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Telephone (01623) 861054 Facsimile (01623) 836665 E-mail: office@wellowhouseschool.co.uk

A Half-Termly Newsletter from Wellow House School Wellow Newark Nottinghamshire

Peter Cook Farewell Issue-Peter Cook Farewell Issue-Peter Cook Farewell Issue

Peter Cook – W.H.S. Headmaster from September 2004 to July 2016

For anyone who has been involved with Wellow House over the past twelve years, it is hard to imagine the

school without the force of nature that is known as Peter Cook! I discovered something of his appetite for hard

graft when I agreed to become his training partner for the first term he was here: doing circuits of the Sports

Hall with a man over ten years my senior, just getting ‘back into it’ after a hip operation, I lasted just under a

full term and went back to a more leisurely fitness regime, feeling a bit of a failure – but was then informed that

only one person had ever stuck it longer than that! Peter’s determination when doing step ups or press ups was

evident in every facet of his approach to Headmastering: whether he was learning all the children’s names from

the school photo before arriving or helping clear up a ball at 2 am; when running one of his string of twenty

five canal trips or writing up extensive notes from his many meetings about the children’s welfare, Peter gave it

everything.

In many ways, the school Peter inherited in 2004, though very successful at what it set out to do, did not yet

have the feel of a 21st century institution. Many aspects of school life just twelve years ago would seem

unthinkable now: thirteen year old boys in shorts; exam results pinned up in the entrance foyer in descending

order; no grades for effort, only attainment; ancient sports kits; pupils who were already here until 5 pm or

6.15pm being expected to spend their breaks getting tested on vocabulary; parents’ evenings actually

happening on Saturday mornings while pupils (who were in academic lessons on Saturdays) were expected to

get on in classrooms unsupervised. For many pupils, this approach worked very well and returning Wellovians

continue to praise the work ethic that it instilled, but it is fair to say that huge changes in social and parental

expectations since perhaps the mid-1990s required that a big personality be appointed to oversee a steady

revision of the school’s approach and atmosphere to reflect changing times.

Vol 22 Number 6 6th

July 2016

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LEFT: Peter and Jan Cook received presentations at the ball

from Cassie Brealey and Abi Brackenbury

It was not always easy, but Peter has worked equally hard with staff

who had been involved at the inception of the school in 1971

(especially Nick Forbes) and newly qualified young staff he

appointed himself to try to ensure that Wellow House did not lose

its roots – look at the Ragsdale Run, the house outing, the continued

strength in Common Entrance results and the pride in its family feel

– but equally that it has moved forward into being a modernised

version of the fine school at which he arrived. He has also steered

the school’s course through the recession that began in 2008 when

many similar sized institutions buckled under the pressure.

Peter’s personal passions for rugby, fitness, maths and adventure have enthused whole cohorts of Wellow

pupils, who have benefited from his drive and encouragement in so many ways: there has been the coaching of

a man who is equally excited about coaching England Students or Wellow Under 9s, though the latter don’t

always understand his complex moves diagrams first time round! Many have benefited from Peter’s generosity

in giving up two weeks of his holidays each year (and plenty of time organising the administration) to take

them for their first experience of the teamwork involved in operating a narrow boat or the camaraderie of a ski

trip. I know that many parents have absolutely loved the atmosphere of the annual ski trips, if not the coach ride

to Italy! In these areas of school life, like in so many others, Peter could not have hoped to do all that he has

without huge support from his wife, Jan, who has been on so many trips and helped over so many nights of

boarding. Before she had so many grandchildren to visit, Jan also used to manage all the non-teaching staff in

the school. She too will be sorely missed.

Despite all the other demands on a Headmaster’s time during the school week, Peter has also provided

activities in every term he has been here: rounders, indoor fitness, touch rugby, cross country, Perrudo… the

list goes on. As one of the boarding team, his Saturday morning Full English has become stuff of legend! I

remember a few years back that Peter would even spend his Sundays cycling to Newark to watch some Wellow

girls in a hockey match and then over to Southwell to support some Wellow boys in a rugby match before

heading off somewhere else to where someone would be performing in a choir or drama group. His dedication

had to be seen to be believed. Every child felt known and appreciated by Peter and every child knew that he

would always have a listening ear at the ready.

As a colleague and having to deputise on the (thankfully) few occasions when Peter was not at school – he

would come to work when lesser men would be flat out in bed or closing the school for snow – I always felt

great support from him to offer any new activity or idea that I had. In the difficult moments, when children

have made life hard for each other (as children do), he has always been ready to spend hours discussing it until

we have reached what we feel to be a fair conclusion. We will have got things wrong at times, but not through

lack of effort or time! He has mentored young staff and encouraged the non-teaching staff by always being

prepared to roll up his sleeves and muck in to get the job done.

