Head's Welcome

Welcome back! It is good to see you again at the start of this new calendar year. I wonder whether you have come back with clear resolutions or with a determination not to have them. I suspect that both schools of thought will be represented here. For those of you who are weary or nervous of such declarations of intent, you may like the following extract from a poem by Brian Bilston that I heard over the holiday: This was the year that was not the year This was the year that was not the year I repainted the kitchen door I didn’t clear out the living room Though it needed it, I’m sure This was the year that was not the year in which I launched a new career. A West End hit eluded me, as did Time Person of the Year. This was the year that was not the year I became a household name. Action figures were not sold of me. I wasn't made a dame. This was the year that was not the year I spent less time on my phone. I didn’t do much exercise And I still haven’t grown. While I like the calm understatement of the above and its challenge to unrealistic aspirations which may lead only to anxiety and disappointment, I think on balance that I am in favour of using the January punctuation mark in our academic year to refresh our eye on the future, both in school and outside. Whether one describes them as resolutions or something else, there are likely to be academic targets, but perhaps also intentions for sport, music, drama, dance, outward bounds activities, community service, clubs and societies, or entrepreneurial initiatives. You may well have heard of SMART targets; SMART is an acronym which means specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. My only suggestion as you consider resolutions for 2025 would be to consider this language to avoid the vague dream of global stardom from our poem. However, I make no apology for now challenging you, as you think of the year ahead, to dream a little. I direct you to consider ways in which you can retain, foster and develop a spirit of wonder and curiosity, while also reflecting on chances to be a good person by exploring friendship and kindness, in the spirit articulated in this morning’s bible reading from Proverbs. Here are some statements from different areas of activity to pique your curiosity: Wonder and Curiosity The East Atlantic Flyway: this is a migrating bird route from the tip of South Africa to the Arctic Circle: overall, it involves 75 countries and 90 million birds from 297 species. It goes through East Anglia and is the reason why Norfolk is on the shortlist as a Natural World Heritage Sites. The Connectome of female fruit fly was completed in 2024 to much excitement. It comprised of 140,000 neurons and more than 54.5 million synapses in a brain that is smaller than a pinhead; if you have not seen it, the image of the connectome is an aesthetic and scientific glory. Yet it also tantalises for the future: it captures processes such as movement and sight, yet so far only neuron connections through chemical synapses are recorded but there is nothing about electrical connectivity between neurons or chemical connections between neurons outside synapses. Oh, and humans have a million times as many neurons, so plenty of room for further research. And finally, while I am throwing out big figures what about the difference between …illions? There are 86, 400 seconds per day, so 1 million seconds (6 x 0) is 11 days;, but 1 billion (1000 million; 9 x 0) is 32 years. Why might this be interesting? If one were to think about such big figures in terms of population and excessive wealth, one might consider that there are over 8 billion people on the planet (remember 9 x 0). 2,781 of them in 2024 are dollar billionaires and their combined wealth is $14.2 trillion; now 1 trillion (12 x 0; 1000 billion) in terms of seconds is 31,710 years; that takes us back 10, 000 years before cave paintings in France. It is not for me to comment further on these statements, but I hope you will take a spirit of wonder and curiosity about the world around you into this new year, and perhaps even a little activism. Some of these enormous figures, or other innovations such as Space X’s rocket-capturing giant chopsticks, may seem overwhelming, so I finish by focusing you on stories to draw out our shared humanity; perhaps they will stimulate you to think of opportunities for friendship and kindness. They come from the BBC’s 100 heartwarming stories from 2024: Friendship and Kindness 70: a group called The Heart of Newham in Scotland knitted tallest Christmas tree (16 feet), perhaps a challenge for our Knitters and Stitchers; 30: a 5 year-old started a project of reading his favourite stories at local Care Homes, something which reminds me of our primary school reading initiatives; 9: Boomers – a daytime disco for 65+, perhaps something for our L6 Community Service teams to consider; 4: Makagroup- a team of student cleaners who volunteer to tidy up street signs, something with clear potential for those considering DoE volunteering projects; Overall, I encourage you to make most of the opportunities available to you in 2025, being open to the strengths, weaknesses and foibles of human condition, not least our keen sense of the absurd: 96: singing Welsh train conductor; 67: Josh Benson, aka Yorkshireman, diving to 6 feet Yorkshire pudding and 2000 litres of onion gravy; 10: the father who forgot his own daughter for the walk down the aisle at her wedding; 7: known as Scouse Baby, a charming film of a baby babbling without words but in a clear, broad Liverpool accent. Welcome back and do have a great term!

