Old Girls' Newsletter - Autumn 2019 by Bolton School Development Office

Bolton School OLD GIRLSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER Issue Number 31 Autumn 2019

Shared memories and continued support

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

CONTENTS STAY IN TOUCH 2 STAY CONNECTED 2 BOLTON SCHOOL MERCHANDISE 2 WELCOME MESSAGES Sue Hincks, Headmistress 3 Laura Henthorn, President of the Old Girls’ Association 3 CONTINUING SUPPORT 4 SCHOOL NEWS Chairman of Governors to Retire 5 Bolton School Wins Fundraising Campaign of the Year 5 Celebrating Duke of Edinburgh Achievements 5 Unchanging Principles for Success: Presentation Evening with Julie Dean 6 Old Girls Association Award 6 Girls Celebrate Best Results in a Decade 6 Fond Farewell for Class of 2019 7 Bolton School Fills Bridgewater Hall with Music 7 Girls Perform a May Serenade 7 Girls Discuss Ramadan on Woman’s Hour 7 EVENTS Photo Wall 8 Gin and Jazz Dinner 10 Leavers and Parents Farewell 10 Alumni Events Calendar 10 Forthcoming Events 11 OLD GIRLS’ FEATURES Inspiring the Next Generation 12 Sarah Sails Down Under 14 Old Girls Go Global 15 The Bolton Alumni Network 15 Old Girls Promote Health and Wellbeing 16 Unsung Heroes 17 Fiona Helps to Shape a New School 18 Story of a Gown 19 From Learning to Living 20 STAFF IN THE SPOTLIGHT 22 MICHAEL GRIFFITHS: FAREWELL AND THANK YOU 24 VENTURE SCOUTS 26 INSPIRING EDUCATORS 27 ALUMNI AUTHORS 28 OLD GIRLS’ NEWS News of Old Girls 29 Matches and Hatches 31 Mini Reunions 31 FROM THE ARCHIVES Looking Back 32 Ask the Archivist: Lacrosse 33 LIVES REMEMBERED 34 IN MEMORIAM 35

STAY IN TOUCH Connect with Old Girls and Old Boys on the Bolton Alumni Network: www.boltonalumninetwork.com.

‘Like’ our Facebook page for event invitations, School news and memories: search Bolton School – Old Boys and Old Girls (Official) Connect with fellow Old Girls on LinkedIn: connect with Bolton School Alumni and join the Bolton School Group Follow School and Alumni news via Twitter: @BoltonSchool / @BoltonSchAlumni Watch short films posted on the School’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/ boltonschoolmedia Read regular blogs from pupils and staff from across the campus: boltonschool.me/ Follow bolton_school_foundation and use #BSAlumni to share your memories and photos on Instagram View photos of Alumni events on Flickr at www.flickr.com/photos/bsalumni/albums Visit the ‘Former Pupils’ section of the School website at www.boltonschool.org to see event photos, read Alumni career profiles, find news of Old Girls, view an up-to-date events calendar, update your contact details and more. CONTACT US Development Office, Bolton School Chorley New Road, Bolton BL1 4PA T: 01204 434718 E: development@boltonschool.org THE DEVELOPMENT TEAM Laura Firth Head of Development Hannah Fox Development Officer Carol Haslam Old Girls’ Liaison Officer Frances Johnson Development Assistant Kathryn O’Brien Alumni and Development Assistant Laura Rooney Development Manager

Bolton School Merchandise

Stay Connected

School has an online merchandise store, selling a variety of items from Old Girl pin badges to Bolton School pens, iPad cases and photo frames.

We hope you enjoy being kept up-todate with what is happening at School and within the Old Girl community as much as we value the opportunity to stay connected to you. If your contact details have changed, or if you have not yet let us know your communication preferences and wish to continue hearing from School, then please contact the Development Office as soon as possible, or complete the Former Pupil Registration form found in the ‘Former Pupils’ section of the School website, www.boltonschool.org.

All profits made from the sale of merchandise go directly to the School Bursary Fund, which helps make a Bolton School education open to all academically gifted pupils, irrespective of their families financial situations. Orders are usually delivered within five working days, and overseas delivery is available. To order your items, please visit www.boltonschoolmerchandise.org or call 08450 504015.

WELCOME FROM THE HEADMISTRESS Thank you to everyone who completed the Old Girls’ survey based on ‘From Learning to Living’ in 1960 and 1970. You can read the fascinating results from 2019 on pages 20 and 21. As I remark on those pages, I was particularly interested in the response to the question about how a Bolton School education has fitted you for later life. I hope that the ideas of respect; an emphasis on the importance of giving back; self-confidence and self-belief; the development of an open an enquiring mind; and a sense that gender is no barrier to success remain at the heart of what we do in the Girls’ Division. One way in which such ideals are re-enforced is by the return of Old Girls to Bolton School to speak to the current generation of pupils. On pages 12 and 13 you can read all about the way in which alumnae have inspired the next generation. I was also especially indebted to Julie Dean who spoke so eloquently at our Presentation Evening; there is more on this on page six.

and against the imposition of VAT on fees, which would be a backdoor route to the annihilation of all but the largest schools. Underfunding in the state sector is a huge issue but the idea that this problem can be addressed by seizing the assets of independent schools is a red herring. If Bolton School were to be ‘integrated’ in to the state sector, we would lose everything that makes us unique, including our ability to select pupils, to have a curriculum of our choosing, and to reward teaching staff in time and money in such a way that we recognise that it is their expertise and dedication which are the key to the School’s ultimate success. The Governors of Bolton School have been committed to increasing bursary funding so that we can give a Bolton School education to as many children as possible; their current ambition is for one in three pupils to receive financial support. Indeed, Mr Griffiths, who retires as Chairman in December, has been an ardent exponent of the scheme ever since ‘Assisted Places’ came under threat in the 90s. You can read about his life’s work on pages 24 and 25. His dedication to the School and to many other causes shows that the importance of giving back is just as important to Old Boys as to Old Girls.

This autumn, I have been vocal myself in defending independent schools in relation to social mobility. Mr Britton, Headmaster of the Boys’ Division, and I were invited to defend the sector at the launch of the Private Schools Policy Reform Group in Manchester. I spoke against the abolition of independent education

Sue Hincks Headmistress

WELCOME FROM THE OLD GIRLS’ ASSOCIATION Our School is a special place, and its ethos helps girls from all backgrounds realise their talents and aspirations. We develop skills and traits whilst at School that stand us in fine stead for the future. Old Girl Julie Dean (1986-1988) was the guest at the recent Presentation Evening and in her speech she outlined her ten great principles for life; some of them she took from her time at School, others she has learned along the way. They were wise words and applied to us all, not just the latest group of Alumnae stepping out from School to make their way into an increasingly competitive world. Ensure you have bandwidth, she advised, encouraging us all to avoid a narrow focus on life and its opportunities. Maintain your integrity, do things that you love and enjoy, be a risk taker! She also noted the importance of intellectual curiosity and thought, and finally – and perhaps most importantly – she exhorted us to be kind. The kindness and generosity of Old Girls are much appreciated by everyone here at School and if you have contributed to School life in any way recently, thank you.

We will continue our round of regional dinners this academic year and hope that many of you will be able to join us for a convivial evening of food, drink and chatter. We will commemorate the Armistice on Monday 11th November, followed by our Old Girls’ lunch and committee meeting; we hope that you will find a daytime meeting more convenient as the nights draw in. Of course we will also have the Ceremony of Carols at Christmas time, always a favourite in the busy festive season. We hope that all ‘Old Girls’ will enjoy returning to see us and attend the various Alumni and School events held throughout the year. A warm welcome awaits, whether you return to School regularly or have been out of touch for a while, and I look forward to catching up with you this coming year.

Laura Henthorn (née Carless, 1970-1977) Chairman – Bolton School Old Girls’ Association

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

CONTINUING SUPPORT When Lord Leverhulme established the Bolton School Foundation in 1915, he did so with the express aim of providing an outstanding education for the brightest girls and boys in the area, regardless of their family circumstances. The Direct Grant and Assisted Places scheme of Government funding enabled multiple generations of Boltonians to seize the opportunities that a Bolton School education can offer. When this financial support was withdrawn by the Labour Government in 1997, the School’s Governing Body established a Bursary Fund to meet this gap, and to enable those families who would otherwise be unable to join the School to become part of our community. Since then, thanks to the outstanding generosity of our Old Girls and Old Boys, we have built a bursary endowment fund capable of supporting one in five children in the two Senior Schools. Through regular monthly donations, one-off gifts and by remembering the School in their wills, our Alumni continue to support our work to ensure that the School remains the driver of social mobility it has been during the past century. Unfortunately, despite this success, the School remains unable to meet the demand for financial support from children in Bolton and across the North West who have the ability and attitude to thrive here. This year, the School received 252 applications for bursary places for Year 7 entry, but was only able to offer 46 pupils the financial support they required to take up their places in the two Senior Schools. Ten new Sixth Formers joined us this autumn on places supported by the Bursary Fund, yet a further 32 applied for financial support for their A Level studies, to whom we were unable to offer assistance. We believe wholeheartedly in the transformative power of a Bolton School education. This summer, bursary student and 2019 leaver Jessica Hindley attained A*AA grades in her final A Level examinations, and took up a place to read Politics at Lancaster University this autumn. Of her time

at the School, Jessica said: ‘I have undoubtedly benefited from my time at Bolton School; it has made me more disciplined in my work, but I have also become more confident in who I am and in my abilities. I have been lucky enough to have been in receipt of a full bursary for seven years and it is hard to express everything that this has done for me. Perhaps the simplest way to express it is that I am simultaneously reluctant to leave and excited for what the future may hold.’ Bursary recipients like Jessica enrich our School community, and go on to make a positive difference in the wider world after completing their education here on Chorley New Road. Our vision for the future is to return the School to the equal access enjoyed during the Direct Grant era, when one in three students at the School received financial support for their education, thus realising Lord Leverhulme’s founding ethos for the School. This long-term ambition, whilst stretching, is now well within our grasp, and as one of only a handful of schools nationally that can realistically hope to achieve such a goal, we feel it is incumbent upon us to pursue that aim wholeheartedly. With the continued support and endorsement of Old Girls, Old Boys and other members of the School community, we feel certain that we will achieve this lofty goal within the next decade. If you would like to pledge your support to the Bursary Fund, either by making a regular gift, or by remembering the School in your will, then please contact Laura Firth, Head of Development, by emailing development@boltonschool.org or by calling 01204 434718.

SCHOOL NEWS Chairman of Governors to Retire It is with regret that Michael Griffiths (1958-1965) has decided not to stand for re-election as Chairman of Governors this coming December. Michael, a former School Captain, has served the Governing Body loyally since 1986 and took over as Chairman in 2007. During his time on the Governing Body he has been an ardent proponent of securing the Foundation’s financial independence and of establishing and extending Bursary provision whilst keeping fees as affordable as

possible so that the School is open to families from the widest range of backgrounds. His wisdom, financial acumen and knowledge of the Foundation will be sorely missed. The School is delighted that Ian Riley (1974-1981) has accepted the invitation and to take over as Chairman upon Michael’s retirement. Ian has enjoyed a distinguished career in private equity and joined the Governing Body in 2014.

Bolton School Wins Fundraising Campaign of the Year Bolton School has won this year’s Institute of Development Professionals in Education (IDPE) Schools’ Fundraising Campaign of the Year award for its 100 Campaign for Bursaries. The winner was deemed to be the School that had best raised the fundraising bar by demonstrating creativity or innovation and success within a Laura Firth (second left) and Laura fundraising campaign. Rooney (second right) received the The judging panel’s award on behalf of the School shortlisting comments were: 'This was a well-executed fundraising campaign that shows what can be achieved if everyone is working

to the same objectives.' Head of Development Laura Firth and Development Manager Laura Rooney were delighted to collect the award at a ceremony held at Birmingham’s Hilton Metropole Hotel during the IDPE Conference. Headmistress Sue Hincks was also in attendance, in her capacity as 2019 President of the Girls' Schools Association. Mrs Firth said: ‘Our long-term ambition is to build a bursary fund able to support one in three children, replicating the level of access enjoyed during the Direct Grant era. Using the School’s centenary celebrations as a catalyst, in September 2014 we began the 100 Campaign for Bolton School Bursaries, with the aim of raising £5m by August 2018, a target we were delighted to achieve.’

