THE SHSK SOCIETY Old Girls’ Magazine 2019–20

Reconnecting, reuniting The SHSK Society 2019 Reunions

Taking to the sky to save lives One Old Girl’s experience of lifesaving aeromedical training in Australia A year in the School Archives 2019 in pictures Introductions

From the Alumnae Office From the Headmistress 2019 was a year filled with a host of successful events for our Old Girls and I have been delighted that so many of you have used these events to reconnect with both the School and each other. With two hugely popular reunions here at the School in March and June, two Professional Networking Events in Oxford and London, our Old Girls Lacrosse Match in September, and a range of careers and higher education events taking place throughout the year, hardly a month has passed Dear SHSK Society members, where we have not been welcoming Old Girls back to a school event. reconnecting with former school friends and, We are very proud that the first holders of I love reading this publication every year It has been a pleasure, once again, to meet many of you during these occasions and to hear your memories sometimes, teachers can bring enormous joy the Foundation STEM Sixth Form bursaries (well done to Faye and all our contributors) of life at St Helen’s, and indeed, to be reminded of the warmth of feeling and generosity of spirit towards the and fun to the here and now, as shown by will join us in September and very grateful because it is so interesting to learn about School which is held amongst our community of Old Girls. the unfolding lives of people who, like me, the Golden Reunion. to the donors who have made this The articles and stories in this edition really showcase the breadth of career experiences amongst you – both have had a connection with St Helen and So what is new at St Helen’s? Obviously, there development possible. young and old (although always young at heart!), whether giving an internet talk viewed by thousands on the St Katharine. There is so much professional are new student and staff faces each year. In older news you’ll be pleased to know inner workings of the gut, or winching a seriously ill patient into a helicopter above an Australian canyon. One purpose on display and so many, varied that we had a fiercely contested 2p race in We continue to evolve systems of pastoral of our youngest Old Girls travelled to California and witnessed how the tech industry is diversifying, whilst one instances of women who are making a November (and it was such a pleasure to support and information to anticipate of our oldest Old Girls reflected on her own experiences of early ‘tech’ during World War II as a codebreaker at difference to the here and now in their own welcome back to it the originator of this and respond to the world that the current Bletchley Park. What all these Old Girls clearly demonstrate is a sense of curiosity and a willingness to ‘give it a lives and in the lives of others. St Kate’s Day tradition, Joy Gilliver) and we teenager inhabits; it’s a world full of positive go’ – a theme which shines through in all your news updates too. To me, a dynamic Old Girls’ Association is possibilities but it also includes elements absolutely thumped Abingdon in the annual one which blends its fascination with, and (notably online) that many of us might be lacrosse match. The School’s rich history continues to be celebrated and researched in our ever-growing Archives, and Georgina Blackmore, our Archivist and Curator, and St Helen’s Old Girl, will be embarking on several new fond (and otherwise) memories of, the glad we didn’t have to manage when we were I do hope that I will meet lots of you at this exciting projects to make our collection more interactive and accessible to all. School’s past with a clear commitment teens. Of course, the vast majority of students summer’s reunion or at a future networking to celebrating the present and potential navigate these challenges successfully. event. We love to hear your news and we are 2020 promises to be just as busy with another full calendar of events and opportunities to get involved. achievements of its members. For the current New subjects are incorporated into the very clear that your pasts, presents and futures Most notably, we look forward to welcoming many of you to our SHSK Society Garden Party in June. students of St Helen and St Katharine, the curriculum and September will see the start can inspire, amuse, move and, dare I say it, just With my very best wishes and thanks for your continued support to the SHSK Society. Society represents a very present source of of Computer Science A-level. We continue occasionally shock the current students of inspiration and advice and I cannot thank to grow our cohort of modern languages St Helen and St Katharine. Stay in touch! Faye Anderton enough those of you who have been able to teacher trainees, and we are planning to Alumnae Services Manager provide academic or careers guidance in the commence construction of our new Sixth [email protected] last twelve months. Our ongoing hope is that Form Centre in the spring. Our partnership our calendar of networking events means with Iffley Academy and a number of local that the school of your past contributes state primaries in the area of arts education is to your current and future professional flourishing, critical at a time when its presence Rebecca Dougall Contents lives. Above all, we know that the power of is being eroded in so many schools. Headmistress Introductions Women in STEMM 22 From the Headmistress 2 St Kate’s Day 2019 24 From the Alumnae Office 3 SHSK Society Golden Reunion 26 Feature stories Archives Communicating science 4 Delving in... From the School Archives 28 The flying doctor 7 Voices of St Helen and St Katharine 28 If you’re going to San Francisco... 10 The progress of science at St Helen’s 29 Living history 13 A year in the School Archives 2019 30 Ten questions with... 32 SHSK Society news St Helen and St Katharine Foundation 14 Congratulations 34 New Sixth Form bursaries 15 35 SHSK Society grants 16 Old Girls’ news

Sharing creativity 17 In memoriam 50 Old Girls’ events 2019 Results and destinations 2019 52 SHSK Society Annual Reunion 2019 18 Trainee teachers of modern languages 20 What’s on The 2019 Old Girls Lacrosse Match 20 Old Girls’ events 2020 54 The 7 Reasons 21 Staying connected, get involved 55

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Communicating science Katerina Johnson (2011 leaver)

Dr Katerina Johnson from the University of Oxford is passionate about her role in science communication, as well as research. She explains more about how each of these passions evolved and why she feels strongly about engaging the public in science.

Katerina, tell us about your educational journey attend their weddings!). I also keep up to My big dream is to be to date. Did you study science at A-level? date with old school friends via social media. the Brian Cox of I studied biology, chemistry, maths and What are you future career ambitions? geography (plus French at AS-level) and biology! I think there’s then went on to study Biological Sciences My big dream is to be the Brian Cox of so much cool and at Pembroke College, University of Oxford. biology! I think there’s so much cool and Following this I embarked on my PhD in interesting science that the public needs interesting science Interdisciplinary Bioscience, completing to know about. I don’t think anything is too that the public needs in 2018. My research focuses on the complex, it’s all in the way you explain it, Clockwise from bottom right: communication between the brain and and I believe any aspect of science can be to know about. lab work; parliamentary visit; the community of microorganisms living understandable, engaging and fun. live interview for Sky News; in the gut called the gut microbiome ie the Katerina presenting at TED What advice would you give to someone science of that ‘gut feeling’. considering going on to study for a DPhil/PhD? Thinking back to your time at school, do The key thing is that you have to love you have any special memories of your the topic you’re studying – I couldn’t time at St Helen’s? imagine spending three years researching Oh so many… It’s hard to pick them out. I something I wasn’t really interested in. I like the independence of research so I enjoyed What do you think is the single most important remember every year I used to bring in my issue for scientific research at the moment? traditional Greek Name Day cakes on St Kate’s my PhD, but you also have to be prepared Day that were covered in icing sugar and for things not always to work out as you’d Oh that’s a tough one… Given that I the teachers weren’t too impressed with the planned and be persistent! research the microbiome, I would say carpet afterwards! And of course beating the What is it that attracts you to scientific antibiotic resistance is a big challenge boys at lacrosse! Even back at school I used research? facing society. Bacteria are fast adapting to to enjoy speaking, and winning the speaking survive antibiotics and can then pass on prize at our debating competition in Middle It can be exciting to research something their ‘survival genes’ to other bacteria, even School helped give me the confidence to nobody has ever looked into before. I enjoy if they’re different species. We really need to pursue my interests in this area. the mix of the rigour and precision that find novel antibiotics but at the same time comes with science, combined with the the loss in biodiversity may hinder our search Do you keep in touch with any school friends? creativity that’s involved. as previous research suggests that organisms I made friends for life at school so I still meet such as marine sponges may hold the secret up with my close St Helen’s friends (and to providing effective new antibiotics. 

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I also collaborated with Oxford Sparks to publications I therefore actively communicate What is a science speak about my research field and answer to journalists my research in a range of questions from listeners on Facebook Live. I fields including the gut microbiome, animal communicator? really enjoyed this experience communicating personality and social neuroscience. The science to the public by interacting with them worldwide media coverage I have received through questions sent in. has given me a valuable opportunity to During my DPhil at Oxford I sought to engage develop my science communication skills, the public in a range of bioscience topics The culmination of my endeavours in public including live and pre-recorded interviews through various activities, including live talks, speaking was definitely my TEDx talk that I for TV (eg ITV, CTV, Sky News) and radio (eg broadcasting my research through the media gave in summer 2019 on the future of the BBC Radio 4’s Inside Science, BBC Radio 4’s PM (eg national and international TV and radio) gut microbiome and how developments in programme, BBC World Service, BBC Radio and teaching. microbiome science may impact Oxford), as well as working people’s lives. Since TEDx offers a Talks and public events with journalists from global platform, I decided to apply It can be national and international I participated in FameLab, the national science to give a TEDx talk as the science The flying doctor exciting to newspapers and authors. My communication competition, progressing to is moving fast in this field, yet the research therefore achieves the regional finals. I was also fortunate to be idea that we are half microbial research very high impact scores due Dr Hannah Allpress (Talbot) (1996 leaver) selected to speak at the Voice of the Future and that our body’s microbes are something to my active engagement event held at Parliament to quiz the Select integral to our health is something and my paper in Nature Committee and Government Chief Scientific that many people are still unaware nobody has Reviews Microbiology is When Hannah emailed the Old Girls’ office to say that she had been Adviser on science policy. of. My talk incorporated the latest ever looked ranked as the top article for working as an aeromedical retrieval doctor in Australia for a year we Science communication can take you to microbiome research all about impact out of all articles ever knew that this was going to be a news story that would really take off! some events you might never expect like faecal transplants, super-poo and into before. published in that journal. music festivals and comic cons! I enjoyed the role that the gut microbiome I have also spoken about After leaving St Helen and St Katharine, Hannah studied medicine at working with Guerilla Science, an organisation may play in our future healthcare. my research on the Fun Leeds University followed by a medical career training in anaesthetics. connecting people to science through Giving the talk was a great Kids Science Weekly (no 1 Having worked in London for ten years as an anaesthetic trainee, she entertaining live experiences. In particular, I experience as nothing quite compares to UK children’s podcast) and the University of was keen to follow her interest in pre-hospital medicine.  helped advise on an event for the public all interacting with a live audience! When my Cambridge’s popular Naked Scientists podcast. about the microbiome for the Secret Garden TEDx talk went up on YouTube it was even I enjoyed the opportunity to inspire and teach Party music festival in Cambridgeshire, as well trending on their channel with over 40,000 the next generation and the challenge of as speaking there. I was also invited to speak views in one day! communicating with a younger audience. In at an immersive science event (sponsored by Media engagement addition, I was invited to write an opinion piece Wellcome Trust) at a comic con. It was a really for The Scientist magazine and have worked good experience talking to both adults and I am keen for my research to be with the BBC on their documentary ‘Secrets of children about the link between our gut and disseminated in an engaging, informative the Human Body’ covering the microbiome brain and honing my skills interacting with a and understandable way to the public, and also helped on a bioengineering live audience. while conserving accuracy. For my scientific documentary for National Geographic.