Nicola Matthews is a fine new appointment and will bring her own distinctive stamp to the next chapter of the

evolving life of our special school and I have no doubt that she will prove a huge success, but she is building on

some very impressive foundations built so tirelessly by Peter and Jan. Enjoy your retirements or next ventures –

you have deserved a rest from holding the reins more than anyone on the outside could possibly imagine!

Dan O’Kane

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FROM THE HEADMASTER

This must have been the wettest Wednesday summer term on record!

I cannot remember a summer where I have heard less leather on

willow and seen so many fixtures cancelled. However, when we have

held major events, such as sports days, Summer ‘Fiver Challenge’

Fayre (SEE RIGHT) and Summer Ball, we have been very fortunate.

Despite the weather the children have all been able to develop their

skills in a wide range of sports and activities throughout the term and I

trust they will continue to find time to run around outside and enjoy

the fresh air, either at home in this country or abroad. I am sure they

will enjoy walking in the hills, cycling or swimming in the sea or

foreign pool.

The leavers rounded the year off with a fantastic set of scholarships to

highlight what a great all round education Wellow provides and how

well its pupils are respected by the range of schools we send our pupils

to. I trust all the leavers will go from strength to strength at their new

schools and take with them lasting memories of the times they enjoyed

here. It is only when they have left they really begin to appreciate

what they have had the privilege to enjoy as, towards the end, they

always feel as though they have outgrown the place, and so they

should if we have prepared them properly. Congratulations to all for

achieving your potential at this stage of your education and I trust you

will build on these successes and achieve your future aspirations.

It has been a pleasure watching so many children performing in a

variety of concerts, towards the end of term, run by our peripatetic

staff. The number of children passing music awards and LAMDA

awards at merit or distinction level has been highly impressive and I

congratulate them all and thank the peripatetic staff who have helped

them to achieve these. Mr O’Kane did a commendable job putting

together this series of concerts and an end of year show with a number

of our more experienced musicians, which also included the

reminiscences from our Year 8 pupils and a touching tribute – thanks.

I congratulate Mrs Smith and Mrs Rogerson on passing their teaching

degrees with flying colours and wish them well for the future. Mrs

Smith will take over as Head of Languages and teach all the French

from September. Mr Matthews will come in to teach Latin on Tuesday

and Thursday afternoons. Mr Seeley is going to undertake his teaching

degree through Buckingham University, to add to his sports degree,

and will teach PE & Games across the school, along with junior

science to Years 3 & 4. Mr Mason will take over Miss Grimwood’s

role as TA in the Prep and sports coach, being a qualified coach in

each of the key boys’ games.

RIGHT FROM TOP: Fiver Challenge, Prep Sports Day and Pre-

Prep Sports Day

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Staff Retirees and Leavers

Jo Oxborough – We were extremely fortunate to be able to draw on the services of Mrs Jo Oxborough to

provide maternity cover for our Year 1 over the past year. She has been an excellent member of our Pre-Prep

team throughout the year, job sharing with Miss Storey in the autumn term, leading Year 1 on her own in the

spring term and then job sharing with Mrs Hawley throughout the summer term. We wish her all the best for

the future and thank her for the care and attention she has given to the Year 1 pupils in particular throughout the

year and for working so effectively with the other staff in the department.

Tristan Wilson – With his mentor heading south and with his desire to train for a specific trade, it was not

surprising to receive notification that Tristan Wilson would be leaving Wellow during the summer holidays.

He has managed to secure himself an apprenticeship as an electrician and we wish him all the very best for the

future. We may well see him return, fully qualified, to sort out future problems in the school. Tristan deserves

our gratitude for all his services under the close guidance of Peter Larby and more recently under Bob O’Hara.

Charles Oldershaw – We were extremely fortunate to be able to call on the services of Charles Oldershaw to

provide maternity cover when Kathryn Reast moved down to Pre-Prep to cover Year 2 for the first two terms of

this academic year. His contribution to the life of the school has been much appreciated by pupils, colleagues

and parents alike. Pupils and staff alike feel great appreciation of all he brought to the life of Wellow House

School during his short time with us.

Mikaela Rogerson – Mikaela started as a TA when deciding to change career from her role as a solicitor. She

did a commendable job as TA and assisted with some of the Learning Support pupils. Her focus and

enthusiasm encouraged her to make the right decision to go on to train as a fully qualified teacher and she

undertook that process through Buckingham University at Wellow throughout the past year. Her

professionalism shone through throughout the course as she developed her teaching techniques and enthused

her pupils in all the subjects she taught. She has certainly enthused the younger pupils with their History and

IT programming skills and encouraged the senior pupils to think analytically about the variety of ethical and

religious issues related to RS.

