken almost two years due to the number of locations across the College campus, the Housekeeping team, led by Facilities Manager, Tim Hanks will now be working on areas where they must improve in order to demonstrate the continuous advancement to achieve gold again next year.

Assistant Bursar, Greg Stewart said, “The whole College community is extremely proud of what our housekeepers and Nightingales have collectively achieved. Along with the Gold Awards for catering already received, it demonstrates our commitment to and the great pride we take in the manner in which we look after our pupils and staff.”

the Youth Olympic Games in Argentina.

Bishop’s Stortford College Sixth Former and 2016 Olympic swimmer Elinah Phillip, will be competing in the Youth Olympic Games in Argentina in October after winning three Silver medals at the CARIFTA (Caribbean Free Trade Association) Swimming Championships. Elinah represented the British Virgin Islands at the event held in Kingston, Jamaica, 31st March – 3rd April.

Competing against other 15-17 year olds, Elinah won Silver in each of the three events she entered: 50m long course Freestyle event (26.29 seconds), the 100m LC Freestyle event (58.98 seconds) and the 50m LC Butterfly event (28.29 seconds).

Elinah beat the times she achieved in the 2017 CARIFTA Swimming Championships, where she won two Silver medals, finishing the 50m Freestyle in 26.77 and the 100m Freestyle event in a time of 59.62.

Head of Swimming, Deborah Huggett commented, “This is another fantastic achievement for Elinah. She is very dedicated to both her training and her academic studies – it’s wonderful to see the balance our Elite Sports Programme affords in action.”

This was the 33rd CARIFTA Championship, featuring 335 swimmers from 21 different countries.

celebrating another year of success as the latest statistics for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme are published. Of the 98 DoE centres in Hertfordshire the College has the highest number of enrolments in Independent Schools, the highest number of awards gained in Independent Schools and the highest completion rate, 88%, in the Broxbourne, East Herts and Welwyn/Hatfield quadrant.

These stats come hot on the heels of an invitation sent to 23 pupils to receive their Gold Award at Buckingham Palace on 17th May.

Gill Lynch, DoE Co-ordinator at the College commented, “I’m delighted with our highest ever completion rate of 88%. Undertaking the D of E Award is a challenge requiring commitment and determination but it is one that has been embraced wholeheartedly by College pupils. I’m incredibly proud of their success, both personally, and across the County.”

of 16 hockey players (10 boys and 6 girls) from Bishop’s Stortford College competed with the best 8 teams in the country as part of the National U16 Club Hockey Finals, held at Beeston HC in Nottingham.

Head of Boys’ Hockey, Charlie Bannister and Head of Girls’ Hockey, Nick Prowse are delighted with the progress the players have made since they arrived at the College. Graham Brooks, Deputy Head and a Hockey coach commented, “It is an extraordinary achievement to see so many College players taking part in a national finals. Playing at this level and at their age speaks volumes for the development of hockey players at the College”. Whilst neither the boys nor the girls made it through to the final, their very presence at the event, along with teams that contained England U16s and other Regional players, speaks volumes for their skill levels.”  Many of the other clubs at the competition are amongst the biggest and most successful in the country with, in some cases, hundreds of players to choose from. Many of these teams are resourced by multiple elite hockey school feeders.

In the finals, the girls played for a very strong Cambridge City Hockey Club side and they played some superb hockey winning 1, drawing 1 and losing 1.  In the key game against Sevenoaks (L0-1), they conceded a heart-breaking early goal, recovering well to dominate the game but were unable to convert their overwhelming pressure into goals.  In the end they came 3rd in their group, missing out on a place in the final stages by just one point, which left them 5/6th in the country. An outstanding achievement.

The boys in turn played for the Bishop’s Stortford Hockey Club and with as many as 12 of 16 players coming from the College (2 were to miss the finals due to holiday clashes) the close College links proved vital in the boys playing superbly as a team.  Although the boys lost all three games, each was a very close affair and involved end to end hockey.  Ultimately the boys’ lack of an out and out goal scorer meant they were unable to turn promising territory and possession into goals.  Nevertheless, given the majority of players were drawn from one school, their ability to compete at this level speaks volumes for the importance of teamwork and understanding as part of sporting success.