Below left to right: attending Guerilla Science; at the BBC If you’re interested in Katerina’s research or in collaborating in any way (and especially if you work in the TV or publishing industries), feel free to get in touch via the links below. Website: www.katerinajohnson.co.uk Email: [email protected] Twitter: @DrKatJohnson Instagram: @katerina.johnson LinkedIn: katerinajohnson Ted Talk: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=cvDaaHG2CME

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Clockwise from immediate right: Sitting in our allocated doctor’s seat checking for other aircraft in the sky; family day trip to the Hunter Valley a few hours north of Sydney not long after arriving in Australia; Sydney; simulation based training day in the Blue Mountains – learning to rescue injured patients in difficult terrain; the helicopter (AW139) that we used as our main mode of transport to access patients across New South Wales

Australia offers doctors some of the most varied pre-hospital medicine experience and training in the world.

Hannah, what is pre-hospital medicine? Pre-hospital medicine focuses on providing life-saving treatment for seriously ill or injured patients at the scene before their arrival at hospital. So, what made you decide to move to Sydney to pursue this interest? The experience of living by the sea in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, together with working in one of the best pre- hospital retrieval services was a huge factor. The job is highly sought after and a fantastic opportunity that is not available in the UK. In the UK you can gain pre-hospital experience but not with the air winching training element you can gain in Australia.

How would you explain the way this unique accessing patients while the police and fire location, distance, access, weather and What was the biggest challenge during your Thinking back to your time at St Helen’s, do you What are your future career plans? emergency service works in Sydney? brigade work around us to control the scene resources available determine which of the time at HEMS? have any special memories? I have now returned to the UK to complete The Sydney Helicopter Emergency Medical and ensure safety of all those involved. The above would be tasked to the patient. My biggest challenge was completing the I was one of the last ever boarders at my anaesthetic training and hope to finish Service (HEMS) provides both a pre-hospital speed of decision-making is often faster in How would you describe a HUET – Helicopter Underwater Escape Training. St Helen’s, after we left the School became in June 2020. After that I hope to continue and medical retrieval service to those living pre-hospital medicine. The role is physically normal day at work with HEMS? Fully clothed, strapped in a helicopter simulator day girls only. It was a huge privilege to some sort of link in pre-hospital medicine – in New South Wales. demanding, you might be carrying heavy which was submerged underwater and flipped board at the School and immense fun! be it in the UK or abroad! bags over rough terrain that can only be The training we received was second Unlike in-hospital emergency medicine upside down. A procedure was then followed accessed on foot or by winching out of a to none, ensuring we understood how Who would you say were your inspirational What advice would you give to someone and anaesthetic practice, where you have to allow you to punch the windows out and helicopter to treat and retrieve a patient by air. to prioritise and best use our medical teachers? considering pre-hospital medicine? the equipment and a team of doctors and escape to the surface. It gets progressively knowledge and skills out in the field. Mrs Dunwoody and Miss Hunt – PE teachers I think it’s one of the most amazing nurses to support you, pre-hospital medicine Australia is a vast country with some patients harder including using simulation of wind, rain The medical emergencies ranged from who allowed me to flourish at sport whilst specialties on offer in medicine and if anyone comes with a different set of challenges. The over a two-hour flight away from a hospital and waves whilst blindfolded in the dark! treating a snake or spider bite, trauma at school. is considering it then I can’t recommend my equipment and resources available are limited that can provide the definitive treatment patients involved in high-speed collisions, What was the hardest thing about moving to experience highly enough. to what your team can carry. The working the patient needs. This makes aeromedical someone suffering a heart attack hours the other side of the world? Do you keep in touch with any school friends? medicine crucial to delivering rapid specialised conditions are isolated and there are often from the nearest cardiac hospital or – very Yes many – Octavia Mackworth, Mel Hayes, I learnt an enormous amount from my medical treatment to all patients. New South The expense – it is very costly to move five hazards at the incident scene which might be common to Australia – a drowning only Sophie Green, Liz Haine, Suzy Deeley, placement with Sydney HEMS and, as a Wales employs an array of helicopters with people to the other side of the world! We in a canyon or a mangled car wreckage in the metres from shore due to strong rip currents. Katie Russell, Sarah Petterm, Justine Hunt family, we have experienced a different way both a highly-qualified paramedic and moved to Sydney a few weeks before my middle of a road. to name a few. of life. It hasn’t all been plain sailing, but I doctor on board, ambulances and fixed-wing During downtime on base we relaxed or new post began, enrolled our three children would do it again in a heartbeat. The incident scenes can be chaotic, aeroplanes. The medical condition along with ensured our training was kept up to date in school and nursery, and started a new particularly in the case of road traffic time pressure to receive medical assistance, including medical simulation and helicopter adventure living on the other side of the accidents where the medical team are drills like winching. world from our home.

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If you’re going to San Francisco… Ella Wandless (2017 leaver)

2017 leaver Ella Wandless describes her experience on an Entrepreneurial Trek in San Francisco during her university course.

I joined St Helen We spent a week visiting companies in and St Katharine in the San Francisco Bay area, starting off 2015 for Sixth Form, with Salesforce, visiting their recruitment studying A-level team. After a tour of their HQ and a talk on English Literature, managing your personal brand alongside Geography and your professional goals, we had practice Psychology. I loved getting stuck in – interviews which led to some really becoming a committee member of the interesting discussion on marketing analytics Literary Society, being elected a prefect and and the qualities of successful candidates. joining the charity representatives. I still miss St Helen’s and love coming back when I We also visited Wikimedia Foundation can! After leaving, I took a gap year where I to learn about their mission of the worked for six months as a data and research democratisation of information and to hear consultant before travelling around Australia some truly honest anecdotes from a diversity and South East Asia for four and a half months. and inclusion panel. Having discussed the concepts of ‘failing forward’ and personal This trip was advertised via email as an growth, it was great to pose questions to entrepreneurial trek for students to gain the experts – I was particularly interested in an insight into the world of tech in one how Wikimedia manages the challenge of of the most innovative cities in the world. fake news in a corrupt world where truth is a After an application and an interview, I scarce commodity. was lucky enough to get a place as one of nine students from a variety of courses (I Day three was a visit to Handshake HQ, actually received the email telling me of my a company helping to place students and successful application while on holiday with recent graduates in internships and roles at some old St Helen’s friends!). The trip was the start of their career. As one of the fastest organised by B-Enterprising and ColorInTech, growing companies in the tech industry it namely by entrepreneur Mohammed Ali who was fascinating to see the structure of their helps students and recent graduates start business model and have the opportunity their own business. to ask ‘what next?’ 

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On day four we visited Claremont Middle School to meet Sean Valentine and some of the kids he has been helping as part of The Hidden Genius Project. The Hidden Genius Project does vital work in the education of young black men as they navigate difficult years of their development. By providing them with support, encouragement and coding lessons, the boys aged 13 and up have discovered something they are passionate about and integrated it into a business. To see each individual have their talent and potential recognised was amazing. It drove home the importance of the work done by people like Sean and his team. I was lucky enough to be given responsibility to organise a day visiting Chris Anderson, CEO at 3D Robotics. It was fascinating to hear about the development of the business from Chris playing Lego with his kids, another testament to the innovative nature of Silicon Valley. To be out on the roof of the offices where the drones are often flying about – a stone’s throw away from Berkeley University – was inspiring to say the least. One of my favourite experiences of the trip was meeting Paul Denton, a University of Birmingham alumnus, now CFO at OpenGov, the current leader in enterprise cloud solutions for the US government. After an amazing session discussing the business, his personal career growth and many golden tips for entering the ‘real world’, we visited another alumnus, Ronjon Nag, at his home in Paolo Alto. There, we met with many other successful alumni who had achieved innovative entrepreneurship since Living history graduating from Birmingham. To hear about their amazing careers was insightful and inspiring. We are now in the fortunate position of Old Girl Gabrielle Kingaby, to run until you had what was called a ‘drop’ working with both the alumni in the US and – this contained the information you needed the team at University of Birmingham to help Bletchley Park codebreaker to go to decrypt the messages that had been sculpt and organise the trek for students intercepted on that day. The enemy reset his next year. Whilst it can be daunting going We welcomed back a very special Old Girl to the School during Trinity term. codes every day at midnight, so this process on a trek with complete strangers and staff Gabrielle Kingaby (95) attended St Katharine’s School in Wantage for five years had to be followed for every single run of that you’ve never met before, my advice to until it closed in 1938. After a brief period away with her family, she returned the bombes. students going on a similar trip would be to the recently merged St Helen and St Katharine for her final five terms where As soon as you got the information from to keep an open mind and take in as much she gained her ‘School Certificate’ and went on to study music in Oxford before the bombe, you wrote it down and handed as you can! Soaking in all of the incredible later joining the WRNS and working as a codebreaker at Bletchley Park. it through the hatch to your checker. Your things we were able to experience allowed checker was your permanent partner and me to be inspired, and now I am considering you alternated on each watch. going back to San Francisco next summer to Staff and students were incredibly excited to When asked how the bombes actually learn more about the industry. Regardless of hear about her memories of school and the worked, Gabrielle explained that they were I can’t remember exactly how the checking what you think you may want to do when important part she played in the war effort. electro-mechanical devices which helped machines worked, you had a menu and Top: the team with Chris in front of one you graduate, new opportunities are always decipher German Enigma machine-encrypted you had to get the right colour drums. The of his larger drones (orange) A group of students had eagerly prepared I was particularly popping up so being open to everything questions for Gabrielle to answer. Head Girl secret messages. She recalled: machine was like a typewriter and whatever Below: taking notes during the Diversity really helped me learn what I was interested Alice wanted to know, ‘How did you feel ‘There were two operators to each bombe, the stop was, you would put it in and make interested in how and Inclusion panel at Wikimedia HQ and not so interested in. Finally, it is easy to about being asked to work in secret?’, referring one on the bombe itself and the other a note of what lit up. Occasionally you’d get Wikimedia manages the feel anxious when being placed in a room to Gabrielle’s work as a bombe operator. checking, and there were about nine two or three confirmations, I think they were challenge of fake news in a with the CEOs of enormously successful Gabrielle explained that as they were all machines. It was very noisy and smelly, with called, where D = S, S = D. If you got this, the businesses, however, keeping your cool and working in secret, ‘it wasn’t really much of an the hot oil and machinery. The bombes job was up and you phoned Bletchley as corrupt world where truth learning all you can from them ensures that issue at the time’, although she did confess often broke down and we had to get an RAF fast as possible. There was a phone by each is a scarce commodity. both yourself and the person on the other that her first husband and her mother died mechanic to fix them. The checker would checking machine, we got through instantly end of the conversation gain something from never knowing exactly the vital role she had make sure that you had set the machine up and said what had come up on the machine. the interaction. undertaken in the war. correctly and then the bombe was allowed You waited and waited and about half an 

