THE "FIRST THURSDAY" NEWSLETTER

NEWSLETTER OCT 1995 No. 21

New Teachers

This month we welcome the two foreign language assistants who will be with us during the year - Véronique Moreaux (French) and Juliane Schmidt (German) - and hope they will enjoy their time with us. Also new in the school, from October until May 1996, will be four students from Christ Church College, Canterbury. They will be working at the DGSB as part of their post graduate training.

The Buildings

One of our major challenges as a GM school is to make up for the long term neglect of maintenance of the building by KCC. We have firmly reversed the trend but recent events have emphasised one of the fundamental problems, that of the leaky Quadrangle. Last year this was the largest item in our bid to the FAS for capital funding. We hit a bad year. We asked for £350,000. The FAS congratulated us on being one of the few schools to be "successful" because we got £70,000. This money has certainly been usefully spent in sorting out some of the backlog of repairs but it has done nothing for the Quadrangle.

This year we have asked again for £350,000 focused almost entirely on the Quadrangle. We have brought in expert engineers and the Health and Safety Executive. They have written reports in strong support of our case. They have told us that the Quadrangle is not about to collapse but that some of the electrical supply underneath is dangerous and that the Quadrangle railings have corroded to a point where they cannot be trusted.

We have shut off the hazardous electrics, which means that some of the lathes in the workshops cannot be used and there is no electricity in the Drawing Office. We have also cordoned off the outer part of the Quadrangle. This is inconvenient but at least it puts pressure on the FAS to give us the funds we need urgently! Meanwhile we have discovered rot in the floor of the Drawing Office .........

Journalist for a Day

Many, if not all of you, will have seen "White Cliffs News", produced by an enthusiastic team of students on the "Journalist for a Day" Scheme, led and advised by Mrs Rose. That they did extremely well will be obvious to anyone who has read their eight page newspaper. The following contribution comes from one of the students who took part:

20 Sixth Formers took part in the Journalist for the Day Competition in mid September. It was the first time the competition had been held in Britain and our school was lucky enough to be chosen to compete along with four other teams from the rest of the county.

The idea was to complete their own 8-page paper packed with news and reviews in just under nine hours. They all rose to the challenge and under the expert direction of their Editor Greg Martin, a member of the Upper Sixth, they successfully completed their paper the 'White Cliffs News' and it was printed within the East Kent Mercury. The team were rewarded with a trip to Lille on Eurostar and as it was so successful we hope to enter again next year.

Sports News

In another sphere we can also be proud of the success of Ian Stewart who took part in two Cross Channel Relay swims this summer, swimming for the Dover Life Guard Club 'A' team on the 17 September and the 'B' team on the 3 September.

The 'A' team achieved the fastest relay swim time of this year and the 'B' team the second fastest. To take part and achieve this level of performance requires a great deal of pre-event training, much of this taking place in Dover Harbour during July and August.

As ever the autumn term is busy with sports, especially football, and school teams at all levels have already enjoyed some excellent results.

7-A-Side District Competition Results

A very successful morning's football in September saw the following results:-

Year 11 won against Astor School 4-0 in the final of their age group.

Year 10 beat Archers Court 1-0 after extra time in the final of their age group.

Year 9 narrowly missed reaching their age group final.

Year 8 beat Astor 1-0 in the final of their age group.

Year 7 beat Walmer School 3-2 after extra time in a very close match.

As can be seen much commitment was shown by staff and players to get five teams out on a Saturday - and a clean sweep of victories was nearly achieved.

11-A-Side

In the full 11-A-Side game, the following results have been achieved:-

Our 1st XI football team have recorded some excellent results this term already. They drew 3-3 with Simon Langton in a typical early season game which was littered with mistakes and lack of fitness by both teams. Our goals were scored by Jonathan Spence and Jon Coates. The third was an own goal.

Our boys went on to give a first class display by beating Chaucer 9-0. For the first time this season the side looked balanced and attacking-minded with disciplined defence. Highlight of the game was the second goal scored by Justin Luchford. It started in our own penalty box and ended with Jon Spence slipping an inch-perfect through ball into Justin's path. Richard Blown scored a hat-trick, and other scorers were Grant Sanders(2), Brian Fielding, Jon Spence and Mark Eade.

In the 1st round of the Kent Schools Under 19 competition - for the White Cup - our boys beat Oakwood Park 5-3 after extra time. This was a remarkable game due to the fact that the 1st XI dominated the game, and were coasting to an easy 3-0 win with 10 minutes left, only to concede three sloppy goals, and cause the game to go into extra time. Grant Sanders had scored all three Dover goals. Richard Blown and Kristian Allen went on to score the winning goals in extra time. Unfortunately, the 1st XI match against the Harvey Grammar School, Folkestone saw a 2-0 defeat, the first away defeat for three seasons. Injuries to key players, including the captain, James Wilde, did not help. This defeat makes it difficult, but not impossible, for the first XI to retain their title. It really needs a 100% success rate from now on, so all support at home matches will be welcome.

District Cup Football

Year 7 won the District Cup by default as two other schools had not played by the due date. They overwhelmed Astor School 4-2.

Year 9 won their final against Sandwich 4-2.

Year 10 won their final against St Edmunds in a close game
2-1 on Wednesday.

Year 11 won their final against Sandwich School 3-2 in extra time.

Well done to all those boys who contributed to these successes.

Details of forthcoming fixtures are as follows:-

The school's 1st or 2nd XI teams are playing at home on Friday 6 October (Astor), Wednesday 11 October (Borden), Wednesday 18 October (Maidstone Grammar) and Wednesday 1 November (Oakwood Park) - all 2.15 kick off.