With the regional trials being conducted over the next few months we wish all the pupils every success as they try to become the next group of Saxon Tigers and hopefully England players.

near Norwich.

On Sunday 22nd April Bishop’s Stortford College pupil Freddy Cooke was selected to play for Hertfordshire in the East of England Regional U15s Hockey Tournament at Harleston Hockey Club, near Norwich.

The Hertfordshire team won their first three matches; Essex (3-0), Cambridgeshire (1-0 – the winning penalty flick being scored by Freddy) and Lincolnshire (2-1).  Going into their final two games, Hertfordshire needed just one more win to retain their title as East of England Regional U15 Champions. The penultimate match against Norfolk was gruelling; at half time, Hertfordshire were 1-0 up but went on to lose the game 2-1.

The final match against Suffolk was therefore crucial and the boys needed nothing less than a win and three points to secure the Championship.  At half time the score was 1-0 to Suffolk, but Hertfordshire came out all guns blazing in the second half. A well worked short corner gave them their first goal and then a fantastic individual effort by Freddy Cooke, dribbling past four Suffolk players in their ‘D’, rounding the keeper and flicking the ball high into the open Suffolk net took the lead 2-1. Freddy then went on to score a second goal, to bring the score line to 3-1. In the dying seconds the team scored their fourth and final goal to complete the comeback and secure a well-deserved tournament victory for the second year running.

Well done to everyone who took part.

at the Rotary Young Musician of the Year Competition.

Bishop’s Stortford College’s Music Department is celebrating once again. Recently two Sixth Form students have gain coveted awards and College musicians also gave excellent performances at the Rotary Young Musician of the Year Competition.

On Thursday 22nd March, Sixth Form student Scott Hextall, was examined for the Associate of the Royal Schools of Music (ARSM) Performance Diploma. This intense and challenging qualification requires each candidate to prepare a 30 minute programme during which they are assessed on their musical communication skills, interpretation and technical delivery. The difficulty of this diploma surpasses that of a Grade 8 examination demanding an incredibly high level of musicianship and maturity.

Scott gave an exceptional clarinet performance, earning him a distinction with a score of 47/50 (the ARSM rarely scores above 90%). An outstanding achievement.

During the Easter break another of the College’s most prominent instrumentalists, Christopher Wilkin, successfully auditioned for a prestigious Music Scholarship at Imperial College, London. Chris auditioned on the cello performing Fauré’s Papillons and Shoshtakovich’s First Movement of the Cello Concerto; two very demanding pieces. Although Christopher will be studying Physics for his degree, this scholarship means he will be able to receive instrumental lessons at the Royal College of Music for the duration of his course.

On Saturday 21st April, the College hosted the annual Rotary Young Musician of the Year Competition, featuring over 100 entries from pupils at various local schools including Bishop’s Stortford College. Across the five disciplines of Piano, Brass, Woodwind, Strings and Vocal, entrants were divided into three age groups; Junior, Intermediate and Senior. In the final round of the competition, 7 of the 15 finalists were from Bishop’s Stortford College; Ishani M, Lewis W and James D won the Piano, Strings and Brass Junior Categories respectively, whilst Emma H, Fifi D and Charlie E won the Piano, Vocal and Brass Intermediate categories.  Performers in the Senior Category also displayed impressive musical qualities and technical control and although not the final winner, Scott Hextall played with great skill and musicality.

Iago Núñez, Senior School Music Teacher commented, “Many congratulations to all the performers involved who helped make this such a wonderful celebration of music. We are looking forward to welcoming back Rotary International next year and to once more use this as a platform for our College musicians to compete and play with a wide variety of pupils from other schools.”

offers.

Since last October, offers from some of the UK’s top universities have been arriving in the mailboxes of College students with 85% of this year’s Upper Sixth currently holding 4 or more offers (50% with all 5) and 100% of pupils receiving offers.