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Gabrielle was married in October 1945, demobbed a week later, then travelled to Africa with her husband where they stayed for five years. They raised their children in Zambia and South Africa before heading back to England for a better standard of living after losing one of her sons to malaria. She later went on to write about her five years spent in the African Bush during the 1940s in an unpublished book called Bats in the Loo; a work she describes as being ‘a story about perseverance!’ Gabrielle has since lived a very active and well-travelled life. Up until ten years ago she regularly travelled for two months every year, visiting different countries around the world. Bletchley Park Trust On a tour of the School, Gabrielle clearly We think it’s recalled many of the classrooms and  hour later, you got “Well done, you’ve When asked about leisure time, Gabrielle lessons which took place in them. She was cracked the code” and then we could pull fondly recalled their regular visits to the delighted to see herself and many of her out the plugs at the back and would have a weekly Saturday night ‘hop’ where there was peers in the whole school photographs from blessed five minutes to sit down, and then in always great anticipation to meet with the the late 1930s and was able to pick out the to be would come the officer with new menus. You ever popular American GIs! clever star ‘Junior Wimbledon Tournament’ tennis had to quickly get the plugging done and Eventually, when the war came to an end, players from the St Helen and St Katharine the machines going. The plugging was so Gabrielle was re-mustered and undertook sports team photos. During her discussions cool important and had to be absolutely accurate. various jobs. She spent two months doing with students and staff, her love of life and The importance of what we were doing was nothing but taking all the machines to enthusiasm for learning shone through. drummed into us, though we didn’t know pieces: ‘Every drum which had hundreds of what it was about. There was one occasion bits of wire had to be unscrewed, every bit when we were told a lot of ships were of wire had to be saved and put in a box, It was very noisy and New Sixth Form bursaries being torpedoed and we had messages these machines were so secret that each which if we could break them would save one had to be completely dismantled. It was smelly, with the hot Gabrielle’s visit to the School Leying, a 2013 leaver and bursary recipient Thank you… endless lives. We were told that some jobs monotonous sitting eight hours at a time oil and machinery. said: “There is no question that without a we had were really urgent: “Please make unscrewing these bits.’ coincided with the launch of four Our ambition to further widen access to a St Helen’s bursary I wouldn’t have been able sure you don’t make any mistakes, they’ve new subject-specific Sixth Form St Helen’s education by expanding the to experience the wealth of opportunities got to be cracked as fast as possible.”’ bursaries, one of which is named after scope of our bursary provision would that I did. For me, being in an environment her: the Gabrielle Kingaby Bursary not be possible without the support and where it was cool to be curious, where it generosity of the School’s donors and legacy for Computer Science. She spoke wasn’t unusual to love learning and where it benefactors. Each donation to the bursary passionately about the importance was OK to be unashamedly enthusiastic, has fund makes a positive impact and is greatly of widening access to education and led me to where I am today.” appreciated by everyone at St Helen’s. was clearly delighted to give her News from the St Helen and St Katharine Foundation name to the bursary in recognition of pioneering female computer scientists. Welcome to I look forward to meeting many of you at to financial constraints beyond their control. We are immensely proud of her legacy our newly reunions and events to hear your memories What particularly attracted me to the Head of which is an inspiration to the whole and perspectives of St Helen and St Katharine, Development role is the opportunity to help school community. appointed Head and what you have been up to in your lives the School grow its bursary fund. The School’s of Development, and careers since leaving. vision is to extend its current provision even Our four new fully funded bursaries in STEM further to include a number of full-fee Sixth subjects are for girls currently in state funded Robert Nodding. I arrived in time for the merry chaos of schools applying to join St Helen’s Sixth Form. St Kate’s Day, which was quite an induction to Form bursaries. Robert joined life at St Helen’s! I watched with my colleagues I am passionate about the lasting impact that This ambition to reach out to bright girls St Helen and in the Alumnae Office as photo after photo access to a first-class education creates. Both with potential and talent who would not St Katharine as Head of HelKats eating Kit Kats around the world for the bright and aspirational individuals who otherwise be able to attend the School is a of Development in Michaelmas term 2019 landed on our social media pages – from directly benefit and for the whole of society core focus. At St Helen’s, young women can to deliver engagement and fundraising Norfolk to California, Australia and Vietnam. in the long run. St Helen and St Katharine be less conscious of perceived barriers that programmes in support of the School’s has been making that positive difference for might put them off science and mathematics strategic priorities, including the expansion I am already struck by the warmth and 117 years. It is a great privilege for me to join subjects. Enthusiastic STEM teachers, peers of the bursary programme. cross-generational strength of connection and alumnae acting as role models can have towards the School among the Old Girls the wider school community of alumnae, Robert joined from the role of Senior a huge, positive impact on girls, helping network. Although this does not come as a parents, supporters, teachers and staff whose Development Officer at St Anne’s College, them to see that pursuing STEM can be for complete surprise to me as I am married to an collective vision and support means the Oxford University where he worked with them. The School has a great strength in Old Girl who immensely enjoyed St Helen’s. School can continue to provide transformative alumni volunteers and donors across the high numbers of students who go on to She considers her time here as the most opportunities for future generations of a range of bursary, scholarship and study STEM subjects at university, therefore transformative years of her life. students. If you would like to speak to me about infrastructure campaigns. being involved and how you can help, please the opportunity to encourage a diverse Yet for many talented girls the benefits of a get in touch at [email protected]. group of girls to pursue STEM careers is there St Helen’s education remain out of reach, due to be grasped.

14 15 SHSK Society news SHSK Society grants Applications are now open for 2020 to members of the Old Girls’ community for Grant recipients 2019 two categories of grant. Both types of grant carry a fixed value of £500. 1. An award for work connected to academic study within Higher Education. Applicants will need to provide a breakdown of how the funds would be used; this might include the costs of travel or resources in support of academic research. Applicants will Number, Please. at the Edinburgh Fringe be expected to demonstrate the educational benefits they and/or others will gain from being awarded a grant. Jane helping students at Sunningwell CofE Primary School Documentary support from a Becca Chadder (2016 leaver) Our first stop was Sheffield where we West End is a while off yet, it felt amazing department for the academic work being performed four nights at The Local Theatre, to perform in one of the nation’s theatre With the help of an SHSK Society Grant, a brand-new venue aiming to promote and capitals, before heading up to another one undertaken will need to be provided Becca took her show Number, Please. on as part of the application process. support emerging theatre companies like for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. tour during 2019. School partnerships update: Applicants should provide an outline of Paprichoo. After a month Overall, the experience of touring a theatre how the grant would be used. In 2016, my first year of of intense rehearsals, we production is a bit like going on a school university, I wrote the play While the West End were eager to get started trip, just without the teachers. We explored 2. An award in support of a social, creative Number, Please. which and we got stuck into what Sheffield and London had to offer, Sharing creativity or entrepreneurial initiative. is a while off yet, is a fifty-minute farcical re-blocking scenes to fit a particular highlight being a paternoster Applicants will need to provide a detailed the new space. We opened comedy about a woman it felt amazing to lift in a Sheffield University building, and it Jane McDonald, former Head of Art at St Helen and proposal, explaining the use of the grant who accidentally becomes perform in one of the house to an audience was incredible to get hands-on experience and how this fits within a wider funding of three people but by the St Katharine, has embarked on an exciting new role at a spy. Since then, it has working with different theatres. Number, the School. She tells us more about the schools we are context (detailing any other sources of been performed with the the nation’s theatre last night we had sold out Please. is being retired for now but Paprichoo working with. funding). Applications should explain how Edinburgh University Theatre capitals. which was a fantastic end will return to the 2020 Edinburgh Fringe with this project creates value (financial and/or Company and twice at the to our time in Sheffield! our new show Her Romeo. Keep an eye out In September 2019 a new post was created – a Creative Arts social/and or cultural and/or environmental Edinburgh Festival Fringe At The Bread and Roses for us if you find yourself in Edinburgh! Partnerships Coordinator to work with local primary and and/or educational) and how that value with my theatre company Paprichoo, and secondary schools in the independent and state sectors. Theatre in London Number, Please. had a I am incredibly grateful to the SHSK Society will be measured/recognised. we had the pleasure of taking our show on a As Coordinator I oversee art, dance, drama and music short two-night run where we sold out for helping to fund the costs of taking our Projects which have a clear social or short tour of England in July 2019. partnerships as well as developing further projects with The both nights and received a brilliant four-star show on the road! environmental benefit will be prioritised. review from LondonTheatre1.com. While the Iffley Academy in Oxford, our core partnership school. This is a community special For both award types, the recipient will be academy for children and young people up to the age of 18 with complex special expected to provide a report on how the educational needs and disabilities with whom we have been working for the past funding has been used for the Governing eighteen months. They are a diverse and amazing community and one of the most extraordinary links is that both institutions have a school dog called Teasel! Body and to provide an article for the Tess Lonergan (2012 leaver) Television School has been going really well. weekly screenings in the school’s cinema and OG magazine. It’s been incredibly exciting to get to know the frequent masterclasses. The masterclasses Many exciting plans are currently being developed for the creative arts partnership Tess was delighted to be offered a The grants cannot be used as donations to students from the other departments, such as this year have featured Fleabag writer between St Helen’s and The Iffley Academy, and what I am particularly enjoying is the other charities, however worthy. place on the highly respected and the directors and animators, and to learn more Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Lynne Ramsay, opportunity to bring together my experience of art teaching, my practice as an artist competitive screenwriting course and all the enthusiasm and energy young people bring to the creative arts. Applications will be scrutinised by an about their work. We have worked on many Pawel Pawlikowski and many more. at the National Film and Television internal panel overseen by the Headmistress shorter collaborations with other departments Currently, we are working on ideas for As part of this exciting partnership work, art teachers from St Helen’s also joined School last year. and the successful recipients will be as well as longer projects individually, such as the animators’ graduation films, ideas for afternoon art sessions at Sunningwell CofE Primary School, to make art on the theme informed by the Alumnae Services Manager. The first year of my masters in writing a TV pilot and a feature film script. One graduation feature scripts and rewriting our of inside/outside. All awards are at the discretion of the panel screenwriting at the National Film and of the best parts of being here has been the TV pilots. During the visit, Years 5 and 6 looked at the work of American artist Sarah Cain and then got very messy mixing a fantastic range of colours using many different types and the panel reserves the right not to make It is an incredibly busy and high pressured of mark and pattern on irregular pieces of card. Each an award if no application is considered environment but it’s also lots of fun and I’m student then used a piece of work by Sarah Cain as strong enough. Two grants may be awarded Tess and course mates with Phoebe Waller-Bridge after their writing masterclass looking forward to what the next year has in each category with a maximum of four a starting point and made a collage from different to bring. grants being awarded in total. coloured and textured papers, carefully observing I strongly believe that St Helen and the paintings that Sarah Cain produces. Students If you would like to apply for a grant please St Katharine has helped me greatly in placed the painted images on the collages to make send your application, which should arrive developing my work ethic, determination exciting and richly layered finished constructions. no later than Friday 24 April 2020, to Faye and the belief that I can achieve whatever In addition Years 3 and 4 were introduced to the Anderton, Alumnae Services Manager, I set out to do. I am extremely passionate work of pop artist Roy Lichtenstein and Japanese St Helen and St Katharine, Faringdon about completing my course in order to artist Yayoi Kusama (sometimes known as the Road, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 1BE. advance my potential career as a writer in ‘queen of polka dots’). They talked about colour and Applications will be considered and the film and television industry and I am very pattern and then did self-portraits on acetate using decisions communicated during Trinity grateful to the SHSK Society grants in helping coloured dots and special coloured pens to create term 2020. me fulfil this ambition. lively graphics that were all very realistic!