It is terrific to see the whole school back in the Cathedral after a summer apart. I trust you are looking forward to the year, both individually and as part of the wider school community. Regarding this balance of hope for us as individuals and together, I think many of you have already walked past two prominent figures in Cathedral Close, each of whom has something helpful to say. And if you have not yet done so, I think most of you will do so before the end of the day and all of you before the end of the week. Any guesses? I am talking, of course, about the statues which stand either side of the mighty doors of the West End, located behind you as you sit in the Nave: as you look at the Cathedral from the West Front, Julian of Norwich is on the left holding a book and St Benedict is on the right with his finger to his lips. For those who are new to Norwich School (and the less observant of you from past years), cast your eyes up when you next walk past. Mother Julian was an anchoress who chose to live in the walled-up cell of a church not far from here in Norwich during the late 1300s and early 1400s. She is credited with writing the first book in English by a female, Revelations of Divine Love , which describes visions of Christ that she experienced; it is the book she is sculpted with on the statue outside. Among her most famous statements is: “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well”. Whether you are a person or faith or not, one cannot help but be struck by the confidence and optimism of this statement. It is almost certainly the earliest example of manifesting in the English language. I think it is a timely phrase as we set about this new school year: there is much uncertainty in the world and much even in our own lives that we cannot control, but we can trust the process of the educational year which starts up again today after the summer and afford to be optimistic that our own ambitions can be achieved. Indeed, this quality of hope and optimism is one of the reasons I love working in education. Young people, yes you, this amazing group in front, around and behind me, set about life with a collective cheerfulness and joy; it has been wonderful already to hear the babble of chatter as you make new friends or catch up after a summer apart. Sometimes you are not realistic or hopeful, but often you get what you want because you are confident that you can achieve your goal and simply take the steps to make it happen (I mentioned this flippantly before, but it is true that manifesting and visualising are modern terms associated with this process). Regardless of details of your individual ambition, whether in academic work, sport, music, drama, dance, debating, Warhammer or anything in between, I want each of you to be positive and joyful as you start this new year; I hope Julian’s statue will encourage you to keep going for your targets as you walk past it during the year. The right-hand statue as you look at the West doors of the Cathedral is St Benedict, holding a finger to his lips for quiet prayer. From its foundation in 1096 until the Reformation of the 16th century, this Cathedral Church was a community of monks which was part of the Benedictine Order. If you were to attend Evensong this evening, you would hear a passage being read out from his guiding words, called the Rule of St Benedict. At a service in the summer, Canon Aiden, one of the Canons of the Cathedral and a governor of the school, spoke of Benedict’s interest in mutual obedience, the need for the monastic community to pull together to be effective. In a modern world where rights are sometimes trumpeted more than responsibilities, Canon Aiden noted that this concept of mutual obedience is not fashionable. However, its importance resonated for me in subsequent weeks because of the civil unrest that was witnessed in many parts of the country. Sparked by the spreading of misinformation in the wake of the horrific murders in Southport, episodes of civil disobedience involving both violent conduct and expressions of ideological extremism sprung up in different parts of the country during the first part of August. The hostile intensity of these events shocked the country because they demonstrated how quickly respect for the rule of law can be lost in certain circumstances. Mercifully, there was no major incidence of disorder in Norfolk during this period, though nobody should be under any illusions that the significant differences of opinion which underpinned the unrest exist in this part of the country, too. The quality of our Norwich School community is one of our signature strengths, perhaps even the most important. However, this only remains true because we actively work at it, because we behave in a way each and every day that makes it the loving, compassionate, inclusive community that we cherish so much. That does not mean that we all have to agree with each other all the time; indeed, we are so much more vibrant and thoughtful because from time to time we disagree with and challenge each other. However, when that happens there must be a tone of mutual respect and we must be careful not to over-personalise any disputes that arise. Unconditional positive regard for each other is a key phrase we use here; it comes centuries after Benedict’s discussion of mutual obedience, but I believe there is a strong overlap in thought. There is for me a sense in each idea that we may not get exactly what we want from an exchange, we may need to agree to disagree respectfully with another member of our community and we may need to compromise to achieve mutually agreeable practical outcomes. Yet, this compromise at an individual level is worth it for the community benefit. Schools are crucibles which can hold a range of opinions in a framework of mutual respect for each individual. On too many occasions in the modern world, complex issues are broken down into overly simplistic, even binary, choices by people holding extreme views on each side of a particular debate, often by talking in echo chambers only to those of a similar opinion. I should like us to resist such a trend here at Norwich School, to look after each other both as we work together in this amazing environment and as we communicate online when we are not in Cathedral Close. This is very much the collaborative spirit embodied in today’s bible reading: “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you”. We do not always need to agree, but we should continue to respect each other if and when we disagree. The statues of Julian and St Benedict, which oversee us as we move about The Close during the year, will be good touchstones to encourage our individual ambitions and to harness them positively in the life of the wider community. Both as optimistic individuals and a cohesive, kind community, I welcome you back and offer good wishes for the year ahead.