Her tutor and I, as her mentor, have been very impressed by her teaching throughout the year and a range of

other members of staff have observed her as well. Mikaela has undertaken a good number of observations of

her colleagues teaching and visited other schools to look at their teaching and their resources to enrich her own.

It is unfortunate that we cannot offer her a full time job at Wellow but wish her all the very best for the future

and another school is going to be very fortunate to be able to enlist the services of Mikaela as she is a true

professional teacher and she exhibits genuine concern about her pupils’ progress and learning styles.

Ros Adley – Ros joined us in September 2014. We were extremely fortunate in being able to call on Ros

Adley to take over the reins of the language department after the retirement of Nick Forbes, who unfortunately

passed away earlier this year. It came about due to the fact that Mr O’Kane plays football with her husband on

Monday evenings and he just happened to mention the post and Ros was looking to finish at the Convent in

Loughborough and find a part-time post closer to home. She has certainly developed the technology use within

the department and all the children have appreciated the time and effort she puts into her methods of teaching

both French and Latin. She has not only focused their attitudes to languages in the classroom but she has

provided revision sessions on Monday and Tuesday evenings throughout the course of this summer term.

Ros has also played an invaluable role in mentoring Mrs Smith during her qualifying year as a language teacher

through Buckingham University. We wish Ros all the very best for the future as she and her husband look to

enjoy travelling the globe.

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Peter Moore – Peter’s support and knowledge has been invaluable over the past twelve years not only to me

but to all staff and a good number of families who have held discussions with him about their financial

positions. He listens well and offers sound advice, drawing on his years of experience as a Bank Manager with

NatWest and governor with Joseph Whittaker School in Nottingham. We wish him well in his retirement.

Peter Larby was probably one of my best acquisitions from

Bramcote Lorne School. When it had to close, after Lincoln

Minster took it over, I asked Richard Raistrick, the Headmaster at

the time, if there were any staff I should consider for the future. He

highlighted Peter Larby, who was not only his maintenance man but

also looked after boarding with his wife. Fortunately, we had a

position coming vacant in that area and the rest is history, as they

say. A more dedicated and loyal man you could not hope to come

across. He is perfectionism personified and certainly does not work

to the clock. ‘If a job is worth doing it is worth doing properly’

would be a fitting epitaph.

I cannot thank him enough for his loyal support and I know he endeared himself to all who came across him,

including the children and parents. He even elected to travel back from Surrey, after a long weekend at home,

to continue working at the job he was extremely passionate about. Alas, all relationships must come to an end

and he elected to step down from his post at the end of the Easter holidays, but we are very fortunate to have

enjoyed the contribution he has made to Wellow House School over the past seven years.

Jane Beardsley – Jane was one of my first appointments as

Headmaster and she has been a key member of the management staff

since then. She worked incredibly hard to develop the kitchen and its

team into a professional outfit, leading by example in all capacities.

She brought her expertise to bear on our kitchen system and set about

devising menus to encourage healthy eating throughout the school.

She took on board each new healthy initiative introduced by the

government, at regular intervals, and has achieved five star rating for

health & hygiene from the local council each year. This is testament

to the care and attention she and her staff give to the cleaning and

food preparation. She has had to work to strict budgets over the years

and has always been prepared to listen to parents and pupils’ views on

the food, taking on board suggestions and altering menus accordingly.

Each week Jane and I hold a meeting with our Heads of School and one of the topics is the menu for the past

week and the pupil response to it. She and her staff are always conscious of the many needs of the children due

to their various health and dietary requirements and ensure that the options they provide are available to satisfy

everyone’s palate. She has always worked hard to raise money with her team to provide extra resources for the

kitchen through their own initiatives. Their food at the Christmas Fayre is always extremely heartily received

and devoured by all and the reputation of the mince pies and Christmas cakes have grown to major proportions

over the years. From the proceeds the team raised Jane was able to convince the governors to match fund a

number of initiatives – replacing the dining room furniture and a range of other kitchen equipment. The most

recent high profile addition was the rationale cooker, which has been a fantastic addition to the efficiency of the

kitchen. It certainly makes the job easier for Jan and me when preparing the Saturday morning breakfasts, when

we have boarders on a Friday night. Jane has also ensured that all staff have the relevant food hygiene

qualifications, both kitchen staff and teaching staff who are involved in food preparation. Her dedication and

desire to produce a variety of food to highest standards over the years has been invaluable.

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Jane is now retiring and we wish her well as she now has the

opportunity to spend more time at her holiday home in Spain.

You are never going to satisfy everyone all the time when you

provide food but Jane has done an admirable job over the last

twelve years – thank you.

Gill McGill – The last but by no means least of our leavers

this year. After seventeen years at Wellow House School, a

more professional teacher you will be hard pressed to meet.

