School_Matters_Issue_34

IBSTOCK PLACE SENIOR SCHOOL ISSUE 34, 06/2021

SCHOOL MATTERS

HEADMASTER’S WELCOME It gives me great pleasure to introduce this edition of School Matters. The

shaped so as to serve our core mission. I talk often of The Three Cs. IPS will continue to innovate its Curriculum, both in terms of its content and its delivery. It will be ever-more connected to its Context, working alongside multiple partners for our collective good. It will also be attentive to its Culture and, amongst many other things, its desire to create an environment in which everyone feels valued and in which the wellbeing of all is an all-encompassing priority. The last year has shown that we have never been so well-placed to deliver on this agenda and I look forward to the conversations which it will engender in the weeks and months to come. Mr Christopher J Wolsey

resilience and fulfilment in working together. The pandemic will leave an indelible mark on all of us, but I am immensely proud that at IPS, we have reaffirmed the many values which make our community so special. I am grateful too for the exceptional support which the community has given to me as I have taken the tiller from Mrs S-J. Thank you. Looking ahead, we have much to anticipate. One of the lessons of the last year is that we work best when we listen and, in the months ahead, I want us to hear multiple perspectives on how our developmental agenda might best be

pandemic has meant that the opening months of my headship have been full of challenges but never have the attributes which first drew me to IPS more than a decade ago been so evident. As a school, we always “care to care” and the support which we have shown - not only to one another, but also to those outside of our immediate community - has been extraordinary. From our pupils’ engagement with the myriad partnership projects outlined in this edition through to our parents’ assistance as we rolled out mass COVID testing, we have found

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ROSIE’S GIFT “We honour the work she has done here. It has been an exceptional privilege to work with such an extraordinary professional.” So said Mr Wolsey as he paid glowing tribute to departing Headmistress Anna Sylvester-Johnson during her final farewell. Tribute messages for Mrs S-J were printed out on specially designed hydrangea-themed notepaper and presented in a gift wrapped box, along with cards from staff and pupils in each of the four Houses. Gifts included a beautiful Edwardian copper and silver bowl made by the young apprentices of the Duchess of Sutherland’s ‘Cripples’ Guild’ (the Duchess was the first owner of Main House) along with a painting of the front of School produced by talented artist Rosalie Paget, PVI. Many congratulations to Rosie on her magnificent picture, which Mrs S-J was thrilled to receive.

Mrs Sylvester-Johnson thanks Rosie Paget, PVI

OXBRIDGE OFFER SUCCESS Five offers have been received by pupils from colleges at Oxford and Cambridge this year. The pupils concerned worked incredibly hard during the application process, undertaking pre-interview EDOARDO CAMPIONE (St John’s, Oxford – Engineering ) OLIVIA DANIELS (Clare, Cambridge – Economics ) DYLAN HUNTER (Peterhouse,

examinations, submitting written work and completing a gruelling series of interviews. We congratulate the following pupils on their success and wish them well as they aim to convert their offers to places. Mr Adam Malcolm, Deputy Head of Sixth Form

Cambridge – Mathematics ) ELLA REYNOLDS (St Hugh’s, Oxford – Engineering ) LOUIS TITCHEN (Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford – Biochemistry )

STOCKS RETURN TO HELP WITH UCAS PROCESS We are enormously grateful to eleven members of our Stocks community who made a virtual return to IPS to assist Upper Sixth Formers as they considered forthcoming university applications. Mediated through Zoom, our current pupils had a wonderful opportunity to quiz our past applicants on the process and on their experience at a range of universities across the UK and overseas. Feedback from the supervising staff and our UVI was tremendously positive and we hope to run a series of similar events in the future.

Olivia

Dylan

Ella

Edo

Louis

FIRESIDE CHATS FOR UNIVERSITY APPLICANTS

We were delighted to welcome historian and broadcaster, Dr Eleanor Barraclough, to the Theatre for a ‘fireside chat’ with Dr Clay and Mr Malcolm. The discussion focused on how to write an impressive UCAS Personal Statement and was the perfect start to this year’s UCAS programme. Dr Barraclough has spent much time reading applicant statements at Oxford and Durham Universities and shared invaluable

information about what admissions tutors are really looking for. Dr Clay, who joined the History Department at IPS from a lectureship at the University of Durham, also provided lots of practical hints and tips from his time ‘on the other side’. Two of the best tips shared with our UVI were always to remember to “show, not tell” and to read the statement aloud as part of the review process. Ms Rachel Palmer, Head of Sixth Form

Dr Eleanor Barraclough

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VALUE-ADDED Although 2020’s public examination results were generated in a different way from usual across the country, this year’s ‘value-added’ IPS data remain impressive. They show the level of progress which examination candidates make at IPS relative to their peers at other schools. At A-level, we use a system called ALPS, which is well-known across the UK’s secondary schools and sixth forms. Overall, our ALPS score for 2020 came in at 1.04, which sits IPS comfortably within the top 10% of institutions. Biology, Chemistry, Drama, Geography, History, History of Art, Latin and Spanish all generated results with especially high ‘value-added’ scores. The picture is equally encouraging at GCSE. Here, we use the Centre for A SKILLS-BASED AGENDA

Evaluation and Monitoring’s MidYIS system, which examines progress between Year 7 and Year 11 (PVI). Pupils at IPS attained, on average, 0.8 of a grade more in each GCSE which they took than the national averages for all CEM schools might have suggested. Even when compared exclusively to all independent schools, the figure remains exceedingly healthy at 0.4. Top performing subjects

included: Biology, Chemistry, French, Geography, Mathematics, Physics and Spanish. These outcomes are testament to a great deal of hard work by both our pupils and our teachers. We congratulate them. Mr Christopher J Wolsey, Headmaster

