Dear parents, Please find the end of term report enclosed with this

Headmaster: Patrick A. Lee Browne
Email: [email protected]
Dear parents,
Please find the end of term report enclosed with this letter. As part of our development of the Assessment for
Learning strategy, pupils have already discussed their reports with their tutors, so they should be aware of their
individual strengths and weaknesses, and the areas and strategies for improvement that the reports contain. At
the start of the term departments discussed and agreed a target grade for each pupil and this has been discussed
by the pupils with their teachers and tutors as part of the review of grades and half term reports. The target grade
is included in the report for exam yeargroups (Year 10 upwards) and remains a focus for discussion and review as
the year develops towards public exams.
You should have received by email a copy of the results of the parents’ survey that we conducted before half
term. As I wrote in that email, the response rate was low, but I hope that everyone will contribute to a follow-up
survey that we will undertake next term, so that we get a fuller understanding of your views.
We have had a number of meetings with Teejac to resolve the issues regarding games kit: we have simplified the
ordering and collection arrangements, so that all orders now go through the shop rather than via the Teejac
website and are delivered to school; we have ensured that all items are available for sizing in the school shop; and
we have agreed a timetable for opening over the summer that will allow parents to access the shop throughout
the holidays. Could I please ask parents to ensure that pupils return in January with the appropriate kit for next
term: girls should all now have the new sports top, which will be used for netball as well as hockey, and boys
should by now all have the new rugby top, which they will also use in hockey fixtures. Could I also remind
parents that pupils must have a gum guard and shin pads for hockey; those of you who have taken out the
Denplan insurance cover should be aware that cover might be refused if a pupil is not wearing a gum guard when
they sustain an injury.
On the topic of uniform, could I encourage you to provide your sons and daughters with proper protection
against the weather: although Colwyn Bay remains at the heart of the of the North Wales Riviera, it is also the
Gateway to Snowdonia, and there are times when pupils need a decent coat (black in colour and plain in
appearance) or an umbrella. A blazer lifted over the head in pouring rain doesn’t do the blazer any favours…
We have had a really positive response to the Annual Fund, from parents as well as alumni, and we are delighted
that after three months we have already raised over half of the target of £15,000. With nine months still to go, we
are confident that we can achieve that target in the first year of running the scheme.
The Friends of Rydal Penrhos School (FORPS) ball at the Deganwy Quay hotel on 30 November was a highly
enjoyable evening. FORPS was reconstituted at the start of term, and now embraces parents in the senior as well
as the Prep School. The committee has begun to organize a calendar of events for 2013, which will be published
as and when they are finalized, and one of these will be a summer ball in the marquee on New Field on Saturday
25 May – the evening of Speech Day. The Upper Sixth will be having their own Leavers’ Ball at the Kinmel
Manor hotel, but the New Field event has been very popular with parents in recent years, so we have decided to
hold it as usual as a FORPS ball in conjunction with the Rydal Penrhos Society.
We have raised over £1,700 this term for charity, which is a tremendous achievement. The individual charities to
benefit are: Jeans for Genes £630.23; Amnesty International £239.32 (raised at the quiz night organised by the
tireless Mrs Richardson); Anthony Nolan Trust £191.36 (many thanks to Osborn house for achieving this
through fundraising on Osborn Day); and Children in Need £681.67. The RNLI carol service on the last night of
term will have increased the total sum further.
Our girls’ U18 and U16 hockey teams have once again reached the national finals, though the U14 Eryri qualifier
had to be postponed until next term as a result of a frozen pitch. The mixed U12 and boys’ qualifying rounds
begin next term, and we are hoping for strong performances from them to match the girls. Ellie Scarff and Tara
Edwards have been selected for the U14 Eryri netball squad, Beth Mather has been selected at U18, and Hannah
Cashell has been chosen for the Wales U16 squad. William Sissons has been selected for the Wales U12 cricket
team, and Jack Sissons for the U14 team.
In sailing, Gabriel Abed has gained a place in the Welsh National Topper dinghy squad. Eight of our swimmers
have qualified for the Urdd National Swimming finals in Cardiff on 25 January, where they will be joined by a
further eight swimmers from the Prep school. Two pairs of Fives players took part in the Midlands Eton Fives
U14 Competition: Jack Sissons and Adam Sabri were runners up in the main competition, and Tom HamiltonPritchard and Tom McCloskey won the festival competition. The four of them won the trophy for the overall
highest average number of points per game. We will be making a strong showing at the regional cross-country
championships at Dolgellau in January, with the Year 7 boys’ and girls’, and the Senior boys’ teams all qualifying,
as well as a number of individual runners.
The Christmas concert was a very ambitious programme: the stage was packed with performers for the final
item, Vaughan Williams’s Fantasia on Christmas Carols, and the variety, quality and consistency of the whole
programme was a tribute to the pupils’ hard work in preparing for the concert and the energy and drive from the
Music department in their planning and rehearsal – not forgetting the contribution from a healthy number of
staff members, both playing and singing. It was a great occasion (there are some very atmospheric pictures
accompanying the report on the website), and bodes very well for the future. The Drama department is well
under way with its preparation for next term’s musical, The Little Shop of Horrors, so please make sure that you
come and support that fantastic production in the Memorial Hall in March.
At the tail end of the year, in drear-nighted December, the BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards gave us
the opportunity to bask again in the wonderful achievements of the Olympic summer and be reminded one more
time of the inspiration that those people offered, and the relentless training and preparation to which they
committed themselves in their pursuit of success. Inspiration is an elusive ingredient – like a sense of humour, it
can’t be taught or learnt – but it’s an essential quality in great teaching, and I would like to end by thanking on
your behalf the teaching staff and support staff, who have in many different ways provided motivation and
inspiration to our pupils. We have ended the term late, but everyone has maintained their efforts and energies
right up to the last day, and I am very grateful for all that they have put into the last sixteen weeks.
Please encourage and help your sons and daughters to spend time over the holidays preparing for exams in
January if they have them, but at the same time, please enjoy a very happy and restful holiday with your family,
and I look forward to seeing you again in the New Year, which begins with registration on Monday 7 January.
With all best wishes for Christmas,