16 17 Old Girls’ events 2019

SHSK Society Annual Reunion 2019

Every year without fail, after returning from the May half-term break, our school bunting magically appears outside in the Quad, with ourselves. Readings were given by developments within the School and prefects from their time as both boarders and ‘Thank you for organising such a wonderful memories. It is quite extraordinary how draped through the apple trees. This signals 1979 leaver Nicky Howard and Headmistress alumnae community. She spoke about the day girls in the 1970s. ‘We were quite a high day. It was lovely to meet up with so many powerful being physically back in a space not only the beginning of the final and often Mrs Dougall, who chose a reflective passage similarities and differences between the spirited year group’, said one Old Girl. ‘I think former friends. The lunch was delicious leads to recollections flooding back. Having most busy term of the academic year, but from T.S Eliot’s Little Gidding. Chapel Choir school they attended then and now. A real the girls at St Helen’s today are much more (very unlike our meals forty years ago!)’ your contemporaries with you leads to they also flag (no pun intended!) that an were on fine form as ever. One Old Girl sense of how important our alumnae are was sensible than we were!’ Zena Sixsmith (Bullock) (1979 leaver) even more! Old Girls’ reunion is imminent. noted how on singing the school hymn she felt by everyone as Mrs Dougall outlined the Meanwhile the 1999 leavers were determined I think I spoke to the girls who hadn’t been This year saw a huge rise in numbers ‘was watching the faces of the choristers, many ways in which Old Girls give back to to find a tree they had left as a gift to the ‘Just wanted to thank you and the team in my form more today than I had done attending our reunion as 100 Old Girls from particularly during the final, rousing verse. the School and how grateful we are for their School in their final year. After some head at St Helen’s for a wonderful reunion in the seven years we’d been at school the classes of 1979, 1989, 1994, 1999, 2005 (an I could see them beaming: warmed by continued support. scratching and retracing of steps, they were today. It was 100% not as ghastly as I together. Our form groups were so tribal in anomaly year of Old Girls who had missed an inner glow, a sense of being part of A delicious buffet lunch was laid on and delighted to find it growing well at the back had envisioned! The tone of the day those days. It turns out that Xs and Ys are previous reunions!) and 2009 joined us for something bigger than themselves. That’s enjoyed by all with many stories of the of the Sixth Form Centre along with the was set perfectly by Mrs Dougall and lovely people! (Zs are still best though!). from as far away as Australia, South Africa, how we felt and I’m sure it’s what they feel school lunches and dining arrangements original commemorative plaque. we all enjoyed time together again. too. It was great to feel connected across the I look forward to attending another France and Belgium. from yesteryear being shared. We concluded the day with group photos and The tour guides were fantastic and very years in that way’. alumnae event in the future.’ Many of the guests joined together in Chapel, The prefect team led by Head Girl Alice of course lots of laughter. We look forward to understanding of our meanderings off- a place which Reverend Elizabeth described After welcome drinks and the opportunity ended the day with guided tours of the welcoming many more of our Old Girls back route on the tour. Do pass on our grateful Evelyn Crosskey (Paler) (1989 leaver) as being a harbour within the School, a place to reminisce and meet up with friends, buildings and facilities. The 1979 group to next year’s SHSK Society Garden Party. thanks to them for letting us rekindle old which anchors us with one another but also the Headmistress gave updates on imparted many stories of high jinks with the

We found out a little more about what two of this year’s reunion attendees Where are they now? have been doing since they left St Helen and St Katharine.

14 years on 40 years on Christina Windle (2005 leaver and former Deputy Head Girl) Suzie McFadzean (Demmer) (1979 leaver) I loved my time at St Helen’s. I learnt a huge amount (not just in class), was inspired by some I have now retired after 28 years of both nursing and working in the pharmaceutical industry all over wonderful teachers and made some lifelong friends. the world. I swapped that for a life in a hamlet of four houses in the East Devon countryside. I spend I found that much has changed when I went back this June after 14 years; the facilities are my time supporting several local charities (Axe Vale Show, Ferne Animal Sanctuary, Arc Mental Health amazing! But there was much that was familiar too, both about the School and also the Charity and Remembrance Photography called Remember my Baby). I also have a small photography positive, polite, but clearly resolutely strong and whip smart girls who showed us round. business and am building up my flock of pedigree Coloured Ryland sheep, chickens and ducks. The And of course it was a pleasure to catch up with some old friends! transition from managing a two billion dollar business to being a shepherdess is probably quite unique! Nowadays I work as a Director of Operations in the NHS. It’s tough but I I was keen to come to the reunion as I wanted to meet up with old classmates and of course see the love it, with every day full of new challenges that need me to lead with School and Abingdon. As a boarder in the 1970s, it was my home for seven years. resilience and innovation – things I got a good grounding of in my time The School has come a very long way from the prefabs of the 1970s! It is INCREDIBLE, more like a at St Helen’s. university. The facilities are fantastic and the students there today are exceptionally lucky. A big shock was I also got married in Tuscany this year (pictured with my lovely niece) seeing our 1970s uniform in the archives – made us all feel very antique! It was lovely to meet our former and I live with my husband in London. teacher on the day – a married Miss Twemlow! Currently though, I am writing this beside a pool in Borneo having just It was a really lovely day full of laughter and memories! I wish I could have my school days all over again hiked a mountain, so my main challenge is letting my legs recover and with these facilities and such a positive, empowering environment. We will be back for the Garden wondering what cocktail to order next…! Party in the summer. Thank you to the staff and students who made it possible. Christina, Deputy Head girl in 2004–5 Top: Suzie in her school photograph, 1977, middle of middle row bottom row, third from the right Bottom: shepherdess Suzie and her lambs!

18 19 Old Girls’ events 2019

Trainee teachers of The 7 Reasons modern languages A Professional Networking Event National Modern Languages School Centred Dr Cedric Ploix, St Helen and St Katharine’s first NML SCITT trainee Initial Teacher Training (NML SCITT) We were delighted to welcome Fiona Hathorn, Managing Director of Women on Boards as our guest speaker to our fifth SHSK Society Modern languages are a core part of the Becoming a member of SCITT for modern one in a maintained school and the other in an Professional Networking Event in London. Alumnae and current curriculum at St Helen’s with Spanish, languages is a natural step for St Helen’s, where independent school. St Helen’s mothers at various stages of their careers gathered at our fabulous venue in the City. The theme for the evening was French, German and Mandarin offered all teaching is based on conversation, debate Candidates should have a good honours ‘Why being on a board is good for your career’. the way through the School. Exchange and thinking beyond the curriculum. Bringing degree or a recognised equivalent programmes in Santiago de Compostela, more new teachers into this way of thinking, qualification with a high level of fluency Bielefeld and Provence are immensely and potentially branching out into other in French, Spanish or German. A second Fiona is CEO of Women on Boards UK and a popular and are invaluable in grounding subjects as well, will remain a key driver of our A very inspiring speaker, Each of the 7 reasons were language is an advantage and access to Patron of the Charity Fight for Sight. She is students’ linguistic skills and confidence. ambition to be a leading teacher training hub. explored during the evening: language enhancement courses may be a former investment director for Old Mutual I have been telling everyone We believe it is a vital job of a 21st century Our first SCITT trainee, Dr Cedric Ploix, said available/encouraged for the right candidate. Asset Management and Hill Samuel Asset school to equip students with skills in I have met since then all about that ’St Helen and St Katharine has been a There are training opportunities in other Management. Alongside running Women It will give you a point of difference modern languages and awareness of the fantastic place to spend time, notably thanks languages at different geographical locations on Boards UK Fiona advises the stockbroker it. It was very nice to reconnect on your CV which will make you a cultures attached to each. through the NML SCITT. 1stand out candidate when applying to its supportive and welcoming staff and Peel Hunt LLP and is a Judge for the Non- with St Helen’s again. Our focus is also on benefitting those the experienced teaching body, from which Executive Director Awards, sponsored by The for a new role or promotion. starting out in the teaching profession. In I am taking so much every day. This school Sunday Times. 2018 St Helen’s became a National Modern that you are never too young to join a board. You will gain knowledge on the has also provided a stimulating environment St Helen and With her vast breadth of experience Fiona Languages SCITT hub, working with state and Fiona herself was sitting on a board by her industry by being exposed to a in which there is scope to propose and run St Katharine has been a ably advised the gathered audience during 2diverse range of issues from the independent school partners (John Mason, early twenties. events, thereby furthering my development her talk: ‘The 7 reasons why being on a board Larkmead, St Bartholomew’s, Abingdon and perspective of a board member. as a teacher.’ fantastic place to spend is good for your career’. Fiona explained that A lively Q&A session followed with Old Radley) to provide teacher training through Fiona gave an example of a student adding a board or committee appointment Girls clearly wanting to know more about a diverse range of classroom experiences for Teacher training opportunities time, notably thanks at university who sat on the board of to your CV is a sure way of drawing attention the practicalities of board membership. a college sports society. The range prospective modern languages teachers. The NML SCITT programme is a one-year to its supportive and to and validating your capabilities whilst When asked how much time commitment of transferable skills and knowledge course incorporating a combination of Headmistress Rebecca Dougall is driven by welcoming staff. catapulting your career up the ladder of was required to be a fully engaged board gained was vast. the national decline in languages teaching: academic training and placement in schools. success. Individuals that join boards – even member, Fiona explained that it varies ’I am very proud of the fact that St Helen’s is It offers qualified teaching status (QTS) and a of very small organisations – are able to hugely. It could be around 40 days a year This in turn builds leadership skills a hub for the National Modern Languages post-graduate certificate in education (PGCE). use their experience and technical skills to for a FTSE company, 12 for the NHS, 8 for a and expertise. SCITT, working with our colleagues in the charity, but mostly, meetings are held in the 3 St Helen’s is proud to be at the heart of influence an organisation whilst at the same maintained sector to nurture future teaching the Abingdon NML SCITT Hub and we are time gaining exposure to a wide range of evening. She explained that whilst it is a time Joining a board indicates to Further details and contact management or clients that you talent. I believe that teaching is the very currently looking for circa ten SCITT trainees issues from the perspective of a director and commitment, if you want to do it you will greatest of professions, a privilege and information can be found on our find the time. ‘Women run marathons and 4are interested and engaged in your for placements beginning in August 2020. building confidence, expertise and networks. exciting challenge – so taking a lead in the school website: find the time to train so this should not community at a leadership level. We welcome applications or enquiries from Some of the misconceptions surrounding area of teacher development is a great passion shsk.org.uk/teachertraining deter you!’ Old Girls who may be considering entering the board membership were dismissed during If you need to take a career break of mine. Everyone is a learner in a school, teaching profession. Training will be delivered the evening. Fiona explained that we A show of hands in the room indicated that at any stage, a directorship can that’s what makes every day extraordinary.’ through two in-school placements, typically shouldn’t just think of board membership as quite a few of our Old Girls are already on 5give you continuity on your CV. It being linked to a top FTSE company, just as boards. During the subsequent networking will help you maintain professional much experience can be gained by joining a session it was clear that others would contacts and could provide you local community group or charity as a trustee consider joining a board in the near future. with the confidence to re-enter For the love of lax, for the love of Ottie: or in an advisory capacity. She also stressed the workforce more easily after a significant break.

