Archive for the ‘Newsletters’ Category
Monday, January 31st, 2011
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
The Annual General Meeting of the Association will be held at 7.30 pm. prompt on Monday 21st February 2011 at the Bath Cricket Club, North Parade, by kind permission of the Cricket Club. Your attention is drawn to Rule 15, under which any member wishing to move a resolution or nominate an Officer at the Annual General Meeting must give notice of their intention in writing to the Honorary Secretary, not less than seven days before the meeting.
P D Powell Honorary Secretary
AGENDA
1 Apologies
2 Minutes of 2010 AGM
3 Matters arising
4 Hon. Secretary’s Report
5 Hon. Treasurer’s Report
6 Election of Officers:
a. President—Nomination: R J Wood Esq.,
b. Vice Presidents
c. Hon. Secretary
d. Hon. Treasurer
e. Hon. Social Secretary
f. Hon. Correspondent
g. Hon. Auditors
h. Trustees
i. Executive Committee
7. Any other business.
Hon. Secretary’s Report
In October 2010 we saw the publication of ‘Basement to Beechen Cliff’, a task undertaken by a small team of Old Sulians’ which has proved to be not only popular but profitable. The profits have now been donated to the School for the purchase of books for the library.
We shall try to arrange new events but to do so we need input from members. You will note from the newsletter that we are going to have lunch at various venues (with wives).
Any Old Sulian is welcome to attend Committee Meetings at the Bath Cricket Club on the 2nd Tuesday of each month.
Looking back to past minutes, in December 1955 the minutes show that the Headmaster, L H Scott, suggested that the Association should consider awarding prizes. We agreed to present 2 prizes at a cost of One Guinea each to boys in Form 2 and 4 who showed the most progress in the year, evidenced by exam results.
Graham Mower was President followed by T A W Palmer, with a strong Committee containing amongst others, Freddie Burt, Bill Oatley, John New, Bill Wood, Tom Archard, Ken Ruddick and John Ruddick, Brian Dawes, Jim Sagar and ‘Spud’ Gardner. It is interesting to note that whist drives were held jointly with the Parents Association.
The Headmaster was a regular attendee at Committee Meetings. The Annual Dinner held in December 1955 showed a profit of £12-19-8p. The first Old Boy elected as Mayor of Bath was S A Smith. And finally a Motor Rally was held attended by 73 competitors at 10/6p a head, which included dinner, organised by Maurice Robinson and Fred Burt. It made a loss of 1/8d.!
P D Powell Hon Secretary.
Hon. Treasurer’s Report
I can report another successful year for the Association helped largely by the sales of The Book and a good crowd for the Annual Dinner. The Auditor has passed the books and produced the Balance Sheet in a revised format which will be available at the AGM as usual. We would have shown a profit of about £150 on the year but for 2 items. We donated the sum of £1000 to the Headmaster for books for the Library, and we wrote off the £1000 loan to The School towards the organ fund that was made many years ago. John New and the then Treasurer Bill Wood, arranged it as a loan because of the uncertain future of the school under the political masters of the time. Plus ca change! But Beechen Cliff is in a much more stable position today and your Committee decided that the continued state of the loan as an Association asset was anachronistic. I am grateful to our Hon Auditor John Foster for his continued advice and support.
There are still a few copies of Basement to Beechen Cliff available and we also have a good stock of ties. £10 each, with postage an extra £2.50 for the book
R J Wood Hon Treasurer
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Monday, January 31st, 2011
H John New 1915—2010
Since 1925 when it was formed, the Association has been blessed with many distinguished and long serving Sulians. None more so than John New who sadly passed away on 23rd December 2010 at the grand age of 95. He had not been in good health for a while but his recall of the ‘old’ days was still quite sharp. He came from a large family with 5 sisters and a brother. He left School in 1933 having been present at the laying of the foundation stone for the ‘new’ school at Beechen Cliff. He served his time with the Army mostly in Africa. Active in both the Association, serving as President in 1951 and also as Secretary and Treasurer and Trustee, and in the Rugby Club, where he was one of the group instrumental in the acquisition of the ground at Lansdown. He served as 1st XV Captain in 1937 as well as Secretary, Treasurer and ultimately Life President. As a Legal Clerk with Stone, King and Wardle he knew ‘everyone’ in Bath and he was involved with almost every organisation in Saltford. Many will recall him sailing majestically between Bath and Saltford on his Honda moped. ‘Stately as a Galleon’ are the words that spring to mind! Always calm and considered, John was a true Gentleman in a time conspicuously short of that rare breed. We send our sincere condolences to Peter and the other members of his family.