CAREERS EVENING An enormously successful Careers Evening took place online for the first time this year, with well over 200 pupils in PVI and the Sixth Form afforded the opportunity to hear from a diverse range of speakers about their careers to date, the wider professional worlds in which they worked, and the skills required in order to succeed and progress within them. Presentations were carried out via Zoom, hosted by PVI and Sixth Form Tutors. Our ever-growing Stocks Connect alumni platform [www. stocksconnect.com – Ed.] enabled us to set up the participation of twelve generous ‘Stocks’ who gave willingly of their time, experience and expertise. They were able to offer information about their careers, sage advice about their time at university, and reflections about what they had learned both at and beyond IPS. Olivia Sumrie and Andrew Fleming (OI, 2012) spoke about their careers in journalism and engineering, respectively; Vaihbhav Krishnakumar (OI, 2014) discussed his role at Morgan Stanley as a software engineer; and pupils heard about the legal workings of Brexit from Cambridge law graduate Alyssa Curry (OI, 2011). These contributions were supported by a number of much valued parent participants, who discussed their careers in AI, surveying and respiratory medicine, to name but three. The evening was extremely worthwhile for the pupils and the speakers were full of praise for their insightful questions. I thank all of those involved in making the evening such a success. Mr Sam Robinson, Head of Careers

In recent years, much has been written about the relationship between the world of work and education in the post-16 and tertiary sectors. Employers have called for a greater awareness amongst education providers and students of the demands of the labour market and the need for young people to develop the skills and competencies which will enable them to transition into the workplace successfully. With this in mind, Mr Robinson, Head of Careers, led a fascinating session with LVI pupils which drew their attention to the findings of a World Economic Forum report identifying six areas most valued in the workplace. These were found to be: Emotional Intelligence, Critical Thinking, a Growth Mindset, Communication Skills, Teamworking Skills and Resilience. Mr Robinson explored what these skills might mean and how pupils could build a portfolio of evidence to demonstrate their acquisition. He then went on to explore the growing world of degree apprenticeships and explained why, for many pupils, they could offer a highly attractive route into both university and the workplace. We thank Mr Robinson for leading this important session and hope our pupils will reflect deeply upon it. They are themes reprised in the VI Higher Education Support Programme which is taken by all LVIs in the Spring Term.

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IPS CELEBRATES NATIONAL POETRY DAY 2020

The theme for this year’s National Poetry Day was ‘Vision’ and our S7–S9 classes took to it with creativity and enthusiasm. Pupils studied a range of published poems on this theme, before writing and performing their own in class. From these, 17 shortlisted poets each won a copy of Kate Clanchy’s excellent book How to Grow Your Own Poem to inspire them to keep writing. Unable to host our normal lunchtime poetry performance this year, pupils recorded their poems on video. Based on these performances, the English Faculty awarded five Honourable Mentions (Jasmine Dent, Gabriel Diamond, Nabil Elsayed, Emily Parker and Matthew Thorburn) and declared Honor Lynn the overall winner. Congratulations to all. These six performances made it into a short film which all S7–S10 Tutor groups watched to celebrate National Poetry Day. Honor was presented with the Forward Book of Poetry and, along with all shortlisted pupils, was selected to attend a writing masterclass with poet and World Slam Poetry Champion, Harry Baker. We can’t wait to read more of our poets’ work!

Honor Lynn, S9

DARKNESS I am master of destruction Transforming bright fire to icy mist, Turning green meadows into valleys of death. I leech out joy I suck out hope, The moon is my only friend. I smother the land, quietly, softly Until the earth is a burial ground of misery And then, I turn invisible For the golden glow of sunrise has called. Tugging at your tears until they shakily spill And every time the sun waves goodbye I scream with glee as the sea becomes blood And blood becomes sea. I am puppet-master of fear Controlling, dominating your every breath, I feed on despair, Chew on your madness Drain you of the will to live And while the stars are up and the shadows are mine, The world is a haven of terror Even the most dazzling yellow buttercups fade What am I? Honor Lynn, S9 children’s books were of BAME ‘backgrounds’. Jaws dropped when Sharna revealed that she had written the sequel Mic Drop in just six days. And pupils couldn’t hide their excitement when she suggested that High Rise Mystery might be headed for TV. Sharna is looking forward to seeing the creative responses and book reviews entered into this year’s TSBA pupil competition. We hope we can invite her in person to IPS soon. I am the creator of loss and sorrow Slithering in when you least expect

GOING DUTCH WITH SHARNA JACKSON Pupils from S7–S8 were lucky enough to meet TSBA shortlisted author Sharna Jackson, with the author Zooming in from her rather splendid Dutch sailing clipper, ‘Anna Maria’, berthed in Rotterdam. They took part in a quiz to establish which of Sharna’s sleuthing siblings they were most like, found out more about her career and High Rise Mystery series, as well as getting a virtual tour of her floating home. The Q&A session was packed, demonstrating that the writer had clearly piqued the pupils’ interest. Many were surprised to hear that Sharna had not had any rejections for High Rise Mystery , her debut children’s book featuring detective duo Nik and Norva set on a high rise council estate. In actual fact, she had been asked to write the book by the new children’s publisher Knights Of in response to research which found that only 1% of characters in

Sharna Jackson, Author

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LAUREL WREATHS, NAKED SNAILS AND T-REX APPRECIATION National Poetry Day celebrations featured a hotly anticipated visit from poetry world champion Harry Baker. His performances for S7–9 in the Theatre combined impressive word play with personal reflection to demonstrate the power of poetry to connect, move and surprise. Pupils particularly enjoyed joining in Harry’s ode to the wonder of ‘falafel’ in German, the unforgettable ‘Dinosaur Love’, and his world title-winning ‘Paper People’ which left the audience speechless. LVI English pupils and the younger winners in our poetry competition were also treated to a masterclass with Harry in which many were brave enough to share their writing. Thank you, Harry, for such a poetic treat of a day.

