Our new cohort of pupils has settled in extremely swiftly alongside their more established peers. A strong sense of purpose and brio has characterised the past few weeks and they have been finding their feet in Houses, in the classroom, across the co-curricular range, and in newfound friendships too. There has also been particular pleasure in seeing pupils enjoying the new spaces in the school; Manorside and the newly expanded Saints’ already feel like longstanding features of the Lancing campus.
At the beginning of this month I was fortunate to spend a long weekend in Ghana as the guest of one of West Africa’s leading schools, GIS (Ghana International School). Alongside presenting to the massed ranks of 500 teaching delegates at their TIME conference (TIME stands for Transform, Inspire, Motivate, Educate), I had the opportunity to listen and to learn a great deal from fellow educationalists from across the region.
During the trip the College was also a feature on national radio and television, not least because the President of Ghana, His Excellency Nana Akufo-Addo, is an OL. Education is a central plank of his programme of government and it was a highlight of the trip to be granted a personal audience and to hear about his time at Lancing. It was an intense few days and throughout the trip it was good to listen, to think, and to consider what makes for a truly outward-looking education for the 21st century. With this in mind, we hope to welcome a group from GIS to Lancing in the months to come.
The next half of term will soon be upon us and parents will be particularly welcome at a range of special events. The 50-strong cast of Cole Porter’s foot-tapping musical extravaganza Anything Goes will perform between 9 and 12 November. All parents are most welcome to join the audience: please see booking details and links in this newsletter. In the next few days you will also receive information and booking links to the solemnities of Remembrance Sunday, to the Advent Concert, and the options for attending the school’s famously beautiful candle-lit Carol Services. I will look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at these events.
A pell-mell pace has marked these opening weeks of the academic year and the school is looking forward to drawing breath as the half term break approaches. Having said that, I have just waved off three sets of eager adventurers: gathered throngs of the CCF, DofE and Scouts are setting out on overnight expeditions. The usual pattern is that they return having had a great time, but also rather sleep-deprived and looking forward to a shower… the break will feel particularly sweet to them.
With my best wishes,
Dominic Oliver