Mrs McGill was quick to grasp the opportunity of moving the

Geography Room to its present position when it was no longer

required as a boarding space. She quickly adorned the walls

with excellent visual resources to act as stimuli for the

children in their studies and turned the adjoining room into an

excellent additional resource area. It must be the only

Geography Room in the country with its own en-suite! She

did, however, decide to remove the shower room and convert

it into a further resource area where she has her weather

station situated, electronically recording a variety of relevant

geographical data for the pupils to analyse ABOVE: Gill marketing at the Ploughing Match

Her dedication to her subject and her pupils has always been highly respected by colleagues, pupils and

parents. She is always prepared to go the extra mile in copying up notes for a pupil that has missed a lesson or

struggled to get the notes down in a logical or ordered fashion. She is meticulous in her organisation of the

Geography field trips that have enriched the pupils’ enjoyment and understanding of the subject. She has also

been an excellent Form teacher and will spend time with her pupils going over their tables or organisational

skills with them outside lesson time. She also provides a variety of activities on Wednesday afternoons when

required to cover groups of children.

Mr Bardsley has been extremely grateful to Mrs McGill for her organisational skills when preparing the cups

and prizes for the end of term prize giving. She also readily supports any event going on at school and is

particularly proactive about finding jobs to do to assist people or be one of the first to volunteer when

colleagues require assistance.

She does a lot of commendable charity work for the RNLI outside school. We all wish you, Gill, the very best

in your retirement and trust you and Paddy will be able to spend time to yourselves and with your son Duncan.

New Appointments

We have, obviously, managed to find excellent replacements for all our retirees: Mrs Nicola Matthews comes

in to take the helm and I wish her all the very best on her voyage as she steers Wellow on its new course with

the excellent support of the Wellow House School team. The experienced support of, Mr Bob O’Hara, our new

full-time bursar and estate manager will ably support her, I am sure. Miss Conquest, as a Geography specialist,

will carry on the excellent work, enthusing children about the subject, that Mrs McGill has achieved throughout

her time at Wellow.

Wellow moves into the next phase of its evolution and I wish everyone associated with the school all the very

best. I will certainly miss you, the children, despite the headaches some of you have given me at times; but the

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smiles you bring to my face all too often through your efforts and achievements will long remain with me and

keep me feeling young, even if the white hair and lack of pace these days reminds me I am getting older.

It doesn’t seem to matter how hard I train I still find myself coming last in all the Ragsdale run races, but I

thank all those who have run at the back to encourage me! I will miss my colleagues who work tirelessly to

provide an all-round education for the children and give of their time so freely to enrich their education outside

the classroom as much as in it; and you the parents for all your loyal support. Maintain the Wellow ethos and

work to its admirable motto:

Haud Sibi Sed Omnibus

Peter Cook

RIGHT: The Year 8s live up to the school motto as

they ‘do the dab’ in Dovedale

Form Arrangements 2016/17

The Form Teachers for the next academic year will be:

Form Form Teacher Form Room

Year 3 3JMcL Mrs McLaughlin 3JMcL

Year 4 4GM Mrs Beldon Geography

Year 5 5RP Mr Pedley History

Year 6 6KR Mrs Reast & on Friday Mr Seeley Mathematics

6JS Mrs Smith Languages

Year 7 7DOK Mr O’Kane English

Year 8 8AB Mr Bardsley 8AB

I look forward to you liaising with the relevant staff about your child’s development over the coming academic

year and working with them to ensure that they make the progress relative to their potential in all aspects of

school life.

RIGHT:

Year 3s enjoying a

rare dry, warm day on

their recent hike

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Summer Ball – a Staggering £11,000

Raised!

I must thank WHSPA for organising such a

special surprise ball for Jan and me this year

and for inviting the Maori dancers to come

along to open the event with the Haka. They

had a major problem trying to get the team on

site without me seeing them as I had stayed in

school all day working on inspection material

and my window overlooks the main drive.

They needn’t have worried as I was so

engrossed in policies and other paperwork that

when the black van drove by I just assumed it

was something to do with caterers, as Chris

Peace-Gadsby and Dave Foster were

accompanying them. ABOVE: The year of 2011 returned to say farewell to Mr Cook

The Maori group was the same group who performed the opening ceremony at the Rugby World Cup.

It was a fantastic evening made even more memorable due to the number of friends, colleagues and ex-pupils

and parents attending. I cannot thank all those who supported the event enough for their generosity: Linneys for

all the printing; Mrs Gibson for playing the piano whilst everyone arrived and for providing the Disco (silent,

via headphones, from 12.30 am) and all those who contributed auction or raffle prizes. The band Children of

the Revolution were excellent and the food and refreshments keep everyone in fine form throughout the night.