DARLING, YOUR MIND CAN LET YOU DOWN Darling, your mind can let you down. Just as flowers parch, wither, rot. Forgetfulness throttles a world, a nation, a town. You remember history as an orb, a crown Not as a bitter endurance, a suffering, a shot Darling, your mind can let you down. We reminisce about dances in a crushed silk gown Not the slaughter of soldiers barely out of their cot Forgetfulness throttles a world, a nation, a town. We reflect on the past with a distant smile, an academic frown As we consider ourselves so busy, so burdened with our lot Darling, your mind can let you down. Absent, confined by the walls of lockdown We pay no attention to the past, we do not Forgetfulness throttles a world, a nation, a town. It just takes one word, one whisper, one noun To remind you of the world you forgot. Darling, your mind can let you down. Forgetfulness throttles a world, a nation, a town. Alex Mortimore, LVI

During Harry’s visit, at a special ceremony held in the Ballroom, the School’s inaugural Poet Laureate Alex Mortimer, LVI was crowned. Many congratulations to Alex on her appointment. In her timely and thought-provoking poem composed for this year’s Remembrance Service, Alex makes an impassioned plea to remember honestly and urges us to put our Covid challenges into perspective. Ms Helen Cleaves, Librarian POETRY BY HEART Members of the Creative Performance Club worked hard to prepare submissions for this year’s Poetry By Heart Competition. Ten Senior 8 pupils offered a preview of their competition entries at an event held in the Theatre and streamed live to an audience of parents and staff. The competition is divided into three strands, ranging from the formal ‘Classic’ event to the more dynamic ‘Showcase’ and entries for each were impressively engaging and lively. Recordings of the performances were submitted in advance of the National Final due to take place at the British Library. Well done to all the participants! Mr Edward Elstub, Teacher of English

Champion poet Harry Baker crowns Alex Mortimer IPS Poet Laureate

TSBA TWITTER TALES Six to eight books are shortlisted annually for the Trinity Schools Book Award (TSBA). The books have a target readership of children in Years 7–9. In addition to the award itself, participating schools may submit entries into a ‘Creative Response’ competition. Previous entries have included original music compositions or scores, board games, an ice sculpture, a cake, jigsaw puzzles, artwork, fan fiction, and lots more. The range of entries submitted by IPS pupils for this year’s TSBA Creative Response competition has been fantastic, from thought-provoking collages and cover re-designs, to original piano compositions and poems. Impressively creative ideas included the ‘Justice Jam’ rap performed by Imogen Day, S8; ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ style game written and produced by Joshua Clements in S8; and a “showstopper” cake made by Sophia Waddington, S7. All were inspired by Sharna Jackson’s High Rise Mystery , one of the seven titles shortlisted for the TSBA this year. Some of the best entries were tweeted by @IPSLIB and received replies from the authors who love seeing the creations inspired by their stories. Cake by Sophia Waddington, S7

Shortlisted pupils will compete against the best entries from other participating schools, with overall winners announced at this year’s TSBA Awards ceremony. This year it will be live streamed from the IPS Theatre on Wednesday 26 May. Don’t forget to follow @IPSLIB on Twitter for all things book-related, including news of latest releases and forthcoming author events taking place both online and in-person!

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IPS PAGETURNERS PODCAST Why not give your eyes a break and your ears a treat by listening to an episode in the IPS Pageturners podcast series?

You can hear Olivia Court, UVI discussing her Extended Project research on racism in the British justice system; Junior Debating Society tackle abandoning classic books; Poetry Slam World Champion Harry Baker and IPS Poet Laureate Alex Mortimer, LVI perform; Senior 9s Finley Naughton and Oliver Visram share their views on this year’s TSBA books and there’s a round-up of recent book news. Happy listening!

Millie Doyle, PVI

WIMBLEDON BOOKFEST YOUNG WRITERS’ COMPETITION Congratulations to Millie Doyle, PVI who was runner-up in the KS4 story category of the Wimbledon BookFest Young writers’ Competition. As previously reported [School Matters Issue 32, p.14 – Ed.] , another eleven IPS pupils who entered received ‘Commended’ or ‘Highly Commended’ certificates, with the latter recipients also given a copy of the anthology in which their works were published. This is now available in the School Library for all to read their impressive, award-winning stories and poems. Awards were presented at a remote ceremony which included a talk by novelist Patrice Lawrence.

PUPILS IN PRINT

When Senior 8 pupils Tabitha Booth and Olivia Duran volunteered to read and review Sarah Govett’s new book, they weren’t quite sure what to expect. They received a pdf copy of the manuscript and raced through the book on screen in order to complete their reviews by the deadline. Happily, they both thoroughly enjoyed it. When, two months later, they received their own copy of the finished book they were thrilled to see their reviews featuring on the back cover and on the first page! Well done to Tabitha and Olivia for putting themselves forward for the challenge and getting their words published. Could this be the start of a writing career?

Tabitha Booth and Olivia Duran, S8

CHAUCER CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP Members of the Inklings creative writing club joined Commended poets from our National Poetry Day competition to learn more about Geoffrey Chaucer from Dr Charles Farris, an academic from the Chaucer Heritage Trust. During the workshop, pupils explored the timeline of English literature, discussing Chaucer’s place in and influence on the canon. Dr Farris introduced them to The Canterbury Tales, then pupils debated Chaucer’s presentation of key characters like his (rather too worldly?) Prioress. They considered some of the key themes of Chaucer’s work, including love, death, greed and marriage, then touched briefly on his treatment of fables, such as that relayed in the Nun’s Priest’s Tale. Finally, pupils began to plan their entries for this year’s Canterbury Tales Creative Writing Competition which takes as its theme: ‘Be careful what you wish for!’ Pupils left the workshop excited to explore more of Chaucer’s writing and eager to write their own stories and poems to submit for the competition. Miss Kate O’Connor, Teacher of English

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PVI’S PHYSICS OLYMPIAD GOLD

The British Physics Olympiad is a national competition designed to encourage the study of physics and to recognise excellence in young physicists. This year’s competition attracted 4,710 entries and a number of IPS pupils from PVI took part with great success. Particular congratulations go to Alexander Hooper who placed in the top 18% of entrants nationally and received a Gold Award. There were no fewer than 16 Silver Awards to PVI pupils and they are listed here in alphabetical order: Alex Bailey, Olivia Brett, Phoebe Groome, Isla Heaton, Saskia Jenkins, Daniel Korhonen Cuestas, Natalie Lees, Kareem Mansour, Jacob Martin, Lynch McPherson, Thomas Merriman, Matthew Michelmore, Joshua O'Donnell, Augustinas Pitkauskas, Romilly Travers, Yueyang Wang. In addition, four pupils received Bronze Awards: Olivia Kenny, Scarlett McKittrick, Odessa Rontogiannis, Lauren Shaw. Well done to all these PVI pupils on their impressive achievement. Mr Greg Kerr, Teacher of Physics

Percy Scott and Louis Titchen, UVI

UVI CHEMISTS WIN OLYMPIAD SILVERS Many congratulations to UVIs Percy Scott and Louis Titchen for achieving Silver Certificates in the 53rd Annual Chemistry Olympiad. It's a fiendishly difficult test and we applaud their achievement. Indeed, we can report that Percy was just one mark from a Gold award. Mrs Lizzie Wright, Teacher of Chemistry

Alex Hooper, PVI

GENDER BALANCE IN COMPUTING Computing and CompSci are subjects that have traditionally struggled to achieve a gender balance in the composition of their student cohorts. Like certain other STEM subjects, fewer girls than boys tend to choose to pursue tech-based subjects into GCSE and A-level and therefore carry forward their studies to university and the countless opportunities of the professional worlds beyond. This Summer Term, our Senior 8 pupils will be playing an important part in helping to understand why this may be the case. We will use our scheduled Computing classes to take part in the ‘Informal Learning’ project. This initiative, which is funded by the Department for Education, sees the

we shall be trialling some new resources through an ‘Apps for Good’ course to promote engagement and subject uptake. It is going to be an exciting term and I hope that our contribution to this valuable research will offer insight into what traditionally has been a difficult problem to solve. Miss Amy Cartwright, Head of Digital Innovation and Learning

Raspberry Pi Foundation combine forces with the National Centre for Computing Education and IPS will be one of the participating schools. Together, we shall explore ways of engaging more female pupils in order to increase the number of girls selecting Computer Science at GCSE and A-level. It has been suggested that addressing this issue early in a child’s education is important. In this project,

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DEBATING HONOURS FOR DR HAZELL Having taken up his appointment as our main Teacher of Rhetoric and Master in charge of Debating this academic year, we are delighted to report that Dr Hazell has been announced as the Chief Adjudicator for the 2022 European Universities Debating Championship to be held in Zagreb, Croatia. As Chief Adjudicator, Dr Hazell will set the motions, lead the judges and ensure that the event, one of the biggest in the

ESU CHURCHILL PUBLIC SPEAKING

In the ESU Churchill Public Speaking Competition, entered by our Senior 9 and 10 pupils in teams of three, participants take on the roles of Speaker, Chairperson and Questioner. Speakers are then paired with a questioner and chair from another school. The variety of roles makes this a difficult competition to prepare for, with only one team of the five competing at the round able to qualify for the regional finals. After an evening of exciting speeches, incisive questioning and deft chairing, it was our S10 team of Olivia Arbour, Yeva Kebabdjian and Charlie Tebbutt which emerged as the victor. The judges praised Yeva’s passionate oratory on her chosen topic (“Is it too late to the save the world?”), Charlie’s delicate balance of humour and formality as Chair, and Olivia’s insightful questioning to elevate the speaker with whom she was paired. Our second team of Emma Cortinovis, Rishabh Madhok and Maya Prlja also received

international debating calendar, runs smoothly. Dr Hazell is a veteran of the competition and in 2017, representing the University of Cambridge, was half of its winning team and judged Best Speaker. We wish Dr Hazell every success in his endeavours and know that our pupils here at IPS will benefit enormously from the experiences which it affords him.

abundant praise from the judges on their performance, and are to be commended for the hard work they put in to training for the competition.

We congratulate our public speakers and look forward to reporting further on their progress in the future.

Dr Matt Hazell

Yeva Kebabdjian, S10

IPS DEBATING SUCCESS With strict rules about who should speak and when, debating is an activity that translates well to Zoom. Four IPS debaters attended their first online tournament against St Paul’s Girls’ School. Emma Cortinovis, S10, Yeva Kebabdjian, S10, Alexandra Mortimer, LVI and Ella Reynolds, UVI debated topics including whether unvaccinated pupils should be banned from school and whether Greta Thurnberg’s ‘School Strike for Climate’ has done more harm than good. After three challenging preliminary rounds and sterling performances in each, our duo of Ella and Alex ranked 3rd out of the field of 40 and earned a place in the final. Here they debated whether we should support the recasting of characters historically played by men as women (e.g. Jodie Whittaker as the Doctor in Doctor Who ). Despite commendable efforts and soaring speeches, the team was pipped at the post.

