The RonianISSUE 61 - Autumn 2015

w w w . s a i n t r o n a n s . c o . u k

Inside: Nativities • Michaelmas Concert • House Shout • Alumni 

The Headmaster writes...

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Despite the storms, Autumn 2015 has been a good term for Saint Ronan’s. The new

children and staff have settled in quickly and the weeks found their rhythm before we

knew it.

‘Perseverance’ has been the theme this term. The children, athletes, musicians, artists,

fund-raisers, parent helpers, dancers, actors, engineers, gardeners, farmers, fencers,

cooks, cleaners, governors and teachers have all shown ‘stickability’, producing much

to make us proud.

2015 saw many improvements: the arrival of the fibre-optic link, the first full season on

the Astro, the re-surfacing and enlargement of the car parks, the Hobbit House,

restoration work to the mansion and the arrival of Boris the Landrover. Looking forward

on our wish-list for development is the restoration of the Long Drawing Room, which

will become a ‘state of the art’ Library. We will relocate Art to the Powerhouse, to sit

alongside DT. This will link the two departments and give both more room. Science will

also be able to expand into the current Art Room, creating a Junior Science Lab. We

are also looking at woodland classrooms, to develop our ‘eco’ status and replace the

ones given up to accommodate the new Library.

We are running waiting lists in almost every year group for September 2016. This is an

enviable position to be in and a measure of the progress made in recent years. This

demand will allow us to consolidate our position as the Prep School of choice in the

Weald and to invest in the exciting future of this magical place.

I am constantly reminded how lucky we are. We have a talented and committed

Common Room and our new staff have all already made positive contributions. The

children are happy, busy and enthused, and this is regularly commented on by visitors.

Thanks to you, too, for baking cakes, making goodies, brewing mulled wine, manning

stalls, stuffing envelopes and making costumes for your children. We understand how

important the task is that you have assigned to us; thank you for making it so

pleasurable!

The Carol Service at St George’s Benenden was a fitting way to bring the term to a

close. Emma and I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas.

William Trelawny-Vernon, Headmaster

Liv, Alice and Ruby were the winne

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In this issue...

Showing Perserverence 4

Upper History trip to Battle Abbey 4

Next Steps 5

House Shout 6

Eastbourne Public Speaking 6

Superheroes raise money for charity 6

Travelling across Europe at Michaelmas 7

This term in Tongswood 7

Class 3 at Biddenden Vineyard 8

Great vibe at inaugural Jazz Day 8

Pre-Prep Science Day 9

Pedigree cattle return to Tongswood 9

An Old Ronian writes... 10

Autumn Term lectures 10

King’s Strings Day 10

Armistice Day: Remembering Old Ronians 11

Grandparents’ Tea 12

Father Iori: visiting Chaplain 12

Lively Nativities 13

Benenden Model United Nations 13

Prizes 16

Sport 18-20

Coming up... Next Term

Term begins 7th January

FOR meeting 12th January

Class 4 French Tea at the George, Rye 19th January

Reception trip to Pizza Express 26th January

Shell trip to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard 26th January

Naples information evening 26th January

Prep School Jazz Concert 29th January

Year 1 trip to Hawkhurst 1st Feburary

FOR Burns Night 6th February

Half term begins 12th February

Half term ends 22nd February

FOR meeting 23rd February

Eastbourne Strings Day 1st March

Year 2 trip to Bodiam Castle 2nd March

FOR Quiz Night 4th March

The Brodie Shield 5th March

Prep School Parents E-Safety talk 8th March

‘Into the Woods’ 16th, 17th March

Midway trip to Rochester & Chatham 18th March

NPP Easter Bonnet Parade 24th March

Term ends 24th March

Saint Ronan’s at Christmas, by Ollie de Winton

ers of the X Factor competition

The Feast also featured some staff Ex Factors...!

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During the last four terms at Saint Ronan’s we have been

running an ‘Intellectual Character’ program. During a group

meeting the staff came up with six character traits they

thought were important for the pupils to develop, not only to

help them become balanced young people but also to equip

them for learning challenges at Saint Ronan’s and beyond.

The traits we chose are Curiosity, Empathy, Awareness,

Perseverance, Imagination and Co-operation.

This term we focused on Perseverance, running testing

challenges based on Eton scholarship questions (whose ex-

head Tonly Little had much to say about developing character

in his recent book). We encouraged those taking part to have

a go and to keep going until they found a solution. If we can

instil this trait it in our pupils, it will serve them well throughout

their lives.

In the Spring we turn our attention to Imagination.......

ShowingPERSERVERANCE

In Forest School, Levi perservered for over 20 minutes...

...to light a fire with a flint

Our Character Trait for the term

Anticipating that a trip to “where it all happened” would be

helpful in their studies, all of Upper visited Battle Abbey, the

site of the Battle of Hastings. The museum was the first stop.

The replicas of Norman and Saxon armour, swords, axes and

bows impressed us. Their weight, awkwardness and probable

ineffectiveness, especially the Saxons shields – deemed too

short for real protection – all fascinated. A games-style display

of the campaigns and route marches in 1066 gave a good

impression of the distances that Harold marched with his men

to deal, first, with Tostig and Hardrada in Yorkshire and, then,

back again for William in Sussex. The video, narrated by

Richard Starkey, is extremely good and worth the museum

visit on its own.