Celebrating Duke of Edinburgh Achievements Pupils, parents and members of staff gathered in the Girls’ Division Great Hall to celebrate those who have achieved Duke of Edinburgh Awards in the past academic year. After an introduction by Ms BradfordKeegan (Girls’ Millie spoke Division Assistant about Head, Curricular and Extra-Curricular Activity), who was pleased to note that qualifying for her Bronze the community service aspect of the Award Awards dovetails with the Bolton School ethos, three Girls’ Division pupils – Millie Ashton in Ms BradfordKeegan presented the awards to Girls’ Division pupils

Year 10, Maddie Ashton in Year 11 and Khadijah Ali in Year 13 – joined three pupils from the Boys’ Division to speak about their experiences. Bronze, silver and gold awards were then presented to all pupils. Headmaster Mr Britton brought the evening to a close, acknowledging the importance of the Duke of Edinburgh Khadijah spoke Awards, which provide challenge and about completing learning as well as encouraging pupils the Gold Award to go beyond their comfort zone, and noting that the School’s ‘compulsory approach to volunteering’ creates an environment in which volunteering is seen as valuable – as evidenced by the number of Bolton School pupils completing Duke of Edinburgh Awards each year.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Unchanging Principles for Success Certificates and prizes at this year’s Presentation Evening were distributed by Old Girl Julie Dean (1986-1988), UK Fund Manager and Director at Sanditon Asset Management. In her address Julie offered her ‘unchanging principles’ for success and happiness in life. She began by speaking about her time at Bolton School’s Sixth Form where, in her first week, she made the decision to switch from science subjects to English and History (ultimately going on to study History at St Anne’s College, Oxford). She said that the experience of changing subjects taught her three valuable lessons: ‘Keep your own counsel. Do what you love. Take risks'. Julie went on to give an interesting overview of the highs and lows of her career in fund management. She recalled that her first job at GT Asset Management was won through persistence, intellectual curiosity and a passion to understand the stock market rather than any pre-existing knowledge – and reminded everyone that employers prize ‘mercurial minds with clarity of

thought’. She spoke eloquently about the ‘still frustratingly Julie offered a series of thorny’ issue of gender, and unchanging principles did not shy away from the for success and difficulties she faced both in happiness her twenties at the start of her career and later when combining it with motherhood, but rather offered up guidance based around her ‘unchanging principles’. These included the assurance that ‘unprovoked rudeness and aggression in others is usually about their shortcomings not yours’ and advice to ‘remember to have some fun!’ Julie closed her address by saying, ‘My final unchanging principle in a changing world is simply: be kind.’

Old Girls’ Association Award The Old Girls’ Association Award was presented for the first time at this year’s Girls’ Division Presentation Evening. Year 11 pupil Arabella Barker-Smith received the award in recognition of her considerable and varied achievements during her time in the Girls’ Division. Proud recipient Arabella with representatives from the Old Girls’ Association Laura Henthorn (Chairman), Ann Evans (Treasurer) and Carol Haslam (Old Girls’ Liaison Officer)

Girls Celebrate Best Results in a Decade This year the Girls’ Division celebrated the highest percentage of A*-B grades at A Level since 2009. 83.8% of grades were in this category and an impressive 97.4% of grades were A*-C, up from 94.7% the previous year. 15.8% of grades were at A* and 51.1% of grades were at A* or A. The overall pass rate for the cohort of 87 girls was 100%. One in five pupils in the Senior School receives a bursary to help fund their studies. Of students in receipt of a bursary in the Girls’ Division, an impressive 30.5% of grades were at A*, 68% were at A*-A and 94.4% were at A*-B.

Headmistress Sue Hincks said: ‘We are delighted that the girls have done so well and can now look forward to all the opportunities which their degree or apprenticeship courses offer. As ever, their results are down to hard work, high levels of motivation and excellent support from their teachers.’ As well as excellent overall academic results there were many individual success stories. Besides the usual crop of students going to Oxbridge, Russell Group universities and to study Medicine and Law, a number of girls are heading off to study Art or Architecture and some are taking up apprenticeships, while another group are destined for drama school and music college. We wish the School’s newest Old Girls all the very best in their future pursuits.

Fond Farewell for Class of 2019 Leavers’ Day celebrations had the whole of Year 13 in high spirits on their last day in School as they put on Musicals-themed fancy dress and decorated the hallways as part of this much-loved tradition. After final lessons the girls headed out to play rounders and enjoy the sunshine, then enjoyed lunch in the Arts Centre, where a slideshow of photos from throughout their time at Bolton School prompted much reminiscing before they departed to start their study leave in preparation for their A Level exams.

Bolton School Fills Bridgewater Hall with Music The Joint Gala Concert at Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall brought together musical talent from across the Bolton School Foundation for a stunning evening performance.

Rebecca compèred the evening

Pupils from Years 3 to 13 in the Girls’ and Boys’ Junior and Senior Schools provided an uplifting programme of varied music, from classical pieces to modern pop

tunes, culminating in a rousing Beatles finale. Old Girl and broadcast journalist Rebecca Pukiello-Slack (1992-1998) guided the audience through the evening of entertainment, providing interesting facts about each ensemble and choir and recounting their recent achievements.

Year 13 pupil Ellen Bate accompanied the Boys’ Division Senior Guitar Group

Girls Perform a May Serenade A pleasing number of Old Girls attended the annual May Serenade, the final whole-School music event of the academic year, which once again showcased the Girls’ Division’s enormous musical talent. Various ensembles and several soloists performed an eclectic mix of pieces, both moving the audience with bewitching interpretations of classical pieces and getting feet tapping with upbeat renditions of popular film tunes. Mrs Price, Head of Music, presented awards to those girls who had excelled in the recent Music Festival and the evening closed with uplifting sessions from the Joint Chamber Choir and the Joint Senior Concert Band.

Girls Discuss Ramadan on Woman’s Hour Appearing on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour programme, Year 13 pupils Aliyah Patel and Zayna Quereshi offered a student’s perspective on fasting and exam-taking in the Holy month of Ramadan.

Year 13 pupils Ellen Bate, Nissa Smyth and Hannah Holt wowed with their singing

Each year the religious observation starts ten days earlier and for the past few years has fallen at the same time as GCSE and A Level exams. The girls spoke eloquently and knowledgeably about how many Muslims choose to fast from puberty onwards. They explained that the decision to fast had been taken jointly with their parents and that although it was tough at first, they both quickly got used to it. They did not feel that fasting during the exam period had had a negative impact; on the contrary, both agreed that fasting can improve focus and concentration and build mental strength.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

‘9’ Reunion Bolton School – Saturday 27th April 2019

Ann Timms (née Pilling), Karen Bennett (née Holmes), Jan Doel (née Francis), Anne Russell (née Frost) and Lynda Keat (née Power) (all Class of 1969)

Caroline Brenninkmeyer (née Bake r), Sarah Thompson (née Burn), Hest er Baynes (née Chadwick) and Melanie Doh erty (née Jones) (all Class of 1989)

Lydia Joyce, April Foster, Caroline Cookson, Liz Davies, Amy Charleston, Pippa Cunningham and Kim Beswick (née Leather) (all Class of 2009)

Scottish Dinner

Elliott Ann Timms (née Pilling), Christine dy Crow a Lorn ), atley Whe (née inson (née McCutcheon) and Shirley Wilk ) 1969 of s Clas (all h) Finc (née

Abi Taylo ra (both Cla nd Sarah Jones ss of 200 9)

n Anderson ée Harper), Je Emily Lucas (n of 2009) s as Cl ll (a ward and Sarah Hay

Sophie Llewellyn (née Liptrott), Ra chael Griffin (née Wals h), Vicky Pukiello -Collier and Kimberley Besw ick (née Fisher) (C lass of 1999)

Pollock Halls, University of Edinburgh – Friday 3rd May 2019

Anita (2011-2018), Eleanor Shaw l Stevens Va d 0-2017) an Ruth Glover (1972 Azavedo (201 -1979) 51-1958) and Eleanor Shaw (née Deans, 19

years apart ul time and despite the ‘We all had a wonderf ly. There is ick qu lish the bonds very were able to re-estab derie that ara cam d an g friendships no doubt of the stron day, however, all. The question of the Bolton School gave us ’ years go to so quickly? was where did the 50 r, 1958-1969) Lynda Keat (née Powe

Judith Ross (née Nightingale), Cath y Woodcock (née Terry) and Janette Cordwell (née Hardman) (all Class of 1989 )

) and Kate McLellan (Girls’ Division Staff -2011) Gill Richards (Headmistress, 2005

– illiant company ening with br inter W r no ea El !’ ‘A brilliant ev tic school as nt fa a of r a reminde

Rebecca Whyte (1990-2004) and Malcolm Stevens (1945-1957)

Bill Moores (2003-201 7), Tom Noneley (2009-201 6), Anita Azavedo (20102017), Eleanor Winter (20042017) and Eleanor Shaw (20 11-2018)

‘A enjoyable evening and lovely to see faces.’ Ashna familiar Patel (2010-20 17)

Cumbria Lunch The Lindeth Howe Hotel, Windermere – Friday 14th June 2019

Lynn Seddon (née Tate, Class of 1969), Rita Garthwaite (née Shipperbottom (1954-1967), Girls’ Division Staff 1976-2006) and Claire Winnick (née Warburton, Class of 1962)

Louise Broughton (né e Hodgkinson, (Class of 1969), Malcolm Steven s (Class of 1957) and Valerie Stevens (née De ans, Class of 1958)

Susan G arnett (n ée Parry, Anne Fle Class of ck (née J 1958) an ennison, d (Class of 1981)

1947) and Mona Clarke (née Lord, Class of Class of 1948) roft, tenc Wols (née es Eccl a Stell

Angela Rowley (née Hadcroft, Clas s of 1969), Nigel Robson, Elizabeth Rob son (née Fairless, Class of 1968) and Lynn Seddon (née Tate, Class of 1969)

s (Class of 1959), Back row: Fiona Steven ans, Class of 1958), De e (né s ven Valerie Ste of 1957), Malcolm Stevens (Class 1955) of ass (Cl s ven Gerrard Ste enhalgh Front row: Moira Gre in lovely surroundings. 1964) and ‘A delightful occasion (née Stevens, Class of t we d attended before, bu of 1963) None of our group ha Howard Stevens (Class

Class of 2018 Reunion

rfect ing and venue were pe all agreed that the tim r!’ yea xt ne ain ag re be the and that we shall try to Lynn Seddon

Riley Centre – Monday 24th June 2019 Recent leavers shared their experiences of their first year after leaving School with the current Year 12 pupils before gathering for a drink and a much-anticipated catch-up.

dra Nelson, Maisie Camm, Alexan Higginbottom ma Hannah Saad and Em

Thomas Mair, Rachel Ibberson, Millie Liptro t, George Hill and Josh Kendall

Mohammed Ibrahim, Akshay Pal, Lucie Hardman, Jake Williamson, Natalie Turner and Dylan Feingold

Amie Murray, Lauren Crowther, Ciara Mansfield, Jay Ha rland and Jess Stiles

Back: George Morgan, Lynn e Kyle (Girls’ Division Staff), Anika Patel, Jay Har Jess Stiles, Jo land, hn Radcliffe (G irls’ Division St Ciara Mansfiel aff), d, Jon Hitchin (Girls’ Division Front: Sam Sm Staff) ethurst, Amie Murray, Lauren Crow ther

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

EVENTS Friends of Bolton School ‘Gin and Jazz Dinner’ Guests enjoyed cocktails in the June sunshine before dinner in the Arts Centre accompanied by live jazz music from Alec Wares. Some fabulous raffle prizes were on offer, resulting in £300 being donated to the Bursary Fund - thank you!

Leavers’ and Parents’ Farewell With the exam season finally behind them, Year 13 girls and boys and their parents gathered at an evening drinks party to reminisce about their experiences at School and share their plans for the future. The Headmistress and Headmaster thanked the parents for their support over the past years before raising a toast to the ‘Class of 2019’.

Alumni Events Calendar 2019 Sunday 3rd November Monday 11th November Friday 15th November Monday 16th December

Girls’ Division Parents’ Association Fireworks Display Armistice Memorial Service and Old Girls' Lunch Alumni Oxford Dinner Ceremony of Carols

Girls’ Division Netball Courts/Dining Room, 4pm Girls’ Division Great Hall, 10am Arts Centre, 12 noon Said Business School, 7pm Girls’ Division Great Hall, 7.30pm

Girls’ Division Parents’ Association Burns Night Supper Old Girls' Lunch Alumni Cambridge Dinner Alumni London Dinner New York Dinner ‘10’ Class Reunion Patterdale Hall Open Day May Serenade Alumni Scottish Dinner Old Girls’ Lunch and AGM Alumni Cumbria Lunch Recent Leavers’ Reunion Opening of All-Weather Pitch

Arts Centre, 6.45pm

2020 Saturday 25th January Friday 31st January Friday 7th February Friday 6th March Thursday 26th March Saturday 25th April Saturday 26th April Thursday 30th April Friday 1st May Friday 5th June Friday 12th June Monday 29th June Saturday 4th July

Arts Centre, 12 noon Downing College, 7pm Lord’s Cricket Ground, 7pm The Harvard Club, West 44th Street, 6pm Bolton School, 11.30am-4.30pm 10am-4pm Girls’ Division Great Hall, 7.30pm University of Edinburgh, 7pm Arts Centre, 12 noon Lindeth Howe Hotel, Windermere, 12 noon Arts Centre/Leverhulme Suite, 3-5pm Leverhulme Pavilion, time TBC

To reserve your ticket for any of our Alumni events, please visit the ‘Former Pupils’ section of the School website (www.boltonschool.org) to book online, call the Development Office on 01204 434718 or email development@boltonschool.org. If you wish to attend the Ceremony of Carols, which is a School event, please contact the Headmistress’ PA, Hannah Caulfield, by emailing hcaulfield@boltonschool.org or by telephoning 01204 840201.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS ‘10’ Class Reunion On Saturday 25th April 2020 we will be holding a Reunion at Bolton School for 1950, 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000 and 2010 leavers, plus Former Staff. Details of how to book will be circulated in due course – in the meantime, please get in touch with your classmates and make sure you all have this date in your diaries!

University Drinks If you’re an ‘Old’ Girl currently studying at university, and would like to arrange a reunion for fellow Alumni studying near you, then the Development Office wants to hear from you! We’ll sponsor any Alumni-initiated reunion at £10 per head, providing you send us a photograph afterwards. If that sounds like fun, and you’d like to arrange something near you during the next academic year, then please get in touch.

