WELCOME // FROM THE HEADMASTER
“ I am delighted to be able to respond positively to these , and many other questions that COVID caused us to consider . Yes , there ’ s little doubt that the pandemic has left its impact , and we should be mindful of this for the next few years , at least . But COVID and its ensuing disruption have also strengthened our community and encouraged us to look at the Pocklington landscape through a new lens .
A WARM WELCOME FROM THE HEADMASTER
At the end of JRR Tolkein ’ s epic ‘ The Lord of the Rings ’, the protagonist , Frodo Baggins , asks himself : “ How do you pick up the threads of an old life ”? After two years of COVID-related disruption , we have been forced to ask ourselves this question on several different counts here in School .
Would our pupils , following such upheaval and change to the way we normally work , return smoothly to their previous existence ? Would our Lower Sixth cohort apply for prefect roles with the usual level of enthusiasm ? Would House Music deliver the same impact as before ? Would people step forward to be ‘ gunged ’ during Charity Week ? Would pupils ’ hands shoot up in lessons in the same way they did in 2019 ?
I am delighted to be able to respond positively to these , and many other questions that COVID caused us to consider . Yes , there ’ s little doubt that the pandemic has left its impact , and we should be mindful of this for the next few years , at least . But COVID and its ensuing disruption have also strengthened our community and encouraged us to look at the Pocklington landscape through a new lens . This has resulted in our pupils not just diving back into full school life , but also taking on new challenges and approaching things in new ways .
Examples of this abound ! We are delighted with the advent of girls ’ Cricket , girls ’ Rugby and competitive non-contact Rugby which will be introduced from next year . Golf has landed at Pocklington to popular acclaim . CCF has moved from its traditional time slot , but the enthusiasm for this most valued of leadership development programmes remains high . Our pupils have had the chance to spend longer in lessons debating , discussing , and deciding , and our newly launched lunchtime concerts at All Saints ’ Church have gone down a storm . New trips are on the horizon – to everywhere from California to Andalucia .
Some things very much remain the same : Toast is still at the top of the Sixth Form agenda , the quality of drama in the TST has been superb , House Music was as energetic and enthusiastic as ever , and the History department made their annual pilgrimage to Rievaulx Abbey .
Summing up a year in my few paragraphs is impossible – our A level linguists will attest to the challenge presented by their ‘ summary ’ exam exercise – but I hope that this latest ( and newly designed !) edition of the Pocklingtonian gives you a distinct flavour of both the new and the familiar that has been on show this year at our School .
Toby Seth Headmaster
2 THE POCKLINGTONIAN