Fettes News: Issue 3 May 2009 [1134144kb] - Fettes College

Fettes News
ISSUE 3, MAY 2009
Fettes achieves ‘excellent’ HMIe Inspection
Fettes College is delighted to announce that it has been
confirmed as a ‘Sector leading’ school within Scotland.
Although initially told that HMIe top mark of ‘excellent’ is a
very rare achievement indeed, Fettes College has achieved final
results as follows:
Improvements in performance Excellent
Learners’ experiences Excellent
Meeting learning needs Excellent
The curriculum Excellent
Improvement through self-evaluation Very good
The Chief Inspector and his team were highly impressed by
the academic, pastoral and extra-curricular dimensions of the
Fettes College wins the Bell Lawrie
U18 Scottish Schools Cup
In a dramatic 9-try game, Fettes College
triumphed over Stewart’s Melville to
win the Bell Lawrie U18 Cup for the
first time. The opposition never gave
up, but the strength of tackling and
some exceptional performances meant
that Fettes never lost their focus and
fought until the very end – even scoring
a last minute try to seal their victory.
The support from Fettes College and
Fettes Prep School was exceptional and
certainly played a part in this dramatic
win.
“The whole College is incredibly proud
of the achievement last night – a well
Welcome to the third edition of Fettes News. If you have
any comments or would prefer to receive the newsletter
electronically, simply email fettesnews@fettes.com
fought and convincing win. This is the first
time that Fettes has won the Bell Lawrie
Cup. The captain said they were keen to
make history and that is just what they
have done. This win proves the dedication
and unwavering passion that Fettes has for
rugby and the talent and determination
demonstrated by both the pupils and
their coaching staff. The win is even more
impressive when you know that several
members of the team, including the
captain, were involved in the Fettes
production of ‘The Threepenny Opera’
the night before the match – hence
the hair!” MCB Spens, Headmaster.
“This is an exceptional achievement and reflects what
we have always known – that Fettes is a very special
community indeed. Every member of the College
deserves great credit for this result.”
school. The inspectors were especially struck by the admirable
qualities of the pupils – their manners, bearing, courtesy, positive
outlook and confidence – and by the quality and commitment of
all members of the staff.
Further details and a copy of the full report are available at
www.fettes.com in the
News and Events section.

The Prep School in Paris
At a very early hour on the 21st of March, 30 weary Prep School
children met five hardy members of staff at Edinburgh Waverley
to depart on the Prep School French trip. Being an eco-friendly
bunch, they travelled by Eurostar which was amazingly fast.
On day one, they went to the top of the Eiffel tower taking in
the bird’s eye view of the city. This was followed by a fascinating
river trip down the Seine and a tour around the Louvre. On day
two, with the sun shining, they went on an all day action packed
trip to Disneyland Paris. On day three they visited Notre Dame
and then the Stade de France, where they even got to sit in the
players’ bath. They then walked along the Champs Elysées to see
the Arc de Triomphe, shopping as they went and even managing
a coffee and cake in Maxims. Day four and the Chateau de
Versailles beckoned with its magnificent gardens and amazing
paintings. All too soon it was day five and our day of departure.
All 30 children and all five slightly less hardy members of staff
returned after a thoroughly good trip.
Fettes in the Far East
During the last week of term, the Headmaster flew to Tokyo
and then to Hong Kong to host two ‘Friends of Fettes’ drinks
receptions, as well as meeting current and potential parents
for one-on-one meetings. It was the first time the Headmaster
had visited Tokyo but there were high levels of interest shown
in Fettes which we will continue to build upon. Thanks must
go to the Milne family for all their help in arranging such an
excellent trip.
In Hong Kong (which has very strong long-term links with
Fettes), the gathering at the Friends of Fettes drinks reception
was the largest ever, with more than 120 guests including current
parents, pupils, potential pupils and Old Fettesians.
“It is always a pleasure to meet new parents considering Fettes
for their children and also catch up with old friends. The interest
in Fettes College remains high and the calibre of potential pupils
I met was impressive.” MCB Spens, Headmaster
The Fettes Foundation Director also attended the trip
to Hong Kong while the Deputy Director made a whistle
stop tour of the US and Canada attending events in
Washington, Boston, New York and Toronto. It was an
incredibly busy Easter holiday for all concerned!
A challenging piece
of musical theatre
‘The Threepenny Opera’ is a challenging work that is very rarely
performed by schools, but Fettes cast and crew did not let that
stop them as they put in a vast effort to present the piece in a
hard hitting and engaging way.
To quote from the Finale of Act 1, it is ‘invidious’ to mention
individuals and most of the school got the opportunity to applaud
the likes of Rosha Fitzhowle, Sam Hunt, Sam Leaf, Imogen Grant
and Ailie Dewar.
Brecht requires a lot from his actors, as his message is often
very stark and relies on the power of performance to communicate
it. Nowhere was that power more evident than in the Second
Act, when Hannah Howie, without set, props or the comfort of
musical accompaniment, delivered an excellent moment of pure
theatre in her reprise of ‘The Ballad of Mack the Knife’. It had
a wonderful directness and simplicity and was the ‘pin-drop’
moment in the show.
There were many other pupils who also helped to shape
the show. Dom McNeil and her excellent makeup team, Katja
Alexander and Jo Stewart who ran Wardrobe, Hamish Hay who
joined the professional band, playing percussion, the lighting and
sound crews and Ollie Shaw, who as Stage Manager not only ran
the show on the night but had to attend every rehearsal from day
one. They all did a
fantastic job.

The Geographers
in Morocco
Over the Easter holidays, 34 Fettes Geography students went to
Morocco starting in Marrakesh and finishing in Zagreb on the
fringes of the Sahara.
In Marrakesh, they looked at urban land use and the
differences between traditional Arabic and colonial French
building patterns, visited traditional leather tanneries and
explored the souks of the old city. In the Imlil valley, students
looked at the positive and negative impacts of tourism in the
valley as well learning about the new methods of sustainable
tourism and energy production.
In Zagreb, students looked at the impacts of desertification
and methods used to stop the shifting sands taking over
settlements. They also looked at traditional silver making and
enjoyed a camel ride into the desert for a night under the stars in
a Berber tent.
On the way back to Marrakesh they had to endure a heavy
rain and sleet storm and showed real character to get their
camels back home! The unique storms on their journey back
allowed them to look at flash flooding and surface erosion as
the roads literally fell to pieces in the torrential rainfall. Snow on
the Tishka pass in the Atlas mountains was a real indicator of
climate change!
Glencorse House
Talent Show
The fourth Glencorse House Talent Show raised over £450 for
the Ben Walton Trust, which was set up by Mrs Gray and her
family to raise awareness and fund research into oral cancer
in the young. The boys themselves chose the charity, as they
always do, after hearing Mrs Gray’s father speak in chapel
and felt it would be wonderful to support Mrs Gray and then
surprise her with a cheque.
The evening was a huge success, with over 60 parents present
and a broad range of talents on show. There was ‘a cappella’
singing, music by Metallica and cross dressing as well as the
Housemaster and prefects’ version of The Killers’ ‘Read my Mind’.
“We are so grateful to Glencorse for selecting us as their
charity and the very valuable funds they raised. To know the
money was raised while a huge amount of fun was had makes it
even sweeter.” Mrs Gray
Fettes record-breaking
charity run
FETTES NEWS
Fettes and Broughton High
swap pupils
The relationship between Broughton High and Fettes College
has taken a huge leap forward with the completion of a
unique pupil swap. Six pupils were chosen from each school
to swap for the day in order to try and
dispel misconceptions and strengthen
relationships.
The swap was a huge success with
all the pupils involved relishing the
experience and learning that they had lots
in common regardless of their different
backgrounds. Phone numbers have been
swapped and names added to Facebook!
Plans are underway for a special Chapel at
“The pupils were
all extremely
welcoming
and the
foundations for
a longer lasting
relationship have
been laid.”
Fettes and Assembly at Broughton to share the experience with all
our students and it is hoped this will become a much anticipated
yearly event.
Since 2002, Fettes College has held an annual run to raise
money for local Edinburgh charities and this year the number
of participants was higher than ever with 580 students and staff
taking part in either the 5k, 10k or half marathon.
To date £80,000 has been raised for local Edinburgh charities
and this year the total so far of £20,000 will be sent to the Muir
Maxwell Trust which was set up to provide practical support to
children and their families coping with severe epilepsy. Funds
raised will enable the charity
to buy 20 life-saving alarms
for families with children
with epilepsy.
Although there
was a high level of
competition, a huge
amount of fun was
had by all whether
they ran, jogged,
walked,
hopped or
went by
scooter!

FETTES NEWS
Fettes Gallery project
Back in January, working artist Sara Sinclair turned the Fettes
Gallery into an interactive art project. Entitled ‘Habitats and
Inhabitants’, Fettes students and staff were initially invited to
contribute postcards from different habitats such as the sea,
countryside and sky, which resulted in a variety of drawing
styles as well as different interpretations of the brief.
The second part was to draw those creatures living in that
environment. Over 400 creatures were drawn with a huge range
of imaginative little characters from sharks, dogs, dragons, birds,
insects and even
some new species
being created!
The pupils
and staff were
enthusiastic about
the opportunity
to partake in such
a project and the
“My work is all about encouraging
the audience to participate in making
art and sharing the process of
creating visual images. I aim to set
up spaces where people feel they can
contribute to part of a larger piece of
artwork.” Sara Sinclair
fact that the work evolved simply due to the ideas of those who
participated resulted in a fascinating and very personal project.
Sara would like to thank all those who participated and made the
project such a success.
Fettesian girls represent
Scotland at lacrosse
Several Fettes girls spent the first weekend of the Easter
holidays representing Scotland at the Junior Home
Internationals held at Loretto.
Playing for Scotland from Fettes were: Anna Maitland, Harriet
Shopland-Reed, Velocity Airey, Pippa Cullingworth, Rosha
Fitzhowle, Jess Tempest and Laura McGlone. Playing in the
tournament were Elite and Development teams from England,
Scotland and Wales. Laura McGlone was chosen as captain for
the elite squad and represented Scotland for the second year in
a row. Velocity Airey and Pippa Cullingworth were chosen as the
captains for the development squad.
The Big Bang
In summer 2008, I took part in the Nuffield Science Bursary
scheme which gives young people a chance to find out more
about a career in science by working in scientific industries,
research institutes or UK universities.
I chose to do my placement with Napier University and
my project was entitled ‘Distortion of Sitka spruce with
moisture content’. This project was designed to be useful to
the construction industry to enable them to know how much
construction timber will shrink and warp before and when in
use. After being awarded a Gold CREST Award (CREST works
to promote science among young people and showcase new and
innovative ideas), I was lucky enough to present my project at
The Big Bang UK Young Scientists’ & Engineers’ Fair in London
in March 2009.
As well as displaying almost two hundred projects completed
by young people around the UK, there were also talks, activities
and a careers hotel, all of them promoting careers in science.
At the awards ceremony, the Prime Minister left a message for
all the scientists and engineers taking part in the event; it made
me realise how important science and technology is to the future
of Britain.
Eugenia Ho