N E W S L E T T E R - Radley College

adley achievements
Academic
■ This year Radley, along with Eton,
Winchester and St Paul’s, decided not
to publish exam results until November,
when appeals and remarks are completed.
Nevertheless the raw results already show
that the 2008 A Level candidates exceeded
the previous record at A/B of 2007 (90.06%)
and even more impressively 2 out of every 3
A Level papers was an A grade. 65 out of the
122 candidates achieved 3 A grades or more;
9 boys attained 5 A grades and 2 managed
6 A grades. A number of them gained
marks in the top 10 for their respective
subject nationally: Rory van Zwanenberg
(Moulsford, g), Alex Rose (Thomas’s
Clapham, c), Jonathan Lam (La Salle College,
Hong Kong, b), Harry Devonshire (Twyford,
a), Arthur Laidlaw (Dragon, h), James Curtis
Hayward (Pilgrim’s, a) and Harry Kershaw
(Twyford, d).
■ At GCSE Radleians came close to the 81%
A*/A of 2007; especially notable was that
large numbers of 5th Formers got A grade
in AS French, and gained top marks in AS
Maths modules, exams designed for 6th
Formers.
■ The ISI Inspection of February 2008
accorded Radley the highest accolade,
‘outstanding’, in every category. It found
Radley to be ‘markedly successful in the
education it provides’, it commented on
‘the outstanding quality of academic
achievement’, that the pupils’ ‘learning was
excellent’, and that they were ‘welcoming,
polite, articulate, full of enthusiasm and
commitment’. The quality of their pastoral
care was ‘outstanding’, as was the teaching
which was ‘inspirational’.
The firework Gaudy in July capped a year
of great achievement at Radley.
biography of Blair; Tony Baldry MP on
Conservative Prospects; Sir John Nott on
the Falklands war 25 years on. Across the
year, guest speakers came to speak to the
societies run by individual departments;
notable was Lord Hurd on his specialism,
‘Sir Robert Peel’.
■ The annual 6.2 Conference with The
School of St Helen and St Katharine in
November (now in its 11th year) was a
noted success. The topic was ‘The Challenge
of China’ and a group of distinguished
China experts talked about Maoist legacy
and history, and future trends.
Activities
■ The Wednesday Afternoon Activities
scheme is well established. The 5th Formers
continue to visit hospitals, teach in Primary
Schools and deliver ‘Instant Muscle’ to
elderly Radley Villagers. The Concert
Parties visited over 20 residential homes
Mrs J Gilbert
across Oxford and Abingdon and hosted
over 100 elderly local people in the Silk Hall
concluding with rousing community singing
led by Suzie-Louise Naylor.
■ A good deal of Charitable Activity has
gone on this year, most notably the school
sponsored walk back in September; over
600 walkers covered the 20 mile route for a
range of charities raising well over £48,000
in the process. Common Room has led
the way – Angus McChesney swam the
Channel in c.12 hours and raised £60,000
for Leukaemia Research; Dr Tim Morris
played all Bach’s Organ works in an 18
hour marathon and raised over £15,000;
the Warden and Mrs McPhail ran the
Paris marathon and Harry Hammond
the London marathon for charity. But the
boys were not outdone: Freddie Tapner
(Ludgrove, f), Hugo Walker (The Elms, b)
and John Crisp (Dragon, f) helped raise
£150,000 by taking part in a challenge to
ski every piste in Meribel dressed in Radley
gowns. They succeeded and beat Eton.
Radley’s charitable enterprises have raised
£166,822 this year.
■ There has once again been a broad
range of expeditions: the Shells invaded
Normandy for the 18th year running; the
rugby players toured New Zealand before
the season began; the cricketers toured
South Africa; the elite crews trained at
Bagnoles, in Spain. The musicians visited
Berlin and Leipzig, the artists and a
selection of Theatre Studies students visited
New York, the linguists visited Barcelona
and Paris. Meanwhile a host of theatre
visits, field trips, exhibition visits took place
across the year.
■ It was the last Declamations for which
Charles Hastings was at the helm. Arthur
House OR judged it and it was a memorable
morning. The 6.2 year group was especially
strong and any of the finalists could
have won. The winners were: Alex Rose
(Thomas’s Clapham, c), 6.2; Hugo Walker
(The Elms, b), 6.1; Alex Murison (Dragon,
b), 5; Alex Donger (Dragon, j), R; Tommy
Siman (Abingdon Prep, h), S.
■ It has been an impressive year for
visiting speakers. The 6.2 Lecture cycle saw
OR parents speaking – Rory Tapner and
George Bailey – parents, like Sam Laidlaw,
Chairman of Centrica, on Energy policy,
and a host of others on a wide range of
subjects. Oliver James on his best seller
‘Affluenza’; Charlie Mayfield OR on John
Lewis; Dr Anthony Seldon on his acclaimed
The sponsored walk
6 THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER