Summer Letter
July 2008
As we come to the end of the academic year it is time to reflect on the achievements of the past twelve months and to congratulate those staff and pupils who have striven to give of their very best in the pursuit of excellence in so many fields of our educational experience. The breadth of the opportunities which we provide for our pupils, at all ages, is the hallmark of a Hill House education. Aristotle defined the educated mind as “a mind which knows what questions to ask and what answers to be satisfied with”. At every stage we hope to satisfy the expectations of all our pupils in whatever sphere their talent lies and to give their parents the confidence that their child’s progress — academic, artistic, athletic and social — are in the care of a dedicated and professionally superb team of tutors who, themselves, take great pleasure in the success of their pupils.
This year we have achieved record successes in our Common Entrance Examination results. 42 girls and 63 boys have all achieved places in their first choice schools. Among them there are nine scholarships including the top scholarship to St Paul's won by Malko Sordo de Cock another St Paul's scholarship won by Orlando Gibbs and the tremendous achievement of Gregory Arts who obtained an A grade in every subject in the St Paul’s Entrance Examination. Add to this the record breaking achievement of 10 boys gaining entry to St Paul's school, which is consistently the most difficult school to gain entry into in the whole country, and you can see why we are so proud of our academic achievements from an entry which (uniquely in a central London prep school) is non selective. From the enclosed list you will also see that we have good numbers of entries to all the leading schools, both day and boarding, for the girls and the boys and a further clutch of scholarships. These pupils have brought great honour to Hill House and we thank them for their dedication to hard work and achievement.
But Hill House provides a 'complete' education, not just a search for examination success. In June we have enjoyed our Drama Festival with some excellent performances over three days and we have had a splendid Art Exhibition with over three hundred exhibits in our gallery at Pont Street and in Cadogan Gardens and in addition our artists have won prizes in several public competitions. James Kerr won the prestigious Painter Stainers Company Award, several of our younger artists have been selected for publication of their work in a series of postcards and many have their work exhibited around the new development site by Flood Street and at Leighton House.
Our Choral Scholars have been singing in Paris, the String Chamber Orchestra has played in Switzerland and all our seven choirs took part in the Summer Choral Festival. Parents may not be aware that our team of instrument tutors give over 500 individual music lessons each week and that is in addition to the fifty class lessons given by the full time members of the music staff.
Our specialist sports tutors have been preparing all term for the impressive spectacle which is Hill House Field Day — a true festival of achievement on the games field where year round we provide instruction in the widest range of sports imaginable to the highest standards. Every pupil has the opportunity to discover where their own talent and enthusiasm lies in the range of sports on offer from team games to individual endeavour.
Our tutors have also been notching up successes. Each year the Teaching Awards Trust gives certificates to outstanding teachers chosen from the whole of the United Kingdom. This year's nominations include two of our tutors — Mrs Barbara Bulatovic and Miss Karen Traut. The citation which accompanies their certificates reads “a teaching award is a tremendous accolade and one which is well worth celebrating”. We do indeed rejoice that these two fine teachers have been recognised nationally.
This year we bid farewell to some six tutors leaving to go back to their home countries and, in addition this July, I must make special mention of Mrs Donna Dick-Cleland who is retiring after teaching at Hill House for thirty seven years and Peter McMahon who has run our Cadogan Gardens building for the whole time that it has been in the ownership of Hill House. They have helped to shape the lives of many children in their most formative years, supported their colleagues and espoused Hill House and its special educational ethos with unfailing loyalty for which we are truly grateful.
In the autumn we will welcome some 160 new pupils and six new tutors to Hill House. From September the Undermaster will be based in Cadogan Gardens and will begin a thorough revision of the syllabus from Upper School through to the Sixth Form to take account of the changes in entry requirements of the leading Public Schools. At the same time there will be a realignment of Transitus to accommodate the increasing interest in girls staying at Hill House until they are thirteen before going on to boarding schools. The Lower School will be divided equally between Milner Street and Cadogan Gardens with increased accommodation there and Middle School and Small School will have new provision for gym and dance. Timothy Teague will be joining us as Choral Animateur to increase the profile of singing throughout the whole school and Mrs Josephine Page will be returning as Executive Chef to undertake a total revision of our lunch and tea menus. In Glion there will be three courses for Sixth Form Geography, an Art course for potential scholarship candidates and two music courses - one instrumental and one choral. Hill House flourishes!
May I wish everyone a good summer holiday and, for those who are leaving us — parents, pupils and tutors — every success in their future.
Richard Townend