84% of pupils are holding an offer from one or more of the 24 Russell Group, research intensive universities which includes Durham, Exeter, Manchester, UCL, Newcastle and Bristol.

8 pupils have also received offers for Medicine and from Oxford and Cambridge Universities to study subjects including Economics and Management, Law, Chemistry and Maths.

As pupils make their final preparations for the A Level examinations, the Sixth Form team, Tutors and the Higher Education & Careers staff are advising on firm and insurance choices, gap years and the all-important revision to secure the best grades.

and author of The Bolds children’s book series, Julian Clary to the Prep School on Friday 20th April. Inspired by his lifelong love of animals, The Bolds is a collection of fabulous stories centred on the idea of what would happen if animals pretended to be like humans.

Joined by pupils from local primary schools; Summercroft, Northgate, Windhill, Albury and St Michael’s, Julian kept everyone very amused whilst reading passages from his books and showcasing his talents as an illustrator. In an interactive session with the pupils he devised a creature which was part fox, part human but had crocodile’s feet and a dog’s tail! When it then came to naming this creature, everyone in the Prep School Hall decided ‘Bob’ was the best fit. The pupils even had a virtual visit from David Roberts, Julian Clary’s own illustrator, via a link on the screen who drew the new villain Mossy the Fox, whilst Julian read aloud from his new book, The Bolds in Trouble.

In the afternoon Julian hosted a very special Book Club for College pupils in Upper and Lower Shell where they discussed with Julian and shared their opinions of the books featured in the morning session. Pupils also recounted their favourite jokes with Julian and were particularly inspired by, and very much enjoyed Julian having a go at drawing himself (even though David Roberts was much better than him).

When a pupil asked, “If you had to get rid of one of the characters from the books who would it be?” Julian responded, “Well, Uncle Tony is getting on a bit…”

The College thanks Julian for coming in and spending a fantastic day with all the pupils.

– 12 noon.

Families looking for their child’s first school (4+ years) may be interested to attend the Bishop’s Stortford College Pre-Prep Open Morning on Saturday 21st April from 9.30am – 12 noon.

The Pre-Prep Open Morning provides an opportunity for visiting families to view the facilities at the Pre-Prep and the wider College campus, including the Forest School and the outside learning areas that each classroom enjoys, as well as the indoor learning environments. Families will be able to meet the Head of Pre-Prep, Miss Belinda Callow, chat with staff and gain a feel for the Pre-Prep environment, whilst discovering the breadth of opportunities at the College. There is no need to book.

Bishop’s Stortford College Pre-Prep, caters for 4 to 7 year olds and aims to give pupils a happy, secure and purposeful start in an exciting and caring environment. The stimulating surroundings and balanced curriculum of the Pre-Prep School encourages pupils to become independent learners and creative thinkers right from the start. The Pre-Prep places emphasis on nurturing every child through their interests and uniqueness, whilst ensuring they develop the skills and attitude that opens the door to life-long learning.

Further information about Bishop’s Stortford College, specific information about the curriculum and activities within the Pre-Prep, as well as the admissions process, can be found on the College website, https://www.bishopsstortfordcollege.org/189/pre-prep-school-entry.

Munro for her performances on bassoon and Year 9 pupil, Justin Man, on the piano.

On Saturday 24th February, Ailsa was named runner-up in the District Finals of the Rotary Young Musician of the Year at Chelmsford Cathedral, with her performance of Solo de Concert Op. 35 by Gabriel Pierné, and is through to the Regional Final on Sunday 29th April. This follows her wins in the Senior Category of the Bishop’s Stortford Rotary Club competition in 2017 and the Senior Woodwind category of the College’s annual Instrumental Competition last July.

Since joining the College in September, Justin has successfully taken part in several music competitions. On 16th February he was awarded 1st prize for his performance in the U17 Piano Solo Class at the Stratford and East London Music Festival and 2nd prize in the Piano Recital class. Then on the weekend of 24th/25th February he was the youngest competitor in the “Piano Solo – 20th/21st Century (Diploma Entry Level, above Grade 8)” class in the Milton Keynes Music Festival, winning 2nd prize and a silver medal for his performance of Mira by Stephen Montague. Last November he was also awarded 1st prize in the Duet at the Beckenham Music Festival, together with (non-College) partner Tommy Wang, and 2nd prize in the Piano Recital class at Beckenham Music Festival.