News
Informal Lunch
It has been decided to trial a series of informal lunch meets for members and their wives, starting at The Stag, Hinton Charterhouse at Midday on Wednesday, 11th of May. Dates will be added for June and July and listed in the May newsletter.
Make your own arrangements, pay your own bills but take the opportunity to meet up with friends and give yourselves a well deserved treat!
School Events
The President did the honours for the Association at Presentation Evening at the Assembly Rooms where former International Referee Tony Spreadbury was the main guest. Along with the Rose Bowl and cups we give commemorative medals and book tokens. And at the Annual Carol Service Mike Hucker read ‘The Word’ on behalf of The Association for the first time following negotiations with School by Alan Blake. A good collection of Sulian Ties were present at The Abbey for a wonderful evening.
Reunions
I understand that Mike Hucker is also co-ordinating another ‘49ers meet this summer. Strictly for those that did School Cert in 1949, if you are not already on Mike or Alan Blake’s list, get in touch.
Also I have had a number of requests to arrange another visit to School at the end of the summer term from some who were unable to go last year. I have not approached the Head yet but let me know if you are interested and I’ll see what can be done.
Old Sulians’ Rugby Club
The 1st XV are currently about mid-table in Somerset 1 and doing better than last year with coaching help from Bath RFC and the University. A very successful Old Players lunch was held in November but the weather in December and early January did rather hamper efforts on the normally sunny lush green grass sward of Lansdown. I can also report that Billy Hallett is improving steadily and Tony Slee is still finding the going a bit tough.
Golf
Association v NHSOB. This year is away on Thursday 9th June – Mick Moore will be handling the selection and you will receive The Call if needed.
Association Golf Day As usual at Bath Golf Club, Sham Castle on Friday 17th June . This year it is afternoon only. Meet at 12.30, dinner at 7pm (ish)
Contact Mike Wood at: mike@systemagic.co.uk or 01225 742184
Open to all Sulian golfers, please endeavour to give your support to keep this event alive. Numbers have been falling off of late, Now is the time to put it in the diary, book your leave or arrange to send flowers to the ‘boss’!
Annual Dinner
Put the date in your diary now, Saturday 15th October 2011 at the Bath Cricket Club.
Membership Lists
I get occasional requests for lists of members from those trying to reclaim their white fivers! If you would like to peruse the current list it is available free by e-mail in .pdf format from: committee@oldsulians.org.uk or in exchange for 2 stamps by post from the Hon. Correspondent listed below. If you do not wish to have your details disclosed let me know and you will be redacted! If MI5 can do it……
And we also welcome to membership A R Mills (1960)
Obits
Sadly I also report the passing of Alan Garrett (1939), Brian Hamilton (1948)and Charlie Ruff.
And Finally in the last newsletter was a chitty for the dinner containing my e-mail address. When I copied the chit onto our web page I forgot to change the usual @ sign for ‘at’, which helps to stop spammers getting hold of your address. Within 2 days I was getting 50—100 extra e-mails each day offering me all sorts of pills, devices and services that I didn’t learn about at School! And offers from Ukranian ladies that Mother warned me about! And a lot of people want to give me money! If I’m not here next time you’ll know why!
Hon. Secretary: Peter Powell
11 Kennet Park, Bathampton, Bath BA2 6SS 01225 466608
Hon. Treasurer: Richard Wood
63 Caledonian Road, East Twerton, Bath, BA2 3RD 01225 422210
Hon. Correspondent: Roger Wood.
101 Hansford Square, Combe Down, Bath, BA2 5LL 01225 832207
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Monday, January 31st, 2011
Dear Old Sulian,
A definite transformation is taking place in one or two ‘spots’ on the old site. The 1st XVs 1930’s – 1960’s rugby pitch will soon have a shining new Music Centre residing on the halfway line and ready for occupation in August. In addition we will also greet the summer with a new artificial playing surface on the site of the redgra. In some ways this is a shame as I was enjoying the variety of mosses and other flora and fauna which have developed on the site ….
The recent ‘league tables’ demonstrated again how well the school is doing in academic terms. Nationally around 9% of boys achieved the ‘baccalaureate’ which the Minister of Education has created. At Beechen Cliff the figure stands at 31% – not bad for a target we didn’t even know was expected of us! At both GCSE and A Level our pupils demonstrated their many talents again – scoring at, or near the top, of each of the key rankings for the county.
Sporting success has come ‘thick and fast’ over the last week. County wins in the rugby for our Under 13, Under 14 and Under 16 boyswere much welcomed, although a final defeat of our Under 15s to a strong St Gregory’s team was a disappointment. Hockey victories for our Under 13 against Millfield (4-0) and Monkton (2-1) have also been much appreciated. The trophy shelves in my study have been groaning under the weight of new additions – this week supplemented by trophies for indoor athletics (the Under 12 winners) and runners up in the Under 13 category at the County Indoor Championships.