New York Dinner – Save the Date! Calling all US-based Alumni! Old Girls and Old Boys are invited to join us for Dinner on Thursday 26th March 2020 at the Harvard Club of New York City. Tickets will include welcome drinks and canapés, a three-course dinner and tea and coffee, and partners or spouses are welcome to attend too. If you would like to receive a further details about to this event, please contact the Development Office.

Dates for your diary

the Said Business School on Friday 15th November, commencing with a drinks reception at 7pm.

The next Old Girls’ lunch will take place on Monday 11th November at 12 noon in the Arts Centre – Old Girls are also very welcome to attend the Armistice Memorial Service in the Great Hall beforehand.

The Ceremony of Carols will take place on Monday 16th December in the Girls’ Division Great Hall, commencing 7.30pm.

The Parents’ Association’s annual Fireworks Display is being held on Sunday 3rd November – the gates will open at 4pm, with the fireworks at 6pm. This year’s Alumni Oxford Dinner will take place at

The Parents’ Association’s annual Burns Night Supper is on Saturday 25th January 2020 at 7pm in the Arts Centre. Do come and join us!

The Bolton School Wine Collection The Bolton School Wine Collection, launched by the Girls’ Division Parents’ Association to mark the 100/500 anniversaries, is an exclusive wine assortment carefully selected in partnership with T Wright Wine of Horwich. There are six wines in the collection, all priced at £9.95 per bottle: a Pinot Grigio, a Sauvignon Blanc, a Chardonnay, a Shiraz, a Merlot and a White Zinfandel. Wines are available by the case (six bottles) at a discounted price of £56.75 in any bottle combination you would like. Delivery is free (minimum order one case) throughout the Bolton area, and all profits will be donated to the School’s Bursary Fund. For more information please e-mail bsfwines2015@gmail.com or to place your order, please visit www.twrightwine.co.uk/13030.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

INSPIRING THE NEXT GENERATION Leading Business Strategist Lisa Inspires Girls Former Head Girl Lisa Jacobs (née Griffiths, 1996-2003), listed as one of the 2018 ‘Inspiring Fifty’ list of women working in technology in the UK, addressed a lunchtime audience of girls, outlining her career path and offering those gathered advice about preparing for and choosing careers of their own. Lisa recalled many happy memories of her time in the Girls’ Division, where she enjoyed playing netball and lacrosse, acting in drama productions and taking part in Business Enterprise Training. She continued to pursue a wide range of interests at Oxford where she read PPE. Upon graduation, her first job was as a strategy consultant at the Boston Consulting Group, followed by time as an independent business change consultant in the insurance industry before starting work for Funding Circle, where she is currently UK Managing Director. She noted how the company, which offers a platform and funding for small businesses to develop, had itself

Astrophysicist Returns Dr Becky Smethurst (1998-2008) is a Junior Research Fellow in Astrophysics at Christ Church College, Oxford, where she is carrying out cutting-edge research into Galaxies and Super Massive Black Holes, having previously gained a Masters degree in Physics with Astronomy from Durham University and a PhD in Astrophysics from the University of Oxford. Becky spent a day in the Girls’ Division with A Level and GCSE Physics students, explaining to them how the Universe has evolved to give us what we see today and describing the contribution of Edwin Hubble, one of the most important of astronomers of all time. She also told how the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile will soon be superseded by the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) and how this surveys and classifies the sky every night. The girls learnt how there are

A Life of Crime Lindsy Slamon (née O'Reilly, 19871994) delivered a fascinating insight into the working life of a Senior Crime Scene Investigator to boys and girls in Years 9 to 11. After leaving School Lindsy studied Molecular Biology and now works for Greater Manchester Police. Her job involves directing a team of up to 30 people and

grown from being based solely in the UK and having 42 employees when she arrived, to now having operations in five countries with 1,000 employees. She explained how she had helped Lisa hopes to inspire the next Funding Circle generation of young businesswomen expand in the international markets of the US, Canada, Germany and the Netherlands and told how the company had recently moved from being private to public by listing on the stock market through an IPO. Lisa assured the girls that it is not critical for them to know exactly what it is they want to do career-wise just yet, but nevertheless offered them four key pieces of advice: be curious, keep your options open, take calculated risks and live your adventure!

hundreds of billions of stars in each galaxy and about ‘Galaxy Zoo’, an online project which invites the general public to help classify millions of galaxies. Becky also has a YouTube channel (search Dr Becky) which was recently featured on the BBC News. Her Becky and aspiring astrophysicists videos cover all kinds of space-related questions and she hopes that they will help to encourage more young people into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) careers.

devising a forensic strategy in order to obtain as much information as possible from a crime scene. She explained that ‘every contact leaves a trace’ – this could be through DNA, fingerprints, body fluids, hair, strands of clothing, footprints, a weapon and many other ways, with digital evidence becoming ever more important. Meticulous work is required, with even the tiniest detail making a difference, and a team can often spend up to a week going over a flat where a crime has been committed. The pupils learnt how Lindsy needs a strong stomach and nerves of steel as her work often involves murder, arson, rape, drugs and burglary – needless to say, they had a number of probing questions afterwards!

Oxford Inspires

Despite a 6am start, 30 excited Year 10 girls were prompt and eager for their journey to Oxford University. They enjoyed a tour of Pembroke College, its beautiful old buildings helping to create a calm and tranquil atmosphere, before listening to a detailed and informative talk about student life at Oxford University, including the application process and the excellent student facilities.

Lessons in Personal Safety Year 10 girls received some valuable safety advice from Christine Morrison (née Eccles, 1970-1977). Christine, who was formerly a Christine gave some valuable advice Police Sergeant with Merseyside Police and trainer for the Home Office, and now runs CMA Training, a personal safety and crime prevention consultancy, warned firstly of the perils of

Year 6 Pupils Consider Careers There was an atmosphere of excitement in Hesketh House as Year 6 girls were joined by their counterparts from Park Road for the annual Careers Carousel, an event organised by the Development Office to help Junior School pupils to start thinking about the range of career options available to them. Samantha Williams (1988-1995), a freelance graphic designer and lecturer in the subject at Bolton University, revealed what it is like to work in design. Ashish Chaudhry (1988-1999) spoke about his job as a GP and more widely about working as a doctor and in medicine, whilst Andy Walton (1981-1987), a recently retired police officer, talked about how the job has

After lunch in the College’s dining hall, the girls visited the Pitt Rivers Museum, where they were introduced to anthropology and the mysterious objects contained within the building. They then proceeded to Lady Margaret’s Hall where they met up with three Old Girls currently studying at Oxford: Cerys Baines (Class of 2017), Alex Hopkinson (Class of 2016) and Amy Lyons (Class of 2016). The three gave an overview of their life at University, noting the gruelling workload, with two or three essays a fortnight, but also praising the 'amazing’ welfare and support at the University. The trip dispelled many stereotypes and myths and enthused the girls to consider Oxford as one of their university choices in due course.

social media and recommended that the girls check regularly that their privacy settings are set at maximum. She went on to describe the frequency of stalking and told of the disappearance of Suzy Lamplugh, the estate agent who went missing in the 1980s and whose body has never been found; she urged the girls always to be cautious and to PLAN – Prepare, Look confident, Act to avoid risk and danger and Never assume it won’t be you. The girls also learned that they are vulnerable in many areas: on social media, on their own, on their phones, in unfamiliar places, on holiday etc, and that drinking alcohol increases vulnerability. Christine advised them to reduce risk by thinking about their appearance, the area they are in, the accessories they are carrying and how confident they look.

changed since he first started and what the police force looks for in applicants today. The fourth session was run by Charlotte L-R: Andy, Ashish, Samantha, Aaron and Swindells and Charlotte Aaron Saxton from UK Fast, who gave an insight into working in the tech sector. It was an interesting afternoon for the whole of Year 6 and gave the girls and boys plenty to consider for the future.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Sarah Sails Down Under Bolton School has inspired many Old Girls to follow their dreams and given them the confidence to achieve their goals. Here Sarah Gleeson (née Battersby, 1980-1990) describes how she was motivated to fulfill her wish to travel. I was never sure what I wanted to do when I left School, but was driven to follow my passion for art with a foundation course in art and design at Upper Fifth, 1988, Back: Caroline Heald, the University Katherine Swift (née Conlon), Lucy of Central Rimmer. Front: Sarah Barrick, Marissa Lancashire. This Hutchinson, Denise Mann, led to a degree Sarah Battersby in textile design at University of Nottingham. On completing my degree I found myself conflicted between pursuing my career, and chasing my dreams of travel and adventure. My mother had passed away in my first year at university and this event was a catalyst for me to live life to the full. I was also craving some sunshine, so, unsurprisingly, I put my career on hold as the desire to explore the world became my priority. Fiji seemed the ideal destination. I had read that it was possible to sail to Fiji from New Zealand, and even though I had never set foot on a yacht before, this really appealed to me. I thought it wise to get some experience and moved to Hampshire for a year to learn navigation at night school and to complete practical sailing courses on the Isle of Wight. During the day I was a restless branch manager at a tiling warehouse trying to maintain a façade of interest as I saved as much money as possible.

Sarah, Olivia and Daniel

I set off in 1996 having given myself a year to achieve my ambition. I spent a few months exploring South East Asia and recouped some finances in Bali buying handcrafted products and selling them to a shop in Hampshire. Luckily for me, Indonesian is an easy dialect to pick up – languages were never my strongest subject at School! On arrival in Queensland, Australia, I headed to Cairns Yacht Club. This resulted in an eye-opening few weeks living on board a catamaran with two Australian Vietnam veterans suffering from PTSD. I spent the next year following the sun, working in a variety of jobs as I drove across Australia. I avoided backpacker hostels as I was looking for a more unique travelling experience. The vastness of Australia can be difficult to comprehend when you are used to a country the size of Britain. I missed a turn when driving the 1,675km across the Nullarbor Desert that took

me 300km in the wrong direction! In Western Australia I found work on a farm approximately the size of Bolton in the Wheatbelt region. It was here that I met my husband, Derek. I was driving tractors and he was fixing them. After a fun year of farming and losing all focus on my original time plan, we both flew to New Zealand. The natural beauty of New Zealand still amazes me to this day. I found work managing a small boutique hotel in The Bay of Islands and crewed racing yachts in my spare time. Ten months later I finally set sail across the South Pacific Ocean on a very basic 32-foot yacht with an American owner who I barely knew but was looking for crew. It was an incredible two-week voyage. For the most part we hardly saw each other as we were on rotating shifts. There was no transmitter on board so we could only pick up radio messages within 100 miles. It felt like I was on my own in the middle of a vast circle of ocean at the mercy of Mother Nature. It was a humbling experience and I loved every minute of it. It changed my perspective on life. All the usual anxieties of existence became inconsequential as survival instincts took over. There was the occasional storm, but for the most part the weather was ideal. This was an experience that I never wanted to end. When we arrived in Fiji I was filled with a great sense of achievement at having realised my ambition, albeit two years later than planned. This has never left me. I went on to crew super yachts in the South Pacific and the Mediterranean before moving back to live in New Zealand for ten years. I have been an artist, a coastguard, a ship’s chef, a tour Sailing to Fiji 1999 guide, business woman and entrepreneur, to name a few. I now live in Perth, Australia, with Derek and our two children, Olivia (7) and Daniel (5). I have been working as an intuitive energy healer for the last three years. It is the last job I expected to be doing when agonizing over my career choices in the Sixth Form common room 30 years ago, and I love it. I have my education at Bolton School to thank for nurturing my independence and the self-belief that anything is possible if you set your mind to it. Dreams can become reality with commitment and creativity. A little stubbornness goes a long way, too! I have no idea what I will be doing in another ten years’ time, or even what country I will be living in, but I do know that it will excite and inspire me. I still have some untapped skills that are yet to reach full potential, I am just not quite sure what they are yet!

OLD GIRLS’ FEATURES Old Girls Go Global The Old Girls’ Association has over 4,500 members living and working not just in the UK, but across the globe. Here we catch up with two of them who have relocated to the Netherlands and to Israel, find out what motivated them to move abroad, what they enjoy about their lives there … and what they still miss about the UK!

Deborah Duman (née Vincent, 1979-1984) After attending Bolton School with my twin sister, taking a MFL degree at University of Nottingham and a few years working in publishing and marketing in London, I went back to university to get my PGCE, having decided teaching languages and literature was the career I wanted to pursue. I then spent 12 years teaching in Istanbul before taking a position at the British School in the Netherlands located in The Hague. I love living and working in this multicultural and multilingual environment where I have been located for ten years. The Netherlands is a great place to live and work: it’s a particularly good place to raise children, you can cycle and run everywhere as it’s so flat and there really are green fields full of flowers, animals, birds, canals and windmills everywhere you look. Schiphol airport is only a train ride away and from there you can conveniently travel to every corner of the world, including many UK airports if you want a quick visit back to catch up with friends and family. I am still studying – for a Doctorate in Education – and can easily get back to the UK for residential study weeks and to stock up on teabags! Many Dutch speak amazingly good English, so much so that in a large part of the country English is almost the lingua franca. That makes settling in and getting by on a daily basis much easier than in other countries. Culturally, it is not too different from the UK, though there are definite Dutch traits and customs that one should adapt to. The Dutch can be very direct, customer service can sometimes be a bit abrupt, rules are rules and can’t be avoided and the weather can be windy and possibly even more unpredictable than UK weather. Typical Dutch cuisine is not very exciting, especially if you are vegetarian; potatoes, cabbage and sausage is one typical dish and lunch is often a ham and cheese sandwich. I definitely miss the Middle Eastern and Mediterranean food of Istanbul and English tea and crumpets in the UK! But, it’s a fab place to live, or ‘gezellig’ as the Dutch say – that famously untranslatable word that means something like a place that gives you a sense of well-being! Sharon Binnes (née Kohorn, Class of 1979) I live in Israel, in Jerusalem, which is an amazing place to live. I came here in my twenties on a 12-month program to learn Hebrew and Jewish Studies and ended up staying. I have now lived here for over 30 years and have been a High School English teacher at the same school for two decades. My husband is a patent lawyer and we have four children: Yishai (26), Noa (24), Na’ama (21) and Natan (21), who all speak excellent English, though that is really thanks to my husband. One major difference with the UK is that children at 18 have to go to the army to protect their family and friends, girls for two years, boys for two years and eight months. That is their duty to their country. We live in a tough neighborhood, but the army service teaches them discipline and helps them mature. They also discover talents in themselves, whether it be as a combat medic, teacher or musician. Three of my kids have finished and are now studying at Hebrew University and one is still a soldier. Israel is an intense place to live, warm and family-minded with lots of children. People have a lot of initiative and love travel and new ideas. What do I miss about England? Salted butter, houses with fireplaces and carpets.