Senior School Music teacher Iago Nunez commented, “We are very proud of both Ailsa and Justin and their impressive musical achievements. These two talented musicians play a big role in the music community at the College, performing in concerts and assemblies throughout the year, and we look forward to hearing them play in many more concerts in the future”.

Photo: Ailsa Munro

who also play for Cambridge City Hockey Club contributed to the Cambridge side’s U16 team win at the Regional Finals on Sunday 11th March.

In their first game against Norwich, goals from Mads N., Gabby S. and Imi S. gave them a 3-0 win. Their second game, against Amersham resulted in a 5-0 win with goals from Mads N. (2), Katie C. (2) and Tilly B. securing their qualification for Nationals.

In their final game against hosts Sudbury, the girls had a slower start but eventually found a rhythm with the first goal being scored by Gabby S. However, Sudbury then levelled the score with a penalty corner, the first goal the team had conceded this season. This concession seemed to switch the team on; Katie C. scored 2 goals and a final one from Gabby S., guaranteed the team rightly their place at the Nationals Finals in Nottingham in April.

Of the 16 ‘man’ squad, 6 are from the College: Mads N., Emelia M., Lana V., Tabby B., Imi S. and Lizzy T.

Our congratulations are extended to the entire squad as we look forward to April.

6th March.

On Tuesday 6th March, 10 schools including 31 pupils and 11 teachers gathered at Bishop’s Stortford College for the inaugural meeting of the Bishop’s Stortford Pupil Voice Network (BSPVN).

School Council representatives from Bishop’s Stortford College Prep School, Hillmead Primary, Hockerill Anglo-European College, Little Hadham Primary, Manor Fields Primary, Northgate Primary, Rickling Green Primary, St Mary’s Primary Stansted and Thorley Hill Primary were all represented with apologies from Farnham Primary.

After an introduction from the College, everyone discussed the value of having a Pupil/School Council in their setting; from the perspective of pupils, teachers, governors and the wider community. Everyone agreed that by establishing a Council in a school all pupils learn valuable life skills such as: communication, negotiation, resilience and co-operation.

Councillor Diane Hollebon was than invited to talk to the Network about the work of the Town Council, and asked the School Councillors to take part in a research activity relating to the Bishop’s Stortford Town Carnival. Feedback on pupils’ views about the Carnival will be gathered by individual Pupil Councils and shared with the Town Council in the summer.

After a unanimous vote, all the pupil and staff delegates decided they would like to meet again to celebrate the value of the Pupil Voice in their local community and agreed to meet twice yearly with different schools hosting the meetings. Themes were also suggested for future Network meetings, including ‘How to manage disappointment’ and ‘How to prioritise your time and resources effectively’.

Following the vote, a logo competition was launched so the BSPVN will have a recognisable identity. Certificates of membership were then awarded to each school, as well as an ‘Album of Excellence’ – a collated set of reports from each School/Pupil Council.

Jane Towns, the teacher leading the project at the College said, “It was a fantastic day. Prep School Pupils at the College have long had a Pupil Council Voice but to share this with other local schools and discuss common issues was really exciting. We would welcome other local schools who wish to join the network.”

The results of the logo competition will be announced in June when the Network looks forward to meeting the Mayor at the Bishop’s Stortford Town Council Chambers.

the future. The seventeen-year-old from Bishop’s Stortford is setting her sights on at least a top 10 placing in the Fyn ITU Aquathlon World Championships (U20s GB Team) and top 5 the Fyn ITU Aqua Bike World Championships (U20s GB Team). She hopes to one day fulfil her dream of becoming an elite triathlete.

Her recent achievements include 9th place Aquathlon European Championships 2017 (U20’s GB Team), age group win in AJ Bell London Triathlon Super sprint 2017, Highly Commended East Hertfordshire Young Sports Performer of the year 2017 and Walden Jnr 1st place girl (Club Championships) 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. She has also recently qualified for the 2018 Fyn ITU Cross Triathlon World Championships and the 2018 Etna ETU Winter Triathlon European Championships, however could not compete.

