Chronicle January 2021

23 ST EDWARD’S CHRONICLE

is that the school can still be relevant in the lives of a 20 year old at university, a 45 year old at work and for our retirees. We aim to support and include our OSE in the wider life of the School no matter where they are on their life journey. Our programme ranges from video guides and interactive webinars from our youngest alumni at universities in the UK and abroad through to professional networking events in London and family afternoon teas in front of the cricket on Upper 1 – and everything in between! One of the highlights of the past year was hosting lunch in Edinburgh with Deputy Head Academic Matthew Albrighton and Honorary Secretary to the St Edward's School Society John Wiggins where we welcomed 12 female OSE undergraduates alongside ten slightly older gentlemen OSE, all of whom had a wonderful time exchanging stories of the differences – and similarities! – in their respective experiences of Teddies. More Dates for the Diary The virtual Book Club on 14th January (see page 22) launches a lively season of Friends’ events for the Spring Term. All parents, staff, OSE and former parents are automatically members of the Friends of St Edward’s so please do join in as many events as you can – it’s a great way to connect with the School and each other. A Wellness Wednesday Workshop hosted by parent and Friends’ committee member Alice Scales takes place on 27th January and will give you invaluable tips and techniques to focus on your goals for 2021 as well as help you develop a toolkit to deal with day-to-day challenges. Alice will advise on useful organisational tools to reduce stress and will also emphasise the importance of having a daily dose of fun – what a great way to start the new year! Looking ahead, our very first virtual Magic Show will take place at the end of February and our virtual Family Quiz will be held on 18th March so there’s a great deal to look forward to. Follow the Friends’ new Instagram account @teddies_friends for reminders about all these events – and much more from our busy Friends’ team.

Community Prefect Leo Wilson and OSE Prefect Thomas Turner at November's Service of Remembrance

How much can pupils become involved in the work of your Beyond Teddies team? In countless ways. The partnership programme is all about them – giving them opportunities to learn and to grow. We have two dedicated Prefects who are a vital link with the pupil body. Leo Wilson is our Community Prefect and Thomas Turner is our OSE Prefect (see above). It’s fantastic to meet with them regularly and hear their views on school life. For Sixth Formers, we work closely with Head of Careers Education James Vaughan Fowler and are able to offer our Teddies Talks networking events which often lead to opportunities for the all-important internships and work experience placements. We do a great deal but there is much more we want to develop in this area. We’ve recently made changes to our Bursary Programme to make fee assistance more widely available. From this year, any pupil applying to St Edward’s is eligible to apply for means-tested fee support. Why is this so important to St Edward's? If we could wave a magic wand, Teddies would be needs-blind. We want to make a Teddies education available to as many

young people as possible irrespective of their parents’ financial means. This is not just about philanthropy but the social education all our children receive just from their interaction with each other. So much that is important about education today doesn’t happen just in the classroom but on the sports pitch, in the orchestra and in Houses. This has to be one of the key strengths of a vibrant boarding school, setting our pupils up so they will be able to interact effectively and relate well to people they will work with in their future. If we can welcome more pupils from a variety of backgrounds, the whole community will benefit. Have you got a final message for the Teddies community? There are so many ways to get involved – we are in the process of creating a really exciting programme for the benefit of the whole community and I would love anyone who would like to get involved to get in touch.

Contact Rachael and the Beyond Teddies team at henshilwoodr@stedwardsoxford.org