Educational Establishments
herbaceous hedge-lined garden bursting with colour. I was here to meet the school’s Head Groundsman, Phil Mold, who has been at the school nearing sixteen years. Phil was keen to show me around ‘his’ grounds and, once I had been supplied with my official visitors badge, we headed off to walk around the site.
I was very impressed at the size and
topography of the school grounds and how well the natural landscape features support the school’s curriculum activities, with the school making good use of woodlands, paddocks, rivers and natural pasture fields. Phil began by explaining that, to
Commemorative plaque
Centenary Copse - twenty-three oak trees were planted to honour former pupils who had fallen in the Great War
“
commemorate the centenary of the start of the First World War, the school had undertaken a tree planting scheme last autumn. The purpose was to commemorate a number of former pupils who had tragically lost their lives in the Great War, resulting in twenty-three oak trees planted in the grounds of the school which is now, fittingly, known as Centenary Copse. The copse was officially opened on 23rd June 2014 when all of the children and members of staff gathered together. Phil commented; “Everyone walked across the grounds in absolute silence, and it was a moving and humbling moment to witness these young people respond so thoughtfully and to see that they understood that this was the right and proper behaviour.” A memorial plaque was unveiled and the junior children laid the poppies they had made earlier in the day. The names of those who had died were read out and labels bearing their names were attached to each of the twenty-three oak trees. As we carried on the tour I learned that, as with all independent schools, the calendar for sports events and activities is split into four; autumn, winter, spring and summer periods.
The purpose was to commemorate former pupils who had tragically lost their lives in the Great War, resulting in twenty-three oak trees planted in the grounds of the school which is now, fittingly, known as Centenary Copse
Phil Mold with one of the name labels attached to each oak tree
86 I PC DECEMBER/JANUARY 2015
Autumn term starts in September, after the summer holidays, with pitches set up for football, hockey, lacrosse and rugby. After Christmas, the winter term sees the pitches set up for rugby and lacrosse. The spring term sees a continuation of rugby and lacrosse, whilst the summer term is predominantly set up for cricket and athletics. The school also has a nine-hole golf course that meanders all the way through the school grounds. “The golf course was the vision of the
headmaster at that time, Mr Patrick Jordan who, as a keen golfer, asked one of the groundstaff in 1988 to create a small green for him to practise his chipping,” explained Phil. “The idea was further developed with the
arrival of Ian Woosnam’s son to the school, which provided the opportunity to develop more of a facility for the pupils to practise their golfing skills. With Ian’s help, the course layout was born.” “The layout needed to be thought out
carefully, so that children could play on the course whilst other sporting activities were going on. The course, therefore, skirts the perimeter of the school grounds with holes ranging from 110 yards to two longer holes
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