ESU MACE SUCCESS The ESU Mace is the de facto national championship for schools debating. It is organised across a series of local heats, with winners progressing to regional and eventually national finals. IPS was drawn into a challenging heat against local schools including Putney High and Hampton. Sixth Formers Leonie Hay, Kirsty McMillan, Alex Mortimer, Ella Reynolds and Miranda Sim were asked to propose the motion “This House would ban job applicants from disclosing the names of educational institutions that they have attended”. With a few weeks to prepare, many evenings were given over to research and practice debates. On the night itself, it was Alex, Ella and Miranda who took to the (virtual) stage to debate against Grey Court School. Their eloquent arguments, commendable debate strategy and thorough research allowed them to best their opponents. They ranked as the overall top team in the round and earned progression through to the regional finals – a great achievement!

Nonetheless, our teams left with heads held high. They achieved even more success in the individual awards. Alex placed 6th and Ella 8th for Best Speaker, which was an excellent achievement for their first online debating competition. Emma and Yeva performed admirably in the face of strong competition, despite being one of the youngest teams in a field of mostly Sixth Formers. Well done to all four. Dr Matt Hazell, Teacher of Debate and Rhetoric

LVI and UVI debaters at the ESU Mace round

Alex Mortimer, LVI and Ella Reynolds, UVI

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BLACK HISTORY MATTERS

Black History Month in October provided an opportunity for pupils to learn more about the racial injustices of apartheid South Africa; to discover sometimes neglected contributors to Britain’s art history by being introduced to the work of key black artists; to see inspiring displays of black art and black icon posters around the school; and to enjoy members of the PE Faculty sharing their black sporting icons. From Windrush artist Althea McNish, dubbed ‘the first British designer of African descent to earn an international reputation’, to Siya Kolisi, who made history when he became South Africa’s first black rugby captain, pupils have encountered a plethora of black talent that deserves greater recognition. In response, pupils were challenged to research and nominate their own ‘Black Icon’. BHM continued with the recording of mini-films of pupils sharing their choices, further reflections on growing up in apartheid South Africa and a closer look at Robin Walker’s Black History Matters , one of the three titles shortlisted in the 13+ category of this year’s Information Book Awards. As well as revisiting the past, in an assembly presented by Mr Collins, pupils were implored to engage with what is happening today. When asked in twenty years’ time what it was like living in these transformational times, what will they say? Ms Helen Cleaves, Librarian

NEW IPS DIGITAL ARCHIVE

during the school’s evacuation to Little Gaddesden, Hertfordshire in the Second World War; an Anthology of Poems written by pupils whilst at Little Gaddesden; a bookmark with ‘recommended reads’. Resources will continuously be added to this site from our vast archives, so please do become a repeat visitor. The archive, which is open to all, is at: www.ipsarchives.weebly.com Ms Angela Platt, School Archivist

We have been delighted this academic year to launch our new Digital Archive Repository which contains a selection of digitised archives representing the School’s rich social and cultural history. Among the treasures to discover are: a thank you note for handkerchiefs sent to soldiers in Dieppe during the First World War; photographs of Main House from the 1920s; a letter from the then Headmistress Barbara Priestman to a (anonymous) parent who misses her child,

S9 HISTORIANS GET STUCK INTO THE NEW ARCHIVE Excited by the launch of the new IPS Digital Archive, Senior 9 Historians set out online to investigate. Pupils were asked to produce documentaries on life in the Blitz. They were delighted to discover the 'Little Gaddesden' section of the archive which covers the period of the school’s evacuation from London during the Second World War. A particular highlight was the letter from the Headmistress to a worried parent. The material prompted much useful discussion about people's experiences during the war and I was really impressed by the insights shown by the pupils. It is an impressive resource and we look forward to pupils across the age ranges engaging with it to enhance their learning. Ms Rachel Palmer, Head of Sixth Form

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VI SPEAKER PROGRAMME Our VI Speaker Programme, expertly curated by Ms Rachel Palmer, Head of Sixth Form, offers a fascinating and enriching addition to our VI curriculum. She provides an overview of contributors so far this year in the reports below. We extend our sincere thanks to all our speakers for giving up their time to engage, inspire, inform and educate.

Ms Casey Herbert

Casey Herbert is a graduate of the NFTS, who has produced a number of films and TV series, including surprise lockdown hit ‘Containment’. Casey gave us a fascinating insight into how films are made and explained that, although one day a year might involve a night at a film premiere, the remaining 364 days involved very little glamour and lots of hard work. She outlined the challenges facing the film industry since the pandemic struck. But her message was one of optimism as she explained how the industry was adapting, with small screen dramas rising in popularity and enjoying greater commercial success.

Siobhan Benita , a former top-ranking Civil Servant who ran as an Independent in the 2020 London Mayoral election, regaled us with tales of campaigning against Boris Johnson in 2012 and shared her views on the need for greater diversity within the Civil Service. She spoke informatively about her decision to join the Liberal Democrat party following the Brexit vote.

Mr Zain Abbas

Zain Abbas , (OI, 2011 and graduate of Imperial College) now works in the FinTech sector. Zain explained the lessons he has learned in the ten years since leaving IPS and outlined the skills young graduates need to thrive in the workplace. He encouraged all pupils to learn coding skills.

Mr James Blitz

James Blitz’s wide-ranging journalistic career at the Financial Times includes time as Whitehall Editor, Political Editor, Defence Editor and leader writer. He entertained us with stories of interviewing every British Prime Minister since Margaret Thatcher and his tales of debating against Boris Johnson at the Oxford Union were a delight! Anecdotes featuring Gorbachev, Yeltsin and Berlusconi were fascinating and his experiences of reporting from Iraq and Afghanistan gave an illuminating insight into the work of the Security Services. In conclusion, there was lively discussion between Mr Blitz and the pupils about the differences between news broadcasting in the US and the UK and the changing face of journalism.

