Head's Newsletter 28 May 2021

hold our Tiffin in the Garden music Festival. In a return to normal practice, we will also be conducting end of year exams for Years 7 to 10, and Year 12, after half term. The huge amount of extra work for schools and teachers necessitated by the cancellation of public exams, has also meant that we have needed to put in an extra Inset day on the Monday after half term, although Years 10 and 12 will be in for exams. Covid has inevitably meant that arrangements have had to fairly regularly change, and we will continue to update parents on alterations to our original calendar. Within this newsletter you can catch up on some of the exciting cricket fixtures that we have now been able to play, as well as reports on other sports such as cross country. On the cricket front particular congratulations must go to Year 11 student Alex Cormack who scored his first century playing for the 1st XI, and also to Year 10 student Harish Narasimhan who has been selected to play for Surrey schools at the Oval. The cricketers are no doubt now benefiting from the newly upgraded cricket nets. You will also see reports in this newsletter on different activities ranging from art, to poetry, to music. I wish all students and their families all the best for half term. Yours, M D Gascoigne Headteacher

Dear Parents It seems extraordinary to have got through a whole half term with minimal disruption from Covid. In this sense the School has seemed the most normal since September, although of course we are not yet back to full normality. We are all hoping that the country is coming out of the Covid pandemic, and with vaccinations, testing, and control measures we will see even the new variants being defeated. As a school, we will of course continue to keep the control measures, including the wearing of face coverings, under review, and we would certainly encourage students to keep up with the twice weekly testing. There is no doubt that this is a vital tool in keeping Covid at bay, and not spreading through the Tiffin community. For Years 11 and 13, this term has not been normal at all. With the cancellation of the formal public exams, the School has had to work very hard indeed to assess the students in a different way. The students in these years have been making great efforts and certainly deserve the upcoming break. As we look towards the next half term, (which due to the late May bank holiday is a relatively short half term), we are growing in excitement at the prospect of being able to do some normal things. In particular we are hoping to be able to hold our sports day, rowing regatta and swimming gala, as well as other house events. We are particularly excited that the choir will finally have the opportunity to sing again at the Royal Opera House where they are performing in La Boheme. We are also hoping to be able to

IMPORTANT DATES

Professional Development Day— Start of Year 10 and Year 12 exams. Only Year 10 and Year 12 students doing exams are required on this day. All students return in Years 7-9; Year 10 and 12 exams continue.

Monday 7 June

Tuesday 8 June

YEAR 7 ART JOLLY FISH We are thrilled to present to you a few of our wonderful ceramic fish, created by our year 7 classes. The terracotta fish, which have incised patterns, have been finished with coloured clay slips and a clear glaze. These delightful creations will find their way to many homes soon (without chips). Our thanks to our in- house Artist, Mrs Read, for glazing and firing 90 fish.

Max Thomas

Ewan Macleod

Felix Mikellides

Tennyson Collins

POETRY BY HEART COMPETITION

The inaugural Poetry By Heart competition took place virtually this year, with students from years 8 to 12 sending in their submissions during lockdown. Many thanks to all the students who expressed an interest, and who took part. The entries were all of a high standard, but ultimately, only two students were chosen to go forward to the regional selections: Ibrahim Ejaz in 12SJC/PP, and Suhaas Karthikeyan in 8MMB. We are delighted to state that Ibrahim has made it through to the National Final of Poetry By Heart with his performance of 'Lucifer in Starlight' by George Meredith and 'The Second Coming' by W. B. Yeats. Congratulations are also due to Suhaas, who was Highly Commended by the Poetry By Heart judges for his heartfelt delivery of 'I've Learned To Sing A Song Of Hope' by Georgia Douglas Johnson and 'Spellbound' by Emily Brontë. The final will take place on 19th July at the Globe Theatre on the Southbank, and the finalists' performances will be available on the Poetry By Heart website.

