The
PRESIDENT ’ S VIEW
WELCOME
Dear Fellow Old Pocklingtonians ,
Welcome to this year ’ s edition of the OP Magazine , I hope it finds you all well and happy having enjoyed a relaxing summer . As I write , it is 1 September which , according to the meteorological calendar , is the first day of autumn . This means new shoes , new uniforms , and a general feeling of excited anticipation for the start of a new school year . For some there may be a few nerves as it means moving to the Senior School or the Sixth Form and for our newly welcomed OPs , it means leaving the security of the school environment and venturing out into the world either for gap years , university or entering the world of employment .
I am sure you will join with me in wishing all our young people the very best for the year to come and in particular , this year ’ s leavers for whom the OP Association seeks to provide support and guidance as they face new challenges . The OP website is continuously evolving and forms an important part of the way in which we connect with each other . The numbers of those who have registered is slowly increasing , which is very positive , but I repeat my plea from last year that more of you register . It only takes a few minutes and the more people who register , the better it works . There are many benefits and useful information for example you can renew old acquaintances ( if they have registered !), register your willingness to become involved in things such as careers advice and there is detailed information and photographs of both past and forthcoming events . Whilst the main drive is towards helping the younger members , it also applies to members of all ages , we can all experience difficulties during life ’ s journey such as redundancy or a need to take a new direction in life and the OP Association exists to provide support to all our members .
As Rachel touched upon in her introduction , we have had another very busy year on the event front . A highlight for me was the London black tie dinner with record numbers attending – the atmosphere was wonderful , and it was good to catch up with so many OPs of all ages . We were pleased to collaborate with the Friends of Pocklington School committee who put on their first Pocklington Festival event alongside the OP Summer Reunion in July to create whole school community event . The event had something for all the family alongside the traditional OP year group reunions , lunch , school tours , cricket , and tennis . I somehow ended up in the stocks with the Headmaster on the wet sponge throwing stall – all great fun !
The final two events of this calendar year will be the OP Dinosaur Club Luncheon for OPs who left School 50 or more years ago and the London Dinner in November which will again be held at the RAF Club . Further details and photographs of all OP events can be found on the website .
My three years as President will end at the AGM on 9 November this year . It has been a great honour to be entrusted with the position and I would like to thank the members of the Committee for their support during that time . I am also very grateful to Rachel and Leanne in the OP office for all that they do throughout the year to keep the OP Association moving forward . Finally , thanks go to all those who have added their support in both attending events and providing support in other ways .
Joan Gough ( née Sawyer , 75-77 ) President , Old Pocklingtonian Association
Printed on paper from responsible sources .
CBP009738
OPA COMMITTEE
OP ELECTED
President : Charlie Lambert ( 01-08 ) Vice President : Position vacant Treasurer : Eszti Pontone ( née Gyarmati , 95-97 ) Matthew Atkinson ( 85-93 ) Steven Kyffin ( 70-77 ) Trevor Loten ( 70-80 ) Michael McKinstry ( 00-11 ) Richard Skowronek ( 99-10 ) Simon Spence ( 74-81 ) Co-opted : Tom Nash ( 68-77 ) Co-opted : Andrew Wilson ( 89-99 )
SCHOOL APPOINTED
Toby Seth ( Headmaster ) Rachel Dare ( OP Liaison Officer , OPA Secretary ) Lucy Hornby ( Teaching staff and OP 02-04 )
EX OFFICIO
Joan Gough ( née Sawyer , 75-77 , immediate Past President )
AGM 2023-24
ELECTION OF THE COMMITTEE
The Annual General Meeting of the Old Pocklingtonian Association took place on Thursday 9 November 2023 , and the new committee was elected including new OP President Charlie Lambert ( 01-08 ) after Joan stepped down at the end of her three-year tenure .
Next year ’ s AGM will be held on Thursday 7 November 2024 at 7.00pm . During the meeting , the Committee will be elected for the forthcoming year . All OPs are welcome to attend the AGM and / or stand for election . Please make your intentions known in advance of the meeting if possible , by contacting Rachel in the OP office . Nominations for election to the Committee should be sent to Rachel as soon as possible .
The agenda is as follows :
• Apologies
• Minutes of last AGM
• President ’ s Report
• Secretary ’ s Report
• Treasurer ’ s Report and approval of accounts
• Nomination and election of committee
• AOB
( A copy of the OP annual accounts is available upon request ).
Image © PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo
COVER STORY
This year ’ s cover features OP ( 81-89 ), The Rt Revd Graham Usher , Bishop of
Norwich , who played a central role as one of two Bishop Assistants to Queen Camilla in the Coronation of King Charles III on Saturday 6 May . Read the full story on page 10 . The image shows Bishop Graham standing behind Queen Camilla at the very moment she was crowned .
3