I must also thank the WHSPA committee for yet again providing discos for the Pre-Prep and Prep Departments

on the Monday evening after the Ball and for the inflatable assault course for the Year 7 & 8 children on the

Tuesday; this year’s addition was the enjoyable scavenger hunt. The children had great fun and were most

appreciative of the effort that had been put in to provide them with such entertaining activities.

BELOW: the Ball Committee enjoying the benefits of all their hard work at last (with Mr Cook)

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Compliance Inspection

It was a great surprise to receive a call on the Friday night before the ball that we were going to have a team of

three inspectors descending upon us the following Tuesday for two days. The majority of the school were out

on trips for the day, with just the Pre-Prep and Year 8 left behind.

The great Wellow teamwork kicked into action and all worked together throughout the weekend to ensure that

all the ‘i’s were dotted and all the ‘t’s were crossed in all the relevant policies they were going to check with a

fine tooth comb. The RI (reporting inspector) was very helpful along the way and guided us to the odd missing

word or phrase. The three inspectors spent the two days going through all our key pieces of documentation,

observing lessons, seeking views of pupils and parents, interviewing pupils, staff and staff in charge of each of

the key areas relating to the eight areas of compliance below:

Part 1

Quality of Education provided

Part 2

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils

Part 3

Welfare, health and safety of pupils

Part 4

Suitability of staff, supply staff, and proprietors

Part 5

Premises and accommodation at school

Part 6

Provision of Information

Part 7

Manner in which complaints are handled

Part 8

Quality of leadership in and management of school

RIGHT: the inspectors need look no further than

Sophie (TOP) and Amber (BOTTOM) to see the

cultural development in the school…and the funky new

colours that violins come in!

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They will write up their report and send it off to the editor for him to confirm their judgements, related to the

body of evidence they had compiled, and then send a draft copy to school to check for any factual errors before

it is turned into a final report and posted on the ISI website in approximately six week after the completion of

the inspection. Once the school receives the final copy we will send out the relevant information to all parents

who were part of the school parent body during the inspection.

Jan and I trust you have a relaxing summer break in near or far off destinations. It is important to try to keep

the children ticking over with their learning and all will have their Mathletics, Spellodrome and Linguascope

codes to enable them to reinforce the topics and concepts they have covered throughout the year – especially

those that are mentioned needing reinforcing in their reports. If they can do a little and often they will have a

useful springboard to kick off the new academic year in September.

Peter Cook

Summer Activity Weeks

Thank you to all who have signed up for Summer Activity weeks. Please remember to bring your cheque on the

first morning and that the days run from 9 am to 4 pm.

Valete

We wish all those leaving Wellow for new adventures

all the very best for the future and hope to hear what

they achieve at their new schools:

Prep

Year 8

T. Akinyosoye, T. Astleford, E. Bratton, S. Elliott-

Bateman, G. Coen, A. Haste, E. Laughton, F. Leckie, J.

Merryweather, B. Murray, K. Pearce, R. Pedley, B.

Poli, T. Riley, W. Stinchcombe

RIGHT: Our Year 8 leavers like Gusto, Jayden and

Kelsey go on to their futures with successes behind

them and exciting times ahead

Year 7

H. Beldon, F. Burnett, U. Davis, W. Hill, D. Rhodes, H. Smith,

Year 6

E. Bamber, A, Bett, L. Houdaib, E. Qureshi, P. Qureshi, S, Elliott-Bateman, A.

Walton, A. Simms,

Year 5

A. Brackenbury, D. Punyer, P. Richards

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Year 4

F. Doody, A. Nickson

Year 3

L. Coen, A. Brackenbury, J. Punyer

FS1

Daisy Shaw, Bea Rodgers, Jivan Kang

Pre-Prep

Y1

A.Punyer

ABOVE: Poppy playing another striking violin

Staff

Mrs Adley, Mrs Beardsley, Mr Cook, Miss Grimwood, Mr Larby, Mrs McGill, Mr Moore, Mrs Oxborough,

Mrs Rogerson, Mr Wilson,

Salvete

We look forward to welcoming in September:

Prep

Connor Longmuir Y7

Jack Gold Y5

Pre-Prep

Gregory Haelis FS 1

Staff

Mr B. Mason and new catering/maintenance staff

RIGHT: Candy floss to celebrate our Queen

Jan and I cannot thank all the Wellow House school staff enough for the support and friendship they have given

us throughout the twelve years we have been honoured to be leading such a wonderful school and we trust it

will continue to flourish under new leadership, as the same core SMT team are there to uphold the great

Wellow ethos and values. It was interesting to hear a comment from our new bursar, Mr O’Hara, who said that

he had not worked in a school where all functioned so effectively as a team (cleaners, maintenance, kitchen,

teaching and office staff) and there was no ‘them’ and ‘us’ traits – long may this continue!