MATHS CHALLENGE

This year, for the first time, all students in Years 7 and 8 took part in the UK Maths Trust Junior Maths Challenge on 27th & 29th April. Nationally, just 40% of participants are awarded certificates but our students' outstanding performance earned them 119 Gold, 135 Silver and 61 Bronze certificates. Special mention goes to Akshat Bhardwaj who achieved "Best in School" and who goes on to compete in the Olympiad in June along with 8 others. Congratulations to all the students for their enthusiasm and the hard work behind such fantastic results! Relationship and Sex Education Policy The school's Relationship and Sex Education Policy has been revised to meet the updated statutory requirements for RSE. Parents can view the policy on Insight. In line with government guidance, parents may give feedback on the RSE policy via the email RSEpolicy@tiffin.kingston.sch.uk . Please send any feedback by Monday 14th June.

We don’t like Cricket (Oh no!), We love it!

Lyrics made famous by an English rock band in the late 1970s have never rung so true. Preparations for the return of cricket have been in full flow since the beginning of term with over 200 students training throughout the week in morning nets sessions, under the watchful eyes of resident cricket gurus Mr Bala, Mr Williams, Mr McCann and co. The first fixture saw the senior first XI narrowly miss out against Hampton School, before bouncing back the week after to put in a great performance beating Emanuel School. There have been a number of great victories from the senior squads all the way through to the U12 B team who hit 5 runs of the final two balls to win a thrilling match against Halliford School! Even more important than any victory or loss is the huge amount of enjoyment that is clear to see from all students who have represented the school across the 14+ teams that compete on a weekly basis!

A special mention goes to Y11 Alex Cormack who hit his first century for the senior 1st XI with a total of 101 runs not out in TIffin's win against Emmanuel, a fantastic achievement.

Surrey Schools Cricket Association HOBBS TROPHY 2021 (Under 15)

The annual Hobbs Trophy match between teams of boys from State schools in Surrey and London will take place at the Kia Oval on Thursday, 10 June 2021. This prestigious match has been played for 50 years. Harish Narasimhan (Year 10) has been selected to represent SSCA in this match. Congratulations Harish!

More Cricket ...

The rain has been relentless but we have managed to play a fair amount of cricket. Grist’s has never looked better under our new Head Groundsman, Matt Baker. The picture captures a rare appearance of the sun during one of the best Saturday fixtures of the year when boys of different age groups compete against each other. It was a brilliant day and it was good to see the return of some spectators. Typical of the day’s competitive nature was Zaky Jamaluddin’s unbeaten half century for the Under 12 team against the Under 13b team.

TIFFIN SCHOOL LADIES’ ATHELETICS TEAMWINS MOST IMPROVED AT NATIONALS!

The sporting world continues to adapt to ensure competitions are as covid secure as possible. This resulted in the National Relay Competition being ran (literally) virtually with schools across the country competing from the safety of their own track/course. The ladies team of Jess Holmes, Freya John, Antonia Hristova and captain Neve Husaini finished 12th in the golden jubilee event, raising 26 places from their debut finish of 38th last year, winning most improved school as a result. The boys team recorded the same position as the girls placing in the top dozen teams in the country, another brilliant result! The team of two year 10s Oscar Luck and Connor Foley along with seniors Jack Hartrey, Euan Sincair, Charlie Krammer, Gianluca Maffi and captain Eyeol Abebaw-Mesfin all ran magnificently.

ATHLETICS LADIES’ U20 BESTS

A special mention goes to Freya John who set a new school record in the 100m sprint with a time of 13.2 seconds and a new long jump record with a distance of 3.32 metres, a fantastic effort.

Sarah Kenny has also set two new school bests 800m 3'43" Hammer 9.68m

SCHOOL FIXTURES SET FOR NEXT YEAR

Both the mens and ladies sports squads have shown great commitment training all year without the hope of a competitive fixture (with the exemption of cricket), however the wait is nearly over! Mr Brown has put together a full fixture list of 9 games for Tiffin ladies’ rugby next year, with Miss Buckland organising ten fixtures across two squads for the ladies’ netball team. With so much potential and talent across the ladies’ sports teams at Tiffin we look forward to seeing these fixtures list grow and participation continuing to increase!