We then went on to Battle Abbey itself, into the hands of a

monk of the Abbey (aka James Dennett, Battle Abbey

School’s Registrar). The history of the building and some

impressive art works interested the pupils but their energies

were now flagging. Fortunately, the school had laid on a

sumptuous mid-morning break session in the Library, which

was much appreciated.

We finally went to oversee the battle site itself. Here, the true

value of the trip was revealed. The relatively small size of the

site, the not especially steep hill and the continued existence

of swamp and damp on what was the Norman left flank were

all clear to see. It really did become possible for the mind’s

eye to visualise the battle on the very terrain where it was

fought.

Upper History: field trip to

Battle Abbey

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Our Next Steps Afternoon was held in the Great Space before the Fireworks display. We tend

to hold such events every other year and were fortunate this year to have a number of senior

representatives (including three Headmasters) from a range of good schools, namely: Battle

Abbey, Benenden, Cranbrook, Eastbourne, Eton, Harrow, King’s Canterbury, Lancing, Mayfield,

Sevenoaks, Sutton Valence and Tonbridge.

It started at 3pm and finished with a flourish as the first fireworks went off on Bonfire Night at

6pm.

We were delighted that so many parents attended and, without exception, the representatives

of the schools said how much they had enjoyed meeting Saint Ronan’s parents.

Mr TV is very keen to see any Year 5 parents he hasn’t already seen to discuss Next Steps.

Please do book an appointment via Amanda early in the New Year.

The children who attended Drama After School Club with Chrissie Yates this term proudly performed a scene from Peter Pan.

Eleven Senior School visit for Next Steps

It was a good year on the

water for Old Ronians this

year. Alex Lindsay stroked

the Eton VIII at Henley,

represented GB at the Junior

World Champs in Rio and

won a rowing scholarship to

Yale. Also at Henley were

Robbie Boswell, who

captained the Winchester

VIII, and Tommie TV who

rowed at 7 in the King’s VIII.

Robbie and Tommie were

later selected for England

and raced In the IV- (Tommie)

and IV+ (Robbie) and

together in the VIII at the

Home Countries, in late July

in a very wet Scotland.

OR ‘Wet Bobs’

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The first half of term ended with the rousing strains of the

House Shout: under the guidance of our genial host, Mr Fox,

each house presented a programme consisting of a song, a

hymn and a solo item. The song theme of ‘Europe’ did not, in

the end, take us very far from the mouth of the channel tunnel

and there was consequently a distinctly Gallic flavour to the

programme, ranging from the urbane sophistication of Charles

Trenet to the rebellious vigour of Les Miserables,

encompassing Edith Piaf’s heart-rending regrets and the

trilingual complexities of ‘Seven Seconds’ en route.

The solo items, beautifully presented by Luc Doane, Felix

Connell, Joe Dale and Miles Peacock, were all exceptional,

presenting a real challenge for the adjudicator Nicholas

Castell, director of music of Walthamstow Hall School.

In the end the silverware went to Tongswood for a very

polished and energetic presentation, but with so much hard

work, enthusiasm and musicality on display from all houses, it

was a very close call.

A very Gallic House Shout

This competition involved several schools in

the area, each of which fielded two teams.

The children were tasked with choosing

their own themes (as a team) and preparing

speeches. Our Midway teams chose the

wonderfully diverse subjects of ‘Worries’

(Allegra Woods, Bea Martin and Grace

Easton) and ‘James Bond’ (Alice

Wormington, Caitlin Milborne and Miles

Peacock).

The competition was held in Eastbourne

College’s stunning auditorium which

provided a very impressive setting for the

children’s speeches.

Both or our teams acquitted themselves

extremely well and were commended by

the judges for their confident delivery and

interesting subject matter. Miles won an

award for a particularly well-constructed

concluding speech. Credit too to Caitlin

whose impersonation of George Lazenby’s

James Bond almost brought the house

down!

It was a terrific event and a valuable

experience for all our brave competitors.

Eastbourne Public Speaking

Having raised over £10,000 for charity last year, the pressure

is on to raise as much or more this year! Fundraising started

with the Autumn Fayre, a slightly soggy occasion, but in

classic Saint Ronan’s style the plans were thrown out of the

window and stalls popped up on every inch of available

tarmac! We raised a total of £1973 that morning

(approximately £1 every 4 seconds)! The Student Council

asked for this money to be donated to Macmillian, the Royal

Marsden and Celia’s Children, a small South African charity

supporting fostered children.

Later in the term saw Children in Need, with a cake sale and

dressing up as a ‘superhero’. The children didn’t disappoint,

Superheroes raise funds for Charities

from a brigade of Iron Men to a company of Wonder Women,

and they raised £940 in total. Thanks to everyone's generosity,

we are now well on our way to matching last year’s total.

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Each house takes a turn to showcase what they’ve been up

during the course of a term.

The term in...

TONGSWOOD

The House Shout competition formed the focus of the early

part of term. Friday afternoons were spent practising our

songs and enjoying lollies in the sunshine outside. We chose,

‘Do you hear the people sing?’ from ‘Les Miserables’ as our

European-inspired song. ‘I vow to thee my country’ proved to

be a great choice as our hymn, especially as our rehearsals

overlapped with the Rugby World Cup, and we heard a

number of renditions in

stadiums around the U.K. Our

congratulations go to House

captain Luc Doane, who

performed ‘Pie Jesu’ requiem’

for our solo entry. It was a

superb performance and

enjoyed by all. The standard

of the competition was

extremely high and the

adjudicator praised all the Houses on a fantastic job. However

it was Tongswood that came out top! What a great start to the

year.