The Bolton Alumni Network has had an Upgrade! The Bolton Alumni Network, the online networking platform exclusively for former pupils and staff of Bolton School, has recently been upgraded! Log in or sign up to the network at www.boltonalumninetwork.com and let us know what you think. What’s new? • Intuitive design • Personalised feed at the heart of the platform to share updates and post photos or videos • Dedicated mentoring section to help you further your career Download the App iOS: Search for ‘Graduway Community’ in the App Store and download the app. Once installed, type ‘Bolton School’ as the name of your institution and select when it populates.

Android: Go to Play Store and search for ‘Bolton Alumni Network’ to download the app. Previous users will need to delete the old app before downloading this new version. If you are not yet a member of the Bolton Alumni Network, you can join over 2,300 fellow Old Girls and Old Boys by signing up at www.boltonalumninetwork.com with your LinkedIn, Facebook or Google account, or with an email address.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Old Girls Promote Health and Wellbeing For some Old Girls, an interest in health and wellbeing was sparked at School; for others work and later life experiences have motivated passions in this area. Here we meet two of them who have followed a variety of paths to achieve physical health and emotional happiness – and to help others help themselves. Amy Yates (née Brierley, 1985-2000) My love for Psychology started in A Level Psychology classes with Mrs Bell and a great set of peers. Mrs Bell always talked about mental health and emotional issues with such passion and it made me very curious about how the brain worked cognitively and how psychological problems develop. We also had many laughs in Mrs Bell’s class which made them even more enjoyable! I went on to obtain a 2.1 BSc in Psychology in 2003. Following this I obtained a Post Graduate Certificate in Primary Mental Health Care in 2007 and worked as a Graduate Mental Health Worker. This involved me delivering brief Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) for people with mild to moderate mental health problems. I found CBT to be extremely effective among patients as it taught them skills to manage their emotional distress through cognitive and behavioural change and so completed a certificate in CBT in 2008. This inspired me to advance my skills further and work with more complex patients. In 2012 I qualified as a CBT Therapist after a gruelling year of study and work gaining a Diploma in CBT. It involved me video recording sessions with patients to be watched and marked by my peers and tutors which was very daunting, but something that I needed to get used to! Hearing my own voice and seeing myself deliver therapy made me cringe every time! It was a very challenging time, but also extremely satisfying.

Michelle Lake (née Pritchard, 1979-1990) After leaving Bolton School in 1990 with A Levels in French, English Literature and History, I went on to study French at King’s College London. My first career was in marketing and I eventually became Head of Marketing for Mary Glasgow Magazines. I’d always

For the past seven years I have worked in the NHS' Improving Access to Psychological Therapies Service in Manchester as a CBT Therapist. Every day presents a challenge; you have to be able to work effectively under pressure, manage high levels of risk, develop strong professional relationships, have excellent communication skills, create idiosyncratic treatment programmes, meet service targets and much more, but I absolutely love it! Essentially, a good sense of humour and enjoyment of the role are fundamental to manage the stress levels. The rewards from sharing a therapeutic journey with a patient and help them recover gives me immense satisfaction and I can honestly say there is no other job I’d rather be doing. More recently, I and other members of my team were involved in providing emergency mental health first aid treatment to those affected by the Manchester terrorist attack in May 2017. I was presented with an award in recognition of the outstanding care and compassion provided, of which I’m very proud. I’m not sure I would have got to where I have today without the encouragement from teachers at Bolton School. I think essentially what I have learnt is that if you are passionate about something and willing to work hard, you will succeed. Amongst all the study and work I managed to find time to get married in 2014. Fellow old girl Anna Walker was one of my bridesmaids – 34 years of friendship and counting! I’m also a very proud mummy to two young daughters: Alyce and Amelia. I am currently on maternity leave so enjoying some time off from work with my youngest.

loved the magazines when I was at School as they brought real-life contemporary language into the classroom. This role gave me the opportunity to travel and devise marketing campaigns to promote the magazines to teachers across Europe and beyond. After improving my own health through adopting a healthier lifestyle, I decided to retrain as a nutritional therapist – a career that didn’t really exist when I was at School! This meant first completing a science foundation course in Chemistry, Anatomy and Biology. When I chose my A Levels I’d really struggled whether to follow a scientific or humanities route, so I relished the opportunity to delve into the sciences again and was grateful for the inspiring science teaching I’d had

at school – anyone else remember Mr Lewis and his periodic table song, green lab coats and the smell of the science corridor? After four years of studying at the Institute of Optimum Nutrition in London (and giving birth to another child) I graduated in 2007 as a fully-qualified nutritional therapist. I gradually built-up my own practice: Mission Nutrition in St Albans. Diet and lifestyle play a huge part in helping people to manage a wide range of health conditions, including digestive, hormonal and cardiovascular issues. As well as my clinic work, I also write for local publications and co-authored Packed, which is book of healthy, grown-up packed lunch ideas. I usually have a couple of other projects on the go and am currently the nutrition advisor for Great in 8, an on-line well-being programme.

latest scientific research to give my clients the most up-to-date advice, whilst running my own business means I still get to use my marketing and creative skills.

It is so rewarding to help people take control of their own health. Our knowledge of nutrition is evolving at a rapid pace so I have to keep abreast of all the

I was lucky to have wonderful teachers during my time at Bolton School who gave me a life-long love of learning and instilled in me the confidence to explore new opportunities wherever they arise. I don’t think we are ever too old to learn new skills.

Unsung Heroes

What is the best thing about working at Bolton School?

While all the staff in the Girls’ Division contribute in some way to the success and smooth-running of the School, not all share the limelight. Hannah Caulfield, Miss Hincks’ PA, not only carries out a multitude of administrative tasks with efficiency and discretion, but is also a reassuring voice to parents, points anxious pupils in the right direction and is a mine of information (if on the odd occasion she is unable to answer an enquiry or a request, she will know who can!) – all while ensuring that the Headmistress is always in the right place at the right time!

The best thing about working here at Bolton School has to be the people I have met who have embraced me in to the Bolton School community. My job has given me the opportunity to work in an educational environment which is something I am passionate about. Before I began my career as PA, teaching was the direction I had always thought I may go in and at one point I had my heart set on becoming a primary school teacher.

What is your job and how long have you been in post? My role in School is PA to the Headmistress and I joined Bolton School Girls’ Division in August 2014. Time has flown and I am struggling to believe this is the beginning of my sixth year here!

Do you have a standout memory from your time working here at School? In the grand scheme of things here at Bolton School I am still a relatively new member of staff: there are many longer-serving people who I am sure have wonderful stories to tell. However, my standout memory – or more of a moment – so far would have to be seeing the girls who were just entering Year 7 when I arrived at Bolton School now entering the Sixth Form as confident, young adults who are beginning the next stage of their lives. It reminds me how important the experiences you have, the lessons you learn and the friends you make during your school years are, as the years pass by so quickly. The lovely thing about Bolton School is that so many pupils stay in touch with their teachers and each other after they have left and it is always a pleasure to see Old Girls at school events. I also have quite a few memories of ‘interesting’ tasks such as filling my car with Dominoes pizzas and driving them back to school for our post ISI inspection staff celebrations. The smell of pizza lingered for days! I assure you there have been a few near misses, too, but a good PA never divulges too much information!

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Fiona Helps to Shape New School Fiona Hazlitt (2003-2017) recently spent two weeks with some of her fellow Architecture students in South Africa helping to build a primary school in a deprived village – an experience which will stay with her forever. The University of Nottingham works closely with the Thušanang Trust which is an organisation that focuses on the development and well-being of young children. They help train practitioners at Fiona by the new school sign and community-based office entrance Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres, as well as working with groups like us to help provide adequate schools that the trained members of staff can work in. For the past ten years the University of Nottingham has given 40 second year architecture students the task of designing a small school for a village in South Africa. This year I was lucky enough to be involved in the second phase of the project. Our final design comprised of three classrooms, a nursery, a kitchen and an office. The students were split into smaller groups of four or five and were assigned a component of the project to design. The scheme was then split into two phases. Phase one built the concrete supports for the walls, the overarching roof and the timber frame for classroom one and two. Phase two then completed classrooms one and two, as well as building classroom three, the nursery, kitchen and office from scratch. Each phase spent ten days on site spread over two weeks. I was in phase two which meant that I was able to see the school finished and hand it over to the community in which we were working. The building materials and equipment for the project were funded solely by the students and staff participating; we raised £30,000 in six months. The site we were working on was in a village thirty minutes’ drive from our hotel The finished school from the lower part of the in Tzaneen, site Limpopo. The working days were long – we set off from the hotel at sunrise and left at sunset - but this allowed us to use the maximum number of hours we had efficiently. As a group we were determined to complete the project, which meant some very long days of hard grafting, but it was all worth it in the end. At the weekend in the middle of our visit we had some time off. On the Saturday we went to Kruger National Park for the day: it was a surreal experience to see so many different wild animals in their natural habitat walking so close to us. On the Sunday we went to a

school that was built three years ago by students of the University of Nottingham. There had not been much change to the design of the school since the students finished it. The villagers were happy to come and say hello to us when they saw us arrive. In the afternoon some of us went to visit a local brewery which was run by a lovely family, who even offered to come and help us on site the next day. It was great to explore other areas of the province of Limpopo and compare our lifestyle back at home to that of the families we met. Whilst we were there, South Africa had their governmental elections; this was also interesting as we asked our driver what his view was on their government and how he would want to see it change.

Phase two group, staff and students

On the Friday before we left, we officially opened the school and there was a traditional celebration. The children sang us the South African national anthem which is amazing - we learnt that each of the five verses sung were in the five main languages that are spoken in South Africa. This definitely puts us to shame as at age five we barely know our national anthem in one language, let alone five! The parents and staff were overjoyed by the vast space we had been able to give them with the new buildings. To the disappointment of some of the university staff the children were not really impressed by the school itself – the set of swings we had made in the last hour were much more exciting! There was a great atmosphere as we helped the children on to the swings and climb up the small climbing wall whilst the parents and staff looked round the new classrooms. There was a language barrier between us and the people in the community, but the appreciation of our work was evident from the smiles on their faces. I would definitely recommend taking part in a project such as this: it was a truly surreal experience. I am sure I will return to South Africa in the future, and some of my peers and I have already talked about revisiting the school when we have finished our Masters. Elephant in Kruger National Park

Story of a Gown The Prefects’ gowns are one of the enduring symbols of the Girls’ Division, and the Gowning of the Prefects, held in the Great Hall each May, has become one of its most special traditions. When Joyce Tyldesley (1964-1978) received her gown from Headmistress Miss Higginson, she could not have imagined that, 30 years later, the very same gown would be presented to her daughter, Philippa Snape (1998-2008). Here Joyce and Philippa describe wearing the same gown – many years apart – with pride.

What was your favourite moment whilst wearing your gown?

A nervous new Junior

Joyce: My favourite moment was also a moment of dread: having to go up the dark steps at the back of the stage in the Great Hall to receive the gown. Almost every year one unfortunate new Prefect would make a noisy slip on the stairs!

Philippa: I don’t think I have one particular favourite moment but, looking back, every time we got to swoosh down the Great Hall in our gowns to take our seats for assembly was pretty special. What were your hopes/plans for the future, as you passed on your gown?