Mr Blackburn has also been working hard adding new matches to our already established set of fixtures. All fixtures for both the male and female squads are now available to view on SOCS, and can be find at www.tiffinsport.co.uk

Cross Country Squad for National Relays

The Senior Cross Country Squad (pictured on the last day of Year 13, when by tradition students wear their old school blazers from Year 11! )

Tiffin has had a most extraordinary two years with the newly formed team ladies section going from strength to strength. The excellent year last year by the female squad saw them winning the Borough title along with a great deal of medals in various events. The mainstays of the team last year were a trio of determined and ebullient athletes who though not the fastest on the circuit individually, collectively with the excellent support from others were more than a match to any other of the schools we met. Charlotte Whiteman and Emily Jones picked up the mantle and conquered any course on the national circuit put in their way. These two along with Neve Husaini ensured that we were an ever present on the highest of quality national events. Though Neve was injured or the national relays at Coventry a strong team of Sophie Leng , Charlotte, Bella Bridge and the strong running and singing choir leader on the bus home Emily posted 38th in the toughest of national events, a great result in itself. This year Neve went from team manager at Coventry to performer in the remote version of the event, holding the Honour as Emily did last year of ‘notionally ‘ (as a virtual version of the event) bringing the team home on the last leg . This time the squad had Jess Holmes starting with Freya John and Antonia Hristova on the middle legs. This placed them 12 nationally and won us the prestigious most improved cup to record our first national sporting trophy for the ladies section of the sixth form. The B team performance was embellished by two superb efforts from year 13 most improved athletes Lottie Fry and Pollyanna Roberts along with the promising run of year 12 Sarah Kenny. The latter two both smashed their personal bests over the course.

The male version of the competition saw a great 8th position matching our best ever at this event. The last time we did this we gained the male version of the most improved cup. This time we were not quite so lucky. The boys team was well balanced with two year 10s Oscar Luck and Connor Foley along with two year 12s Jack Hartrey and the resurgent Euan Sinclair. The year 13s were the very useful Ginaluca Maffi and the lest leg honour went to ,Vice-Captain, Charlie Krammer. The male captain Eyoel Ababaw-Mesfin was injured for the days event but ran a qualifying time earlier in the preceding week. There were great performances by the year 10s and 11s in the B and C teams and the year 12s looked strong with Coventry ever present Matthew O’Donovan being joined by rising star Alistair Brendon and Year 13 logistics expert Ryan Foley had the honour of leading home the B team. After the event the prizes for the two years were given out at the Boathouse with special mentions to the Captains Neve who was imperious in the organisation of the team underpinning the ever present and successful nature of the squad and Eyeol Ababaw- Mesfin. The latter who in his long and illustrious representation of the school has achieve many great feats. The one that readily springs to mind is the decimation of an Olympians record (Martin Rooney 400m Olympic European and commonwealth relay medallist and one time GB male athletics’ captain) for the Oxted relay course as a year 10 intermediate. It is very rare to have two Captains for two years in the row, and to have two of such quality is unprecedented. Tiffin A Jess Holmes 00:22:47 Freya John 00:23:23 Antonia Hristova 00:24:31 Neve Husaini Capt 00:25:09 01:35:50 12th in country most improved from 38th last year Tiffin B Sarah Kenny 00:28:43 Lottie Fry 00:26:35 Pollyanna Roberts Vice Capt 00:28:15 01:53:48 5th B team Tiffin A Oscar Luck 18:42 Connor Foley 18:28 Jack Hartrey 18:34 Ginaluca Maffi 18:34 Euan Sinclair 19:44 Charles Krammer Vice Capt 19:36 01:53:38 8th Team