House assemblies gave us the chance to explore themes of

perseverance and friendship and we learnt never to give up

and to always be kind. We also met the new Class 3

Tongswood members and they fitted in straight away.

There have been many impressive accomplishments this

term: Rosie Honychurch was selected for the Kent County

Choir, Arthur Braxton was awarded his green belt in judo,

Harry Morrell was top goal-scorer for the Colts football side

and Chloe Lee represented Team GB at the Canicross

European Championships in Scotland (to mention a few)!

What a diverse and talented group we have in Tongswood.

In school, Alex Peck and Angus Hay top-scored with 20 shows

each and this should encourage all our members to improve in

this field next term.

Mr Gibbon, Head of Tongswood.

The Michaelmas Concert took place on Friday 13th November

to a packed audience of pupils, parents and guests. The Saint

Ronan’s Orchestra presented three contrasting items,

beginning with Jean Joseph Mouret’s Fanfare-Rondeau; the

orchestra captured most effectively the style and splendour of

the Ancien Regime with their attention to the subtle twists of

melody and dynamics in the music. From eighteenth-century

Paris we travelled to nineteenth-century Vienna, and given

that the splendour of the Great Space has about it more than

a hint of the Musikverein, that great Viennese concert hall, for

a moment we were transported to a glittering masked ball

through the music of the famous Emperor Waltz by Johann

Strauss the Younger. The final item from the orchestra was an

arrangement of Good King Wenceslas, in which the audience

took up the roles of the eponymous king and his page by

singing along in fine style.

The Intermediate Strings, bedecked in golden crowns under

the direction of Jane Dawson, played a very polished Fanfare

by Corrette, and the Senior Strings, directed by Sophie

Williamson, conjured up the heat and sunshine of Mexico with

a spirited performance of some Mariachi music. As if this

wasn’t enough, the newly-formed and Santa be-hatted Jazz

Band made its concert debut with a foot-tapping rendition of

the theme tune to the BBC Film Programme. For such young

children to achieve such an impressive standard in so few

weeks of a new school year is a marvellous testament to the

hard work put in by them and by their dedicated team of

instrumental teachers – Bravo!

Travelling across Europeat Michaelmas

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Don’t forget to keep up to date with all the goings on at school through our social

media chanels. Both our Facebook pages and Twitter feed have proved extremely

popular since their launch last Spring. We’re now working on a new website which will

integrate more closely with our social content. /saintronans @saintronans

Class 3 at Biddenden Vineyard

On Tuesday 3rd November, Class 3 went to Biddenden

Vineyards. We went on a minibus and on the minibus there

was a lot of noise. When we got there we met a man called

Malcolm. He gave a fantastic tour around, then he told us a

little bit of history. In 1953 they had amazing apple trees but

sadly there was an incredibly big hurricane and it blew down

all the apple trees so they decided to get rid of all of them.

They didn’t grow them again because they had done too much

work anyway. In 1969 they started the vineyard and they did

more work than they had done before.

Next we had a look at the grape trees. They looked like

soldiers marching in a parade. Malcolm told us that the grapes

could break your back teeth. If rabbits have leftover food in

their mouths, they nibble the bottom of the trees. It is like a

toothbrush to them.

Then Malcolm showed us the apple press. It squashed the

apples and turned them into pulp and apple juice. All the skins

of the apples are given to pigs and cows. Then you put bottles

on a conveyor belt and the juice got put in and then they got

labelled. After that, Malcolm showed us some wine and apple

juice and they were in vats.

Finally Malcolm showed us the tasting room and we tasted

Early Windsor and Cox and Bramley and pear juice. Then we

went back to school and wrote about it.

By Ned Taggart and Alex Peck.

The very foundations of the Great Space trembled as the

massed bands of Holmewood House, Dulwich College Prep

and Saint Ronan’s joined forces for our inaugural Jazz Day on

October 1st. Some forty children assembled for a day of

intense rehearsing – punctuated by plenty of eating, drinking

and fresh air in the Forest School – leading to a concert at the

end of the afternoon. The first tentative read-through of the

four numbers rapidly evolved into an ever more confident and

stylish rendition as the day progressed, thanks in no small part

to the expert attentions of Steve Hollamby, Rob Leake and

Adam Tanner from Saint Ronan’s music department, who led

sectionals for brass, woodwind and the rhythm section.

The concert was attended by a large and supportive audience,

whose toes could not resist tapping to classics such as ‘Run

Rabbit Run’, ‘I’ve been working on the railroad’ and ‘I wish I

knew how it felt to be free’. The children did a magnificent job

in absorbing so much music so well in such a short time -

marvellous!

Great vibe at inaugural Jazz day

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Charles Gunther of Oxo fame owned the Tongswood Estate

from 1903 until his death in 1932. The family finally sold up in

1945 and the house was bought by the third Headmaster, WB

Harris, as a new site for Saint Ronan’s. Mr Gunther bred

pedigree bulls on the estate which were shipped to Argentina

to improve the quality of the cattle.