THANK YOU TEAM!

Best wishes for the future to all from Mr & Mrs Cook

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Languages over the Summer

Please encourage pupils to spend some time on www.linguascope.com for vocab, www.languagesonline.org.uk

for grammar and for Latin, www.cambridgescp.com to ensure they don’t go backwards over the long Summer

break. Research has shown that this is often the case.

I would just like to take this opportunity to wish all pupils much success in their future language learning.

Au revoir and valete.

Mrs Adley

Les Skypes avec l’école élémentaire du centre Chamonix Mont Blanc!

Thanks to Isabel Vere-Laurie the Year 5 pupils have enjoyed skyping Isabel’s class in France. The headmaster

Alain and I have organised two skype meetings which have included 5RP and 5VB. The children take it in

turns to ask questions, we ask them in French and they answer in French and vica versa. In the most recent

skype we sang the French Eurovision Song Contest entry (which is a surprisingly good tune!) and they asked

questions based upon aimes-tu…? (do you like…?) The French children sang the cup song from Pitch Perfect

and performed a couple of restaurant based sketches. The grand finale, which was totally spontaneous, was

when all the children started singing the cup song together. Un moment spécial!

Alain and I are keen to continue this relationship next year and we all bid each other au revoir until September!

Très bien classe 5 – Madame Smith

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PRE-PREP NEWS

Year 2 Residential

The year 2 children have had a wonderful time so far,

we challenged ourselves to get to the top of the bag

jump and jump off with our friends cheering us on. It

was a Swallows and Amazons moment watching the

children paddle across the lake, even standing up!

The children raced to grab their bedrooms in the lodge

and excitedly unpacked. We spent time playing

outside and even enjoyed eating our pizza in the

sunshine.

We can't wait for our next day of fun and adventure!

Swimming and doing the assault course!

RIGHT/BELOW: Scenes from Yr 2’s overnighter!

Legends at Forest School

Pre Prep enjoyed an action packed day of medieval fun in Sherwood Forest following a week of history about

the legend of Robin Hood. Children made bows & arrows, climbed trees, built dens and learnt about Robin’s

adventures as they looked around the information centres. Everyone loved the practical learning experience and

once again made us all proud of their impeccable behaviour. What a brilliant group of merry men and beautiful

maids.

Beach Party in Owl Club

Luckily the weather was tropical on the day of our Owl Club Beach Party; the children enjoyed cocktails and

ice creams in between running in and out of the sprinkler, playing in the paddling pools, building sandcastles

and doing the limbo!

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ABOVE: Exciting scenes from the Pre-Prep celebration of Legends and the Queen’s 90th

birthday

Pre-Prep visit Sundown Adventureland!

Even though the rain was pouring, that didn’t dampen our spirits! The children were excellently behaved and

excitedly explored all Sundown had to offer! The water ride was definitely the favourite attraction! We loved

our packed lunches and it didn’t seem to matter that we ate them inside! Despite thinking that all the children

would be peacefully sleeping on the way back to school, instead they treated us to full renditions of ‘baa baa

mouton-noir (baa baa black sheep) and dancing queen in preparation for their end of year show!

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SPORT

Under 13 Cricket

Westbourne 75 – 6 (20 overs)

Bratton 3-12 WHS 76-4

(Laughton 32 no, Haste 14 no)

Won by 6 wickets

WHS 86 – 7 (20 overs) Coen

15, Bratton 11 Grace Dieu

81 – 8 (Bratton 3-8, Riley 2-

11)

Won by 5 runs

King’s Grantham 66 – 7 (20

ov) Stinchcombe 3-10 WHS

61 (Haste 28) ABOVE: Gusto’s 1.5 m high jump leap at Sports Day is like jumping a Yr 6

Lost by 5 runs

With such a small number of games due to rain exclusively on Wednesdays before half term and rain generally

since half term (!), this talented bowling unit did not have as great a chance to compete as they or I would have

liked. That said, the games we did play were mostly tight and exciting affairs as we tended to restrict the

opposition score but then end up relying on only one or two batsmen getting themselves in when we batted.

The fielding and catching has generally been good, although walking in on your toes seemed not to come

naturally to some. All tried to do the job effectively when the ball came to them, but you can actually attack it

too.

Ewan’s innings against Westbourne and Gusto’s at King’s (that so nearly saw us home) were the batting

standouts and the game at King’s may well have been won had we just bowled our strongest four bowlers (they

were 26-7 at one point!), but after so many missed games I decided to let everyone have a couple of overs. A

few too many wides and no balls from us combined with some fine opening bowlers to send us into a spin and

leave it to Gusto to try to carry the innings, something he was doing very maturely until he gave a fine catch on

the boundary.