You can watch Fiona’s talk from the evening by visiting the SHSK Society Directorships improve career The 2019 Old Girls Lacrosse Match Network: shsksociety.org.uk/news/event-reports resilience and provide strategic To find out more about Board Membership and to look for current positions 6understanding of workforce After the success of the 2018 Festival again our professional umpire Old Girl, dynamics. Of Lacrosse in memory of St Helen and Sara Benbow, who was delighted with the visit www.womenonboards.net or twitter.com/wobuk St Katharine Old Girl, Ottie Uden (2014 leaver), standard of the games this year. We are very grateful to Old Girl Katie Stocks at Etc. venues for her help in It gives you the chance to we were delighted to welcome around HelKat spirit was definitely in action securing our venue for the evening: www.etcvenues.co.uk explore the idea of a post-executive one hundred players plus spectators, family throughout the afternoon with Old Girls 7board career. and friends who joined together for our showing that they are always cheerleaders annual Old Girls Lacrosse Match. Teams were for one another. competing for the second year, with current St Helen’s lacrosse squad members, for the It was such a wonderful occasion – huge Ottie Uden Memorial Cup. thanks to all who came for continuing to support one another, to laugh together and Two teams of currents students played for sharing news about the many things you’re hard in matches against two Old Girl teams. all doing and of course for dusting off your We were grateful to welcome back once lacrosse sticks and getting out on the field!

20 21 Old Girls’ events 2019

Top: left to right: Old Girls Cara Ellison, ...With fewer women in the Lydia Akinola, Helen Webster Below: our panel of STEMM experts engineering sector, those talking about their career journeys with the passion and focus will always be the ones who stand out most.

Women in STEMM

Alumnae and current St Helen and St Katharine mothers working was the minority and it was only me, I could possibly mention any female STEMM role Anna Britnor-Guest There was a general consensus by the end really be who I wanted to be and not worry models, to which he replied after a long originally wanted to be of what had been a fantastic evening of across the STEMM (science, technology, engineering, medicine and about fitting in with the male surgeons.’ pause: ‘Mother Theresa?’ Stephanie advised a journalist, but with an discussion that getting more women into mathematics) sector joined us for the fourth in our series of SHSK Coastal scientist that women should ‘never compete with one accelerated pace and leadership roles would have a positive impact Society Professional Networking Events. Stephanie Hampshire other in the sector, but collaborate and make growth in computer and on attracting more women into the sector (2005 leaver) offered your voices heard together’. technology firms around in general. There is a magnitude of exciting some amusing ‘Always asking why’ is the time when she left opportunities for women to join STEMM anecdotes about the reason Hazel St Helen’s, she realised industries, make a difference and enjoy a Taking place at the University of Oxford’s Rachel Buckingham when she has felt Sanders (1990 leaver) that there could be rewarding career. Saïd Business School, the event was led and (1986 leaver and compelled to believes she has been some very interesting global opportunities chaired by Old Girl Anna Britnor Guest (1986 former parent) works challenge issues of successful in her civil ahead if she chose that path. leaver) who introduced a panel of women as a paediatric gender bias. On engineering career. ‘It’s Anna was keen to dispel some of the more from the St Helen’s community all with orthopaedic attending a conference in India, the keynote not well-known that civil negative perceptions of women in the tech Join us for our autumn different careers in STEMM. consultant and speaker waxed lyrical about inspirational engineering is a great sector. ‘Tech isn’t just about getting women Professional Networking Event Valerie Legris (current surgeon and described leaders and trailblazers in the STEMM sector career for women’, she into coding, we need women to be involved parent) conveyed her a typical day in one of – all of them male. Stephanie bravely raised explained. ‘There is a huge shortage in in the product design and the sales side too.’ passion for working in her clinics. She a hand and asked the speaker if he could numbers of engineers coming through the Entrepreneurship celebrated the fact that the health sector in Other points raised included the feeling drug diagnostics but system – male and female. We will need that employers should be doing more to and running your explained how, in particular is extremely diverse in terms of many more engineers in the future if we are backgrounds and cultures, but that it is less Tech isn’t just about address imbalances by measuring employees a previous role in to address some of the global challenges on deliverables rather than the number of own business oncology, many of common for a woman to work as a surgeon. facing us. Creating better infrastructures, Indeed, Rachel was Oxfordshire’s first ever getting women into hours worked. Recruiters should be more her male colleagues coming up with innovative solutions to open to appointing women who have more at Impact Hub, assumed that she was surgeon in her speciality. When asked if she coding, we need women climate change and energy use are key. She believed that she felt as though she needed specialised or higher-level qualifications King’s Cross, London a personal assistant or HR officer purely to be involved in the made the point that with fewer women in which may not be an exact fit to the role because of her gender. Now working in to fit in with what has traditionally been a the engineering sector, those with the on Friday 13 November 2020 very male dominated sector within the health product design and the advertised or where they consider they are 6pm onwards pharmacology she is pleased that the gender passion and focus will always be the ones ‘taking a risk’ on an ‘overqualified candidate’. balance is much more even. sector her view was: ‘Actually, no, because I sales side too. who stand out most. shsksociety.org.uk/events

22 23 Old Girls’ events 2019 So many fabulous memories of fabulous friends made at a fabulous school! Thank you for sharing all these pictures School hymn livestreaming: and the school hymn – I’ve had such a Around the world in 300 KitKats: Joanne Lejonquist just sang along in Sweden! wonderful trip down memory lane and Like • Reply happily enjoyed my KitKat today singing Jane Hawkey Singing along in along to the school hymn. I so miss my Tenerife St Kate’s Day 2019 Like • Reply time there and would go back in a flash! Dawn Barrow And in Surrey! I feel so happy remembering those days! Like • Reply The most special of fundraising Gilliver, who joined the teaching staff in the Belinda C Platt (2001 leaver) and patrons’ days once again Divinity Department in 1983. Joy introduced Kirsten McCarthy Wow! Pure the 2p race as a fundraising initiative during nostalgia. Haven′t heard this went off with a bang. a lunch break (not on St Kate’s Day) in 1985. song sung for 29 years In the run-up to the big day this year, as well as In 1986 it became a fixture in the St Kate’s Like • Reply posting out over 300 KitKats worldwide to all Day timetable due to its success the year those who registered for our KitKats4Helkats before and has continued ever since. Joy Joy Gilliver at the 2p race: event, we asked Old Girls to share their was delighted to see the tradition being Sally Peachey continued. Old Girls were equally delighted to I was there! 82–89 and memories of St Kate’s Day for current students she taught me and got me through to read. Responses flooded in just as fast as the see that she had joined us for the morning! Divinity O-level! Kit Kats were sent out. The charity fair in Old School Hall and Like • Reply These special memories were displayed in the Atrium boasted such old favourites as Kirsty Strange One of my favourite Old School Hall for students to enjoy. face painting and Whack A Mole, as well as teachers who inspired my faith which  an epic cake stall, courtesy of the Juniors. is still going strong today The traditional Eucharist service in Yolande The final fundraising total was £2,389 – Like • Reply Paterson Hall involved a particularly stirring a brilliant achievement which goes directly Yzanne Martin Kirsty Strange couldn’t rendition of the school hymn. Livestreaming to Helen & Douglas House. of the service on Facebook allowed Old Girls have put it better myself....although I still recall her calling me to the to join in wherever they were across the world The lacrosse match versus Abingdon’s first blackboard to draw an angel and and prompted a wave of nostalgic comments. rugby team at Church Farm was a thumping triumph, with our Upper Sixth team winning an angle. Obviously I had problems spelling!!! Next up, students and staff alike braved the 9–2. With spectators from both schools Like • Reply chilly winter morning air out on the netball making their voices heard, the usual good Claudia Lewis courts to watch the legendary 2p race. This humour and fun abounded. So cool! I never knew year’s assigned pattern was a heart shape in she started this tradition! aid of Helen & Douglas House. It was wonderful to see so many Old Girls Like • Reply joining in with the day’s celebrations, proving Katie Herold We were delighted to welcome back a very that you can take the girl out of St Helen’s but Miss Gilliver was an special guest to oversee this year’s race: Joy amazing teacher. I didn′t know the never the St Helen’s out of the girl… 2p race was down to her. Lovely to Old Girl Anne Allison had already started her see her. Best UK Photo: Best worldwide photo: St Kate’s Day party some weeks earlier, inviting Like • Reply Winner: Louisa Winner: Jennifer her old St Helen’s school friends to her house Frances Smethurst So great to in London. A fantastically decorated ‘HelKats’ see Miss Gilliver again. She hasn’t Green (2010 Willis (2010 leaver) themed cake was shared amongst friends. changed a bit! I have to confess I leaver) at Happy St Kate′s didn’t know she was the founder of Heathrow day Helkats! the legendary 2p race – shameful! Terminal 4 on her Enjoying a KitKat Through I do remember one year And the way to Costa Rica! in the foothills of having to count them all up and put Mount Fuji! in bags to take to the bank. Was that Celebrating with you Rachel Lashford? winners St Kate′s Day Like • Reply with a KitKat Clockwise from left: the ‘HelKats’ at Heathrow cake; Joy Gilliver helping the students Elaine Thornett My A-level Divinity are... before my first with their 2p design; the St Helen’s teacher!!! And she may be interested holiday since my and Abingdon teams. to know that I pinched the idea of GCSEs in 2008 the 2p race and we do it at my school #KitKats4Helkats every year to raise money for Children This year we In Need!!! This is where the idea came decided to from Charlotte Baines Sarah Plow Runner up: Julie Runner up: Emily Like • Reply award prizes for Crookes (1990 Warren Smith the best KitKat leaver) – Sidcup (2007 leaver) Railway Station photo. After much Here′s my well- I know I’m late to earned KitKat deliberation, our the party and in for St Kate′s final winners were: a very mundane Day getting me place but I’ve through another been saving my day of analysing KitKat for the earthquake walk home from waveforms in work. Happy St New Zealand. Kate’s day to all! 24 25 Old Girls’ events 2019

Over 100 Old Girls and former teaching staff attended a very special SHSK Society Golden Anniversary Reunion on Saturday 16 March 2019. Travelling from as far as Canada, Spain and throughout the UK, this special event takes places once every five years and is open to all those who left St Helen and St Katharine 50 years or more ago. The reunion is a wonderful opportunity to come back to the School for an afternoon of reminiscing, nostalgia and rekindling of friendships. SHSK Society Golden Reunion Recreation of a boarding cubicle