The football season is now underway and I hope to bring you news of success in this area in the next newsletter, the rugby season having ended on something of a ‘damp squib’ with the cancellation of so many December games in the wake of snow and ice covering pitches so frequently.
Shakespeare House took the honours for the Autumn Term and it was the ‘blue flag’ which flew over the school for a fourth time out of five terms of competition. It is becoming quite a formidable House!
More success has been achieved in other fields of interest recently. The Craft Guild’s Young National Chef of the Year (at 23), Mark Stinchcombe, is an old boy of the school. He received an award from Heston Blumenthal recently and also came into school to open our newly refurbished food room. The Times also announced its photograph of the Year last week and we feature again! David Bebber, old boy (1998) was given the award for the quality of his work. When at Beechen Cliff he undertook a great deal of the photographic work for the school.
I hope to bring you news of other exciting developments and achievements in the next Old Sulians’ newsletter although I should extend an open invitation regarding the school play “Around the World in Eighty Days”, due to take place in March, along with the Spring Concert in the same month.
May I wish all Old Sulians’ well and thank you for your ongoing support of the school.
Yours sincerely,
Andrew Davies
Headmaster
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Thursday, September 9th, 2010
News
Visit to School July 15th.
A group of 14 happy souls enjoyed lunch, looking through the archives and a tour of the School hosted by Headmaster Andrew Davies, Tony Lawdham and a number of Prefects. One of many comments received came from Colin Cooper who summed up the general feelings; ‘We were well looked after and were suitably impressed by the changes made over the years. Thankfully sufficient remains of the old to trigger many happy memories and any less happy moments have faded with time’. The President herded them together for a family picture, the results of which can be seen below. Pictured at front left is Glyn Maddocks, former Master and Hon. Life Member.
NHSOB Golf, June 3rd, Sham Castle. We were triumphant 4 and 3. This long-running match between old adversaries continues under Mick Moore’s beady eye. (Newport High Schools Old Boys for the young amongst us!)
Association Golf, June 18th, Sham Castle. Down on numbers again but well supported by the Rugby Club. Roy Aust collected some of the spoils.
Approach Golf, July 7th,Victoria Park.
5 played. After the reading of the runes Alan Blake and Ian Weekes played 58, Pete Powell won with 57. The President and ‘Pebble’ Beach remained, in the best Sulian tradition, silent in defeat, magnanimous in victory!
Walking Rally. July 22nd. Although threatened by the weather, Sue Trude’s final outing as organiser, compiler and whipper-in of the annual trundle round the streets of Bath was another success. Some 8 teams competed to find their way through the maze of clues with the Sidcup Su’ Den Lambern and his crew ending triumphant after a tie-break question. Having declared her intention to retire Sue has found a worthy successor to inflict the pain and full details will be revealed when the honour has fully sunk in!
Committee Meetings
We have now settled in to The Bath Cricket Club, North Parade, and for the winter season will meet at 7.30 pm. on the first Tuesday before the 2nd Wednesday! (Don’t ask!) You are always welcome to drop in for a pint if not the intellectual stimulation.
Basement to Beechen Cliff
From the 400 printed we now have just 35 copies left. If you haven’t got yours yet then time is running out. The Editorial Team are delighted with the sales and the feedback. The use of the profit is the subject of current discussion. Copies have been placed in the British Library, the Bath Reference Library and the School Library for posterity. Hopefully there will be a few left at the Annual Dinner. (See over).
Passed on.
Sadly there are several names for the honours board. Former Science Master Don Radford, A F (Tony) White, also I believe known to his Westinghouse friends as ‘Knocker’, and ‘49er Pete Bryers. We send our thoughts and condolences to their families but we keep our memories.
Headmaster’s Letter.
Enclosed you will find the usual update from the Headmaster, scribed and typed this time by his own fair hand and for which I am even more than usually grateful. This was passed on at the end of last term before the break, as things get a bit frantic at the beginning of term. I am a little tardy with this edition for various reasons but I have seen the DT master setting off on his bike so they must have just returned to the fray. As the Head indicates, secondary education is once again in a state of flux in Bath. (No change there then!) And the adoption of Academy status by Oldfield Girls may or may not throw spanners in the works. We have been this way before but hopefully this time around Beechen Cliff will not be directly affected. Currently Culverhay, formerly West Hill, is facing the chop but watch this space, as they say.