‘Tongswood Bampton’ is a pedigree beef shorthorn from the

Tongswood herd. It won the Derby Bull Cup at the Bury Show,

Pedigree Cattle return to Tongswood

Lancashire in 1911. The painting (above left) was produced by

Charles Gunther’s late grandson, also called Charles, and was

taken from a black and white slide which had been gifted to

the School’s archives.

Over a hundred years later, pedigree cattle have returned to

graze the Tongswood pastures - in the form of Fred and

Wilma!

This year's Science day had the theme of ‘Light’. As ever,

various classes from the Prep School helped the Science

Team deliver sessions to the Pre-Prep, including looking at

and trying to make stained glass windows; measuring the light

intensity in different places in the grounds; looking at objects

through different filters; chromatography and universal

indicator. We also invited a visiting scientist to demonstrate

how different materials burn. This was timed well for Bonfire

night: the children put various materials into the Bunsen

burner flame and were excited to see different coloured

sparks. They were all closely supervised and wore goggles but

nevertheless had great fun. What shall we think of for next

year?

Shining a light on Science: Pre-Prep Science Day

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My name is Louisa Bulow and I am a former Head Girl of Saint

Ronan's (Spring Term 2009).

I would like to share the story of how Saint Ronan's helped me

begin the journey I am on.

What I have achieved since leaving Saint Ronan's makes me

very proud. The school and the people there who helped me

become the person I am will always have a special place in

my heart.

In the past few years I have

taken on many challenges,

such as climbing through

mountains in Morocco,

volunteering in Thailand,

working regularly at a local

special needs Sixth Form and

finally becoming Head of House

and Deputy Head Girl at St

Leonards Mayfield School.

I genuinely feel that I would not have taken on any of these

challenges had it not been for the encouragement and

guidance of Saint Ronan's. It gave me the drive I have to take

on new challenges, stemming from one of the greatest days of

my life – the Brodie Shield.

I am the first and only girl ever to have won the Brodie Shield

and of course this is something I say with enormous pride.

However I believe this is something that can and, I hope will,

be done again! I will never forget the feeling I had that day and

it has made me try and reach the same height in everything I

do!

I'm now taking on my biggest challenge yet - The Inca Trek.

This August I will travel to Peru for two weeks to climb Machu

Pichu in aid of the Epilepsy Society (a charity that means a lot

to me). My aim is to raise the huge sum of £3000 before I go

and I need your help!

Saint Ronan's is a massive family and like no other school I

know of. So I ask if you would very kindly make a donation to

this amazing charity and help me to succeed by completing

the Inca Trek this summer for the Epilepsy Society!

I am extremely grateful for your help! Thank you.

https://www.justgiving.com/Louisa-Bulow

On 6th October the Senior Strings Ensemble headed off into

the rising sun to enjoy a day of music at King’s Canterbury.

There they joined forces with some six other schools to form a

gigantic string orchestra, tackling works by Sibelius, John

Williams and Schubert. Ruairi Pringle found himself leading a

cello section the size of which could not be equalled by any

London orchestra, and the overall impact of the ensemble in

the resonant acoustic of the Shirley Hall was most impressive.

Despite all the top tips the children picked up during the day,

one suspects that it was the lunchtime demonstration by

Bellatrix, champion beatboxer extraordinaire, that made the

greatest impression!

King’s Strings Day

An Old Ronian writes...

This term we had three school lectures during the Friday

evening gathering. Back when we approached the event with

optimism, the fraternal team of Peter and Chris Pyemont gave

a talk on the Rugby World Cup. This not only covered the

sporting side of the event, but also showed how sport can be a

strong unifying force in society by examining the effect of the

event on South Africa as they rejoined the wider sporting

world.

David Force then gave us a fascinating talk on medieval and

renaissance instruments, not only talking us through their

development (and how their quite amazing designs worked)

but also demonstrating them so well that we were transported

back to the time of their use.

Finally Jo Questier from the Dog’s Trust visited us, with her

furry friend Paddy the puppy, and gave an afternoon of

workshops, first to small groups of Classes 3 and 4 and then

to the whole School. These covered responsible dog

ownership and safety around dogs.

Autumn term lectures

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In the Chapel courtyard we have a bench with a plaque that

reads:’ J.S. E.S.S. 1930-1936’. We have since discovered who

these people were: two brothers, John and Edward Skinner,

both at Saint Ronan’s in the 1930s. John was the older,

winning the Shooting Prize in 1933 and gaining his colours for

Football, as well as being well-liked and working hard. He

went to Eton and then up to Oxford, where he was President

of the Boat Club. By 1943 he was a Second Lieutenant in

India, well-respected and able, but happened to be part of the

force intercepting the Japanese in Burma when he was killed

in action on 13th March 1945.

Edward Skinner, John’s younger brother, attended Saint

Ronan’s from 1932 to 1936. He loved games but was not so

keen on work. For example, in the St Ronan’s Magazine for

April 1934, a quick summary of Form 1B’s progress states:

‘1b were a good Class and, if the standard was not

very high, worked well. O’Brien and Skinner, mi. were the

most disappointing and find it most difficult to keep going

steadily. The rest all did well.’