Thirty years later, an equally nervous new junior

Joyce: In my day we did not pass on our gowns. The new Prefects were announced by the Headmistress on the last day of the Summer term, and they received their gowns on the first day of the next School year. I never imagined that one day ‘my’ gown would also be worn by my daughter. Philippa: As I was about to pass on my gown, my main hope for the immediate future was that I would be able to take the gown off and hand it over successfully (to my friend Kelsey) without either of us getting stuck in it in front of the entire School! I am not sure what my hopes were for the longer term; it was hard to imagine life not at School seeing all my friends every day and living at home with my family, so I think that I was probably just extremely nervous for the future. What did you do after leaving School? Joyce: I studied Archaeology at University of Liverpool , then gained a D Phil in Prehistory from University of Oxford. As archaeological jobs were in short supply, I then started to train as a Chartered Accountant. I spent many happy but busy years working as an accountant by day and as an Egyptologist by night, teaching evening classes and writing books. Philippa: After I left School I went to the University of St Andrews to study Social Anthropology. From there I went to the School of Oriental and African Studies

to do my masters in Medical Anthropology where I specialised in the study of the Near and Middle East. So I was really lucky in that I got to spend many years learning about interesting (although very niche!) subjects. What are you doing now? Joyce: I work at the University of Manchester, where I have established Egyptology Online, a centre dedicated to distance learning Egyptology. I now teach students who live all over the world. Philippa: After I left university I joined the Civil Service graduate scheme (the Fast Stream). I am still in the Civil Service and, having worked in a number of different departments, I am now a Senior Policy Advisor at HMRC. At the beginning of this year I was moved on to work to support the UK’s departure from the EU; specifically leading on Compliance Policy and Strategy. Philippa currently It is an extremely interesting yet works for the Civil challenging role, and not something Service in London I think I ever imagined I would be doing when I was at School. Joyce currently works as an Egyptologist at the University of Manchester

What one piece of advice would you give to this year’s Year 13 pupils? Joyce: Always try to be the best version of yourself that you can. And be happy. Philippa: Keep learning new things, keep making new friends and keep exploring new places! Are you still in touch with friends from School? Joyce: Yes. I am in contact with Bolton School friends on a weekly basis. Philippa: Absolutely! Many of my closest friends are from School, even though we are spread across the country (and world!) with busy lives. I am so lucky that I have such good friends that I met at Bolton School.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

From Learning to Living In the Autumn 2018 edition of the Newsletter we featured a review by Headmistress Sue Hincks of two previous surveys of Old Girls: ‘Learning and Living: A Feminine Viewpoint’ (1960) and ‘From Learning to Living’ (1977). This prompted Miss Hincks to survey the views of current Old Girls and here she presents her findings. 'Thank you to the 526 Old Girls who completed our recent survey. Firstly, I apologise to those Old Girls who pointed out that my over-reliance on the questions from the 1977 and 1960 versions led to some outdated implied assumptions about the role of women in relation to men and to a heteronormative bias in some questions. I had made some amendments to the 1977 questions but also tried to keep enough the same in order to allow comparison across the years. In doing so, I still managed to produce an imperfect result. In future, I shall consider survey-writers with a new degree of respect as I had not thought that it was so difficult to get things right. I am therefore all the more grateful to those of you who stuck things through to the end and gave such interesting replies. Over the course of the next few months, I shall compare the replies to the different surveys across the years. In the meantime, you may be interested in the findings from 2019. 'Of those who replied 308 described their current status as married or re-married, 102 as single, 44 as cohabiting, 35 as divorced, 11 as widowed and 3 in civil partnerships. The most recent Old Girls who took part in the survey left in 2018 and the earliest leaving date was 1952. The majority of those taking part had either two or no children (155 and 133 respectively). Of those with children, most started their family after the age of 31 (142 Old Girls) or between the ages of 26 and 30 (116 Old Girls). 'Just under half of the replies (225) came from Old Girls who currently had paid employment inside or outside the home and four Old Girls completed the survey whilst on maternity leave. In terms of employment, the most popular category was teaching, followed by office/bank work, local government/the civil service and medicine or dentistry.

'The most illuminating replies for me were to the questions about the areas of contemporary life which most concerned Old Girls and those which most gave them cause for optimism. These are the ones where I can see ‘signs of the times’ most clearly, even if they are the least useful in terms of comparisons with the two earlier surveys, as our preoccupations and sources of joy have changed so radically since 1977 and 1960. 'In answer to the question ‘What features of present-day British society do you find disturbing?’, there were many shared areas of concern, with the most commonly expressed being racism/xenophobia (332 replies), Brexit (71), crime (57), social media (41) and inequality (31). Other worries included politics/politicians, intolerance, poverty, lack of respect, climate change, drugs, homelessness and selfishness or self-entitlement. 'The question ‘What features of present-day British society do you find encouraging?’ gave rise to fewer areas of consensus. The areas for optimism which were most frequently cited were the younger generation (56 replies), gender equality/women’s rights (30), climate activism/environmental awareness (26), the NHS (19) and advances in medicine or technology (18). Old Girls are also heartened by diversity/inclusiveness/tolerance, education, charities, multiculturalism and community. 'However, a number of people said that they could not think of any responses; indeed, some said that this was why they were glad to live abroad. Individual answers included: Springwatch, coffee, and Miles Jupp on The News Quiz! 'With regard to how a Bolton School education has had an impact on later life, the most gratifying statistic was to see that 229 respondents are involved in some sort of voluntary work, with the Church, School Governance and the Scout/

Girl Guide movements being the most significant areas of activity. Twenty respondents described themselves as politically active. 'Cultural and leisure interests were many and varied, with music, gardening, travel, walking, the theatre, and fitness/ sporting activities featuring the most frequently. More esoteric interests perhaps included escape rooms, video gaming, cheer-leading, fly-fishing, and ‘destroying the patriarchy’. 'Of course, for a Headmistress the most interesting answers are to the question: ‘Do you think your education has fitted you for the life you have lived since (School)?’ 31 Old Girls said ‘no’ and the rest were ‘yes’ or a more nuanced reply, as some objected to the binary nature of the question. Of greatest value, the following features were most frequently cited: a love of learning; respect; an emphasis on the importance of giving back; self-confidence and self-belief; the development of an open and enquiring mind; and a sense that gender was no barrier to success. A number of subjects were mentioned, especially Latin, MFL and Maths, as well as several teachers and Cautley. 'Changes which Old Girls suggested included: more ‘real world’ awareness, including more contact with boys, more financial awareness, car maintenance, and child care; more emphasis on mental health; the teaching of different languages (Spanish, Russian, Mandarin, Italian, Welsh and Arabic); how to fail and the importance of diverse pathways as routes to happiness/success. 'Whilst the final question (‘Would you say your own outlook differs greatly from that of your own mother (or your daughter if you have one)?’) produced some fascinating replies in the 1977 survey, it was less revelatory in 2019. If there was a common response, it was that Old Girls’ outlooks were different from their mothers’ but the same as their daughters’. However, it was clear that many no longer found the question particularly relevant to how they see themselves. 'All in all, I very much enjoyed everyone’s contributions to the survey. I always enjoy meeting alumni and hearing about the valuable contribution which you are making to the wider world. These replies confirmed your good sense. One of the Governors has helped me produce some graphical representations of the answers which I hope to publish via the School’s website. Thank you to everyone who took the time to share their views and now I pass the baton to the 2061 Headmistress!'

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Staff in the Spotlight At the end of the Summer term the Girls’ Division bade a fond farewell to four long-standing members of staff: Mrs Kingsford (English), Mrs Sutcliffe (Careers), Mrs Walsh (Biology) and Mrs Waters (Geography). Alumni Prefects Cate Lord and Lauren Whitaker caught up with them to find out about their time at Bolton School and their plans for the future.

Mrs Kingsford

Mrs Kingsford and Lauren

How long have you been at Bolton School? I’ve been at Bolton School for 30 years. I did one year in another school, down in London, when I first qualified, then I came up here – and I’ve been here ever since!

Did you always want to be a teacher? Not really, because my parents were both teachers and I didn’t like people expecting that I would automatically follow in their footsteps! But I loved studying English and when I graduated I decided to do a PGCE – it had a teaching English as a foreign language component and I thought I could always travel. And then I met the person who became my husband so the travelling didn’t happen – I just travelled to Bolton! If you weren’t a teacher what would you have liked to do? I would have liked to be a writer.

What are your plans after leaving? Thanks to a chance meeting with an Old Girl in a restaurant in Manchester, I have got a part-time job with an organisation called The Reader which involves reading the classics and poetry to vulnerable groups in prisons, old people’s homes, children’s homes etc. Its ‘Shared Reading’ programme has been found to be very therapeutic. What is your favourite year to teach? I love teaching A Level Literature. What is your favourite Bolton School tradition? The Ceremony of Carols – I love seeing all the paper angels, the Hall looks beautiful at that time of year. What is your favourite Bolton School memory? The funny things that some students do! For example, at one time I had a Year 7 form and the tiniest girl in the class had been lifted into one of the lockers and the door shut … when I came into the classroom to take the register the girls were all looking very strange, then they opened the locker and there she was! What is your favourite book? There are lots, but I do love Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë.

Mrs Sutcliffe How long have you been at Bolton School? A long time! I was a pupil here (Class of 1972) and started work in the new joint Careers Department in 1986, 33 years ago. Lauren and Mrs Sutcliffe

Have you always wanted to work in a school? No, when I first left School I worked for NatWest Bank which I thoroughly enjoyed. I quickly became Social Secretary which involved organising sporting events and the annual Division Dinner for around 600 people. After having my children, I became involved in running a Church Youth Group which made me realise I wanted to work with young people rather than the general public. If you didn’t work in careers what would you do? I particularly enjoy organising large events such as the Careers Fair and Interview Skills evenings. I am sure a career in Events Management would have suited me. What is your favourite Bolton School tradition? There are so many! But the Ceremony of Carols, Speech

Day, singing the School Song and Jerusalem all sum up Bolton School for me! What is your favourite Bolton School memory? I’m not sure it is my favourite memory, but being given the opportunity to become involved in extra-curricular activities by the Heads of both Divisions enhanced my love of the outdoors. I took over the running of the Orienteering teams after Miss Shaw, the former Head of PE, left. The girls and boys trained hard and after winning the British Schools’ Trophy, beating our main rivals Ulverston High, we represented British Schools at the World Schools Orienteering Championships in Portugal winning team Silver and Bronze awards. I have spent many weekends at Patterdale, running orienteering training weekends, accompanying boys during curriculum trips and, for many years, taking both junior and senior girls on extra-curricular weekends. What will you miss about Bolton School? The hectic pace – over the years it has become busier, with more and more careers activities taking place – and the interaction with both staff and pupils. Life will be much quieter; however, I will have the opportunity to travel more and meet up with former colleagues and friends and even visit Patterdale more often!

Mrs Walsh How long have you been at Bolton School? I arrived in 2005 – so that’s 14 years! Did you always want to be a teacher? No – mainly because I come from a family Mrs Walsh and Cate where nearly everybody was a teacher! I did consider some alternatives, but in the end I decided I’d just go to university and study my favourite subject, so I went to King's College London and did a degree in Biology. Then eventually I decided I probably should go into teaching … and the rest is history! What is your favourite year to teach? I enjoy teaching all the girls that come through the door, but I particularly love the first year – the Year 7s are so excited about learning science and it’s just wonderful when they get so fascinated by lighting the Bunsen burner or reacting chemicals. I also like teaching the Sixth Form because they have chosen to do those A Levels and are learning to be passionate about a subject that I love! What are your plans after leaving? The first thing I’m going to do is to stop setting the alarm

for 6am – maybe I’ll get up at 7 instead! Then I hope to slow down and sort out my house and my garden, which is currently very neglected. I want to spend more quality time with family and friends and to travel: my son is about to go and work in New Zealand and I’d quite like to jump on a plane and go and spend some time with him and his wife. I want to read. I also want to find out if there is anything else I’m good at! I have already started to make enquiries up at Leighton Moss, an RSPB reserve in the South Lakes, and I am hoping that I will be able to volunteer to work with young people there. What is your favourite Bolton School tradition? There are so many wonderful traditions! It was a real privilege to read at the Ceremony of Carols – it is an amazing service, which I hope to come back and enjoy for many years to come. I enjoy Christmas dinner and the Prefects’ Panto. It is also a very special moment when the Prefects are gowned. And it’s wonderful that so much work is done for charity throughout the School. What will you miss the most about Bolton School? I can’t single out one thing! I will miss teaching in the classroom because that is where I am happiest. And I will miss my unbelievably professional and hardworking friends in the science department – I have fantastic colleagues, they have really looked after me for the last 14 years.

Mrs Waters

Mrs Waters and Cate

How long have you been at Bolton School? I have taught at Bolton School twice: my first stint was 1990 to 1998, then I left when I had my daughter. I came back in 2007 – and stayed for another 12 years!

Did you always want to be a teacher? Before I went to university I just wanted to ride horses and do something in the horse world! However, once I had completed my Geography degree, I realised I wanted to pass on my enthusiasm for my subject and teaching beckoned. If you hadn’t been a teacher, what would you have liked to do? I don’t think there is any other job I would like to do – although I did enjoy my time at home looking after my daughter when she was younger. What are your plans after leaving? I am going to have a good rest and then go on a couple of holidays! I also want to spend more time with our horse – he and I have started doing more dressage competitions this year, winning a few rosettes. I will also be busy looking after my 94-year old dad and 85-year old mother-in-law. And I plan to meet up with friends and join colleagues who have already retired from School on their outings and walks.

What is your favourite year to teach? I enjoy each year because they all bring different things. You can have real fun with Years 7, 8 and 9, then in Years 10 and 11 it gets a bit more serious. I love teaching Years 12 and 13 because I can have in-depth conversations about my subject. What is your favourite Bolton School tradition? The run up to Christmas, when the tree and the angels go up. Christmas is my favourite time of the year and School always makes me feel it is arriving. What is your favourite Bolton School memory? My favourite memories are centred on the travels that the department have had and going away with Ms Noot and Miss Wadey because the three of us have just had so much fun working together. What will you miss the most about Bolton School? I am going to miss Ms Noot the most! She’s made it so much fun working in the department and I shall miss that cheery voice calling ‘Hello ladies!’ as she comes into the Geography office every morning. She’s been brilliant. Our friendship goes back a long way: Ms Noot was my replacement when I left in 1998, and then in 2007 I returned to do a five-month maternity cover and ended up staying for another fantastic 12 years!