Reverend Elizabeth Birch began the afternoon’s This was followed by an impeccably • ‘Such fun – very glad we came!’ ‘Thank you for a memorable reunion ‘I will not be the only guest who writes to you ‘I had not been back to the School for, I think, programme with a beautiful Chapel service presented afternoon tea served in the Atrium Titian Fleming (Pitt) (1966 leaver) yesterday. I enjoyed it thoroughly, catching full of thrilled delight at the success of the about 30 years and was astounded by what I which, of course, included a stirring rendition and Refectory. Old Girls stayed on chatting • ‘The time passed all too quickly… We up with friends and celebrating all that Old Girls’ Golden Reunion! Everywhere I heard saw and enjoyed. I joined the School in 1942, of the school hymn, accompanied by our and viewing more of the archive material. would all have been there for several hours the School gave us, so long ago. We had a people say “Wow! Isn‘t this just such fun.” making me one of the oldest at the reunion, wonderful Chapel Choir. The corridors then Letters written by our current Year 5 students more given the chance!’ lovely service in Chapel, a much-appreciated Nostalgia at memories provoked, wonder so I was amazed at the changes. Somebody rang with hoots and cheers as our outgoing to Old Girls attending asked searching Elaine Zair (Shipley) (1965 leaver) guided tour and a very splendid tea; it was at the new buildings, appreciation of the along the line must have had such faith and prefect team led tours of the School, taking questions of their time at St Helen’s: ‘Were also great to hear from the Head, staff and moving chapel service and the Headmistress’ initiative to have ploughed thought, foresight in familiar sites such as Old School Hall, there any funny school rules?’ to which one • ‘I am still on a high. The Golden Reunion was students how wonderfully successful the talk, the prefects’ tours, the luscious tea, the and ambition into it. complete with a temporary recreation of answer was ‘Lots of strange rules, the one absolutely wonderful. I was hesitating about School has become.’ kindness and thoughtfulness of everyone coming on my own but there I felt part of the The changes were great enough almost to a boarding cubicle curated by our School which annoyed me most was not being Ruth Hall (Dobson) (1964 leaver) involved, all added up to a truly wonderful destroy my memories, but they were abruptly Archivist Georgina Blackmore. Now art rooms allowed to ask “why?”’, and ‘What was the ‘family’ again. Being in Chapel again, hearing occasion. THANK you all so much!’ that sublime singing was marvellous.’ restored by the replica dormitory cubicle! We up on the second floor, many of the Old food like’ which received mixed answers ‘It brought back so many happy memories as Diana May (Cobban) (1964 leaver) Lesley Nash (Read) (1962 leaver) were permanently cold (ice on the morning Girls remembered the days when they were ranging from ‘awful’ to ‘variable’ to ‘very good, well as showcasing the wonderful way that wash-jugs), hungry (but then growing girls ‘I was surprised by how emotional I felt and boarding rooms and told tales of having their with buns every day and hot doughnuts on • ‘The thing that most spoke to me during our the School has developed. This time I saw were during rationing) and undernourished by the memories that came flooding back. ‘hair dried by the gas fire in Matron’s room’. Friday’. We are sure that the Year 5s will enjoy tour was the Library – how most librarians more of the old part and the little dormitory (curry sounded exciting but comprised a Guests gathered in Yolande Paterson Hall to reading their responses! would covet that amount of space!’ I was in, with my sister Sally, when Prince The School seems enormous now but plate of dry, over-boiled ‘nursery’ potatoes listen to Headmistress Mrs Dougall speak of the It was a wonderful occasion and we were Sister Susan Shannon (1960 leaver) Charles was born! The time just flew. we found some little areas completely sprinkled with curry powder). unchanged. I particularly enjoyed being able pride she has in the School and its students thrilled that our Old Girls enjoyed their time • ‘The high standard of Chapel Choir has You never realise it at the time, but your I was rather proud to show my husband the to talk coming out of Chapel!’ and what an important part our Old Girls have back at school. certainly been maintained.’ school days are truly among the happiest of record of Head Girls is now back-dated to Teddy Bunce (Boardman) (1961 leaver) played and continue to play in shaping the Joan Beeson (Miss Twemlow) (former your life. Although we did not have all the include my name for 1948–9. history, spirit and future of St Helen’s. teacher 1963–86) wonderful facilities that the girls enjoy now, I ‘The opportunity to be in Chapel and But I really must have loved my time there had eight very happy years having fun, being • ‘The prefects who took us around school sing the school song once more was very for I always looked forward to returning to well taught and forming friendships which were so friendly. Later I was talking to uplifting. The splendid tea was delicious school, and I must have enjoyed it enough to have endured for nearly 75 years. one of my friends and we both said how and we were very pleased to receive send my two daughters there in the 1970s. proud we felt to have been part of such a I travelled home with two friends and the car the handwritten card; I shall wear the I look forward to my next visit.’ special school.’ was filled with nostalgic chatter as we talked commemorative pin badge with pride! Daphne Robertson (Bradley) (1949 leaver) Margaret Paterson (Healey) (1958 leaver) over the day.’ I was particularly touched to find a piece I Heather Fox (Mitchell) (1953 leaver) • ‘It was lovely to reminisce about our had written on leaving the school in 1968 on time there, particularly walking along the display and even more so to find I had been dormitory corridor.’ quoted in the Headmistress’ speech… A true Jacqueline Bock (Rawlins) (1968 leaver) accolade! • ‘It was no mean feat to herd all of us ‘Kats’ Thank you for all you do to preserve our and make us feel so welcome and well fed!’ memories.’ Patricia Cassim (Adams) (1961 leaver) Myra Jones (Thouless) (1968 leaver) • ‘In spite of my lack of contact I caught up with Old Girls who I hadn’t seen since we left.’ Catherine Chater (Swan) (1967 leaver)

26 27 Archives In the golden sunshine of a May afternoon girls, parents and friends assembled on the hard courts Delving in… where Sir John Cockcroft spoke of the great contribution science was with Georgina Blackmore our School Archivist/Curator making to life, and finally declared the New Wing open. The School Archives has had another busy Jean Duffield Library, has some wonderful If you feel there may be gaps that you can fill Sister Nora Gweneth, 1957 year – from research enquiries, working new photographs on display – watch this please do make contact – we are always keen with current students and meeting with space for an even more exciting update that to see photographs! Old Girls, to sorting and preserving should make the area more interactive! We are also delighted to hear from Old Girls wonderful archive donations, there has I am still keeping busy with researching the with recollections of their time at St Helen barely been a moment to pause! changes in the use of buildings within the and St Katharine. Should you wish to share Since the last newsletter I have had the school site and I am grateful for the help that any memories or donate any items relating to pleasure of meeting with various Old Girls I have received from former members of staff the School please do get in touch: and former staff from both St Katharine’s and and former students. [email protected] St Helen’s schools where I have learnt more The SHSK Digital Archives now has an about school life and the wonderful impact Mrs Georgina Blackmore, impressive collection of material spanning all Alumnae & Archives Office, that the schools have had. My latest project is decades of the life of the School. Some new to begin to compile oral accounts of school St Helen and St Katharine, Abingdon, additions include prefect photographs, sports Oxon, OX14 1BE. life, as explained in the article below. team photographs, Prize Giving documents Various temporary and more permanent and even audio clips of former choirs. We archival displays around school have been will continue to build on this digital platform well received both by current students and so do keep visiting the website via the SHSK Science lab from the 1940s Old Girls. The School Archives, found in the Society Network (www.shsksociety.org.uk) The progress of

Oral history is the passing on of knowledge, memory and experience by word of mouth. It is a Voices of St Helen way of gathering, recording and preserving a range science at St Helen’s of personal experiences. The individual nature of oral history interviews makes them a great primary source for people wanting to know more about Since the founding of St Helen’s School in 1903 science Top to bottom: certain events, or gaining more of an insight into has always been a subject offered to students even Physics lab in 1963; and St Katharine the impact of those events, such as someone’s Chemistry lab in though it was not a curriculum requirement. The science school days. 2014; the Science facilities have seen a dramatic change. Fortunately in Atrium in 2019 At St Helen and St Katharine, the Alumnae and the School Archives there are a number of photographs Archive team is fortunate enough to meet with which show the changes and improvements in science Old Girls and former staff and hear the wonderful tales and memories that they have of their time facilities throughout the decades. at school. We are now entering an exciting phase Initially at St Helen’s School there were two science laboratories whereby stories and memoirs of Old Girls and located in the main building. In 1937 when the two schools former staff will be recorded and made accessible amalgamated there was more of a demand for space and teaching via the Digital Archive (shskarchives.org.uk), rooms – this saw the occupation of the ‘science hut’ (which is now and will be displayed in an interactive form in the inhabited by the Estates Department). Although a squeeze, Old Girls School Archive located in the Jean Duffield Library. fondly recall squashing together on the benches, eager to learn as Current students and visitors to the Archives will much as possible about botany, physics and chemistry. be able to listen to recordings and access more information on what school life was like in different A new science wing was built in 1957 and expanded further in 1964 decades. – over the next 30 years this was modified to create more science classrooms, and those laboratories become more subject-specific. Highlighting the increasing demand for additional science teaching Should you wish to contribute to this spaces, in 1983 the St Edmund’s dormitory in the New Wing was collection of memoirs please do get in converted into additional laboratories. By the 1990s there were touch. Whether you wish to share your two biology, two physics, two chemistry and two general science memories of school lunch, tell us more classrooms. about the general day-to-day activities, Opened in November 2014, the state-of-the-art Science Centre sits or even recall a significant event that proudly on the site of the old school swimming pool. The 1964 New took place while you were at school, Wing was updated and incorporated into the new building and all anecdotes will contribute to the architects cleverly created a stunning Science Atrium linking building our knowledge of the history the original St Helen’s School building with the modern Science of St Helen and St Katharine. Department. Now boasting three floors of laboratories the science facilities are truly exceptional.

28 29 A year in the School Archives 2019

The School Archives are flourishing, and it has been a great pleasure to share all the wonderful items with so many Old Girls, former staff and researchers. Here is a snapshot of some of the interesting things that have happened in the St Helen and St Katharine Archives in 2019. Joy Gilliver returns New photographs on display on St Kate’s Day in the School Archives

119 comments on 223 Old Girls visits to the archive-related posts School Archives during events 45 prefect photographs digitised

New signage in the School Archive

Gabrielle Kingaby visits the Archives 19 individuals that have donated Year 5 visit the Archives and try on previous uniform items to the School Archives

95 – age of our oldest 1,110 visits to the Digital Archives (shskarchives.org.uk) Old Girl to visit the School 17 archive images uploaded to Facebook by Old Girls Archives

6 archives displays installed around school

Golden Reunion in March – capturing memories for the Archives

4 former staff visits 10 research enquiries from families wanting to the School Archives to rediscover their past Research on the history of the school site has continued Archives

This feature proved overwhelmingly popular in the previous Magazine. Once again we have asked two St Helen and St Katharine staff to share Ten questions with... their memories and recollections.