When asked how she manages her training schedule and A Level studies, Annabel commented, “One of the reasons I joined the College was for their Elite Sports Programme which supports my training schedule and my studies with a balanced timetable. The facilities at the College, especially the swimming pool and the gym, are superb, which means that I don’t have to travel far and can better manage my time.”

With a long list of goals and ambitions for 2018 Annabel is focussed and determined. Definitely one to watch for the future.

Additional information about Annabel

Recent Qualifications:

2018 Fyn ITU Cross Triathlon World Championships

2018 Etna ETU Winter Triathlon European Championships

Outstanding Qualifications:

2018 Fyn ITU Aqua Bike World Championships

2018 Fyn ITU Aquathlon World Championships

Goals:

Top 5 in 2018 Fyn ITU Aquathlon World Championships (U20s GB Team)

Top three in 2018 Fyn ITU Aqua Bike World Championships (U20s GB Team)

Top 3 in Eastern Region League 2018

Top 3 in Triathlon Thorpe Park World Age-Group Qualifier

Top 3 in Duathlon European Qualifier (Bedford Autodrome)

World Triathlon Championships 2019

To become an Elite Triathlete after A-levels

To become a professional world standard triathlete in the future (Focussing after A-levels)

host a series of public music recitals, thanks to the generous support of local business Hanbury Wealth.

Taking place in the Memorial Hall at the College the recitals will feature a visiting soloist or ensemble for the enjoyment of both the College community and the general public. Tickets are priced at just £10 and are free of charge for concessions.

The first recital, taking place on Thursday 8th March, will feature Cameron Smith on cello and Madelaine Jones on piano, performing pieces such as Lili Boulanger’s ‘Nocturne’ and Saint Saens’ Sonata no. 1 op. 32. The Gentlemen of St. John’s College Cambridge will follow with what promises to be an harmonious and enchanting choral concert on Wednesday 21st March, and  on Thursday 26th April, Lucy Parham will return to the College with  ‘Music on a Spring Night’ to close the series on a high note. The series will return again in the Autumn.

Chris Emery, Managing Director of Hanbury Wealth and parent at the College commented, “We were delighted to be asked to sponsor and be involved in such a prestigious series of musical events at the Bishop’s Stortford College.  As a locally based company, we feel it important to support local projects such as these and support whole heartedly the wonderful events the College brings to our town to benefit both the school and the local community.”

Tickets can be purchased via the College website https://www.bishopsstortfordcollege.org/10289/the-hanbury-wealth-recital-series.

part, we are pleased to announce the results of the ninth Bishop’s Stortford Picture Book Award as follows,

3rd place, Dogger (the 40th anniversary edition) by Shirley Hughes.

2nd place, Kevin by Rob Biddulph.

And the winner, voted favourite by 12 schools, Bathroom Boogie by Clare Foges and Al Murphy.

This is a second win for this partnership. Their previous book Kitchen Disco also won the Picture Book Award two years ago. Many congratulations.

Martin Brown, illustrator of Horrible Histories announced our winner after an hour in the company of the shortlisted authors and illustrators who introduced a cast of pigs, wolves, grannies, cats, frogs and a rather dim dog. The audience learned to draw Kevin, an imaginary friend and boogied on down to the Bathroom Boogie. Everyone had a whale of a time and are eagerly anticipating the 10th anniversary event.

Sixteen local schools in Hertfordshire and Essex took part and over three and a half thousand votes were cast. Any other local schools who wish to take part next year are invited to get in touch.

Maggie Garrett, Senior School Librarian said, “It was lovely to meet local primary schools involved for the first time this year as well as the stalwarts who have been with us since day one. This event just keeps on growing, and the picture book choice just gets better and better too. We have some of the best illustrators and writers in the country coming to this event and it was great to see three previous winners returning.”

Photo: Bishop’s Stortford Picture Book Award Winner