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Michael Griffiths: Farewell and Thank You In December 2019, Old Boy Michael Griffiths (1958-1965) will step down as Chairman of the Bolton School Governing Body, having served for 33 years, with the last 12 as Chairman. Here, we share his memories from his time in the Boys’ Division, and celebrate his service to the School and the town. Michael spent his early years in Leyland, with his father, an industrial chemist, his mother, who worked as an accounts assistant, amongst other roles, and his younger brother, David, who attended the Boys’ Division between 1965 and 1972. Upon joining the Boys’ Division on a Lancashire Scholarship (Direct Grant), Michael had a lengthy journey to and from School each day. He would ride the bike that his parents had bought him after passing his 11+ to Leyland Station, from where he would take a Steam Train to Bolton’s Trinity Street Station. The Number 33 bus down Chorley New Road brought him to School too late for morning assembly, for which he had a permanent ‘Late Pass’, arriving just in time for the Headmaster’s notices. Michael recollects a School physically much different to the buildings of today. There was no North Wing to the Boys’ Division - it opened at the beginning of Michael’s final year - with three huts housing Shells A1 and A2 and the Third Form. The Divisions at that time were kept almost exclusively apart, with only Geography Society (and the accompanying field trips), Film Society, Scottish Country Dancing club and the Christian Youth Group held jointly. After the family moved to Chorley when Michael was 12, he joined the School Scout Troop, and was Owl Patrol Leader in his final year. He was a keen attendee of the Clifford ‘Butch’ Ingham trek camps in the UK, which he remembers with great warmth and affection. He recalls how Butch’s camps were very special in the way they helped to develop amongst the boys a spirit of adventure, independence and initiative.

Michael also recollects Mr Poskitt with great warmth and affection. In 1964, he and a group of friends planned a nine-week trip to the Azores, funded by a grant from the newly established Scott Trust, during which he grew a beard. He returned home to a letter from ‘FRP’, asking him to meet with him the following day in order that he could invite him to be School Captain, necessitating the beard having to be shaved off much sooner than Michael had anticipated. After leaving School in 1965, Michael undertook a VSO Gap Year in the Solomon Islands. Whilst there, Michael built bridges, repaired water tanks, made a town plan, undertook a census and carried out the survey for the construction of an airstrip on a remote Polynesian Island, which when he visited it 50 years later, he discovered had been constructed on exactly the site that Michael had suggested. A second Scott Trust grant enabled him to make a film about the islanders that is still shown today; as the only photographic record of their ancestors, the film means a great deal to the islanders. Upon Michael’s return from the Solomons, he began his degree in Industrial Economics at the University of Nottingham. At the end of his first term, Michael became critically ill with malaria, which he had contracted in the Solomons. After an experimental cure administered at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Michael made a full recovery, but his experience with the disease has inspired a continued involvement with the Solomons where, since 2009, he has volunteered annually to help with the global malaria eradication programme set up by his old friend, from their days together on VSO, Sir Richard Feachem. After graduation, Michael joined Arthur Andersen and became a chartered accountant specialising in tax. In his late 20s he decided to opt for a more entrepreneurial career. Starting his own business from scratch, he built up a group that manufactured specialised industrial protective clothing and watersports equipment, and, over the years, acquired and sold several other businesses. Michael met his wife, Karen, at university, and they moved back to Bolton, living in Bromley

Cross before settling in Lostock in 1982; their four children, Tanya (1990-1997), Sam (1991-1998), Max (1994-2001) and Lisa (1996-2003), all attended Bolton School. Upon his return to the town, Michael joined the Old Boltonians’ Association’s Committee, serving as its Secretary from 1980 to 1988 and as the 1998-1999 President, and continued his involvement with the Scouts, acting as the Bolton West (the area that the School Scout Troop sits in) District Commissioner between 1983 and 1991. Michael joined the School’s Governing Body in 1986, becoming one of its youngest members, and served under the Third Viscount Leverhulme, Lord Haslam (Boys’ Division, 1934-1941) and Sir Alan Cockshaw, before his own appointment as Chairman in 2007. During Michael’s tenure as a Governor, the School site has been developed significantly, and he has been involved with the construction of the Arts Centre, Nursery, Beech House and Hesketh House, the redevelopment of Park Road and the Riley Sixth Form Centre, which opened in 2013. The impetus behind much of Michael’s service as a Governor has been his desire to ensure that the School remained open to any child of ability, regardless of their family’s circumstances. As Chairman of the Governors’ Finance Committee, in the early 1990s Michael wrote a paper, ‘Life after Assisted Places’, which would become the template for the School’s response to the withdrawal of government funding for fees after Labour came to power in 1997. Michael’s foresight had given the Governors time and opportunity to plan for this inevitable policy change and immediately after the 1997 election the Governors voted unanimously to commence a fundraising campaign with the intention of building a bursary fund capable of supporting those pupils who would previously have received that funding. Michael is deservedly proud of his involvement in the establishment of the bursary fund, which, through the endowment structure he developed, has grown to a point where today it offers one in five pupils in the School financial support for their education. Today the fund is able to distribute almost £3m per year in bursaries across the two Divisions, and the Governors, under Michael’s direction, remain committed to the strategic aim of growing the fund still further within the next decade, to be able to support one in three pupils in the two Senior Schools, a ratio last experienced in the days of the Direct Grant scheme.

Michael firmly believes that the School’s diverse pupil body is a huge strength, and that the School’s unique approach to education should be made available to all those who would thrive here. As the former beneficiary of a Direct Grant place, whose parents would otherwise have been unable to afford the School’s fees, Michael understands how vital a good education can be to maximising an individual’s opportunities. Michael believes that the bursary fund will enable the School to continue to produce the leaders of tomorrow, who will utilise the ethos and values of the School for the benefit of all of society, and is insistent that the School remains as a cornerstone of the local community. With a connection to School spanning over 60 years, over half of which have entailed close involvement on a voluntary basis, it is inevitable that leaving the Governing Body will be a huge wrench. In particular, Michael notes that he will miss the intellectual demands being a Governor provides, the Governors, Heads and other staff he works so closely with, and the warmth of the School community as a whole.

Michael and Headmistress Sue Hincks accept the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service on behalf of the School in 2017

Michael has ended each of his Presentation Evening and Prizegiving speeches as Chairman of Governors over the past 12 years with the following exhortation to the Sixth Formers leaving that year: ‘One thing I would ask is that in whatever you do, try to make a difference for good. How satisfying, if when you travel through life, you make each place a tiny bit better than when you arrived.’ Thank you, Michael, for giving so generously of your time, energies and abilities, in service of your School. You leave us changed infinitely for the better by your involvement.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Venture Scouts Former Girls’ Division Art Teacher Ann Chambers (Girls’ Division Staff, 1978-1983) was pivotal to the establishment of the 19th Bolton Venture Scout Unit in 1980 – the first unit within the 19th Bolton Scout Group to admit girls. ‘I first became aware of the demand for a mixed Venture Scout unit during a lunch break in 1980, when Rachel Crompton (née Allen, 1976-1983), whose father, David Allen (Boys’ Division Staff, 1957-1993), was the Venture Scout Leader, and Pauline Taylor (1976-1983) came to the Art Room to ask me if I would be interested in being an Assistant Venture Scout Leader with 19th Bolton. They explained that there were several girls who wished to join the School’s Venture Scout Unit, but they had been told that they would have to have a female member of staff from the Girls’ Division to be an AVSL. They had asked one of the Geography teachers first, who declined their invitation, but suggested that they should ask me, as she knew that I had been a Girl Guide. ‘I had been in the Guide Movement since I was seven years old. I was a Brownie, (Queen’s Guide) and Ranger in Carlisle, and continued as a Ranger in Lytham. I was an Assistant Ann with husband Frew at the centenary Guide Guider camp in Canada in Farnham for three years, and although I had approached the Guide Association in Nottingham whilst teaching at NGHS, there had been no vacancies near to where I was living. Although by 1980 I had had no involvement with the Guide Movement for four years – once a Guide, always a Guide! – I simply could not have said no to Rachel and Pauline! ‘From then, I remained as Assistant Venture Scout Leader until 2002, when Venture Scouts became the Paradox Explorer Scouts (the Explorers chose the name Paradox to represent the black and white of 19th’s neckerchief, and to recognise the joining together of the past and present of the troop). I then became the Explorer Scout Leader, an appointment which I still hold. The activities have been many and varied: I have organised and attended the weekly meetings, and taken the Venture Scouts and Explorers on hikes and Summer Camps at home and abroad, including the two 19th Scout Group camps to Canada. ‘Since September 1983, I have been Head of Art and Design Technology at Manchester High School for Girls; as part of my role there, I help with the Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, where I am able to use my experience gained through the Scout and Guide Association with camping, hiking and map reading.

‘In addition to my role as the Paradox Explorer Scout Leader, I am the Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) County Adviser for the Greater Manchester North (GMN) Scout County and the Active Support Ann (right) with Margaret Broadfoot, Manager for GMN the District Commissioner of Bolton DofE. This year, I West before the merge with other was awarded the areas of Bolton into Bolton Moorland Silver Acorn by the Scout Association for specially distinguished service. I still very much enjoy Scouting – as well as passing on my knowledge and expertise to the Scouts, I continue to be introduced to new skills and challenges myself.’ The popularity of the Venture Scouts was documented by Maxine Robbins (née Raffle) and Wendy Middleton (both Class of 1985) in the Girls’ Division Magazine in 1984: ‘Many girls are involved in the numerous activities of the Venture Scout Unit; our numbers have increased again this year. Six girls hold positions on the committee, with duties ranging from that of Housekeeper to Vice Chairman. ‘Last summer some of the Ventures went on an enjoyable two-week camping holiday; another trip took us down County Pot where we spent five hours underground, emerging almost unscathed! Our stay at Windermere during the Easter holidays has been good training for our long camp which will take place in Southern Ireland during the summer. ‘Nearer to home, the Ventures have been equally busy. During the Autumn Term we provided an entertainment for the Old People’s Harvest Supper and several of us took part in the St John’s Ambulance first aid course. Our weekly Friday night meetings have consisted of such varied topics and activities as a talk given by a circuit judge, ice skating at Altrincham and a computer evening. ‘Mrs Chambers, our Scout Leader from the Girls' Division, left School at the end of the Summer term, but continues to attend our meetings. We are now represented by Miss Felton. The sale of Woodlands has necessitated a move to new Headquarters; the Governors have generously bought the former School of Equitation on Ladybridge Lane, which is to be used both by the School and the Scouts. ‘We should continue to be justly proud of our Venture Scout Unit as we rank amongst the ten best units in the country.'

Inspiring Educators A post on our Alumni Facebook page asked Old Girls who their favourite teachers were, giving rise to a plethora of lovely comments about the many inspirational teaching staff which the Girls’ Division has been fortunate to have had over the years. Girls' Division Staff, 1999

Mrs Layfield and Mrs Keenan inspired my love of Geography! And of course Mrs Dickinson and Dr Brown for being such awesome role models for young women in general. I loved that School, and as time goes on feel more and more fortunate to have attended. Jen Burns (Class of 1993) Where to begin? We were blessed with so many amazing women (in the main in those days) to teach us. From a teaching perspective: Miss Dickinson for getting us into good habits in Maths and employing ‘Wake and Shake’ long before it became trendy! Mrs Carr for the sheer joy she took in imparting History to her classes (probably the main cause of my subsequent degree in the subject). Mrs Hutchinson for the annoying click clack of high heels on the parquet floor of the Great Hall during exams. While Mrs Spurr never taught us academic lessons she was a formidable role model and I always remember her edict, ‘Girls, keep the 3 Ds – keep your Dignity, keep your Decorum and keep your Deadlines!’ Rachel McHattie (née Robinson, Class of 1989) Mrs O’Kelly for her amazing dry humour and Mrs Sowerby for her great passion for English and theatre studies. I learnt so much from them - not just what was on the syllabus. They are inspirational women and I thank them both! Emilia Charidemou (Class of 2011) Mrs Head (History); a gentle and supportive approach with just enough sass to make the subject truly interesting! Her words still stay with me today. Angela Pearson (née Smith, Class of 2001) Miss Dickinson – I was terrified of her as a pupil but she is hands down the only reason I achieved my Maths GCSE, and what’s more, with a Grade A. She inspired me to become a teacher and steered me to my goal. Amazing lady. Mrs Todd made English come alive. I can still recite Macbeth 20 years on because of the exuberance with which she delivered it. Mrs Garthwaite – what a woman. She believed in me when I didn’t. I loved A Level French, but did not find it easy. She spurred me on to success! Lisa Ward (née Bradshaw, Class of 1990)

Mrs McCann, Physics: she made the subject come alive, made a complex problem easily solvable which thus inspired me to choose engineering as a career. She also took me to the Cinderella Ball (aka the Leavers’ Ball) when I was feeling disenchanted – a touch of kindness which went beyond what you’d expect of a teacher: I had a wonderful night and made happy memories to cherish. Marie Connor (née Seddon, Class of 1994)

Girls’ Division Staff, c 1957

Several favourites come to mind – my English teachers were, without exception, fabulous! Mrs Johnston made English fascinating and great fun, was so lovely, warm, ladylike and kind, and valued everyone's contribution, even if it was off the mark! I remember particularly a lesson when we discussed A Sulbarten's Love Song, aka Miss Joan Hunter Dunn, which is still one of my favourite poems, and doing Ernie's Incredible Illucinations as a form play – her casting was absolutely brilliant! Miss Rich was also a great favourite of mine – great, in-depth discussions doing A Level English, always with a sense of humour: I felt her belief in me! Mrs Todd, in the Sixth Form, was absolutely brilliant – down-to-earth, made us work hard and introduced us to Philip Larkin. Miss Windle, who was a family friend, was wonderful, too, and had a lovely sense of humour! A great organiser! Mary Thurston (née Winder, Class of 1984) The (sadly) late Dr Catherine Brown, a great academic who also made her subject appealing to teenage girls and made me determined to achieve what she did. Anna Langley (née Gavela, 1981-1988)

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Alumni Authors A Form of Justice Following the success of her Persford Series of medical thrillers (featured in the previous edition of the Newsletter), Sandra Newman (née Meadows, 1975-1982) has written her first standalone novel under her pen-name Dawn Marsanne. A Form of Justice sees Barrister Gina Overton moving back to Canterbury to be nearer to her elderly mother and taking up a position at a legal chambers in the city. Her move coincides with the start of the SEKare Inquiry into abuse and neglect at a group of care homes in the area. Gina specialises in prosecuting medical negligence claims and has agreed to represent a group whose vulnerable relatives suffered dreadfully in the residential homes. The experience proves to be more challenging than she anticipates as she finds herself the subject of some subtle intimidation. Who is trying to unsettle Gina and make her question her decision to relocate? Without the support of her husband, Will, who is yet to move to

the area, and with the additional worries of her mother’s dementia, she struggles to remain in control of her life. Is she being paranoid or is someone determined to make her life difficult? Meanwhile, another character, Melanie, with a history of self-harm, becomes increasingly distressed as memories of being bullied at school are triggered by a girl from her class. Can she be helped to cope with her painful past? This book is an exploration of human interactions, of abusers and the lives of their victims. What drives people to intimidate and bully? Will a form of justice prevail? All of Sandra’s e-books are available through links on her website dawnmarsanne.wixsite.com/mysite and are also available to download from Amazon, Apple iBooks, Kobo, Barnes and Noble and OverDrive Library.