As the 2023/2024 academic year comes to a close the Head addressed pupils and parents of the Upper Sixth on the importance of our community as we gather for the last time until September. "It is a great pleasure to add my welcome to the parents of the U6th who join us for the service which ends the 2023/24 academic year. You are seeing what the pupils and staff have the good fortune to do regularly in this amazing building. There is a danger that we take it for granted (Something like “Well, of course we have our assemblies in one of the finest medieval buildings in northern Europe; it’s not that special, is it?” – an unhelpful view in so many ways). My experience is that our leavers come to appreciate the Cathedral more as they get closer to leaving it, but there is no doubt that sharing this service with visitors helps to remind us what a privilege it is for our school to be located here in the Close amongst these magnificent medieval structures. The conclusion of our service, where the leaving U6 process with their Heads of House through the magnificent West Doors, symbolises this key transition point of moving from school into the wider world, but before that let us enjoy recording our time together appropriately. I am also pleased to have the U6 parents with us today because you are normally in such a good mood that your threshold for laughter is pleasingly low. It is good to have a few more allies in the room; a Cathedral of nearly 1000 teenagers at 8.40 in the morning can be a tough crowd. I have been thinking a good deal about the importance of gathering in the life of a community. All UK adult citizens have obviously gathered metaphorically in recent days to make a collective decision in our General Election, but don’t worry, this is certainly not the time to start reflecting on that process. In safer territory, those who watched the Glastonbury coverage on television last weekend or have been to a more local festival such as Latitude will have felt the drawing together of a shared experience. This might be a heresy to some, but I confess to not being a huge Coldplay fan. However, even I would concede that over 100,000 people sharing Fix You at the climax of their set was something to behold. Another major current gathering is the Euros and the amazingly colourful crowds we have seen in support of their country. Of course, England has its perennial love-hate relationship with our national team played out in front of televisions in homes, pubs and clubs throughout the country during a major football tournament. How very English to boo our team for topping our group and getting to the quarter-finals in the wrong way! Add in Wimbledon, the start of the cricket test series and a wet summer; it really starts to look like a full house in UK moaning bingo. Partly, my interest in gathering events comes from closer to home: we have just finished our annual Gather Festival, an explosion of creative activity where you can watch our pupils singing, acting, dancing, creating Art, reading, fashion modelling, playing instruments of all kinds and in all genres. It has just been a joy to see our pupils’ rich educational experience as they have entertained us in recent weeks, building skills and confidence along the way. And I know comparable processes have been undergone in the highly successful cricket and rowing achievements away from school, as well as many other trips and activities that take place in a busy Summer Term. One of the quotes on the seats at the front in the Blake Studio carries the Auden quote, “How beautiful it is, that eye-on-the-object look” to capture the moment when someone is totally absorbed in an activity they have fully committed to. I feel like I have seen a lot of eyes on a lot of objects recently, not least in the spectacular Gala Night on Wednesday that many of you were part of or witnessed. Phrases such as “You had to be there” or Sky Sports’ “It’s only live once” speak to this special moment of being together to have a unique shared experience at a particular time. In many ways, this whole service is one such gathering, particularly