Name: Jane McDonald Name: Joanna Bell Year started at St Helen and St Katharine: 2000 Years at St Helen and St Katharine: 1991–2011 full time; Subject/department: Art 2012–2017 short contracts to teach for absent colleagues; 26 years in total. Subject/department: Chemistry/science

5. What is your favourite area of the 8. Are you still in contact with former staff school grounds? members? If so, who?

Around the 3D Design Centre – of course! Yes, many: Jeanne Jackson, Cynthia 6. What was your favourite school meal? 8. Are you still in contact with former staff Wooded and very pretty. When you are Shebbeare, Amy Wardell, Kieran Stiles, members? If so, who? inside the ceramics prep Jo Watts, Chris Russell, In recent years the cordon bleu menu room and looking out it Christine Douglas, Dawn has indeed been terrific Jackie Armstrong and 1. How would students best remember you? feels as though you are It was so exciting to Wedge, Clare Canlan- 1. How would students best remember you? but I have still always Philippa Yusuf (from been tempted by the time to time), Margaret A bit of a nag! in Sweden; I love the see all the different Shaw, Jackie Armstrong, Possibly eccentric? view of the birch trees Margaret Moore and homemade soup ...every time a Walker and Anita Ellis outcomes produced and bread. (Greenwood) once or 2. What has been your most memorable and the stream. Nicola Copeman. 2. What was your most memorable moment student suddenly saw moment at St Helen and St Katharine? by the then Year 10 at St Helen and St Katharine? twice. Christmas card 6. What is your favourite 9. Can you sum up your 7. What was your most the logic underlying contact with Jill The Book Birds installation in the Science school meal? students. time so far at St Helen’s My very first visit to St Helen’s, for interview, embarrassing moment at Kowszun, Jean Mirfield Atrium – working with artist Michael in three words? was pretty memorable. There had been St Helen’s? some basic chemistry and a few current staff. Brennand-Wood on getting that together Confit of duck (I can’t heavy snow and the School was closed, so was fascinating, highly enjoyable and really believe I’ve just written Busy, exciting, enjoyable. the only people who appeared to be there At a Parents’ Evening a theory... The sudden 9. Please sum up your stretched me (and the department!). It was that). What a tremendous dish to have were the Headmistress, Head of Science, Sixth Form student and time at St Helen’s in 10. Please tell us something about you that ’Eureka’ moments. so exciting to see all the different outcomes for school lunch! Head of Chemistry and me! No students were her parents sat down to three words. Old Girls might not know. produced by the then Year 10 students in school and no other members of staff, talk about her progress 7. What has been your most embarrassing – now Upper Sixth – and to work with the Long, long ago, when I was an art student at nor indeed any other candidates for the job. in chemistry. Both the student and her mother A great privilege! moment at St Helen’s? whole year group of over 100 students on an the Royal College of Art we had a toga party You’ve guessed it, I was offered the post! were beautifully made-up and very smartly art AND design project was very exciting. Taking a group of Sixth Form students to and chariot races around the Royal Albert dressed. I realised with sudden panic that I 10. Tell us something about you that the Saatchi Gallery only to discover I’d Hall in buggies that were constructed by the 3. What was your proudest moment couldn’t actually Old Girls might not know. 3. What has been your proudest moment booked the wrong day and it was closed furniture department. Fun was had by all! at St Helen’s? tell which woman was my student and I’m a secret Terry’s Chocolate Orange at St Helen’s? for a private event. Thank goodness Tate It has to be ‘moments’ in the plural. Because it which was her mother – it was a very hoarder. I have a large stash of them in an Seeing students achieve something they Modern was open. must be every time a student suddenly saw awkward conversation, spent mostly talking inaccessible cupboard, well hidden from didn’t think possible, at whatever age and the logic underlying some basic chemistry to the father! marauding grandsons. stage during their time at St Helen’s. Last year theory – moles, entropy, pH calculations, everyone who took A-level Art went on to art electrode potential problems… The sudden foundation – I was tickled pink! ’Eureka’ moments – all of them.

4. What are your fondest memories of 4. What are your fondest memories of St Kate’s Day? St Kate’s Day? Two amazing lectures, one by photographer KitKats! Boo Beaumont which was organised by Jeanne Jackson, and another a few years later 5. What was your favourite area of the school by a female photographer about statues and grounds? temples in Cambodia that were hundreds of Possibly the corner with the old fig tree – it years old. Both were really eye-opening and had some lovely delicious-looking figs but I highly inspiring. could never bring myself to pick one.

Left to right: Book Birds installation in the Science Heavy snow didn’t stop Mrs Bell from attending Atrium; students in the 3D Design Centre her job interview at St Helen’s!

32 33 In memoriam

Our thoughts are with the support the next generation. She became the Elizabeth Pohe (Johns), she fought the illness with a great deal of ambassador for the Colt Foundation, attending Group 28 – on 1 October 2019 success. She took part in a number of clinical families and friends of the many scientific meetings for several of which trials at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford. Some following Old Girls and former the Foundation provided financial support, Elizabeth Patricia Pohe of these fantastic new treatments were staff who have passed away. encouraging former and current students, was a long-time successful in pushing back the disease and In memoriam presenting prizes on behalf of the Foundation Juliet took advantage of this to enjoy life with resident of Boulder and spreading the name of the charity as a City. She was born in her family including holidays abroad, as she major supporter of research and educational 1943 in Tenterden, loved to travel. Juliet and Neil enjoyed initiatives throughout the occupational health Kent. She loved developing their large home garden and she community. Her remarkable achievements her school years at was keen to find ways to protect wildlife such were publicly recognised when she was St Helen and as small birds, barn owls, hedgehogs and bees awarded the prestigious Fellowship of the St Katharine, after in the areas around the farm. She displayed Faculty of Medicine. which she attended artistic talent with renovations and improvements within the great house, Helen Bond (Spencer) In her final weeks, unable to physically wield a the Royal Central spade – although she would try – she School of Speech and Drama in London. Liz acquiring unique modern furnishings and Former PE teacher, 1950s – assumed the role of creative director of taught English and drama and worked at the adding elegant stylistic touches. on 25 December 2018 gardening, another great passion, and Tower Theatre in Islington. She also taught in Juliet developed an interest in family genealogy ensured that the garden of her new home the Bahamas where she met her husband and had an encyclopaedic knowledge of her Jane Dix was both structurally and horticulturally well Kawana (Kae) Pohe. Liz and Kae moved to Las Victorian ancestors from Scotland and England Group 34 – in November 2017 set up for the future. Vegas in 1971 and to Boulder City in 1979 of both good and bad repute. Always putting the interests of others where they raised their family and ran several Juliet had innate positivity coupled with Joanna Fawcett Lipscombe (Fawcett) before hers, she was positive, bright and brave successful businesses. Liz was a very active determination and resolve. She was forthright Group 43 – on 31 August 2019 to the end. member of the community and was involved but always kind, generous with her time and in many groups such as the Boulder City Her departure could so easily create a massive thoughtful in her dealings with everyone and Noel Nitschke (Booth) Republican Women’s Club, Nevada Council of she will be very much missed. void in so many people’s lives but I know that Blind Lions, the First Nighters, school PTA and With kind permission of Neil Walker and Group 13 – on 14 April 2019 her memory will always bring warmth, many more. Liz loved poetry, reading, the Stefan Martin, brother. comfort and prompt a loving smile. theatre and all things Welsh. She was creative, Avril Spencer (Goodwin) Andrew Douglas witty, sophisticated and often recognised Juliet and I had a friendship starting before Group 14 – date unknown wearing her signature glasses. She was a our time together at school from about the Sheila Hampson (Stone), devoted and loving wife, mother, age of 10. We attended different junior schools Muriel Vernon (Barrett) Group 21 – on 21 May 2019 grandmother, sister and friend. She will be but sang together in an Abingdon church Group 14 – on 20 January 2019 deeply missed by all who loved her. choir. We liked to dress then in the same way, Sheila was born at her as young girls do. That made us laugh recently Margaret Wadham (Hatch) home next to the Juliet Walker (Martin), when we bought identical yellow jumpers. I Group 15 – on 29 March 2019 railway line in Group 44 – on 29 August 2019 spent weekends with Juliet in Paris in the year Steventon. Her father that she lived there while studying at the was the signal box After leaving St Helen Sorbonne – a fluent French speaker, she made man when there was and St Katharine in the these times lively and interesting. still a station in summer of 1977, Juliet We had two happy trips to Edinburgh in the the village. studied International past two years for Juliet to carry out further Margaret Adams (Pronger), Jackie Douglas (Grubb), auntie’. She doted on her great-niece Violet She went to the village Relations with French research into her family history, and spend time Group 17 – on 20 April 2019 Group 34 – in June 2019 and great-nephew Rupert, and for her two school in Steventon at Sussex University with her father; we also squeezed in lunches nieces Naomi and Avigyle and her nephew and then won a and spent one year between her home and my Bristol base when Margaret attended St Born into an Air Force Jacob, being with Jackie meant above all scholarship to St Helen and St Katharine. It at the Sorbonne. Her we could organise the time together. Katharine’s School in family, Jackie’s periodic having fun – whether it was rollerblading, was to be the height of her academic career history was I admired her inner strength and ability to get Wantage until 1938 moves from station decorating cakes or, more dubiously, achievement. A line from one of her reports wide, including things done, and grateful for all the times for and then St Helen and to station must introducing them to the joys of sparkling reads, ‘she would do better if she kept her management roles coffee and laughter. At the service to celebrate St Katharine in have developed her wine, which the family euphemistically called mind on her work and not on those around with Wilkinson Sword, Graviner (fire protection Juliet’s life held in All Saints in Marcham, the Abingdon until 1948. great sociability – her ‘Jackie Juice’. She was a natural cook, a superb her’. Another line reads ‘she will find her specialists) and the Oxfordshire Health church was full. The congregation included She was always very family would often hostess and her parties were legendary – she position as an Upper Fifth girl easier when she Authority. five other Old Girls who were Juliet’s friends proud of having embarrass her by would think nothing of preparing a veritable herself is less resentful of authority’. The last Juliet married Neil in Steventon church in from our year. banquet for 60 people attending a Christmas attended the School recalling the story of line reads ‘she has done her best and leaves 1983. They moved into the Manor Farm in Eve party and then rustling up a full Christmas From Gill Smithson and had very fond when she was just six with our best wishes’. Garford in 1988 when Neil took over the recollections of her years old and was dinner for 20 family members the next day. In She started learning the piano at the age of management of the family farm business. time there and in cycling from Wantage to overheard to say to a new friend, ‘Hello, my fact, there were so many people attending the six. Her parents bought a piano and she had Juliet worked with him as well as raising their Abingdon. After leaving school she trained as name’s Jackie – I make friends very easily’. last Christmas Eve party that the coat rack lessons in Abingdon, progressing through the children Harry and Francesca. Later on, Juliet a nurse, and then transferred into hospital became so overloaded that it was wrenched She joined St Helen and St Katharine in 1962. grades. At St Helen’s she started to learn to and Francesca focused together on pharmacy, which followed on from her father off the wall leaving the coats in a pile in the She was extremely athletic and contributed to play the church organ. By the age of 14 she competitive dressage, with Francesca having owned a chemist’s shop in Wantage middle of the hall! all school sports, particularly swimming. Post was playing regularly at Steventon Church. It competing up to international grand prix when she was younger. school she worked as Group 35 secretary with Jackie was appointed as Director of the Colt was a passion that lasted her whole life long. level. They successfully bred a number of She is survived by her husband, aged 101 great enthusiasm, encouraging us all to keep Foundation in 2000, a role which she defined dressage horses and ponies, winning the years, to whom she was married for over 60 in touch. and made her own. The purposes of a medical German National Championships in 2016 years. Her ashes are due to be scattered in her Louise Murchie (Eyre-Williams) and scientific charity are to fund promising with a pony they had bred. beloved Lake District. research, in the case of the Colt Foundation Juliet was diagnosed with cancer in 2012. Although she never wanted children, Jackie Melanie Metcalf into the occupational and environmental With the great support of Neil and her family, Margaret’s daughter always referred to herself as ‘the world’s best causes of ill health, and to encourage and

