House Council Minutes

Year 9 – Cameron Bell and Joe Szweda

-          Everyone is loving it.

-          Lock on toilet door needs replacing. Matron will ask maintenance to do this ASAP. This has now been done.

Year 10 – Henry Blois-Brooke

-          A request for more chocolate spread was made. The cost of this is quite high and the supply is limited as we need a ‘nut free’ spread. Matron will see if we have the funds to get more. We do not. The cost of all the birthday cakes is proving a bit limiting.

-          Squash was requested for break times. This has been requested before and Mr Settle said that this will not be a regular thing due to organising its provision and trying to keep the kitchen clean as we want to avoid any pests. However, Mr Settle will continue to provide squash and donuts on such occasions when the house has earned them.

-          Big packs of tangfastics were requested for tuck shop. Mr Settle said no to these as big bags of sweet treats were not really needed as part of a balanced diet and were probably doing more harm than good.

Year 11 – Louis Bossons-Sartain

-          It was suggested that the house council was consulted on house trips and activities. Mr Settle informed the council that the council were consulted about house trips but the fact that they were had clearly not been fed back to the year groups.

Year 12 – Sam Hallatt (Boarding) and Tom Berkley (Day)

-          Stronger flushing toilets upstairs were requested. Matron will ask maintenance to investigate.

-          Some boarders feel day boys are not respecting living space. Mr Settle reminds boarders that the sixth form corridor is not just for boarders and that the day boys should be using it as well. It was emphasised that the only restriction in place was that day boys should not enter boarding dorms and that anyone in year 11 or below should not enter the 6^th form corridor.

-          Air freshener was requested for dorm rooms. Mr Settle said boarders were free to purchase their own but not the aerosol spray types.

-          Boarders feel the laundry is taking to long to come back and some items have gone missing. Matron will investigate this further to see if laundry can be returned quicker. We may consider buying our own washing and drying facilities if the situation can not be resolved. We can not buy our own washing machine, but the laundry should be working efficiently now. Boys are reminded to put their laundry in the bin first thing in the morning to ensure it goes to the laundry that day.

-          An extra loaf of white bread was requested for the upstairs kitchen. Preference is for white bread over brown bread. Matron will arrange for this to be supplied. This is now being done.

-          A request was made for house football socks. Mr Settle reminded council that Skipwith already has its own version of house socks, which are know as half colours. These are free to boys who earn the right to wear them. Mr Settle will not be buying extra kit or clothing to sell to the boys. Mr Settle also reminded council that cufflinks exist for members of the sixth form and they can be purchased.

Mr Settle also said that the recurring issue of weak wifi on the top floor is being addressed with new wireless routers being installed in the coming weeks.

Senior House Rugby

A good effort from the Skipwith boys today but unfortunately we finished 4th overall. Thanks to all the boys involved and to captain Bodie Deane for organising the players during the matches.

Skipwith Communion

Once every half term, the rev delivers holy communion in every house. Today was our turn but instead of using our day room we decided to take advantage of the good weather and host it on the tower. This was a real treat to be able to see the views on such a nice day whilst also taking communion together.

Dark Dog Walks

Skipwith looks pretty amazing at 6am at the moment. Unfortunately the daily morning dog walk is getting a bit more hazardous!

Slovenian Championships

Last weekend Henry Blois-Brooke became the Slovenian national champion in J14 doubles along with Seb Newman from Orchard house. Junior house leader, Henry, was in Slovenia with a group of boys from the college representing Henley in a town twinning initiative with the town of Bled, which also happens to be the home of a famous and very beautiful international rowing lake. Also present were many of Henley's Olympians and the mayor. Harry Vardigans, head of house, was also present and he won a silver medal in the Junior Pairs event, only being beaten by the Slovenian Junior Pair, who had previously won Bronze at the Junior World Championships.

Summer Exam Timetable

It may seem a long way off, but the summer exams have already been provisionally timetabled. Although we do not anticipate too many changes, I will keep the link on the right hand side of this page up to date. The timetable can also be viewed here.

Harvest Festival

The annual Harvest Festival is nearly upon us again and the chaplain has sent me this request for donations. If you can help out with a donation then please do send it in to matron who will collect them all together and present a box at the festival. Many thanks!