Cricket House Matches: 1. Stuarts 2. Tudors 3. Normans 4. Saxons

(Gusto and Ewan both scored 50* in a very tight final, won by Stuarts by 5 runs) Mr O’Kane

U13 Rounders

We have been hit by the loss of no less than 5 rounders fixtures to the British summer weather this term!

Wellow 8.0 S Anselms 19.5

As expected, S Anselms were strong opponents for our first match and a steep learning curve, highlighting

elements of our play that we needed to work on for subsequent matches. We were inconsistent with our batting

rate, as well as making too many unforced errors. After the first innings, we discussed some different tactical

play that successfully brought down the margin of the score. We took on board our only match experience to

focus on batting consistency, tighter fielding skills in the deep field and practising different drills to build on

quick reactions and accuracy by the close fielders. We have taken some fantastic one-handed reaction catches

during lessons!

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We played against the U13 Boys during exam week, which

was a very useful training game for us to practise our

tactical play, but the boys drew on their cricket skills in the

second innings to marginally take the game. During recent

house matches, the senior girls have exhibited a positive

step up in their skills, awareness of game play, as well as a

significant increase in their leadership by offering mature

guidance and encouragement to the younger girls. We

hope that all the teams transfer this competitive experience

into the last fixtures of the term!

Mrs Nicholls

Under 11 Cricket

Although blighted by the rain, our short season was a successful one, beginning with a win at Highfields. Brad

and Zack set a good target with the bad and then Brad and Fred (ABOVE) bowled well with a wet ball at the

end. Our second match was a narrow victory in a Kwik Cricket game. Then our fourth match was a big win,

with Alex and Brad the standout performers. Sadly, our final game ended in a narrow defeat to a very strong S

Anselms team. Brad was the pick of the batsmen this season and Alex Germany the best bowler.

Nigel Birkett

Under 11 Rounders

Lincoln Minster V Wellow Lost 14-6

We played against Lincoln Minster and lost 14 to 6. We played quite well but we needed to work on our batting

skills and to think more about where we are going to hit the ball. As this was our first match I think we all

played very well and the stars of the match were Ella, Poppy and Scarlett.

By Captain - Erin

Burton Hathow V Wellow Lost 10-8.5

We played very well; it was a close game. We did some great hits and good fielding and we got lots of people

out in the first half. Esme’s play was amazing especially considering she was playing for an older team. Esme

was really hitting the ball hard and confusing the opponents with her left handed bating. Celia (BELOW) also

played very well especially when fielding. In the second half we became too risky and started to get out a lot.

By Captains – Holly and Mia

Highfields V Wellow Draw 8.5-8.5

We played very well against Highfields. Our fielding was much

better as we were really thinking about catching the ball and

where to throw it to. Our batting improved hugely and we all

were able to hit the ball and most of us achieved half and full

rounders. We showed great determination in this match and fire in

our tummies. The stars of the match were Ella and Mia.

By Captain – Amber S

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Under 10 Rounders

Unfortunately due to the very wet season this year, we have had away matches against Burton Hathow,

Barlborough and Westbourne cancelled.

(H) Lincoln Minster 10 - Wellow 9

This was a very closely fought match. In the first innings Wellow scored 5 ½ rounders and Lincoln scored 6.

We played well, although were a little nervous as it was our first game of the season. In the second innings both

teams were tighter on the fielding and we scored 3 ½ rounders and Lincoln scored 4. Everyone tried hard and

we know that we now need to work on throwing more accurately to prevent the opposition from scoring.

Phoebe and Mrs Reast

(H) S Anselm’s 11 – Wellow 14.5

The first innings was very close. St. Anselm’s scored 4 ½ rounders and Wellow scored 5 rounders. Amy scored

a full rounder and the rest were halves. We needed to make sure we stayed focused for the second innings. We

showed great determination and played really well. St. Anselm’s scored 6 ½ and Wellow scored 9 ½ rounders.

Phoebe scored a full rounder and the others were halves. Amy was the star player. We fielded well and now

need to work on hitting the ball to try and get more full rounders.

Polly and Mrs Reast

(H) Worksop Prep 9.5 - Wellow 10

Yet another very close match. In the first innings Worksop scored 4 and Wellow scored 3 ½ rounders. We

played our best rounders of the season in the second innings and batted and fielded brilliantly. However,

Worksop also played really well and it was a nail biting finish with Worksop scoring 5 ½ and Wellow scoring 6

½. Our close fielding was great and we managed to get several of their players out on second or fourth posts.

We need to improve our deep fielding now, staying focused all the time, instead of sleeping and instantly

knowing which post to throw the ball to in order to stump the opposition out. The star of the match was

everyone. A great win!

