FULFILLING THE FOUNDER ’ S VISION W
e may be conducting our interview over Zoom near the turn of the year , but soon , in my mind ’ s eye , I am standing in waders in the sunny River Itchen on a lazy summer afternoon , admiring ‘ the beauty of the translucent water and tussocks of emerald green water crowfoot ’, such is Clare Talks ’ s palpable and infectious enthusiasm for the school ’ s local chalk river , one of her many life passions . Her conversation brims with references to the river ’ s ‘ spawning gravel ’ and the joys of discovering invertebrate river life .
A Geography don , Clare Talks combines her duties running the College ’ s Community Service ( CS ) programme with her own private passions for the natural world ; she ’ s a keen walker and runner whose personal ‘ Everest ’ ambition is to complete the recently designated England Coastal Path . At 2,795 miles long it is the longest footpath in the world .
With so much outdoor activity in mind , we begin our conversation with the merits of the CS programme during the COVID period — presumably the outdoor life has been immensely valuable for senior pupils in the school ?
EVERYBODY ’ S GIVING WHOLEHEARTEDLY TO SERVICE , AND THEREBY MAINTAINING A WYKEHAMICAL TRADITION ; IT WAS PART OF WILLIAM OF WYKEHAM ’ S MISSION AND ONE OF THE KEY AREAS OUR PUPILS SHOULD DEVELOP ; HOPEFULLY INSTILLING A LIFELONG DESIRE TO SERVE OTHERS IN THEIR FUTURE LIVES .
Opposite page : In front of the fishing hut waxing lyrical about the king of the chalk stream , the wild Atlantic salmon
Examining a water sample ; 500 local pupils participate annually in the College ’ s chalk stream programme
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