Tiffin B Zach Storey 20:24 Alistair Brendon 19:42 Dominic Virley 22:19 Matthew O’Donnovan 21:15 Ben Craig 24:07 Ryan Foley Sec. 22:29 02:10:16 4th B team Tiffin C Jonny Schaffer 23:26 Tong Wu 24:06 Mathew Gibson 21:55 Eyoel Ababaw-Mesfin Capt 21:13 02:15:29 2nd C team

Cross country team runner Sarah Kenny with the most improved Ladies’ team trophy at the National Coventry Relay award 2021

House Cross Country

After months and months of being postponed as a result of constantly changing Covid restrictions, Tiffin’s highly anticipated house run took place. With many participants having already taken part in competitions like house football and rugby, this year's house run had a fiercely competitive edge, with runners ready to battle it out and win points for their houses. Whether you made the decision to run, jog or walk for your house, everybody was welcomed down to Grist’s, the Tiffin School playing fields, ready to help their houses out. After school, sixth form and year eleven participants made their way to Grist’s and gathered by the start line, where three pens were set out in order to maintain social distancing and year group bubbles. Every runner was given a barcode by their house captain, to be scanned at the end, and after a quick route explanation, we were all set off into the classic, frantic, but exciting, beginning of the race sprint. We were to race around 3km, which consisted of two large laps around the fields and a shortened one to finish. Eventually, the pack split up and everyone began to run or walk their own race, as well as endeavouring to maintain Coronavirus safety precautions where possible. There was support from all around, with competitors cheering on other competitors, support from the organizers and spectators encouraging those running for their house teams, making for an amicable but competitive atmosphere. As well as being an excitingly competitive event, its inclusivity and popularity with students is also something to be celebrated. Every house had a substantial number of competitors who, however, they chose to complete the course, should be proud of their achievements and for the effort and time, they took to support their house team. Yet, without the brilliant P.E staff and Mr Shaw, this event could not have happened, so we thank them very much for their wonderful efforts and for putting on such a fun, but also ruthlessly competitive, event. After three enjoyable but most definitely arduous laps, the first finishers could be seen hurtling down the finishing straight. In year thirteen, Gianluca Maffi, for Kingsley Montgomery, Charles Krammer, for Livingstone, and Eyoel Abebaw-Mesfin , for Livingstone were the first finishing males, with Neve Husaini for Scott, Maddie Moore for Darwin Wilberforce along with Meriem Ait Ziane being the first female year thirteen finishers. In the Year Twelve race, In the ladies race Jess Holmes, Freya John and Sophia Luck took the medal positions and Jack Hartrey, Tom Armstrong and Will Murphy for the men. Finally, the first year eleven finishers were Shirav Medepalli, Neel Kandlagunta and Alex Cormack.

Medalists at House Cross Country

Year 13

Year 12

Year 11

MUSIC EVENTS SUMMER 2021

A level Music Final Recital Following the Year 13 and Year 12 Final A level Music Recitals given by Tiffin’s nineteen A level musicians, we enjoyed highlights from these recitals in the school’s most recent Virtual Concert. These performances can be heard again here. All of the Virtual Concerts performed by Tiffin musicians can be found here on the Tiffin Music Virtual Concerts page. Upcoming Music Events Assuming the lifting of coronavirus restrictions, Tiffin musicians are looking forward to performing again to live audiences. Depending on these restrictions we look forward to inviting you to the following musical events performed by Tiffin musicians. In advance of each event, please check your parentmails for confirmation and for details of any restrictions still in place. 19/6/21-6/7/21 La Boheme featuring Tiffin School Choirs, Royal Opera House 29/6/21 6pm Battle of the Bands Final, Main Hall 9/7/21 5:30pm ‘Tiffin in the Garden’ Summer Concert, The Head’s Garden Click here for: A level Music Final Recital 2021 (Excerpts): All Tiffin Music Virtual Concerts: