PERSONALIA NEWS
back a team of filmmakers to Pocklington School in December 2019 . The school was used as a film location for a docu-drama the company is working on , named Hellfighters .
Ashley Hamer ( 96-06 ) was the guest speaker at the summer 2020 Pocklington School Prizegiving , which took place virtually , for the first time . Ashley has previously worked as a freelance journalist in hostile environments and is now a researcher for a British company which gathers evidence on weapons trafficked into armed conflicts .
Jodie Hill ( 00-06 ), an employment law solicitor and owner of Thrive Law in Leeds , has been offering free advice and updates during lockdown on employment law and mental health issues relating to Coronovirus . She regularly appeared on Look North news to speak about the legal aspects of Coronavirus in the workplace for employers and employees . Check out her social media channels @ Thrive _ law , @ thrive _ law for more information .
Tom Kay ( 97-07 ) played the character of Stephen Wraysford in Rachel Wagstaff ’ s stage adaptation of Sebastian Faulks ’ best-selling novel , Birdsong . More recently he brought his stage role to screen in a special online adaptation filmed during the lockdown to celebrate the anniversary of the Battle of the Somme and raise funds for the Royal British Legion .
Josh Overington ( 01-04 ) owner of York-based restaurant , Le Cochon Aveugle has been named Yorkshire Life Chef of the Year 2019 . Previously , his restaurant was named in the top 100 in the Estrella Damm National Restaurant Awards 2019 and the fourth best restaurant in Yorkshire by Hardens Top 100 in 2018 . During the lockdown period , Josh adapted his business to provide 3-course ‘ click and collect ’ dinners for two .
Nathan Priestley ( 02-05 ), the Bradford-based entrepreneur , was interviewed by the Yorkshire Post about his career in property development and his drive to build a successful business . He is now 32 , has offices in Bradford , Manchester , Leeds and London and employs 100 people . He has built a portfolio of 40 property-based businesses , ranging from sales and lettings to construction services and the inhouse development of residential and commercial buildings .
Lauren Salter ( 02-09 ) is a qualified psychologist and Head of Engagement for education tech start up Fika , a 5-minute emotional fitness app to improve focus , motivation , confidence and positivity for students . Partnered with several universities including Exeter , Lincoln and London Business School , Fika is providing students with a tool to help support them through university life . Lauren spoke to Pocklington School sixth formers about @ TheFikaApp .
Rob Webber ( 94-04 ), former Sale Sharks and England hooker , announced his retirement from professional rugby union at the end of the 2019- 20 season . In his 16-year playing career , Webber has played over 300 professional games for club and country . In an interview for Sale Sharks earlier this year , he said : he said : “ The time has come for me to hang up my playing boots at the end of the 19 / 20 Gallagher Premiership season . It has been an incredible journey over the last 16 years . The memories I have made will stay with me always , but I now feel it is time to pursue other opportunities within the game .” ( Salesharks . com 11th February 2020 ) In March 2020 , it was announced that Rob will join Championship side Jersey Reds at the end of the season , as a forwards coach , his first coaching role .
Daniel Wright ( 97-04 ), after nearly four years in Home Office Legal Advisers working on Grenfell , Windrush and several high profile Supreme and European Court cases , is moving to the Department for Education Legal Advisers to work in the Higher Education team .
2010 - PRESENT
Will Blackburn ( 06-17 ) visited Pocklington Prep School to give an assembly about his career training to be a pilot .
Ben Carlile ( 07-18 ), Yorkshire Academy prop , signed a contract with premiership club Sale Sharks , making his debut for the side in their Champions Cup match against Glasgow Warriors back in January 2020 .
Zanna Van Dijk ( 99-10 ) has been named by the Sunday Times as one of the UK ’ s top 100 influencers in 2019 . The personal trainer , fitness blogger and UK Adidas Global Ambassador is going from strength to strength as a social media influencer , with over a quarter of a million Instagram followers , 72,000 YouTube subscribers and 25,000 Twitter followers . Through her blogs , posts and videos on fitness , nutrition and environmental awareness , Zanna advocates a healthy and sustainable lifestyle . On top of her social media activity , she also presents the BBC Radio 5 Live Fit & Fearless podcast with fellow trainers and friends Victoria Spence and Tally Rye . She is co-founder of the eco-swimwear brand Stay Wild Swim and was recently appointed Brand Ambassador for the My Protein vegan range .
Marni Esa (( 06-16 ) has released her debut single , Young and Alive by Marni . It is available to listen to on You Tube and can be downloaded on Spotify , Amazon and iTunes .
Emma Hawcroft ( 04-11 ) got married in August 2020 . She met her husband , Tim Haughton at Durham University . They have lived in Cameroon and Singapore and recently moved to Hong Kong where Emma is teaching in the French International School .
Fin Henderson ( 07-14 ) released his debut single , A Million Places , in November 2019 , which along with another track , Evolution , secured him the top prize in a national music competition organised by Salute Music Makers in 2017 .
Thomas Luo ( 15-17 ) completed his Biomedical Sciences degree at UCL in the summer and was awarded a first class honours . He has now been accepted by UCL to do Medicine , the degree he has always wanted to do .
Frankie Marsh ( 06-13 ) has started a new job teaching PE at Hull Collegiate School .
Michael McInstry ( 00-11 ) got married in September 2019 as reported earlier in the magazine . He met his wife , Sarah , who is from Washington D . C ., whilst teaching children to sail at a summer camp on Cape Cod in 2013 . Sarah subsequently came to the UK to complete a Masters whilst Michael finished his own Masters in Chemistry in 2015 at the University of Manchester . The couple got engaged in 2018 and after their marriage last year , Sarah emigrated to the UK .
Jacob Sherwood ( 05-12 ) has started a new job as Business Development Manager at Catapult , the company that supplies GPS vests to sports teams to help them analyse their training and improve their performance . Prior to taking up his new role , Jacob travelled throughout Australasia , South America and Europe and did a degree in French and Spanish at Northumbria University .
Katherine Stahl ( 06-13 ) has successfully completed her dentistry studies in Liverpool and started her first job as a dentist in Scarborough in September .
Ellie Stephenson ( 06-14 ) has been balancing her day job with her passion for fitness and has set up Country Core Fitness offering Crunch2Brunch hiit classes followed by freshly made-to-order brunch . During the lockdown , Ellie used Zoom to continue with her classes online offering strength based and cardio hiit training . Further details are on the Country Core Fitness Instagram or Facebook page .
have we got your email ?
DON ’ T GET LEFT OUT . SEND US YOUR EMAIL TO RECEIVE THE LATEST OP NEWS !
CONTACT : darer @ pocklingtonschool . com
28