A MessAge froM the heAdMAster <strong>Winchester</strong> is a fascinating collegiate community, replete with a lively intelligentsia of various ages and interests, its own lore and notions, all underscored with the pulsating energy of youth. It is a world in itself, able to impress a world-view upon young impressionable minds. It is this self-contained completeness which makes the <strong>Winchester</strong> experience such a satisfying one during the five years of a Wykehamist’s pupillage. Yet there is a danger in this rich educational fare of stimulating teaching and cultural life, beautiful buildings, gardens, river and playing fields – which is the danger of losing a sense of context. The school belongs to a wider world, less ordered and coherent, but nevertheless one in which it is essential to know our place – for it is that world, ultimately, in which the Wykehamist will live and work. The world outside the walls enclosing Meads in fact plays an increasingly significant part of the school’s day-to-day life. to begin with, we belong to a university market-place which requires us, with every other school, to prepare pupils for higher education. Like every other school we need to judge the range of courses and credentials that best suit our clientele. That assessment is what led to our abandoning A-level courses in 2008 in favour of the Cambridge Pre-U menu, the demands of “ The School belongs to a wider In the last five years other educational links the initiative to constitute the group in 2009, since world, less ordered and coherent, have developed. since 2006 we have hosted for the when we have held annually a week-long symposium but nevertheless one in which it whole of Common time two senior boys from the for two senior students from each school, together is essential to know our place – Johannes Kepler grammar school in Prague, several with the head and a teacher, who after nine months’ for it is that world, ultimately, of whom have gone on to university study at oxford preparation on a specified topic (in 2010 it was in which the Wykehamist and Cambridge. twice a year we run a joint sunday The financial Crisis, in <strong>2011</strong> health Care) gather will live and work.” study day with a range of girls’ schools, state and together, with the help of distinguished world-class dr rALPh toWnsend private, where about sixty boys and girls engage experts, to discuss and write about the national together in an intellectual forum with a strong social perspectives which the various parties have to bring element. These study days include boys and girls to the meeting. symposium 2010 was held in from Midhurst rother <strong>College</strong>, our partner academy <strong>Winchester</strong>, symposium <strong>2011</strong> in nashville; the 2012 in sussex, now our largest single extra-mural meeting was held in singapore, where the subject commitment in a state-private enterprise from was Leadership. Most projects of this kind are carried which both sides derive stimulating educational out on a large-scale conference model, but we have aspiration and awareness. The governance of MrC chosen a model which entails more intense on-going includes an oW as its chairman, a fellow and three commitment among the member schools that over senior dons. Young <strong>Winchester</strong> dons can complete time, we believe, will yield international leaders their formal teacher training at MrC. whose association began with the symposium. In March 2010, in association with the American After three years the participating students friends of <strong>Winchester</strong> <strong>College</strong>, two senior boys, (who by the nature of the symposium get to know a don and five young American graduates who each other well, before and after, through social had recently completed short-term teaching websites by which they continue their discussion) appointments at <strong>Winchester</strong> took part in a global are sixty in number; after thirty years there will education forum organised by the education be six hundred members of the <strong>Winchester</strong> faculty of the University of Pennsylvania. This gave International symposium, many of them in heads and staff from a dozen Philadelphian schools positions of international leadership. readers may an opportunity to hear from our boys an account wish to learn more at www.winchestercollege.org/ of <strong>Winchester</strong>’s approach to the wider world. international-links. The director of that programme came and spent so extensive has our Looking outwards become, a week at <strong>Winchester</strong> in March, and we hope to that we have appointed a director of external Affairs plan another similar seminar. to co-ordinate all aspects of the school’s outreach, our boldest initiative has been on a global scale. local, national and international. tim Parkinson The <strong>Winchester</strong> International symposium is a (formerly our head of economics) has been the network of ten schools, one in each of China, Japan, school’s representative in hong Kong and the Asian singapore, India, Pakistan, south Africa, the Czech region since 2008; he returned to live in <strong>Winchester</strong> republic, Colombia, nashville tennessee and, in January 2012 to administer the complex profile of course, <strong>Winchester</strong> in the UK. <strong>Winchester</strong> took of <strong>Winchester</strong>’s place in the world. which we felt provided more challenge both for our boys and the dons who teach them. That was, so to speak, a bread-and-butter decision which has very definitely enhanced the intellectual tone of the school. historically, <strong>Winchester</strong> has for many years engaged with the wider world through what the Victorians called mission. The Portsmouth Mission, remembered by more senior oWs, was a commitment to local welfare engagement in the post-war years. our current local Community service project, which employs more than half the school every Wednesday afternoon, grew out of the Portsmouth Mission. our links with the Crown and Manor Club in hoxton, presently rebuilding its premises, have for many years entailed an annual football match between the Club and the school, and now include our younger dons helping boys in the Club to achieve their university ambitions by way of extra tuition and counselling. This link is alive and well – and, indeed, growing. In addition we now have firm links with primary schools in the Lambeth area of London, whence we are able to find suitable boys whose parents are keen for their sons to come to <strong>Winchester</strong> on the bursary assistance we provide. dr ralph townsend Headmaster 1 Left to right, samuel Ching; tim Parkinson; Bryan seethor (samuel and Bryan are raffles students from singapore). taken at the <strong>2011</strong> International symposium at nashville, tennessee. 4 WINCHESTER COLLEGE ANNUAL REPORT <strong>2011</strong> 5 1