Other home matches are Tuesday 10 October Year 7 XI v St Edmunds, Thursday 12 October Year 10 XI v St Edmunds and Tuesday 31 October Year 10 XI v Astor - all 4.00 kick off.

Our 1st XI drew 4-4 with the Old Pharosians in their annual match.

Finally it is encouraging to learn that the following five boys from Year 7 were selected for the District side - Dean Scoggins, Jason Laird, Jamie Fagg, Paul Devenish and Scott Guy.

Golf

Three of our boys, Daniel Oliver, Mark Eade and Alex Ridings, are taking part in the finals of the British Heart Foundation Golf Championships at The Belfrey, Wishaw, North Warwickshire on Tuesday 24 October. The winning trophies will be presented at the end of the day by BBC personality Don McLean. We wish our boys well for this prestigious competition.

Scholarship

We congratulate last year's Head Prefect, Kenan Deniz, on being awarded the James A Johnson Scholarship for 1995. Kenan receives the award, which totals £3,000 during his first three years at the Royal London Hospital Medical College.

James A Johnson is a former town clerk of Dover who maintains an active interest in the town, and particularly the young people. Applications for the award - which is administered by the Dubris Trust - were also received from the Girls' Grammar School and Astor School.

Trustee Pamela Gibbons said Kenan had proved an outstanding student throughout his school life, both academically and in his other activities within the school and the community at large.

Computer Equipment

Representatives from our school will be going to Tesco's store at Whitfield tomorrow (Friday) to receive some computer equipment. It is the result of the Computers for Schools '95 voucher scheme. We are grateful to all the parents and friends who collected the vouchers earlier this year and donated them to the school. The equipment is being handed over by Dover and Deal MP David Shaw.

Records of Achievement

The Records of Achievement presentation to all former Year 11 students took place on Thursday 28 September in the School Hall. Mr Graham Tutthill made the presentations. A number of parents attended and refreshments were served. The Record of Achievement although mostly compiled in Years 10 and 11 is a nationally recognised summary of a student's experiences, given out at the end of compulsory education. (It can, of course, be added to in Years 12 and 13).

Old Pharosians

John Booth, son of our former Headmaster, the late J C Booth, became President of the Old Pharosians at their annual meeting on 16 September. The Vice-President is another former Headmaster of the school, the Rev. Dr. Michael Hinton. More than 100 former pupils and their guests attended the annual dinner in the evening.

Parents and Friends Association

We are grateful to all those who supported the PFA annual meeting and the very successful Wine and Wisdom Evening in September, and we congratulate the members of the two teams who tied for first place at the Wine and Wisdom evening.

You should already have received details of the PFA’s next event, a Barn Dance which is being held on Saturday 14 October at 8.00 pm. Music will be provided by a specialised barn dance band. Desperate Measures, complete with a professional caller. Tickets are £2 for adults, £1 for children and £5 for a family of two adults and up to three children. Numbers will be limited, so send your booking form back as soon as possible. It promises to be a great evening!

The PFA committee meets on 23 November at 7 pm and the next Wine and Wisdom evening is on 1 December. Book the date now.

We are sorry for the delay in obtaining the track suits which have been ordered. We are doing our best to get them delivered. We can still take further orders, so if you want to order a track suit for your son(s) please contact the school as soon as possible.

We send our best wishes to the Tim Moseling, PFA Secretary, who is in hospital with a back problem and is due to undergo an operation soon. We hope he will soon be hack home and feeling better.

Governors

The Annual Parents' Meeting takes place on Wednesday 18 October at 7.30 pm and we hope you have all now received a copy of the Governors' report. This is your chance to come along and ask questions about the way the school is being run, and we look forward to seeing you. Coffee and biscuits will be served.

Bob Joslin, a former parent at the school, has become the new Vice-Chairman of the Governing Body. We are grateful to Suzanne Dawson for all her work as Vice-Chairman and previously Chairman of the Governing Body. Graham Tutthill has been re-elected Chairman.

Coming Events

In addition to the PFA events mentioned earlier, this is a busy term for school events. On Wednesday 11 October the Junior Prize Giving is being held with Kent cricketer (and Old Pharosian) Chris Penn awarding the prizes.

Computer Shopper Christmas Show - Enthusiasts will know from experience that this is the best computer show on the calendar. It is a four-day event where prospective buyers can test drive up to 120 machines from the top 25-30 manufacturers. there is also a leisure zone with the latest computer games and multi-media presentations. It is the ideal forum for obtaining informed advice about which computer to buy.

Phlux Computing, the school's mini-enterprise company, usually hires a coach for boys to go to the show, and for members of their family, staff and friends to go Christmas shopping in London's West End stores. This year the trip will be on Saturday 2 December and the full details are set out in a circular letter, spare copies of which are available from the school.

Call for Volunteer Drivers

It is a problem for many boys to get home if they stay after school for an extra-curricular activity. It would be easier for them and may encourage others to stay if we could run a minibus service at about 4.45 pm. out to Deal and back round a route which would serve most boys. We have the minibus. We have Peter Chatfield, our Premises Officer, who is willing to manage a scheme and do some of the driving. A small pool of volunteer drivers is needed to serve on a rota. They would have to have a clean driving license and be willing to undergo the same training and vetting procedure as the current drivers have had. If you are willing to do this then please contact the Headteacher. This is a way to make a very real practical contribution to the life of the School.