Old Sulians RFC
Former Bath player Martin Haag was the guest speaker at the Su’s annual dinner back in May. An excellent time was had by the 62 present. This season sees them relegated to Somerset Tribute 1 after the last 2 rather torrid years in the Premier league. This should provide more balanced competition and we wish them well. Tony Davies has taken on the Club mantle of Fixture Secretary from the still sick Tony Slee. We wish them both well. And talking of the Rugby Club, that ever youthful Club stalwart Peter Beech has been elected as President of the Bath Combination for another year. (Notice that I never mentioned ‘veteran’!)
Coach Trip
Didn’t happen. Insufficient numbers in the end made it uneconomic. If you have any alternative venues or ideas please contact any of the committee by any legal means.
And finally we welcome Robin Butler (1960) as a new life member and I’m not sure whether I have mentioned A Llewellyn (1960) J Ebdon (1974) and P Elliott (1981) who have also joined up this year. Next News in February 2011 and the AGM will be at the end of February. (I am not going to mention Christmas).
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Thursday, September 9th, 2010
Three Peaks, Centurion Challenge, MCC Cricket matches, Cricket tours, World Bog Snorkelling, Man vs Horse, F1 Challenges and Petanque…. What might I have omitted? It seems that the Summer Term leaves too little time for the classroom and the inculcation of knowledge and wisdom. It is possible that I am moving away from the realm of Summer Newsletter and into something a little ‘philosophical’ – so I will return to the task in hand.
The range of activities undertaken over the last eight weeks has been exceptional and more than six hundred boys have been involved in an extra-curricular activity which has seen them on cricket pitches, scaling mountains, trudging along canal towpaths or scuba diving in Egypt. As I write John Young and his team are in Corsica with the boys and girls undertaking their Duke of Edinburgh Award expeditions. All of this adds up to the same desired outcome; the ‘well rounded’ child, able, we hope, to take their place confidently in society. I never fail to be impressed by the exceptional talents of our boys and girls, recognising that their skills will be in even greater demand in the future, particularly given the need for our country to be confident in itself and the potential which exists – to see Beechen Cliff boys in a range of different situations reinforces the point that the school has proved very successful in creating an articulate, friendly and positive outlook on life which has a wonderful effect upon all those with whom they come into contact.
The House system has been incredibly successful for our Lower School boys, generating fantastic competition in every area of school life, from Sports day to the desire to be the best in terms of conduct and punctuality. No boy wishes to be the one singled out by his Head of House as one whose conduct has lost points for the rest of his House – peer pressure can have very positive results! Shakespeare emerged as the winning House and the Prefects collected the new Oldham Plate at the end of Year assembly, an event which also celebrated the success of many teams and individuals.
One of our newer sports, shooting, has seen an incredible leap forward. This month we sent a team to Bisley as part of the joint KES/BCS Combined Cadet Force to participate in the annual national competition. We achieve incredible success; winning the .22 rifle competition against sixty teams and coming third in the pistol competition. The other teams, many of whom had become used to lifting the trophies, were somewhat shocked. We are very thankful to Major Yeshim and Sergeant Major Lee for their exceptional efforts in nurturing the talent of our boys and developing the discipline within them to reach such levels.
It was wonderful to have a number of Old Sulians join us for lunch and a tour of the school recently. It was a splendid occasion and one which gave our boys the opportunity to spend a little time with gentlemen who conveyed their sense of pride in having been a part of the school. I very much hope that the boys will take with them into their future lives that sense of having belonged to something very special.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the changes which are about to take place in Bath and its secondary provision. For the boys, staff and parents of Culverhay School this will be a very sad time. I have met many men who were pupils at that fine school and remember with affection the time when it was equal in size to Beechen Cliff, recounting the great rugby and football pitch ‘conflicts’ which characterised th great rivalry between the schools. That time is now over, it seems, and we must look a change in the provision in the city which will see only one boys’ school, meeting the needs of those from within and beyond the city who recognise the very special school on the Bear Flat. I doubt they choose us because our academic results are the best for boys anywhere in the area; it is unlikely that hey choose us because the sporting opportunities are the best of any state provider in the south west, or indeed because the outdoor education is wide ranging and exciting. It could be because of the view from the front of the building or because of the exceptional food provided for boys but again, it seems unlikely. I think it is probably the factor which one of the Old Sulians’ mentioned during the recent visit. “I walked into the building and immediately felt at home. The atmosphere was just as I remembered it and you could sense the good relationships between the masters and the boys”.
I think that says it all.
May I wish you all a good summer.
Andrew Davies.
Headmaster.
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Tuesday, May 4th, 2010
The May 2010 newsletters in extended PDF format.
Newsletter – May 2010
Headmaster – May 2010
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