DEVELOPMENT AND SCHOOL NEWS
DEVELOPMENT
SHAPE THE FUTURE FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED
A virtual event was held at the end of March to launch Pocklington School ’ s new ‘ Shape the Future ’ campaign to raise money for bursaries . Attended by members of the school community including Governors , Life Patrons and staff , the event focused on the ambitious aims of the campaign and featured presentations by the Headmaster , Toby Seth , and Chair of Governors , Tim Stephenson ( 70-79 ).
The campaign is part of the school ’ s Strategic Education Vision and its objective to ‘ nurture a culture of giving back and increase accessibility to the school ’. A significant increase in applications for bursaries from external candidates has been received in the last academic year , and the campaign seeks to raise £ 10 million for the John Dolman Trust endowment fund in 10 years to provide bursary places in perpetuity . The campaign also wishes to raise £ 50,000 every year for the Annual Bursary Fund , which is used for immediate need .
Bursaries are offered to students whose families cannot afford the full fees and are offered on a strictly means-tested basis .
Founder members of the school ’ s new legacy society , the 1514 Club , were also present at the launch . They have already shown their commitment to the campaign by including a donation in their will , in recognition of the fact that Pocklington School can be transformative for young people .
Tim Stephenson , Chair of Governors said : “ Like many Old Pocklingtonians , I benefitted in the 1970s from the direct grant system which paid my fees at the school . I went on to read Maths at Oxford and now enjoy a career in international finance , commodity risk management and sustainability . As Chair of Governors , and also a former parent , I can see clearly the enormous progress made by the school since I left . Many young people would greatly benefit from being at Pocklington School , and from whose presence the school as a whole would benefit . I strongly believe the school should be an inclusive place , available to as many deserving students as possible . The Shape the Future campaign will enable us to make this happen .”
The fundraising campaign is now being rolled out to the Pocklington School community with information also available on the school website .
OLD POCKLINGTONIANS REUNITED IN SUPPORT OF NEW CAMPAIGN
Two former pupils paid a special visit to Pocklington School in the Summer Term to meet the outgoing Head Boy and Head Girl and show their support for the school ’ s new ‘ Shape the Future ’ campaign .
Tom Nash ( 68-77 ) and Howard Holmes ( 67-77 ) were in the same class from the age of eight and the visit was the first time they had met since they left the school . Tom , who is past President of the OPA , has been appointed as an Ambassador for the new campaign and Howard has designed the campaign ’ s distinctive promotional materials at his design agency , The Beyond .
Pocklington School ’ s Head Boy , Kobby Fofie ( 10-21 ), and Head Girl , Grace Beckett ( 12-21 ), welcomed them to the library and archive room , where they were able to look through old photographs and a range of memorabilia from their school years . They reflected on the life skills and opportunities they had been given at the school and were interested to hear from Kobby and Grace about what it is like to be a pupil here now .
that more young people can experience the life changing opportunity attending Pocklington School provides .”
Howard commented : “ Being invited to design the promotional materials for the Shape the Future campaign has been a fantastic experience and has given me the chance to not only have a trip down memory lane , but also to reflect on the impact Pocklington School has had on my life .
I was given such a rich well of experiences and opportunities to draw from , and we had an exceptionally high level of camaraderie and collaboration which I still see evident in the pupils at the school today . I learnt to develop communication skills which have served me so well throughout my life , and I am delighted to be involved in this campaign which will enable more young people to benefit from the education and experiences Pocklington School offers .”
Tom said : “ I was very fortunate to attend Pocklington School , and have many fond memories of my time there . We were given the freedom and encouragement to develop our own interests and benefited from fantastic teaching and experiences . I was only able to attend because of the funds provided by the ‘ direct grant scheme ’, which was later abolished .
Nowadays the only financial assistance available to pupils is through bursaries . I know how both I and my children benefitted from attending Pocklington School and I am keen to support the Shape the Future campaign to help raise funds so
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