50 51 Results and destinations 2019

We’re very happy today and would like to thank Destinations of leavers the fantastic teaching Total (2019 entry including 2018 post A-level places, and deferred entry 2020): 91 team at St Helen’s University Subject Year University Subject Year University Subject Year Leaver’s parents Aberystwyth...... Creative Writing and French...... 2019 Cardiff...... History...... 2019 Nottingham...... Politics and International Relations....2020 Abingdon & Cardiff...... Medicine...... 2019 Nottingham...... Veterinary Medicine...... 2019 Witney College...... Art Foundation...... 2019 Durham...... Anthropology...... 2020 Oxford Bath...... Mechanical Engineering Durham...... Economics with Placement Year...... 2019 (Brasenose)...... Chemistry...... 2019 (with placement)...... 2020 Durham...... Modern Languages and Cultures Oxford (Keble)...... Economics and Management...... 2019 Bath...... Natural Sciences...... 2019 (with year abroad)...... 2019 Oxford (Lincoln)....Philosophy, Politics and Economics...2019 Bath...... Politics with Economics Durham...... Music...... 2019 Oxford (St John’s).Medicine...... 2019 (with placement)...... 2019 Durham...... Natural Sciences...... 2019 Oxford Brookes...... Part-time English writing degree...... 2019 Birmingham...... Biological Sciences...... 2020 Edge Hill...... Dance...... 2019 Reading...... Psychology with professional Birmingham...... Biomedical Science...... 2019 Edinburgh...... Philosophy and Theology...... 2020 placement...... 2019 Birmingham...... Chemistry...... 2019 Exeter...... Biological Sciences with Royal Holloway...... Biomedical Sciences...... 2019 Birmingham...... Medicine (5 years)...... 2019 professional placement...... 2019 Royal Holloway...... English and Film Studies...... 2019 Birmingham...... Medicine (5 years)...... 2019 Exeter...... Criminology with study abroad...... 2020 Salford...... Technical Theatre Birmingham...... Medicine (5 years)...... 2019 Exeter...... Economics with Econometrics (Production and Design)...... 2019 Stella Johnson was one of the many students Birmingham...... Music...... 2019 with industrial experience...... 2019 Southampton...... Civil Engineering with industrial with a full house of A*s securing her place Birmingham...... Political Science and International Exeter...... English...... 2019 placement year...... 2019 to study Natural Sciences at the University Relations with year abroad...... 2019 Exeter...... Exercise and Sport Sciences...... 2020 Southampton...... Ship Science with foundation year....2019 of Cambridge. She was very excited to be Birmingham...... Psychology...... 2019 Exeter...... Flexible Combined Honours Surrey...... Midwifery: Registered Midwife...... 2019 joining the college Charles Darwin attended, Birmingham...... Psychology (Art Foundation with study abroad...... 2019 Surrey...... Veterinary Medicine and Science...... 2019 Christ’s College. Her parents were delighted Abingdon & Witney College 2019).....2020 Exeter...... Mathematics...... 2019 Sussex...... Economics...... 2019 Bournemouth...... Biological Sciences...... 2019 and said: ‘St Helen and St Katharine has been Exeter...... Modern Languages and Arabic...... 2019 Sussex...... Psychology (with a professional Bournemouth...... Product Design placement year)...... 2019 the perfect school for Stella with its academic Herriot Watt...... Computer Systems...... 2019 (Integrated Master’s)...... 2019 Hull York Swansea...... Business Management approach. The School encourages maths Brighton and Medical School...... Medicine...... 2019 with year abroad...... 2019 and science and Stella has benefitted from Sussex Medical Imperial College University College the amazing labs in the new Science Centre School...... Medicine...... 2019 London...... Medical Biosciences...... 2019 London...... Geography...... 2019 which opened while she was studying for Bristol...... Biochemistry...... 2019 Imperial College University College Bristol...... Biomedical Sciences...... 2019 London...... History of Art...... 2019 her GCSEs. But it’s not only the teaching that London...... Physics...... 2019 Bristol...... Chemistry...... 2020 University College has been exceptional – the extracurricular Kent...... History...... 2019 Bristol...... Civil Engineering with Study Lancaster...... History...... 2019 London...... History, Politics and Economics...... 2019 activities have offered so many opportunities. in Continental Europe...... 2019 Lancaster...... Natural Sciences (study abroad)...... 2020 University College London...... Mathematics...... 2019 Stella has particularly enjoyed being involved Bristol...... History...... 2019 Leeds...... Aeronautical and Aerospace in music, including playing the drums in lots Bristol...... Medicine – MBChB standard Engineering...... 2019 York...... German/Philosophy (Equal)...... 2019 of performances and shows.’ entry (5 years)...... 2019 Leeds...... Criminal Justice and Criminology...... 2019 York...... English...... 2020 Cambridge Leeds...... Criminal Justice and Criminology...... 2020 York...... Music...... 2019 Twins Phoebe and Rebecca Teh have also (Christ’s)...... Natural Sciences...... 2019 Leeds...... English Literature...... 2019 York...... Music...... 2019 St Helen and St Katharine combined their academic studies with Cambridge York...... Psychology...... 2019 (Murray Edwards).Medicine...... 2019 Liverpool...... Medicine (Art Foundation extracurricular enjoyment as accomplished Camberwell 2019)...... 2020 York...... Psychology...... 2019 gymnasts. Phoebe will study Physiotherapy Cambridge students smash stereotypes (Murray Edwards).Natural Sciences...... 2019 Manchester...... Biology (4 years) (MSci)...... 2019 in Nottingham and after a gap year Rebecca Cambridge Manchester...... Drama and English Literature...... 2020 heads to Lancaster to study Natural Sciences. (Newnham)...... Medicine...... 2019 Manchester...... Geography...... 2019 with stellar STEM results Their parents were very proud of their Cambridge Newcastle...... Medicine and Surgery...... 2020 Deferred entry from 2018 to 2019 included in italics...... 3 daughters: ‘We’re very happy today and (Peterhouse)...... Philosophy...... 2019 Nottingham...... English...... 2019 Post results applications from 2018 for 2019...... 12 would like to thank the fantastic teaching Cambridge Nottingham...... Geography...... 2019 Deferred entry from 2019 to 2020...... 15 (Queen’s)...... Modern and Medieval Languages...... 2019 team at St Helen’s.’ She added: ‘One of the Nottingham...... Physiotherapy...... 2019 Post results applications 2019 for 2020 cycle...... 16 very special things about the School has St Helen and St Katharine, once again, celebrated the A-level success of been to see the girls’ support of each other.’ an extraordinary group of young women. 91% of students achieved A*–B Mrs Dougall believes firmly in showing grades and 67% achieved A*–A. A third of the year group have gained students that no boundaries should exist for them in what they want to do. ‘Young New Sixth Form Centre places to study a variety of STEM courses at university, including a dozen women excelling in sciences, medicine, We are extremely excited that planning permission who are joining medicine or veterinary medicine courses. maths, computing and engineering is a has been obtained to build a new Sixth Form staple of life at St Helen’s and we are very Centre for our students to enjoy the best possible Young women excelling Headmistress Mrs Dougall greeted results proud to be sending them into the world learning and social spaces. With a guiding design day 2019 with pride and delight, offering ready and eager to make their mark on the principle to create a space which anticipates in sciences, medicine, congratulations to all students. She said: ‘Sixth world of STEM.’ the feel of a university, this will be a beautiful maths, computing and Form at St Helen’s is a particularly special time St Helen’s has a great strength in the number building with classrooms, a lecture/performance – we are preparing students for their futures of students who go on to study STEM theatre, a café, and study and social spaces. engineering is a staple as well as nurturing their last days at school. subjects at university. The School’s plans Work on the new site will commence at of life at St Helen’s. We have been incredibly proud of the way for a new Sixth Form Centre will also bring Easter 2020 with a view to open the new our 2019 leavers rose to the challenges of their huge benefit to future students. The vision building in summer 2021. A-levels. Not only have they achieved fantastic for the new building is to give a foretaste of Rebecca Dougall, Headmistress You can find out more about the new building academic results but their growth as bright, university-style learning and social spaces, on the school website. compassionate and ambitious young women providing new classrooms, a lecture/ www.shsk.org.uk/sixthformcentre has been a joy to follow.’ performance space, a café and study areas.

52 53 What’s on Stay connected, get involved

Emailing is the most efficient way for us to keep in touch with you. Do we have an up to date email address for you?

The annual Old Girls’ Newsletter is one of the few items we send by post to alumnae. We use email for the majority of communications, such as:

• Inviting you to school reunions, Professional Networking Events and opportunities to get involved. • Termly e-newsletters to update you on Old Girls’ news, stories from the Archives and what’s new on the SHSK Society Network.

Let us know any changes to your details or contact preferences by visiting shsksociety.org.uk. Alternatively, email the Alumnae Office at [email protected] or post to Alumnae Office, St Helen and St Katharine, Faringdon Road, Abingdon, OX14 1BE, or telephone the School on 01235 520173. You can view current editions of all our School publications online via the School website www.shsk.org.uk.

The SHSK Society Network Page is our online platform for finding Trinity term 2020 Friday 13 November out more about all our Old Girls’ events, news and ways to get Professional Networking Event – Entrepreneurship and involved. You can use the network to: Old Girls’ events 2020 Saturday 6 June running your own business. • Update your details and contact preferences The SHSK Society Garden Party Impact Hub, King’s Cross, London, speaker tbc. 6pm onwards. We offer a growing and varied events • Sign up to events A warm welcome back to all alumnae and former staff. programme for our alumnae community. Saturday 21 November St Helen and St Katharine, 1:30pm onwards • Read the latest news stories from across the From our annual Old Girls’ lacrosse match, St Helen and St Katharine Parents’ Association Christmas Gift Fair Old Girls’ community year group reunions, professional networking Monday 29 June Old Girls are invited to come and browse our annual Christmas Fair • Find out more about getting involved with many of our events and more. Our events are held here Old Girls’ Coffee Morning or Higher Education, Apprenticeships for unique gifts and festive food careers and higher education activities such as the Kate at the school, hosted locally and nationally and Gap Year Advice Morning St Helen and St Katharine from 10:30am – 14:30 Scheme, Careers Conventions and opportunities to offer at workplaces of our alumnae, and at many Come back and share your recent experiences of university, advice and support to current students and other alumnae apprenticeship or gap year with current Lower Sixth students Thursday 26 November other stunning venues across the country. and enjoy cookies and lunch! St Kate’s Day If you have an idea for an alumnae event or St Helen and St Katharine, 10:45am Save the date! Details of how you can be involved in our annual celebration to follow soon would like to help facilitate a networking Find us on Facebook: SHSK Old Girls, event at your workplace, please do get in Michaelmas term 2020 Tuesday 8 December our new SHSK Society Old Girls Facebook page touch [email protected]. Nine Lessons and Carols (Please note our ‘Dawn St Helen’s’ page is no longer active) Saturday 12 September Join our very special annual Christmas celebration Old Girls’ Annual Lax Match in the School chapel. Come along and play or spectate! St Helen and St Katharine, 7pm onwards St Helen and St Katharine, 12pm onwards You can view all our events, find out more details and book to attend by visiting the network shsksociety.org.uk/events.

54 55 St Helen and St Katharine Faringdon Road, Abingdon, OX14 1BE 01235 520173 [email protected] www.shsk.org.uk Company No: 1710695 Registered Charity No: 286892