© Creative Commons

Dr Kevin Waite is Assistant Professor of Modern American History at Durham University. He joined us live from New York to deliver a fascinating lecture on US politics. Dr Waite set the recent riots on Capitol Hill in historical context, drawing parallels between ‘the mob’ and the actions of supporters of the Confederate States in the early stages of the US Civil War. He went on to outline his predictions for Biden’s presidency and for the likely shape of the 2024 electoral run. With much lively discussion about the future of US politics, this lecture whetted the appetites of many of our LVI pupils considering reading History at university.

Sir Vincent Fean , former Consul-General to Jerusalem, gave a personal view on the Israel-Palestine conflict and outlined careers in the diplomatic service. He spoke passionately to our pupils about the benefits of modern languages and the importance to Britain of maintaining an impartial Civil Service.

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Sarah Olney, MP

Sarah Olney, MP for Richmond Park, joining us via Zoom, outlined how she became an MP, a “typical week”, and some of the local and national issues she campaigns on, such as the fight against inequality and climate change. She also explained how Covid-19 has changed her role and regretted that it was the opportunity to meet her constituents that she missed the most. Impressive questioning from her politically engaged VI audience concluded the session, focusing on topics of local interest such as vehicular access to Richmond Park, as well as matters of national concern such as the Government’s pandemic response, and ‘cancel culture’.

Mr Matthew Lesh

Matthew Lesh is Head of Research at the Adam Smith Institute and author of Democracy in a Divided Australia (2018). A regular contributor to TV and radio, he has also written for The Times, Daily Telegraph, The Spectator and the Huffington Post. His lecture explored the many ways in which life has improved over the past 50 years: poverty rates have fallen; life expectancy has increased; the number of deaths from conflict and

homicide have fallen; the proliferation of nuclear weapons has declined; literacy rates have improved; progress in gender equality has been made; and vaccinations, clearly most recently, have proved of incalculable benefit. Examining why we tend to have a negative view of the world, Mr Lesh accentuated the positives. Even though COVID-19 may have paused this, he argued there is still much to look forward to.

© Public Domain

© Creative Commons

Geoff Lerner , a Geologist from the Earth Observatory of Singapore, joined us via Zoom from the island city- state, to give fascinating insights into his work as a volcanologist. He explained the key stages involved in studying a volcano, gripping pupils with anecdotes of visits to active volcanoes to gather data. Topics featuring in the lively Q&A which followed ranged from the ethics of attracting visitors to active volcanoes to an unmissable discussion of the physics involved in the hypothetical death of a cow “sucked into” lava. Geoff responded with detailed and insightful responses and a good dose of humour!

Professor John Charmley , historian, serves as Provost of St Mary’s University in Twickenham and is author of the best-selling and controversial Churchill: The End of Glory (1992). As well as outlining why he thinks Churchill does not deserve all the admiration he receives, Professor Charmley’s lecture compared current incumbent Boris Johnson to both Churchill and Benjamin Disraeli in considering the role of the Prime Minister. Many probing questions followed from the floor and elicited the speaker’s views on topics such as the future of the NHS and the current state of Britain’s democracy.

© Public Domain

Roz Savage was the first woman to row solo across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Roz gave a fascinating insight into the lessons she had learned during her adventures and delivered some fantastic advice to pupils on how to cope with adversity. She explained that it is our actions that give us courage and that we cannot sit back and wait for courage; we have to go out and find it! She also delivered sage advice on how to cope in lockdown, following the recent publication of her book The Gift of Solitude . It was a most inspiring talk.

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MUSIC SCHOLARS’ PLATFORM

After nearly six months of virtual concerts, our Music Scholars were at last able to present the first, limited audience, concert of the academic year in the Theatre. A small, but appreciative, audience of staff gathered in the auditorium whilst parents, pupils and other supporters tuned in to watch a live stream. Lottie Sanderson, S10, kicked things off with Charlie Parker’s fiendish 11/4 on the alto saxophone. Lottie was one of several Scholars to perform on their second (or third!) instrument. Other highlights included Sofia Caironi’s fireworks at the keyboard in a transcription of Prokofiev’s Dance of the Knights, new S7 Zephany Coleman’s debut with a refined yet playful set of minuets from Bach’s Suite for Cello in G, and newly-inaugrated President of Music, Max Eastland- Park, in a crunchy rendition of jazz classic Misty. Mr James Bartlett, Director of Music

BERKELEY ENSEMBLE PERFORM PVI COMPOSITIONS It was a pleasure to welcome back the Berkeley Ensemble, IPS's Ensemble-in-Residence, to develop through workshops the classical compositions of the PVI IGCSE Musicians, and perform and record all pieces live in an evening concert. The group gave the pupils helpful feedback on performance issues such as articulation and dynamics and occasionally more technical details specific to individual instruments. It was hugely informative for the pupils and also highly enjoyable for the players who were playing together for the first time for many months. The quality of the compositions was such that many would not have been out of place within an A-level Composition portfolio. Congratulations to: Emma Atkinson, Thomas Boyle, Edie Clemo Gibbins, Matthew Greenaway, Farida Hassan, Aden Hingorani, Joseph Lee, Kimee Mansour, Casper Martin and Yueyang Wang. Mr Nicolas Walker, Teacher of Music

Sophia Caironi, S9

FILM SOUNDTRACK RECORDING Mr Bartlett was contacted by the production team behind Soho , a new animated musical, to ask for the School of Music’s assistance in recording the soundtrack ahead of a major pitch to Netflix. The film tells the story of an intrepid group of friends and their adventures around London in the aftermath of the Second World War. We welcomed a professional sound engineer for a socially-distanced recording session, along with composer Brian Bennett, best known as drummer of 1950s rock and roll group The Shadows and composer, with guitarist Bruce Welch, of the classic 1960s hit ‘Summer Holiday’. The pupils were magnificent and the production team was most complimentary of their talent, focus and professionalism through a gruelling two-hour session during which the singers were definitely put through their paces. We hope to hear them on screen soon!