for those in U6 and their families. We have listened to some beautiful music and sung ourselves, with still the promise of Jerusalem to come. However, in that spirit of creating something memorable that we can share together we are going to have a live performance and, if you want, you can join in. I should like to introduce our U6 band, Placeholder, singing a cover song from the successful Bandfest last week…Thank you all. This gathering and sharing and recording together is obviously positive. However, I think it is particularly important at this time that we do feel connected. As well as being a good sing-a-long, American Pie has relevant resonances in terms of theme as it records the composer, Don Maclean’s, discomfort in response to cultural uncertainty during the second half of the 20th century. There is, of course, significant challenge and pain in our world: the threat of climate change; the horror of war in different parts of the world; economic challenges closer to home; for some, the deregulation of holiday time or the daunting nature of post-school life. In all this turbulence, it is our connections that help to anchor us; connections to family, friends, places, traditions, values. Human beings are social creatures and simply feeling part of something bigger helps us to face the world around us. And this is a day that encourages us to remind ourselves of those connections. For all of us, reflecting on how this year at Norwich School has gone is inevitable at its end and I very much hope that you feel you have made progress, thereby deepening connections with friends, activities, subjects and all that Norwich School stands for. Yet today, our focus is very much on our U6 cohort and this is a service to allow you to reflect on the connections with your families who have supported you through your time here; with each other as you think about the highs and lows of your school careers together; and with us, your school, in this place. One of the rugby players in his Leavers Book entry noted with pride the following, “I have played 156 games for the school in 11 years. Up the Noz”! Good effort indeed, particularly keeping the record to know the number. Whatever the length of time you have been at the school and whatever your particular interests, I hope you can reflect now on links you have established which have informed the amazing young people I see in front of me and links which will sustain you in the future. It is certainly what makes me optimistic about facing the future. I said that I would not be talking about politics today and I undertake to keep that promise now. However, I am confident that Norwich School is in a healthy position and will react with agility and good sense to whatever operating conditions emerge in the future. Indeed, we are showing ourselves through this very service and the strong emotions engendered that we are a vibrant, resilient community; let us not forget that this U6 were in M5 when Covid struck and look how well they have turned out. Our connection with this amazing leaving cohort changes after today but the links will certainly not be broken. We wish you all well and hope that you will come back from time to time to tell us how you are getting on."

After a much needed break, The Head addresses pupils in Cathedral as we look forward to the Trinity Term ahead . You can read his address below:

As the new year gets underway, and with it the start of the Lent Term, the Head addressed pupils in the Cathedral. You can read his Address below:

The Cathedral was a riot of colour with the school community embracing Christmas jumper day, as the Head delivered his end of term address before pupils and staff alike departed for the festive break…

At the start of another academic year, the Head addressed pupils in the Cathedral on the first day of Michaelmas Term. You can read his Address below:

The Head addressed pupils in the Cathedral on the first day of Trinity Term. You can read his Address below:

The Head addressed pupils in the Cathedral on the last day of Lent Term. You can read his Address below: