Dear friends of Pilgrims',
What a term it has been! The school has been a buzzy and busy place, but perhaps even more so than usual.
Learning has progressed apace in the classroom, and the upper years have also navigated their various exams; sports fixtures have taken place, including some memorable victories in rugby and cross county; musical occasions like the Spring Concert have inspired us, and music exams have been squeezed into the term. I am particularly proud of our Year 8 scholars. A fantastic 14 awards have been won so far across academics, music, sport, art, and an all-rounder; these results, from a relatively small year group of 35 boys have been outstanding, and there are boys still to sit papers for academic awards next term.
Beyond that, there is so much else to be pleased with. The Year 5 and 3 boys entertained us magnificently with their musical version of MacBeth; being significantly re-written added fun and a peculiarly Pilgrims’ twist! Then in the final week of term we saw what an incredibly high standard of performance Pilgrims’ boys can achieve with a stunning production of Oliver!
Pilgrims’ Got Talent was highly entertaining; the school’s Confirmation service the following day was both significant and inspiring. Earlier in the term, a wonderful outreach concert involving many local primary schools and our Year 4s took place in the Cathedral on the first Wednesday in March. And I thoroughly enjoyed taking a few of our boys to see their Art displayed at the private view of the Peter Folkes Prep School Art Exhibition at King Edward VI School in Southampton.
Pupil voice continues to play a big part in school. I enjoyed meeting with an impressive group of Year 7 and 8 boys, representing the Eco-Committee, as they made a very detailed presentation on how the school could consider adding solar panels to our roof; to say they had ‘done their research’ would be an understatement – they presented a full presentation with accompanying figures and a company who could carry out the work. I will need to consider carefully whether this leads to something, but the value comes in seeing the boys talking animatedly about something they are passionate about, and the lengths they have gone to in preparing their proposal.
So, now to the holidays. The boys (and staff) have enjoyed an action-packed term, and I hope that everyone will have the chance to kick back and not only recover (that is important), but also take time to reflect on just how much has gone on, and what we have achieved as a community this term.
I hope you enjoy the Easter break.
Alistair Duncan
Interim Head
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