SENIOR 7 PERFORMERS’ PLATFORM The entire Senior 7 group sat in enraptured silence as 14 brave pupils made their debut on the IPS Theatre stage. The programme opened with Teresa Boyle’s rendition on the flute of an Ennio Morricone classic and moved through a diverse and eclectic range of composers, from Bach to Ellie Goulding.

The concert was recorded so that it could be watched ‘on-demand’ by parents unable to be present. Well done to all the participants. SOLOISTS’ PLATFORM

Zephany Coleman, S7

Rhianna Boyle

Twelve musicians working towards music examinations at the end of the Autumn Term had the opportunity during this platform to ‘road test’ some repertoire ahead of their looming assessments. Well done: Honor Lynn, Beatrice Gates, Talulla Curtis Green, Arina Maslova, Rhianna Boyle, Finlay Hunter, Matilda Allard, Lola Harrison, Mark Li, Imogen Day, Olivia Brett and JJ Jeannon.

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PVI PERFORMERS’ PLATFORM

The first virtual concert of the Spring Term featured a typical mélange of musical genres, with classical staples sitting alongside the likes of rock legends Led Zeppelin. Emma Atkinson’s punchy and syncopated Steely Wheel on saxophone opened the

Kimee Mansour, PVI

Aden Hingorani, PVI

IGCSE PERFORMANCE WORKSHOP PVI IGCSE Musicians took part in a performance workshop in the Ballroom. This was an opportunity for pupils to share the pieces they had been learning most recently and to offer each other constructive feedback. Choice of pieces varied from Yueyang Wang’s traditional Chinese song played on the violin to staples of the rock repertoire from guitarists Casper Martin, Joseph Lee, Aden Hingorani and Kimee Mansour. Matthew Greenway played and sang at the piano; Emma Atkinson performed a gospel/funk- inspired saxophone piece; Thomas Boyle played a Bach flute study; and Edie Clemo Gibbins and Farida Hassan played their most recently learnt piano pieces by Richard Rodney Bennett and Einaudi, respectively. Well done to all. ABRSM SUCCESS ABRSM visited School to examine a bumper crop of 30 candidates. Of this cohort, 5 pupils achieved a Distinction and 14 pupils achieved Merit. Special mention goes to Senior 9 Music Scholars Esme Perry and Matilda Allard, with Esme taking the highest mark of all candidates for her Grade 5 singing, and Matilda earning a Merit for her Grade 5 piano, which she took up as a lockdown project. We also learned that Emily Zhou, S8 had achieved a Distinction at Grade 8 Piano, while Sofia Caironi, S9 gained a Merit. We have also been delighted to hear of Distinctions for Leo Arya, S8 and Benny Foss-Pederson, S7 in their Drum examinations. These successes were complemented by Merits for Ethan Auger, S8 and Poppy Turner, S9 at Grade 6 Violin and Grade 5 Singing, respectively. A huge amount of hard work from pupils, teachers and accompanists clearly paid off. Congratulations, all!

evening followed by Kimee Mansour on the piano playing a short Latin-American style vignette by Federico Ruiz, evoking the port of Santa Marta in Colombia. Joe Lee and Aden Hingorani, both playing Led Zeppelin (Stairway to Heaven and Heartbreaker respectively), bookended Matthew Greenway’s partly improvised cover of Blue Skies. Farida Hassan presented Einaudi’s plaintive piano piece Le Onde in contrast to Yueyang Wang’s folky violin playing, the energetic Czardas by Monti. Edie Clemo played the beautiful Rosemary’s Waltz by Richard Rodney Bennett with tasteful rubato. The programme closed with Casper Martin’s stylish rendering of John Mayer’s Neon on guitar, finishing with another appearance from Kimee Mansour, on guitar this time, with Jill Scott’s laid-back The Way, replete with vibrato. The pupils responded brilliantly to the challenge of home-recording and we congratulate them on their virtual performances.

Claudia Murray Cors, UVI

PRE-U PERFORMERS’ PLATFORM Five Pre-U Musicians took to the airwaves to present extracts from their final recitals. An audience of approximately 70 from across the IPS community tuned in to watch. As always with an IPS concert, a fantastic range of genres was in evidence, with Veronica Boyle’s Rossini aria followed by Zeke Aylin’s heavy metal drumming. Mr Bartlett’s favourite juxtaposition of the concert – perhaps of all time, he thinks! –was Luke Martin’s Bach Cello prelude segueing into Max Eastland-Park’s rendition of Led Zeppelin’s Black Dog. Claudia Murray Cors rounded out the evening by making the most of her live-in accompanist and presenting a Parisotti aria before booting brother Scott (OI, 2020) off the piano stool to treat us to some Beethoven. Bravo the UVIs!

Emily Zhou, S8

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not only his excitement around the work and the artist but also persuaded the audience of the relevance of much Land Art as a timely clarion call. Dr Legard commended all the speakers. He spoke specifically about the astute research of Cassius’s paper, its effective and informative contextualising and sensitivity of content and delivery. We are delighted to report that Cassius was selected to proceed and to represent IPS at the national semi-final of the competition hosted by Clare College, Cambridge. The field in the semi-final was strong, with excellently researched and confident presentations on artists such as Fiona White, Felix Gonzalez-Torres and Edward Hopper. Adjudicator, Dr Melissa Calaresu praised Cassius for his exploration of Goldsworthy and applauded him for including such a wide range of drawings and paintings. In the end, although Cassius was not selected to progress, his ARTiculation journey has been an absolute triumph! We congratulate him warmly. Mrs Aleid Farnum-Ford, Head of History of Art

ARTICULATION It was a great pleasure to welcome Freya Mears (OI, 2020) back to co-adjudicate the IPS heat for this year’s national ARTiculation competition with Mr Malcolm, Deputy Head of Sixth Form. The two entrants this year were LVIs Cassius Ashcroft and Leo Hincks. They took to the stage of the Ballroom for an hour of compelling and engaging art historical looking, thinking and speaking. Leo gave a well-researched, beautifully illustrated, moving and thought-provoking talk on Faith Ringgold’s colourful fairy-tale flavoured quilt Tar Beach 2 (1990–92). Cassius’ presentation focused on Land artist Andy Goldsworthy’s Sycamore Leaves Edging the Roots of a Sycamore Tree (2013). Cassius connected his choice of subject to his personal experience of lockdown. He spoke persuasively about the universal importance of a communion with the natural world, contextualising Goldsworthy’s practice in the current environmentalist movement. It was Cassius who was adjudged the heat winner and selected to progress to the next round. At the national quarter final, hosted by the Lightbox Gallery, Architectural Historian and Heritage Consultant Dr James Legard presided as judge. The heat took place in a virtual auditorium with a keen audience of pupils, teachers, family and friends. Cassius’s delivery was clear, passionate and engaging. He conveyed

Freya Mears (OI, 2020), Leo Hincks and Cassius Ashcroft, LVI

psychology, psychiatry and psychotherapy may contribute to our understanding of the human mind and its ‘disorders’, particularly in relation to schizophrenia. Sports Psychologist Dr Jonathan Smith, who works with Paralympic athletes, spoke of the issues with mental resilience at an elite level and how understanding our instincts can be the difference between success or disqualification. Dr Gemma Witcomb of Loughborough University presented work on the issues surrounding gender identity, highlighting research which shows that gender identity is a continuum, while it is societal norms that make gender a dichotomy. Dr Peter Lovatt, who runs The Dance Psychology Lab gave an engaging presentation on the benefits of dance to our mental health, supporting the way that we think and improving our relationships with others. Thanks to all the staff who helped to make the lectures a possibility this year.

VI PSYCHOLOGY LECTURES While A-level Psychologists were unable to attend the annual Psychology in Action lectures in person this year, lectures were live streamed and pupils were able to interact with the speakers and answer poll questions using an online forum.

provided evidence that just two minutes of ‘zoning out’ during a protracted period of concentration may boost memory and insight on resuming one’s focus. Professor Dany Nobus of Brunel University, considered what it means to be ‘normal’ in the twenty-first century and explored what

Claudia Hammond, presenter of Radio 4’s All in the Mind, talked about the importance of rest and revealed the results of ‘The Rest Test’, a psychological survey completed by 18,000 people in 135 countries. A key point to emerge was how poor, in general, people are at resting. In one study, participants were asked to sit quietly on a chair in an empty room. They were even incentivised to do so by an anklet which administered an electric shock if the participant moved. 25% of women and 91% of men in the study preferred giving themselves an electric shock to sitting quietly for 15 minutes! The survey also found that the top-rated restful activities were all individual pursuits, even for extroverts. Other research

Miss Abigail Levesque, Teacher of Psychology

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LVI pupils online mentoring pupils from partner school Richmond Park Academy

#IPSPARTNERSHIPS During 2020 we committed to a far-reaching outreach programme involving our Lower Sixth pupils. The aim of the scheme is for pupils to have an opportunity to build their skills in resilience, communication and teamwork, while providing valuable service to others. A record 69 pupils now complete a weekly activity designed to help our local community through the school’s relationship with several valued partners. These include: Linden Lodge School, Southfields (for the visually and multi-sensory impaired); the Mosaic Jewish Primary School; Richmond Park Academy; The Scrubbery; and Plogolution. Activities include virtual tutoring, mentoring and social engagement with one of our three partner schools; contributing to a local ‘Scrub Hub’ making scrubs to supply to NHS hospitals; and weekly litter-picking on behalf of the charity Plogolution. #IPSPARTNERSHIPS Gardening in the Community

One of the most creative projects is our Community Gardening initiative. This began at the Alton Activity Centre on the Alton Estate. This is where local resident and Heathmere Primary School teacher Ms Orode Faka runs an ‘After School Rocks’ children’s club. Whilst the pandemic curtailed many of her planned activities, she was keen to get the outdoor area looking as beautiful as possible. So, led ably by Mr O’Sullivan, Teacher of Design and Technology, our pupils began the process of clearing the site so that it could be re-modelled. They are playing a key part in the design of the “new look”. Once completed, the group will move on to making over grounds around the sheltered housing, also on the Alton Estate. Furthermore, with the reliance on food banks rising rapidly during the periods of lockdown, IPS partnered with local charities Regenerate and RacketsCubed and drew on the extraordinary generosity of pupils, parents and staff to make regular donations of provisions and supplies to reach those in most need in the community. Wherever appropriate, we plan for these links to endure for many years and we look forward to seeing our partnerships develop and continue to flourish into the future. We are grateful to the members of the Sixth Form who have contributed reports of their work across these pages. Miss Charlotte Rhead, Director of Outreach and Partnerships

For two hours every week, seven LVI students have been helping to revitalise the garden of the Alton Activity Centre. Equipped with gloves, protective shoes, secateurs, and several spades and forks, our aim has been to bring the garden back to life.

In the autumn we made some encouraging progress: we were able to successfully dig out all the weeds in a garden bed and the surrounding area, as well as other plants that had died. We discovered that anti-weed fabric had been placed at the bottom of the flowerbed, which had clearly not worked, so we removed it all. Before the New Year lockdown, we had just begun planning our design. During our time spent at the garden, Mr O’Sullivan, our teacher, has helped us gain invaluable experience about gardening. Now I know all about garden maintenance and I am a pro at naming all of the different types of plants. But what was far more significant than the botanical expertise we acquired was that we all realized how important it was to take time to help our community. Small gestures, when done by us all, make our community

a better place. Trinity Riad, LVI