The College’s Harvest Festival Service will take place on Sunday 6 October at 19.30 in the Church.  This year’s service is being organised by the community of Everett House.  As in previous years, we will be supporting the work of the Reading Drop-in Centre and could I ask for your assistance again this year in collecting grocery and other items for them.  Perhaps Matrons could supply a box for the collection of these items and could House Staff convey this information to your parents and pupils.  The Drop-in Centre have suggested the following items that they are particularly short of.

·         Any tinned meats

·         Tinned peas or carrots

·         Salad cream

·         Mustard

·         Marmite

·         Peanut butter

·         Chocolate spread

·         Breakfast Cereals

·         Coffee

·         Squash

·         Sugar

Also toiletries:

·         Toothbrushes and toothpaste

·         Hand wash

·         Shampoo

They have requested no pasta or rice as they have recently had a bulk donation.

We give grateful thanks for your help and support.

Early Promise

Year 9 Skipwith played Orchard house today in a football tournament organised by the college prefects. Pleasingly we beat Orchard in one game and drew the next. A great effort all round and thanks to the prefects for organising everything.

CCF Promotions

Many congratulations to the following boys for their promotions in the CCF Army section this year:

Sergeant Harry Hogan
Corporal Harry Berkley

Black Tie Dinner

The black tie dinner for parents was last night and was well attended by over 50 people. The evening was so good and the food so excellent that I was distracted from taking any photos with the exception of Sam who provided music at the start of the evening. Thanks to all who came and I hope you all had a really nice time.

Year 9 Hockey

Year 9 boys had their first go at Shiplake hockey today. Next week they try rowing!

Boarders and Bowling

Last night the new boarders from Skipwith, Everett and Welsh went bowling in Maidenhead so that they could get better acquainted. The scores are pretty irrelevant (especially mine and Mr Bradley's!) but everyone had some fun nonetheless.

Sixth Form Cufflinks

Members of the Skipwith sixth form are allowed to purchase a set of Skipwith cufflinks. As this week has been such a good first week I am offering a deal on these for one week only. They will now be offered at a sale price of £10, which is a bargain for a decent set of cufflinks.

They can be purchased from Mr Settle (cash only).

Year 9 Pastoral Parents Meeting on Saturday 21 September

I am writing to invite you to the Year 9 Pastoral Parents Meeting on Saturday 21 September.  Parents will be listening to a talk by Mr Karl Hopwood, a specialist in online safety, which he will be repeating for pupils at 11am.  The itinerary for the morning is as follows:

9am to 9.30am                  Coffee

9.30am to 10.30am          Karl Hopwood talk to parents in the Old Vikings Room (the room off the Great Hall)

11am to 12                       Karl Hopwood talk to pupils in the Old Vikings Room

Pupils will be free to go home after their sporting commitments as usual.

I do hope that you will be able to come to this important pastoral occasion and would ask that you email Sue Bond, the school secretary, so that we can organise catering and seating; her email is sbond@shiplake.org.uk

House Trip

Skipwith took to the river today for a boat trip to Henley followed by a walk back (a run for some) to Skipwith. The weather was far better than forecast which was a relief but not as big a relief as finding that Marsh lock had reopened only minutes before we were due to go through it!

Boat Trip

Tomorrow the house will be taken by boat to Henley. Once there, the boys will team up and walk back along the tow path, giving them ample amounts of time to talk and get to know each other. Looking at the weather forecast, it would be wise to have a waterproof handy!

Year 9 Swim and Capsize Test

Always a good chance to capture the boys first steps in a boat...and who knows, one day these boys could be the GB rowers of the future. More photos going in to the gallery. Thankfully, the weather stayed hot and sunny so they have done this just in time!

An Island Adventure

The year 9 boys are busy cooking burgers and hot dogs on the island having already prepared their 'dens' for the night. Thankfully the weather is nice and warm for them so it should be a fun night. Both head and and deputy head of house are supporting them along with a committed team of Skipwith tutors. Reports of night adventures to follow.

Back to Routine

The boys have been back to prep as usual and the tuck shop is open again so it must be getting back to normal!

Meg says hello

Meg was introducing herself to year 9 today and year 12 are walking her to Shiplake tonight. She's a popular girl!

New Year 9

The new term got under way today with the new year 9 boys joining us for their induction. Some year 12 were also in house training for their new roles as peer supporters, whilst year 13 were around to help with the year 9 boys. We hope that all of those new to the house will be very happy here.