Esme A and Mrs Reast

Under 9 Rounders Season

St. Anselms 8 3 Wellow

Burton Hathow 10 8 Wellow

Wellow 9 4 Highfields

Ranby 7 5 Wellow

Lincoln Minster 6.5 6.5 Wellow

These are the best team scores we have seen this year and the matches we have played have been much more

even this term. We have had a few cancellations due to weather and we even travelled to S Anselm’s in the

rain to play Cornish Rounders, which was a fun experience for everyone!

Amelia has again been a pivotal player throughout the season and has naturally slotted into the role of back

stop and as always she has never given up. Florrie has been a consistent bowler throughout the season and has

responded well to the pressure of the role. Tomi has found her calling on second post and is good at reading the

game and is a reliable team member. Sophia has developed her game throughout the season and has grown in

confidence in many positions including third post and out on the field. She was also captain when we were

victorious against Highfields and drew against Lincoln Minster – so perhaps she is a lucky charm! The Year 4

girls have been able to produce some good batting and are secure in their knowledge of the game.

The Year 3 girls have had to work really hard to improve their skill levels and general awareness of game play.

Alex has always been full of energy and determination, and could read the game well. Anya keeps stretching

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herself and next rounders season will hopefully be able to play backstop in the matches. Demi, Jasmine and

Gabrielle have really worked hard on their throwing and catching techniques and they have all worked

brilliantly on building their confidence and trying their hardest to understand the complexities of the game.

The girls have thoroughly enjoyed this season and have continued to learn how to work together as a team.

Well done girls!

Mrs Smith

Under 9 Cricket

It has been frustrating with so many matches called off but we managed to play our Under 9 festival, albeit in

the drizzle, and put out three teams to enjoy the event. Elsewhere, the A and B teams had good wins at S

Anselms, while the As were again triumphant against Lincoln Minster, though the Bs just lost out. Well done to

Finnan for captaining so well and the Year 4s in particular for practising so hard; a number of the Year 3s need

to work on their concentration and listening skills.

Mr Pedley

Sports Day Results:

Juniors Seniors

50m – Alex Foster Henry Beldon

75m – Tomi Akinyosoye Holly Ward

100m – Arabella Brackenbury Jayden Merryweather

200m – Charlie Hoyle Gusto Haste

1 lap - Phoebe Skelton Gusto Haste

2 lap – Finley Teal Issy Skelton

Long Jump – Finley Teal Issy Skelton

High Jump – Blake Artini-Lewis Gusto Haste

Javelin – Arthur Gilroy-Davis Poppy Qureshi

Quoit – Alex Foster Will Stinchcombe/Issy Skelton

Cricket Ball – Lewis Smith Gusto Haste

Rounders Throw – Amy Reed Una Davis

Shot Putt - Gusto Haste/Kelsey Pearce

50m skipping – Tomi/Abigail/Sophia/Polly Erin/Scarlett/Teni/Freya

50m hurdles – Tomi/AbigailThomas/Arthur Henry Beldon

Junior Relay – Gabriel/Zachary/William B/Louie/Jean Pierre/Alex Guest/ Charlie H/Monty

Senior Relay – Henry Bell/Henry Beldon/Alex Batchelor/Bradley/Will S/Issy S/Holly/Ella

2016 Sports Day Winners – Normans

RIGHT: Victorious Normans

School Uniform Shop

This will be open from 2-4 pm on Tuesday 30th

August.

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Year 8 Out and About

We try to ensure that our top year group is rewarded for finishing the

pressurised Common Entrance period by a series of trips at the end of

the summer term. This year, they have visited Newark Police Station;

they have been hiking in Dovedale; they have been out to Sconce Hills;

they tried their hand at ten pin bowling; and they enjoyed the traditional

final hurrah on the beach and the shops of Scarborough. Their enjoyment

of all these events came through clearly in their Year 8 Review on stage

at our July Show.

LEFT / ABOVE: Year 8 doing ‘The

Dab’ at Dovedale

Fiver Challenge Enterprise Afternoon a Tremendous Success

Wellow House School held their first Fiver Challenge event with the aim of turning their £5 into as much profit

as possible. We are pleased to announce that we raised over £850!!! The children are going to post suggestions

in a suggestion box in the foyer to decide how to spend their fantastic profit!

The young entrepreneurs thought of their own business ideas, created marketing materials, promoted their stalls

and even the youngest children in the school helped to man their individual stalls. We had a chocolate

tombola, teddy raffle, pet show, penalty shoot-out, plant stall, hair braiding, popcorn, tasty treats and many

more! Thank you so much to all the parents who helped to make this event awesome!

LEFT: Keeping

all the customers

happy pays off!

RIGHT: The

winner of the

hotly contested

best dressed dog!

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MEMORIES OF SUMMER 2015 / 16

Enjoy a well-earned summer break!