Page 7 - Malvern College Times - Sept 2018

MALVERN TIMES PAGE 7
Permission for absence
I might mention that, whilst we are a full boarding school, we acknowledge that there are sometimes significant pastoral reasons or commitments which entail boys and girls occasionally being away from school at a weekend. In such instances, we ask that parents contact the Housemaster or Housemistress to give plenty of notice of this request so that permission for absence can be sought from Mr Lewis Faulkner, Deputy Head: Pastoral. All school commitments need to be honoured and so early communication to meet important commitments outside school is essential.
Commemoration May 2019
In the course of discussing commitments at school, could I draw your attention to the fact that our Commemoration takes place on Saturday, 25 May 2019. It is preceded on the Friday by the inter-House athletic sports, a BBQ where parents may meet the School Council and a concert. On the Saturday, there is a Service at The Priory where we honour the original founders of the school, followed by activities involving boys and girls, the Prize-Giving and lunch with other parents in the Houses. It is the pinnacle of the school year and, whilst some who have written the IB or A level examinations may have left school already, it is expected that the remainder of our pupils will attend Commemoration. I am mentioning this early in the year as some parents will already be booking flights for their children and themselves. Half-term will officially start at 2.00 pm on Saturday 25 May 2019 and we ask parents please to respect that timing.
A positive start
Finally, you may want to know that I spoke to the school about the year ahead and starting the year in the best possible way. In broad outline I encouraged them to:
 Be “realistically ambitious”. This means setting out on this year with a positive spirit, aiming for specific goals which are not so high as to be unattainable, but high enough to lift pupils out of their comfort zone.
 Be problem solvers, understanding that there is simply no problem that cannot be solved and that there are a number of people who will be able to help them if that is needed. But problem-solvers need to look at themselves first and to see whether they have given sufficient focus and effort to a particular area or been sufficiently self-aware to consider why others are reacting to them in a certain way. Ultimately, there are a great number of people here to help and no problem is too great to solve.
 Look outwards and upwards in relationships rather than inwards. Kindness, warm-heartedness, thoughtfulness in manners and respect for others lead to better engagement with people which, in turn, leads to good relationships being built. It is ironic that those who are most fulfilled and most happy are those who are most concerned about others and least concerned about themselves.
 Make a contribution. Each individual will have different ways of doing this and there will be different contexts in which such a contribution is made. The old adage that the more you put into an activity, the more you will get out remains true and there are opportunities at Malvern where individuals can learn and develop themselves, but action is need to make this happen.
I firmly believe that Malvern is a school where what I call ‘human energy’ is more significant than in many others which I have known. Not everything will be plain sailing and there will, undoubtedly, be challenges for each of our pupils to surmount during the year. It is exciting to be underway and there is so much for your sons and daughters to enjoy and so many different ways in which you are likely to see them grow and mature.
With my best wishes
Antony Clark | Headmaster