Despite his supposed deficits, Edward went on to Eton. Before

he left, he took part in a celebrated race on Sports Day.

220 Yards (Junior).—1, Jessiman and Skinner. Dead

heat. Time 32 2/5 secs. This was a magnificent race.

Practically the whole way down the straight there was not a

yard between the two. Ten yards from the finish Skinner forced

himself to the front and Jessiman seemed to waver, but in the

last five yards came again splendidly and they breasted the

tape dead together. It was a grand race and when one

remembers there was a stiff breeze against them for the 170

yards of the straight to be only two-fifths outside the record

was a very fine performance.

After Eton, Edward joined the Coldstream Guards. On 3rd

September, the allies began the invasion of the Italian

mainland from Sicily. Edward Skinner was killed in action,

defending a post he was ordered to hold at all costs.

Mary Skinner was the young sister of these two brothers.

When Edward ran in the dead-heat race, he was 11 and Mary

was 9. She may be in the photo and was almost certainly in

the crowd that sunny day. Only ten years later, her two older

brothers had died in action in World War II. Yet Mary herself

lived until 2001, for another 56 years. She must have thought

of her brothers innumerable times, bitterly regretting the loss

of their lives and the time she had not been able to spend with

them.

Any death in war is a tragic loss – not only of the life itself but

for everyone who knew the person. So, during the

Remembrance season, we come together to give thanks to

those who gave up their lives for our freedom and peace.

Armistice Day Service: Remembering Old Ronians

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We were delighted to welcome over 200 guests to the

Grandparents’ Tea. After being given a sticker to denote that

they were VIGPs (Very Important Grand Parents) they were

given a tour of the School and traditional high tea when the

children waited on them with lovely cakes and sang to them.

We even had a Kazoo choir from the Year 3 children.

An enormous thank you to Amanda and to Katie and her team

for arranging the tea. Thank you also to Mrs Hill and Mr Force

for bringing out the musical brilliance of the children. A tour de

force!

Grandparents come to tea

This term we have been blessed by the arrival of Father Iori to

take our Chapel Services. Father Iori is the husband of Mrs

Price, the Headmistress of Benenden School. This is a busy

role in itself but if you add to this his ‘day’ job as a serving

Army Chaplain, it’s a wonder he has time to be our visiting

Chaplain too. However he does, with much charm and

enthusiasm.

This term he has paced the Chapel in a Darth Vader helmet

and cape, telling us the story of Daniel, and defrosted a

Neanderthal’s brain with the help of Mr TV in a pink apron. We

have learned about being brave and standing up for the things

you believe in; we remembered the Paris fatalities with lighted

candles and divided up the world’s resources between the

nations. Above all, Father Iori’s message has been the

importance of being kind to one another.

Our Armistice Service was taken by Mr Synge and Ollie de

Winton took a whole service on her favourite hymn, ‘Lord of

the Dance’. Dr K talked about his poem, ‘Shooting Star’ and

Mr Bryan gave a talk on the Wisdom of Solomon. Mr Clark,

Headmaster of Battle Abbey, gave an Evensong on the Rugby

World Cup (accompanied by Luc Doane singing ‘World in

Union’).

The Chapel Choir has grown in size and sung beautifully,

delighting Mr Force with its versatility and professionalism.

Mrs Silverlock (Karen Stickney’s mother) is mending the

ancient Armistice Altar Front and a busy band of helpers has

made sure that the Chapel is spick and span. This term has

been a fantastic team effort.

Visiting Chaplain, Father Iori

Mr Force, Mr TV and Father Iori

Selden were the winners of the House Swimming Gala,

held at the Weald Sports Centre.

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BMUNVIII

This is not a new language we have started teaching at Saint

Ronan’s, but an acronym for the 8th Benenden Model United

Nations conference, an annual event in which pupils are UN

delegates for a day and find out how the organisation works.

This year we sent 6 pupils: Ollie Skeet, Caspar Cubitt and JP

Shaw represented Argentina and Matilda Clarke, Fraser

McConachie and Anik Moore Zimbabwe.

After a short general assembly the pupils split up into

committee, where they were on their own. All had to present

their country’s position on the topic being debated and many

took the floor in subsequent debates, asking searching

questions and making interesting points.

Special mention must go to indefatigable debaters Ollie and

Fraser who kept their respective committees on their toes

throughout, as well as JP, who wrote his own resolution.

The team came home with a host of accolades: Fraser was

voted cutest delegate for the second year running, JP the

hottest male delegate, Ollie the one most likely to be in the UN

when grown up and Dr. k best dressed (!). Ollie’s debating

was officially highly commended, which is fantastic at this

level.

The N&PP children delighted us with two versions of the

Nativity. The Nursery and Reception classes performed a

delightful story about ‘Tinsel’, a Christmas tree fairy. Tinsel

gets the Frosties, Toys and Sandy Squirrel to help her

decorate a beautiful but lonely fir tree. Inevitably someone

asks why we decorate things at Christmas and the story of the

special baby boy is sung by the cast. As usual with our

younger cast it is the funny ‘asides’ which make it endearing -

the unravelling of a toy’s skirt, a perpetually-spinning shepherd

and a Frostie doing his own little sing-along.

