No . 133 The Trusty Servant
An increase in bursaries is already in GoBo ' s plans for the 21st century . The article argues that this increase will work much better if it is accompanied by a renewed effort to target the money on , in the Founder ' s words , poor scholars . I think the school is well aware that it could do more to admit pupils from the state sector ( only 1.6 % of scholarships since 2000 have gone to state school pupils and the proportion of admissions to Commoner houses of pupils from state schools via the bursary scheme is similarly low ). What is perhaps less appreciated is the role that bursaries can play in raising the academic standards of the whole school . There is a huge pool of very able pupils in the state sector . If bursary funds could be used to attract them to the school , it would not only better fulfil the school ’ s charitable mission , but also contribute to raising academic standards , both directly , by those pupils themselves , and indirectly , by
creating a centre of excellence that attracts more fee-paying applicants . It was in much this way that the first fee-paying Commoners were attracted to the school . The role that bursaries can play in raising standards is especially important given the strong competition currently being experienced , especially from London schools .
If anyone would like to see the full article , please email wincollsoc @ wincoll . ac . uk
Editor ’ s note : For 2022 entry , 42 % of the bursaries were awarded to students coming directly from state school , albeit this is weighted more heavily towards VIth Book than the 20-year average .
Julian Berry ( F , 59-63 ) writes :
The look on Gerald Dicker ’ s face when he handed a small package to me as part of the breakfast mail showed an equal mixture of surprise and alarm ; there were red warning stickers on its outside and a strong humming sound coming from within .
The package contained a queen bee and she was , I hoped , to be integrated with a swarm someone had kindly donated , but which had arrived without a head of state . The hive had already been bought second-hand from the Winchester and District Beekeepers Association and restored in Wood Mill , and the hive was erected in Gater field . Additional supplies like honeycomb were purchased from Pinders in Salisbury ; a very pleasant if hilly bicycle ride on a Saturday afternoon .
To my total surprise the enterprise worked , and the hive filled with honey , so towards the end of Cloister Time I was able to borrow an extractor , and use our house shower room to extract and pot the honey . And very generously my housemaster offered to buy the entire output , around 30lbs of honey , and add it to the boys ’ tea menu . A very virtuous circle !
JE Pinder , my hero , in action
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