Page 10 - LINK Agents Newsletter

KEITH METCALFE, HEADMASTER
SPOTLIGHT
MALVERN COLLEGE
MALVERN COLLEGE
Headmaster, Keith Metcalfe, reflects on his first year at Malvern College.
“My first year has flown by and has confirmed the many positive things that I had heard about Malvern College before my arrival: a really friendly and welcoming community, that supports a thriving academic curriculum, and an exciting super-curricular programme of academic enrichment and activities.
Visiting parents invariably comment on how warmly they have been made to feel welcome, by both staff and pupils, and nowhere more so than in the Houses. At the heart of this community strength is the House system: in-house dining, myriad house activities and fantastic pastoral teams ensure that our pupils are happy, healthy and individually known, perfectly set up each day to thrive in all areas of College life.
Each Monday morning is a source of immense pride for me as Headmaster as I share the achievements and successes of our pupils with the full College community. The incredible levels of performance, across academia, music, drama, the arts and sport as well as in Outdoor Pursuits and the Combined Cadet Force, are a cause for celebration and for many, the inspiration for further opportunity.
One of the areas I have been particularly excited about this year,
is the enthusiasm with which pupils have engaged with the super- curriculum programme of academic enrichment. The pupil-led cross- curricular societies, the Aston (junior) and Wheeler Bennett (senior), have been especially stimulating, with presenters keen to deliver their ideas and research to an ever-growing crowd of peers and staff, knowing that they are also going to face an intense grilling once they have summed up their reasoning.
I have thoroughly enjoyed the drama programme: from ‘Peter Pan’ and ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ to ‘Earthquakes in London’, where the subject matter particularly resonated with messages about the current environmental issues posed by Greta. Music reverberates around the school: from ‘Informal’ and ‘Unplugged’ concerts to House Singing and House Ensembles; from concerto evenings to ‘Nights at the Musicals’ to House Soirees; and I was thrilled that our chamber choir qualified for the recent finals of a national choir competition in London.
Remembrance Sunday was an extremely poignant event, where the Malvern family gathered to remember and reflect. I was pleased to be able to play my part in such an important and memorable occasion.
Several hundred pupils, staff, OMs and parents recently ran ‘The
Ledder’. This is a Malvern College tradition, a cross-country run / jog
/ jog-walk (delete as appropriate) from Ledbury to Malvern across the
hills, over challenging terrain and back into the heart of the College.
One brutally steep section is known as The Wrecker - aptly named in
my opinion! Each one of us who ran it were loudly cheered over the
finishing line by a large crowd of pupils, staff and parents.
Malvern College is fundamentally all about people. As I look to the future, I am looking forward to working with the team to develop further our considerable strengths, with, at the heart, a happy and healthy environment that enables our young people to develop and thrive, that encourages them to push their own boundaries and to embrace learning as a gateway to a fulfilled and balanced life.
My first year as Headmaster has not ended in quite the way I had imagined. However, an incredibly adaptable and talented staff team, an advanced IT set-up and some excellent foresight, and a pupil body well-prepared to take on exciting new challenges, have meant that the switch to remote online learning, well before the end of the end of term, has been seamless and extremely well-received by parents. It is truly a demonstrable sign of the strength of the school and the community that I have the privilege to work in and lead.
There is no doubt that the next few months are going to present some significant challenges, but there are also going to be some opportunities that we will be well-placed to grasp.”
Keith Metcalfe
Headmaster
KEITH METCALFE, HEADMASTER
SPOTLIGHT
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