Next up was the YearLis 1 and 2 classes performing Jesus’

Christmas Party. The innkeeper and his wife settled down to

sleep after a hectic day but a stream of visitors kept arriving,

asking for Mary and Joseph. 'Round the back!' the innkeeper

shouted, grumpily! Eventually, desperate for sleep, he went to

see what all the fuss was about. But when he saw the

newborn baby Jesus, the innkeeper softened and joined the

celebrations. Solo performances, group songs and brilliant

acting provided lively entertainment for the end of term. Well

done to the children and teachers in the Pre-Prep.

Lively Nativities!

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Lord Davidson (OR 1943-48) emailed us this picture with a

covering note saying that he'd 'just found this wonderful car,

with Harry, my Father driving and my Grandfather (Sir James

Makenzie Davidson, X-Ray pioneer). It must be about 1907,

when he bought this 70HP Berliet which he then gave to the

Red Cross and it spent the War behind the Italian Front with

an X-Ray Unit. Looking at their caps, they must have been at

Westminster at the time, rather than Pembroke. Probably

taken either in the New Forest or Haddo in Aberdeenshire'.

Harry can also be seen in the centre of this family group from

the School's archives. His elder brother Stanley (Headmaster

1909-26) is seated far right, alongside the small terrier.

W.B. Harris (HM 1926-58)

Stanley Harris (SSH) was born in July 1881 and, in 1909, at

the age of just 28, acquired the (still quite small) school from

the Reverend Crick. He did so with the financial assistance of

his father and thus became the school’s second Headmaster.

After coming down from Cambridge in 1904, SSH started his

teaching career at Saint Ronan’s. He continued to play

amateur football for his club (Corinthian Casuals), and for

England, winning six full international caps and captaining the

side in 1906. He was also an accomplished cricketer and was

asked (as an amateur) to captain Sussex but declined. He

even played against the legendry W.G. Grace.

Restoration work on family photograph albums reveal that

Stanley was also a friend of A.A. Milne, best known for his

books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh. Alan Milne had

been with SSH at Westminster and they had both gone up to

Cambridge together. Undoubtedly SSH would have known AA

Milne’s son, Christopher Robin.

Stanley Harris died of skin cancer in 1926, leaving the school

to his brother Dick, always known as ‘Harry’ to the boys.

S. S. Harris (HM 1909-26)

WBH centre with cap; SSH far right with terrier

W.G. Grace

15

Headmasters give it both barrels

A remarkable feature of Saint Ronan’s is that all four

headmasters, since Dick Harris (3rd HM) died in 1958, had

doubled-barrelled surnames. Some have quipped that it’s a

prerequisite for the job! Recent family research by Dr

Chabros, Dick and his brother Stanley Harris’ great-niece

(Stanley was HM from 1909-1926; Dick from 1926-58)

suggests that they too were double-barrelled (Poulett-Harris).

So the quirky Saint Ronan’s tradition has been maintained for

over a century! Dr Chabros takes up the story….

Charles was born in 1791, the son of John, 4th Earl Poulett

(pronounced Pawlett) and John’s sister-in-law’s cousin, Sarah

Harris. He was brought up by his kind and loving father and

entered the Royal Navy as a midshipman at the tender age of

12.

At 14 he received his first command at the Battle of Trafalgar.

So many prizes were taken that every officer had to take

command of a ship, even including the midshipmen. However

his ship was attached by Spanish privateers and was captured

after a fierce engagement.

Charles spent the next year – the happiest of his life, he said –

as a prisoner on parole in Spain, being made much of by the

Spanish ladies, who were captivated by the handsome blonde

child officer.

In the Navy the midshipmen were kindly treated, and Charles

often dined at Lord Nelson’s table, but he was so appalled by

the brutality with which the officers treated the men that he left

the Navy and joined the Army, retiring when he got married.

He and his 16 year old Dutch American bride went on to have

nine children, none of whom went to school. He educated

them himself at home, evidently well, for his sons gained high

honours at Cambridge and four of his children, including

George (father of Sir Alexander Harris) went on to become

Headmasters or Headmistresses of successful schools.

We do not know his reasons for teaching them at home, but it

seems certain that his chief concern was the cruelty prevalent

in Victorian schools. He loved his children dearly and had

seen too much brutality in the Navy to risk exposing them to it.

The young Sir Alexander hero-worshipped his colourful

grandfather and it is clear from the way he brought up his own

children, including Stanley and Dick, that he shared his

grandfather’s love and respect for children.

Stanley’s vision of a cruelty-free school, which would simply

be an extension of the child’s own home, thus has its roots in

the experiences of a child in the Napoleonic wars, though he

must also have been influenced by the Christian ideals of his

mentor, Mr Crick.

For the details of Charles’ life I am indebted to my cousin

Roderick Cunningham.

Krystyna M A Chabros

Great-granddaughter of Sir Alexander Harris

November 2015

Autumn Term PrizesSenior Prefects

Head Prefect A. Clapp

Second Prefects D. Gorman, C.Stewart

Heads of Houses

Bicton M. Clarke

Pembroke J. Crombie

Selden E. Hastilow

Tongswood O. Hancock

School Appointments

Captain of Boys’ Hockey J. Crombie

Captain of Lacrosse M. Clarke

Headmaster’s Special Prizes

H. Carnell, R. Campbell, J. Fuller, H. Gutteridge, Ben Bonner-Davies,

E. Brady, J. Mason

Most Shows

Remove R. Faulkner, D. Gorman

Upper B. Lambert

Midway M. Peacock

Shell R. Redmayne

Class 4 M. Eriksson

Class 3 A. Rasalingham, E. Taggart

Best Exam Average Term’s Effort

Remove F. McConachie O. Skeet

Upper T. Tweedie T. Tweedie

Midway J. Whiteley M. Peacock

Shell E. Shimmin A. Geens

Class 4 D. McEvoy Gould

Class 3 A. Rasalingham

School Prizes

Sight Reading R. Woodhouse

Debating O. Skeet

Harris Cup O. de Winton

Football Prizes

U13 Player of the Season B. Hall

U13 Most Improved C. Godden

U11 Player of the Season H. Morrell

U11 Most Improved F. Neill

Girls’ Hockey Prizes

U13 Player of the Season I. Bolton-Ferrett

U13 Most Improved H. Van Buer

U11 Player of the Season C. Milborne

U11 Most Improved G. Price, A. Wormington

House and Form Prizes

Senior Form Midway IP

Junior Form 3 RF

House Cup Pembroke

Bicton Prize C. Godden

Pembroke Prize A. Williams

Selden Prize J. Jordan

Tongswood Prize R. Honychurch

Form Tutors’ Prizes

Remove EG B. Hall

Remove KK D. Gorman

Remove PG R. Faulkner

Upper DB L. Hudson

Upper BC C. Redmayne

Upper JG J. Groom

Midway SC A. Codd

Midway LL S. Wood

Midway IP J. Whiteley

Shell RVS A. Geens

Shell LS W. Harrison

Shell NH P. Connell

4 DG M. Brady

4 RT M. Featherstone

4 EM R. MacLeay

3 RF M. Davidson-Houston

3 EGJ T. Triggs

3 TT C. Eriksson

16

The Hobbit House hosted a special visitor to the Nursery and

Pre-Prep on the last day of term!

17

Christopher Snell handed in his Governors’ badge this term

after 13 years of selfless work for the School.

An old friend to Saint Ronan’s, Chris joined the School in 1949

under the aegis of the legendary

Headmaster W B Harris. As a

child, Chris excelled on the sports

pitch and WBH wrote that he was

the ‘…only man to have captained

an unbeaten cricket and soccer

side and is a rugger colour. He is

our best punt-returner and also a

good spot kick – a good pass giver

and……his deception is good.’ Chris also excelled musically

and made what must have been one of the first Prep School

piano recordings in 1955. Academically gifted, Chris went on

to Winchester, where his passion for sport in general, and

Cricket in particular, continued. In 1955 he won Public School

Rackets with his partner the Nawab of Pataudi (Mansur Ali

Khan), who has been described as India’s greatest cricket

captain (he played in the same team as him at Winchester).

Chris’ grandfather founded Mowden Prep, now Lancing Junior

in Hove, and Chris took on the Headship in 1973, having

already taught at Summerfields in Oxford. He retired from

there in 2002 and we hope that he took a little bit of the Saint

Ronan’s way with him to Mowden. He was a hugely

successful Headmaster so we are imagining that he did!

As well as being a Ronian Governor for 13 years at Saint

Ronan’s, Chris has done other things to keep him busy,

notably being a Member MCC for

50 years; Life member and Vice-

President of Sussex CCC; the

Patron for Sussex Young Cricketers

and President of the Sussex

Martlets. He has also been a Vice-

President of Brighton College; a

Governor at two other schools and

a Friend of the Theatre Royal in

Brighton.

To celebrate and thank Chris for his service to Saint Ronan’s,

we gave him a lovely lunch and a very Ronian gift. A teak

basket was made when Saint Ronan’s was founded in the

1880s. Albert, our signwriter, decorated it in the same manner

as Chris’s own entries on our honours boards and we filled it

with ‘Ronian’ things: Lady Vass’s prayer book and crested

fleece, glasses and notebook. We also gave him Ronan the

Ronian teddy bear for good measure.

We can’t thank Chris enough for all his help. He has guided,

encouraged and served with modesty, expertise, diplomacy

and panache!

Simon Bennie joins the Governing Body in January and will

serve alongside three other Trustees on

the Curriculum Committee, which meets

termly at School.

Simon is a Saint Ronan’s old boy (1973-

1978) and his daughters Rose and Phoebe

attended the School.

His first career was working in the pop

music business in a variety of roles,

including concert promotion, band

management and running a nightclub.

Highlights included promoting Billy Joel at the Wembley Arena

and Eric Clapton at Dingwalls.

Looking for a change of career, Simon read English Literature

at the University of Surrey as a mature

student and completed a PGCE at the

Roehampton Institute. He has since

worked as an English teacher and

Housemaster at The Oratory school and at

Dulwich College. He currently works at

Benenden school as the Assistant Head of

Boarding and Housemaster of Elms.

His interests include trialling muddy

vintage cars; overseeing the management

of Rydal Mount, the Lake District home of

the poet William Wordsworth; performing with his old school

band and directing plays.

Farewell, Mr Snell

Welcome, Mr Bennie

S p o r t S a i n t R o n a n ’ s

Sports Newsletter

Don’t forget our weekly Sport Saint Ronan’s Newsletter. Check the Extranet for back issues.

18

The Saint Ronan’s Cross Country squad has enjoyed a very

successful start to the season, the Senior Boys establishing

the school firmly amongst our competitors in the West Kent

area.

Competing at six events over the course of the term, the U13

boys have run up an impressive string of placings: 2nd in the

Brenchley Relays; 1st at the Thomas Trophy; 2nd at the IAPS

Regionals and 1st at the Dobson. With the U11 boys finishing

3rd at the Dobson and taking Silver at the Kent Junior

Championships, we have plenty of potential coming through

the ranks.

Although runners such as James Crawley, James Crombie,

Carlos Nieto-Parr, George Kidd, Archie MacLeod, Kaspar

Bottle, Lizzie Wooff, Lily Stewart and Hope Rutter provide the

inspiration, it takes at least four to cross the line to establish a

position from which we can contend. Credit must be given

therefore, to all those who attend regular training sessions,

who compete with tenacity and who are instrumental in the

success of the squad.

We now look forward to competing at Somerhill, Northbourne

Park, Kent College, Hilden Grange, and The Nationals at

Malvern College in the Spring Term. Well done everybody!

Striding to succeed

Numbers for the fencing extra have continued to grow and we

were able to give every one of the 12 fencers in the senior

group a chance to fence in one of the friendly fixtures. Our

third ‘outing’ was the first round of the South-East Inter-School

Championships.

The season started well with both A and B teams cutting a

wide swathe through MHS’s defences and winning both

matches very convincingly. We didn’t fare so well against

Solefield, traditionally a strong opponent, and both teams lost,

though very close and honourably.

In the Championships the A team were able to win all three

matches against Hilden Grange, MHS and the Ronian B team;

the B team unfortunately did not win a single match, but fought

ferociously and scored some beautiful points.

Although all fenced well and to the best of their abilities, a few

names stand out: Kate Lazarides for unwavering enthusiasm

and grit, Luc Doane for excellent lightness of touch, Bertie

Lambert for reliability and injury-beset Emma Beart for holding

her own in the As, as well as John-Paul Shaw for continuous

support. A special well done to first-time fencers: Amelie

Geens, Harry Morrell and Oliver Parker.

Friendly Fencing Fixtures

19

S p o r t S a i n t R o n a n ’ s

The U10-U13 girls first season on the new Astro has been

their best yet. The difference the surface has made to our

training and preparation for matches has been invaluable and

we would like to thank, once again, all those who supported

the appeal. Since working on the new Astro the girls’

confidence and match play has come on in leaps and bounds

and it has been wonderful to watch the teams flourish. Out of

the 55 matches played, the girls won or drew 33 and scored

76 goals.

The U12As were a formidable side this year, only losing one of

their matches and the U11Cs have improved enormously and

remain unbeaten. The U11A team also had a fruitful season

and progressed through their group stages at the EGHA U11

tournament to win the quarter finals of the Plate. Sadly they

lost in the semi-finals, but it was still a great achievement.

Results aside, the biggest compliment we can pay the girls is

how well they played together, supporting each other and

clearly enjoying their hockey. Ultimately that’s what it’s all

about. It is therefore difficult to pick out individual

performances when so many have played a valuable part in

their teams’ success.

Lower down the school the girls have been busy improving

their netball skills. The U8s have had a brilliant season,

with the As winning 4 of their 6 matches and the Bs

remaining unbeaten. The U9s have had a frustrating time,

not quite managing to gel in their teams and stick to the

game plan adopted in training. However the girls have real

potential and I am confident that this will emerge as they

mature.

Congratulations to Jemima Spence and Grace Easton who

have qualified for the girls Kent County side, and Poppy

Barker who made it through to the final stage of the country

trials. All three girls successfully progressed through a

series of special high performance courses in order to

reach this point of the selection process. A fantastic

achievement with so many girls competing for places. Very

well done to you all.

Astro makes it’s mark - best Hockey season yet

Under 8 & 9 Netball

Girls’ Kent County Cricket

20

S p o r t S a i n t R o n a n ’ s

Sports photography © Sarah Clark Photography 2015. © Saint Ronan’s School 2016. Editor: Ben Clarke.

The boys continue in their quest for ‘Total Football’ and we

have seen some very entertaining matches, wonderful goals,

impressive individual skills and good team work. It is not easy

to teach boys of Prep School age to play from the back, keep

possession and to pass and move, so they do make mistakes

and concede goals. However in the long run they will be

much better prepared for football at their senior schools and

beyond.

The 1st XI, led by Barney Hall (selected for Brighton and Hove

Albion Development Centre), came up against some strong

sides. They kept the ball well but could not be quite decisive

enough in the final third to get the goals their possession

deserved.

The 2nd XI played a very attacking game and, with their

wingers involved a lot, managed to create plenty of shooting

chances, with many ending up in the back of the net.

The Colts A also enjoyed a good season and saved their best

performances for the IAPS South East Tournament. After

winning their group they went on to beat MHS in the last 16,

before dispatching Handcross Park in the quarter final (2-1 in

a tight match). Unfortunately in the semi-final we came up

against a very good Lingfield Notre Dame side. After going 0-2

down we managed to pull one goal back, via a great long

range strike, but the opposition hung on for victory.

Well played to every boy who has represented the school this

season.

Football season draws to a close

One hundred years ago