A Moon Girl Stole My Friend Written and illustrated by Rebecca Patterson (1979-1986) Published by Andersen Press In her latest book, aimed at junior school girls (7+), writer and illustrator Rebecca Patterson introduces her readers to a futuristic world with cyber pets, space travel and flykes with their own parking stations in the place of bikes. The school teaching assistant is an ancient robot, Miss Fritz, who is presented as both comical and somehow human. A clever link with the present is another source of humour. The class visit Yesterday Village where there is an old house filled with ‘junk’ from 2020. Jokes about flushing toilets (gross) and eating hot dogs (What sort of dogs are they made from? Sausage dogs, I suppose.) serve to underline how little human nature and young children change over time. The wit and novelty of Patterson’s inventions will intrigue her audience, but the book’s strength lies in the presentation of friendships among young girls. The Year 6 narrator, Lyla, goes on a form of hero’s journey when her best friend, Bianca, becomes obsessed with Petra, a new girl from the Moon. It’s Mean Girls for juniors.

Dropped from the cool set, Lyla comes to appreciate the individuality of class clown, Louis, and homes in on her talent for controlling her movements in Zero Gravity lessons. While the Six Sensations, a wannabe girl band started by Petra, are rehearsing, Petra creeps through the school fence where she meets her mentor, a grumpy female astronaut and cat fanatic with her own rocket. Enter Betty Astral. Not to give the plot away, Lyla gets to use her skills in a crisis, she grows in independence and there is a resolution of the friendship issue. Patterson began as a children’s illustrator, a fact evident in the bold cartoon drawings and strongly visual chapter headings. Lively writing and characterisation work alongside the pictures to keep the young reader engaged. Theresa Sowerby (Girls’ Division Staff, 1988-2013)

NEWS OF OLD GIRLS If you would like to get in touch with any of the Old Girls featured – or any other Alumni – please contact the Development Office.

Class of 1950-1959

Manda Rigby (1966-1980) Congratulations to Manda who has been appointed Deputy Mayor of the city of Bath. Manda, who has made Bath her home for the last decade and has served as a Councillor for Bathwick since 2010, was formally appointed as Deputy Mayor at the City's annual Mayor Making Ceremony which took place on Saturday 1st June in the magnificent Bath Abbey.

Class of 1970-1979

Manda has become an active part of the Bath community, including as the first female Chair of Bath City Football Club – indeed the first female Chair of any football club in the top divisions – and is looking forward to deputising for the Mayor on behalf of the many wonderful people and organisations in the City. As a great animal lover she has come to an arrangement with the Mayor whereby she may get to go to any animal-related event in his absence!

Brenda Wood (née Walker, 1949-1956) Congratulations to Brenda and Tony (1947-1954) who recently celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary. The couple met at School and married on 12th August 1959. 60 years on, three children and six grandchildren later, they find themselves retired and living in Bolton-le-Sands.

Anne Lucy (née Armstrong, Class of 1975) Anne surprised her friend Vicki Fritzsche-Hurst (née Hurst, Class of 1975) with a nostalgic tour of School when she came to visit from her home in the Netherlands this Summer. The visit brought back many happy memories and both were surprised to find that they still know all the words to the School Song! Alison Qualtrough (1969-1976) Congratulations to Alison who has been appointed Professor of Dentistry at Manchester Dental School, the first female clinical Professor in Dentistry at the University of Manchester. She is also an honorary consultant in restorative dentistry.

Carol Holmes (née Dale, 1981-1988) Well done to Carol who has been accredited as one of the country’s first Chartered Educational assessors and been made a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Educational Assessors, based on her current work on assessment in schools and her previous experience as Principal Examiner with AQA. Carol is Assistant Headteacher at Westhoughton High School, Bolton.

Heather Henry (née Fisher, 1972-1979) Congratulations to Heather who has taken up a new position as Honorary Senior Lecturer in Nursing at the University of Salford.

Julie Warburton (1982-1989) Congratulations to Julie who in March was appointed as a full-time Circuit Judge in crime, sitting at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court.

Class of 1980-1989

Julie is in no doubt that her successful career at the bar and recent move to the Circuit Bench has been largely as a result of the wonderful education she received at Bolton School, and the encouragement to feel that she really could achieve anything she put your mind to.

Cate Heys (1973-1980) While Cate was over from Australia for her Dad’s 90th birthday celebrations back in May, her 89-year-old mother expressed a wish to climb Snowden again, having last climbed it six years ago. Cate wasn’t keen, but as Cate and Barbara her Mum’s chosen companion she conquer Snowdon! organised some practice walks and on the day of the climb the pair decided to take the Watkins Path – one of the longer routes with a climb of over 1,000 meters and the final approach described in the guide (read after the ascent) as ‘an indistinct path up a sheer scree slope’. Undaunted, Cate and her Mum made it to the summit in five hours. However, all the trains back down were full and there was no option but to return by foot, this time via the Miners Track. After a hair-raising four hours they arrived back, much to Cate’s relief. She is full of admiration for her Mum’s remarkable feat which demonstrates what can be achieved by remaining active and determined. Well done to both of them!

Class of 1990-1999

Rt Revd Dr Jill Duff (née Worsley, 1980-1990) The Rt Rev Dr Jill Duff, Bishop of Lancaster, led the Pentecost service at St Cuthbert's Church in Preston which was broadcast live on BBC1. Sally-Anne Huang (née Blakemore, 1982-1990) Congratulations to Sally-Anne who has been appointed High Master of St Paul’s School from September 2020. She will be the first female Head in the school’s 510-year history. Dawn Stainer (née Taylor, (1988-1995) Dawn is working as the Director of Lakeland Mediation Solutions (www.lakelandmediationsolutions.co.uk), providing individuals and businesses in the Lake District and the North West with Workplace and Civil and Commercial Mediation services. She is dual registered with the Civil Mediation Council and recently assessed the International Civil and Commercial Mediation Professional course at UCLan Cyprus.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019 Class of 2000-2009

Louise Jackson (1989-2003) These are exciting times for Louise who recently fulfilled a long-held ambition when she opened a new record shop in Bury with her boyfriend, Ben. The pair juggled full-time jobs with work on their project, transforming dark and dingy premises at The Art Picture House in Haymarket Street into their dream shop. Wax and Beans – the first independent vinyl store to open in the town since 2011 – stocks a wide range of vinyl records, as well as serving refreshments, and hopes to attract music lovers, coffee connoisseurs, tea enthusiasts and many more. Further details can be found at www.waxandbeans.co.uk.

Class of 2010 onwards Katie Hurt (2004-2015)

Katie is in her fourth year reading Physics at Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and alongside her studies she has taken up rowing, recently making the move from her college team to representing Katie (third from left) was part the Oxford University of the winning Dark Blue team! Women's Lightweight Rowing Club. In March this year she rowed in the victorious Blue Boat against the Cambridge University Women's team at the Henley Boat Races – well done Katie! Laura Hainey (2009-2016) Congratulations to Laura who has graduated from the University of Nottingham with a First in History. She has now joined Boots’ Global Brands on their Graduate Scheme, having completed an internship with the company last summer, with her first role in brand commerce.

Jennie Maher (Class of 2018) Jennie was thrilled to collect her Gold Duke of Edinburgh award at a prestigious ceremony at Buckingham Palace in the Spring, where she met up with fellow Tom, Jude and Jennie Gold Award recipients Tom proudly show off their Gold Stephenson (Class of 2018) DofE Awards and Jude Brennan-Calland (Class of 2019). Jennie would like to thank all of the staff at School who helped her to achieve this award.

News of Former Staff

Lisa Foster (Girls’ Division Staff, 1987-2005) Lisa worked at Bolton School Girls’ Division in the Religious Studies Department. She moved to Cambridge in September 2005 and has had several roles since then. She was the Head of Religious Studies at Holmemeade School in Bedfordshire before moving to a Director of Studies position at MPW Cambridge, where she remained for ten years. For the past two years she has worked at the Perse School, Cambridge, in the Philosophy, Ethics and Religion Department In September Lisa will be moving to Shanghai to join her husband who has been working there since November – and is looking forward to the challenge of attempting to learn some Mandarin! Lisa’s husband travels a great deal in his role and so for the next three years she looks forward to exploring a variety of different countries and cultures. Exciting times ahead! Julie Stone (Girls’ Division Staff, 1990-2015) After 26 years working in the Girls’ Division as a Science Technician and Support Staff Manager, Julie was expecting a much quieter retirement. However, when her husband was chosen as Mayor of Horwich this year, she became Mayoress and is Julie and her now having a very busy time! She husband Gordon is enjoying meeting people at all sorts of events for charities and organisations in Bolton.

Tayyibah Khalid (2009-2016) Congratulations to Tayyibah who has graduated from the London School of Economics and Political Science with a First in Mathematics with Economics. Tayyibah is now working as an analyst within the Equity Sales and Trading division at Jefferies, where she completed an internship last summer.

Pauline Winn (Girls’ Division Staff, 1979-1985) Pauline was delighted to bump into former pupil Alison Phillips (née Cooley, 1983-1986) last Summer. Alison was in Pauline’s form in 1984-85 and she and her friends were encouraged to attend a Scripture Union Easter Holiday run by Pauline and her husband in North Wales. The pair met up again when Alison, who was ordained as a priest in London last year, brought her son to a Scripture Union Holiday in Somerset and she recognised the name of Pauline’s son and his wife who were leading the camp, subsequently spotting Pauline herself on the team!

Khadijah Ismail (2010-2017) After studying Maths, Physics and Electronics Khadijah is now in her third year of a five-year degree apprenticeship in aerospace engineering with BAE Systems. She is now flying the flag for female engineers and in her free time works with The Smallpeice Trust, which runs the Arkwright Engineering Scholarships, giving talks in schools and mentoring teenagers with engineering potential.

Alison herself was pleased to bump into Mrs Winn – their recent encounter prompted her to recall the role of this time in her faith: 'Mrs Winn was my first form teacher and was quite instrumental in my faith journey – leading Scripture Union and holiday camps. Although I left Bolton for Northern Ireland in Upper 4th, I was always grateful for this encounter and encouragement. It was lovely to bump into her with my own boys all these years later. Those friends who knew me aged 11 to 13

would probably not be surprised that I am now a priest in the Church of England, deaconed last year in St Paul’s Cathedral and priested this summer in my own church of All Saints, Edmonton, North London. Those who knew me or bumped into me aged 25 or even 30 might be a bit more surprised, but faith I’m sure is all the better

for its meandering paths and the twists and turns. I am married to Joe, a TV and film agent and have three boys (who fight a lot, don’t like church or school work much – but love football – you can’t have it all!). Being a priest in a fairly troubled patch of North London has felt like ‘coming home’. It’s a privilege'.

MATCHES AND HATCHES Victoria Cliff (née Howarth, 1995-2007) Congratulations to Vicki who married Old Boy Bradley Cliff (2000-2007) in February at Hoghton Tower in Preston, with a huge number of fellow Bolton Schoolers in attendance to witness them tying the knot.

