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HRH The Princess Royalhonours the fallenHer Royal Highness The PrincessRoyal visited Stonyhurst College,Lancashire, in her capacity asPatron of the Woodland Trust’sCentenary Woods Project. TheWoodland Trust has overseenthe planting of three milliontrees across the UK this year tocommemorate the fallen. ThePrincess Royal planted a treeat Stonyhurst alongside 301oak saplings planted by theStonyhurst College CombinedCadet Force. Each tree representsa serviceman who died in theFirst World War, and otherconflicts, who had attended theschool, which has a proud historyof military service.The Contingent Commanderof Stonyhurst Combined CadetForce, Lt Col Andrew Barber,escorted The Princess Royal tothe new tree plantation, whereshe chatted to cadets, and wasgiven a tour of the College by theHeadmaster Andrew Johnson. Shewas shown two Victoria Crossmedals which had been awardedto former Stonyhurst pupils inthe First World War. One of thesewas the first VC of the conflict,awarded to Lieutenant MauriceDease for his bravery in theopening engagement of 1914 atthe Battle of Mons. The PrincessRoyal met pupils and staff fromStonyhurst and representativesfrom the Woodland Trust.At a Reception in the TopRefectory, which is lined withthe portraits of Stonyhurst’sseven VCs, The Princess Royalsaid in her address: “Stonyhurstis the perfect place for thiscommemorative tree planting,with its long history andunderstanding of service.”Andrew Johnson the Headmastersaid: “It was a tremendous dayfor Stonyhurst, the CCF andthe Woodland Trust. We weredelighted to be able to welcomethe Princess Royal to the College.The staff, cadets and pupils verymuch enjoyed meeting her.”Pictured: The Princess Royal meets cadets at Stonyhurst College, escorted by Lt Col. Andrew Barber, Contingent Commander of the Stonyhurst CCFInspirational Paralympic SprinterThe Froebelian School, Yorkshire,welcomed Paralympic sprinter LeeWhiteley to give an inspirationaltalk and host a question andanswer session about his career asan athlete. He then led the childrenin a sponsored fitness circuit. Themoney raised will be used to buysports equipment and supportTeam GB and Paralympic athletes.Lee faced an enthusiastic questionand answer session from thechildren who were keen to findout about the life of an athlete. Hegave them advice about healthyeating, and gave them exercisetips, including how to start a raceproperly. The fitness circuit wasgreat fun; with staff andpupils all doing star jumps,leg drives and press ups.The Froebelian Schoolplaces great importance onsport and healthy eating.The school cook makeshome-cooked schoollunches and children areencouraged to try newfoods. Lee explained how importanta healthy diet is for athletes andmotivated the children to keepeating well.Pavilion underconstructionOundle School, Northamptonshireis investing in the future of cricket,with work now underway on abrand new pavilion, designed toan innovative specification yet inkeeping with its surroundings. Thenew pavilion will provide amplechanging facilities for the School’snumerous pitches for players andumpires alike, as well as excellenthospitality for spectators and guests.Last summer saw Oundle Schoolplay host to a magnificent threeweeks of back to back cricket finals,with both the LSCA (London SchoolsCricket Association) and the ECB(English Cricket Board) choosingOundle to host their respectivefestivals.The festivals were capped byappearances from three Englandcricketers (including former T20captain Eoin Morgan), all keen topass on their tips and experiences tothe players and coaches alike.Medals again!Year 11 pupil Hannah Grunwergfrom Sheffield High School hascollected a set of 1 gold, 4 silver and3 bronze medals from the MaccabiGames.Hannah was one of 75 Maccabi GBathletes who travelled to Cherry Hill,New Jersey, for the JCC Maccabigames. A total of 1700 athletes(making it one of the largest juniorsporting competitions in the World)aged 13-16 from all USA States,Canada, Mexico, Israel and GB tookpart in the competition across avariety of sports.Hannah was one of the seven girlsin the GB dance team competingagainst 50 other dancers in variousdisciplines. Hannah won 8 medals:1 gold, 4 silver and 3 bronze bothfor performance and choreography.Hannah was also given the honourof carrying one of the Great Britainflags at the opening ceremony.Advertorial FeatureBudgeting for thenext