Natalie’s bridesmaids included Old Girls Lauren Woodcock, Daniella Owen (née Millican) and Hannah Williamson

went on safari in the Serengeti and scuba dived off Zanzibar! Emily Berry (née Cook), Aimee Parkinson, Natalie Smith, Danielle Hawarden, Sophia Saunders, Vicki Cliff (née Howarth), Faye Hughes, Nicola Spiers (née Wilcock), Becca Sherwin (née Lewis), Sophie Hammond-Piggott (née Hammond) and Katie Williams (née Shorrock) (all Class of 2007)

Natalie Clarke (née Charlton, 2003-2010) Best wishes to Natalie who got married to Stuart Clarke on 18th May at Pimhill Barn in Shrewsbury. Three of the bridesmaids and a number of guests were also former Bolton School girls. The happy couple have a shared love of travel, having visited 28 countries together during the eight years since they met – so it was very fitting that they spent their honeymoon in Tanzania where they climbed Kilimanjaro,

Natalie, who works in HR, and Stuart, a chemical engineer, have made their home in Ellesmere Port. Louise Yates (née Dixon, 2003-2010) Congratulations to Louise and Elliot (2003-2010) on their new arrival, Edward (Teddy) Arthur Yates, who was born 10th September 2018. Elliott, Louise and bundle of joy Teddy

MINI REUNIONS Lacrosse Ladies Lunch Fifteen members of the Class of 1964 met for lunch in Birmingham in March. There was a particularly good representation of the 1st Lacrosse Team which reached the semi-finals of the All-England Schools Lacrosse Tournament that year. Back, L-R: Moira Greenhalgh (née Stevens), Anita Hughes (née Percival), Janet Ward (née Mitchell), Joy Vans Agnew Front, L-R: Marje Robinson (née West), Ruth Rooze (née Lansdale), Lacrosse Captain, Angie Davies (née Smith)

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019

Looking Back A nostalgic trip down Chorley New Road – photographs from across the decades

Prefects 1958 well, Back, L-R: Elaine Burgess, Joan Halli son, Jane Gould, Jack stine Chri son, Hob e uelin Jacq Valerie Deans, Muriel Blackburn, Nancy Baldwin, Patsy Jenkinson stine Walker, Front, L-R: Margaret Holmes, Chri Waddicar, leen Kath , ams Susan Parry, Susan Willi and Marl ela Pam , Hark ela Pam

Kathleen Trustrum (née Johnson, 1947-1955) saw the picture in the of the Lacrosse Team Spring edition and confirmed that the phot o was taken in 1954. She was able to identify the girl at the end of the back row, so the full caption now reads: Back, L-R: Mavis Broadhurst, Caro l Watkiss, Dilys Thistlethwaite, Ann Berry, Kath leen Johnson, Sandra Phillimore, Marjorie Boothro yd Front, L-R: Audrey Schofield, Shei la Hough, Effie Marshall, Norma Horrocks, Helen Young

Thank you to Susan Garnett (née Parry, 1952-1958) for sending in these photos of the 1956 Cricket Team, the 1957 Rounders Team and the Prefects in 1958. Rounders Team, 1957 Back, L-R: ?, Susan Parry, Tessa Price, Jennifer England, Elizabeth Rogers Front, L-R: Jennifer Platt, Christine Hill, Margaret Latham, Rosamund Harrison Cricket Team, 1956, L-R: Margaret Goode (née Yates), Christine Walker, Lorna Sperryn (née Gerrard), Suzanne Crawford, Valma Craig

Richard Lowe (1952-1962) sent in this photograph of Beech House from 1945-46

Divisio Rush chairs in the Girls’ Great Hall

) sent in e Fairman, 1992-1999 Sophie Hepplewhite (ne l team. bal net m For th Six 9 this photo of the 1998-9 ah ey, Abbie Furlong, Sar Back, L-R: Alex Chidg ky Pukiello Vic , Jip ne roli Ca , cie Hancock, Helen Gra an, Collinson, Sophie Fairm Front, L-R: Catherine Sarah Whittle

Don’t forget to take a look at the ‘Scenes from the Past’ page on the School website, which we update regularly with new archive photos: www.boltonschool.org. You can also share your own archive photos on the Bolton Alumni Network: www.boltonalumninetwork.com.

FROM THE ARCHIVES Ask the Archivist How did Lacrosse Flourish at Bolton School? Lacrosse was first played at Bolton School in 1920 and it is therefore timely that the splendid new all-weather pitch at the Leverhulme playing fields should be installed in time for this centenary year. It is perhaps ironic that then, as now, the School was looking forward to improved playing field facilities. At the time lacrosse was being played on a rough field at Lostock and new playing fields were nearing completion at Albert Road. Miss Meade (Headmistress, 1919-1938) decided that lacrosse should be the School game, rather than hockey. She was of the opinion that hockey seemed to encourage round shoulders whereas lacrosse would force the girls to jump up and stretch! The implication of her decision was that the whole School had to start learning a new game at the same time and, although initial Pam Johnson results were far from auspicious, steady improvement was made under the guidance of Miss Bishop, who was also Captain of the Lancashire Ladies’ Lacrosse team. The School took part in the All England Inter-Schools Tournament for the first time in 1946 and reached the semi-finals in 1948, only to lose out to St Helens School on goal difference, and reached the same stage a year later, when the team was beaten by South Wiltshire High School. Bolton School also reached the final of the Schools’ Tournament in Liverpool in 1950, losing to Altrincham Grammar School. Results were consistently good and the School was developing a strong reputation for lacrosse. It continued to take part in both the North West and All England Championships on an annual basis but, although the team played well and were always a threat, they did not win their first major Tournament until 1963 when they won the North West Tournament, beating Moreton Hall in the Final. However, they lost 1-0 to Queen Margaret’s York in the All England Championships so that honour continued to elude them. It was only a matter of time, however, before they achieved their ambition. They won the North West Tournament four years consecutively between 1970 and 1973 and in 1973 they finally became All England Champions in what was a truly outstanding year for School lacrosse. The 1st Senior, 1st Junior and 2nd Senior teams won every match they played and the 2nd Junior team only experienced one defeat. In 1974 the School was not able to win the All England Schools Tournament outright, but it did share the trophy with Bournemouth High School for another year. Dreadful weather caused the 1975 All England tournament to be cancelled so,

when the School was All England champion again in 1976, it was effectively the third consecutive year. This winning run came to an end in 1977 when School lost in The 1st Senior Lacrosse Team, 1972-73, the final, but the with Miss Johnson (far right) 1970s certainly were halcyon days for lacrosse at Bolton School. Having been so successful over the years, Bolton School pupils and Old Girls have regularly been selected for representative honours at county, regional, national The Final of the Senior Lacrosse and Great Tournament, Upper VI S versus Britain level. Lower VI H, 1966 Those chosen to play for their country include Kathleen Holt (née Openshaw, 1922-1929), Barbara Isherwood (19411950), Kathleen Howarth (née Sixsmith, Class of 1963), Kay Abbott (née Hargreaves, 1952-1965), Barbara Arlow (née Dootson, 1966-1973), Jane Gregory (1963-1974), Jane Liversedge (1951-1971), Sarah Monks (1970-1984) and Zandra Puddephatt (née Nightingale, 1977-1987). Miss Conway (Head of PE, 1963-1968) also played for England. The School has also played an influential

Lacrosse Team, 1975-76

Meet the Archivist Eric Fairweather If you have a question about the School’s history or would like to donate to the Archive any photographs or artefacts from your time at School, Eric would love to hear from you. E: development@boltonschool.org.

Old Girls’ Association Newsletter Autumn 2019 role in running the sport at national level. Kathleen Holt was an England selector and later Secretary/Treasurer of the Women’s International Lacrosse Association, Barbara Isherwood was Treasurer of the AEWLA, Pam Johnson (Head of PE, 1970-1985) was a national and international umpire and Pat Bellis (née Topping, 1937-1945 and Former Girls’ Division Staff) was elected to the office of President of the North for 15 years and President of the AEWLA between 1978 and 1981. As we start the second century of lacrosse at Bolton School the game 1994-95 Senior Lacrosse Team at Milton Keynes continues to flourish and we can look forward confidently to yet more success and yet more representative honours in the years to come. How far we have come since those early days playing on a rough field at Lostock when, according to an early report in the School Magazine, the crosse seemed ‘to be rather more of a hindrance than a help towards getting the ball into the goal’.

Lacrosse Tour to USA, 1982

Lacrosse Thrives as New Pitch Opens Pupils and members of the local community alike have been making the most of a spectacular new all-weather sports surface at Bolton School which opened at the start of September. The £1m synthetic turf pitch development at the Leverhulme Pavilion site on Chorley New Road will be used primarily for lacrosse and hockey both by the School and by the local community. The updated facilities include improved spectator areas, separate shelters for visiting teams, floodlighting and increased parking. Headmistress Sue Hincks said: ‘I am delighted that the girls will have the opportunity to play lacrosse on an artificial pitch which means that there will be no risk of our playing surface turning to mud on wet days’.

LIVES REMEMBERED Margaret Buckley (née Satterthwaite, 1957-1964) Margaret was born in Glasgow, but came to school on the No 12 bus from her home in Swinton. She was calm, caring and wise beyond her years, qualities recognised by her peers who voted her Form Captain at every available opportunity. We were delighted when she was appointed Head Girl in 1963. She spent a VSO year on a remote island in the New Hebrides in the Western Pacific before starting teacher training at Homerton College, Cambridge. Teenage sweethearts, Margaret and Pip were married early into her lifetime career in education. She undertook further training for children with ‘special needs’, and, after a sabbatical, gained a First Class Degree in Education at Manchester University.

For over 15 years she was Headmistress of Fairfield Endowed C of E Junior School (FEJS) in Glossop, before retiring in 2006. She and Pip were then able to indulge fully their lifetime love of walking on the moors, the Pennines and in Scotland. Margaret was also an active member of the Glossop Choral Society, serving as a Chair from 2006 to 2010. Margaret and Pip had been making plans for their Golden Wedding when she became ill. She died on 2nd May 2019. A number of her School year group (1964 leavers) meet regularly for lunch and Margaret was a regular attendee. We are devasted by her death. Here are some thoughts from her friends:

‘Margaret was one of life’s ‘treasures’ – lovely, sociable, lively and dependable. I never heard anyone say a word against her. She will definitely be greatly missed by all those whose lives she touched.’ ‘Margaret was one of the best people I’ve known.’ ‘Margaret was the most calm and sensible person I have ever met.’ ‘What a loss. It was always a delight to catch up with Margaret at the Northern Reunions. In all the years she had never changed, showing those wonderful qualities of utter integrity and warmth we recognised at School. Time after time we chose her as our Form Captain and were delighted when she became our Head Girl.’ ‘She was always someone that got on with everyone and will be sorely missed.’ ‘I remember her, with affection, as completely unflappable and mature beyond her years at an early age, great qualities for a Head Girl, a role she fulfilled so well.’ ‘We can’t remember any other Head Girl of our era who was so universally liked and revered.’ 'I remember going to stay at her house one weekend – Pip was her boyfriend then and lived across the road and they had a way of communicating without visiting each other. Their friendship, for some reason, reminded me of the Louisa M Alcott book Little Women.’ Moira Greenhalgh (née Stevens, 1954-1964) Liz Hallet-Carpenter (née Kettle, Class of 1944) My great aunt Liz, at a great age of 90 years old, passed away peacefully at home on 16th May 2019. She was born on 10th June 1928 and enjoyed a very full and interesting life. Liz won a scholarship to Bolton School Girls Division; she matriculated in 1944 and got high marks across all her subjects. After finishing school Liz moved to London where she

had a successful career in advertising – her legs even appeared in a national Immac advert due to the shortage of a model! She had two very happy marriages, to Bill Beaumont in 1966, and to Peter Hallet-Carpenter in 1993. Surviving both of her husbands, she lived independently in Cheltenham from 2001 onwards. Liz had a very spiritual outlook on life. In the late 60s until the mid-80s she devoted her time to following Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and his transcendental meditation techniques; she voided herself of all belongings, held meetings for followers with her husband in her Cheltenham home and was completely dedicated to the practice. In her later life, spirituality was something that stayed hugely important to her; she enjoyed spending much time at the farm at the Cotswold Healing Retreat, where she would travel weekly for meditation and healing until her last few weeks. Her final words were, ‘I've done everything that I've come here to do. I'm going home now’. Liz will always be remembered by her family and friends for her good humour, playful personality, and the very special sparkle in her eyes. Abigail Bentley (née Kettle, 1997-2004) Helen Rogers (née Lloyd, 1936-1949) Helen was keen on drama and played violin in the School orchestra. After leaving School she took a degree in History and a diploma in Librarianship at London University. She was working in the library of the Institute of Historical Research when she met her husband, Ken. They moved to Wiltshire in 1963 when Ken became an archivist at Wiltshire Record Office and both became heavily involved in local history. Helen was, at various times, secretary of the local branch of the Historical Association and of the Friends of the Trowbridge Museum and was a regular lecturer on many local history topics. She also worked as a researcher for many enquirers on family and local history. Helen was a keen gardener, sang in the Trowbridge Philharmonic Choral Society and sat for many years on the Steeple Ashton PCC. She died on 25th March 2019, leaving three sons, three daughters-in-law and five grandchildren. K H Rogers

IN MEMORIAM Kathleen Evans (née Furber, 1932-1938) - Died 31st May 2019 June Geeson (née Grisdale, 1930-1938) - Died September 2019 Carol Gray (née Watkiss, 1942-1955) - Died 13th April 2019 Kathleen Hammond (née Crompton, 1940-1947) - Died 9th August 2019 Dr Joan Longson (née Bolton, 1935-1942) - Died 19th April 2019 Enid Maxwell (née Arkwright, 1944-1951) - Died 6th June 2019 Cynthia Moody (née Bowman, 1940-1948 and Girls’ Division Staff 1969-1976) - Died 29th January 2019 Dorothy Turner (née Sharples, 1942-1947) - Died 26th August 2019 Joyce Wallwork (née Finnigan, Class of 1947) - Died 4th August 2019 Valerie Walmsley (née Fletcher, 1949-1956) - Died 14th June 2019 Christine Watson (née West, 1958-1965) - Died 4th May 2019

Leonie Shaffer, Jenny Swindlehurst-White and Sinead Lane (all Class of 2009) at the ‘9’ Reunion in April 2019

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