financial yearAt this time of year budgeting is a high priority in many schools, so now is alsothe perfect time to drill down into those cost centres, to gain greater efficiencieswhere possible and to, perhaps, consider alternative strategies, writes Henry Drake.Avoiding feeincreasesRunning an independent schoolis a costly affair – the natureof independent schools and thelevel of facilities on offer meanthat bursars can have a tough jobon their hands when it comes tobalancing their budget. Decisionsregarding increasing tuition feesneed to be carefully assessed andmet with full approval across theboard along with the GoverningCommittee and most schoolswill try to contain the need toincrease fees as much as possible.However, for some schools thereis a real need to access morefunds and if fee increases are offlimits one of the best alternativesis to ensure that the costs areas efficient as possible. Thereare, of course, lots of ways that,in theory at least, costs can bereduced across the independentschool environment whilst notcutting the quality or consistencyof the education and pastoralcare that is offered to students.For example, there has beenevidence recently that bytendering out day-to-daymaintenance programmespotential savings of up to 25%can be gained. Or, if the facilitycomprises of different schoolsor houses the centralisation ofstationery and paper or othersupplies, can also provide costefficiencies.Cutting costs viarenewable technologyAlongside these savingopportunities lies one that willrequire an initial investmentin order to then achieve, somequite significant savings. And,it is one that the ISBA (theIndependent School’s BursarAssociation) recently highlightedin their quarterly review - theneed for independent schoolsto look more closely at theirenergy usage and costs. The ISBAtook this further and recognisedthat independent schools,perhaps, need to question howto move forward in a moresustainable way and look at theimplications that this has for theschool. Renewable technologyhas developed tremendouslyin the last 5 years and theopportunities for schools toinvest in this technology andto reap the rewards from notonly a cost saving perspectivebut also the reduction in theircarbon footprint should be takenseriously.Financing of the technologymeans that for many schoolsthere lies a very real opportunityto significantly reduce theirenergy costs as well as gain fromthe Government backed nondomesticRHI scheme, whichoffers payments linked to theuse of renewable technology.The Association noted renewabletechnology as a key theme forthis year and one that surelyshould now be on the agenda formany independent schools.Cutting the carbonfootprint tooA school striving for optimumenergy efficiency is illustratingnot only a commitment toensuring that they carefullymanage their costs for theforthcoming year but also forthe long-term future of theestablishment. Alongside that,their commitment to reducingtheir carbon footprint shouldalso resonate with many ofthe stakeholders. With thesector developing strategies toensure that disruption to theschool environment is kept toa minimum and financial helpensuring that the numbersalso work, now could be thetime for your school to discusscreating a more economicallyand environmentally sustainableenergy budget.Henry Drake is the Managing Director of Sprint Fuels. If this is something that you feel your school would like to explore further please contact Sprint Fuels on 01634 865 000,biomass@sprintfuels.com for an informal discussion on the costs and benefits of renewable technology.Cutting your energy bills as well as your carbon footprintBiomass boilers - offering more than just reduced energy bills- Cut fuel bills by up to 50%- Take advantage of the Government’s RHI scheme- Get paid to heat your school- Explore the possibility of subsidised installation- Significantly reduce your carbon footprint- Develop pupils’ understanding of climate change- Demonstrate to pupils & parents a commitment torenewable energyTo find out more about how renewableenergy could work in your school, includingthe potential payments available to you, tobook a survey or simply to talk through thepossibilities please call 01634 865000.T: 01634 865000 E: biomass@sprintfuels.com T: 01634 865000 E: biomass@sprintfuels.com T: 01634 865000 E: biomass@sprintfuels.com T: 01634 865000ISM banner 2.indd 1 13/03/2014 10:3416 Independent Schools Magazine Energy/Green 17