Laing
W ell – what a year to become a Housemistress! I believe it would be an understatement to describe the past 12 months as eventful! Although it has been, in some ways, a baptism of fire, the events of this year have certainly emphasised the value of community within the College and within Laing, and in some ways has brought us closer together as we have appreciated each other more. We started the year under strict social distancing guidelines, meaning House Assemblies proved to be quite tricky. We worked hard to try to ensure we met all together at least once a week, sometimes with me shouting to some very spread out groups of students in the Taylor Hall, and on more sunny occasions out on the back field! I was grateful to those who came up with suggestions of ways to bring the House together spiritually even if not physically, and for the students’ continued enthusiasm for just being together! Inevitably the majority of ‘big’ events in the school calendar looked a little different this year. House Drama was the first of these, with each House filming an ensemble piece and a monologue or duologue based around the central theme of ‘hope’, which were then played out in tutor times. Perhaps my funniest memory I have of this year will be the moment I asked Mr Moulton ‘where in the school are my girls allowed to wear their inflatable dinosaur suits?’! This arose when our House Prefects, led by Drama and Music Prefect Olivia Binfield selected Jurassic Park as our whole House contribution. It still gives me joy to think of them roaming around the site in their costumes, together with the fake blood and detached hand they asked me to order for them! I was very impressed with the final production, and was also very proud of Emily Burne who recorded a very moving monologue which received a round of applause in all our tutor group sessions. I feel we were slightly robbed when it came to the awarding of prizes! Sadly the term ended without the usual carol services and festivities, but I know the girls will be looking forward to making them even bigger and better at the next opportunity.
It is fair to say the majority of us found it quite challenging when we went back into lockdown in January and reverted to online lessons. All students rose to this admirably, and made the best of a tough situation by giving their all both academically and in extra-curricular pursuits. I am pleased to say we won the House Strava exercise competition after a very fiercely fought battle between Laing, Clifford and Bellerby, with some students clocking up outstanding times and distances. Rosie Mackman racked up a considerable time playing a very strenuous-looking Beat Sabre game, Ella Proctor put in some very early morning runs and swims, and Jasmine Collings spent plenty of time surfing (with a few unfortunate injuries thrown in!). Everyone enjoyed Wellbeing Wednesday, with students taking part in mindfulness activities, plenty of exercise and many creative pursuits – I know Mrs Flory’s tutor group enjoyed the sunflower growing competition! Tutor groups also worked together to design Kahoot quizzes for us to play together as a House every Wednesday morning, from our individual homes. Returning to school in March was a relief for most, although quite rightly I know a number of members of the House were anxious about returning. It didn’t take long for us to settle into routines again and to appreciate having so much more face to face interaction on a daily basis. Not long after we returned, we held the annual favourite Laing and Clifford Easter Egg Hunt, with the girls becoming increasingly more prepared for their mission to collect chocolate, grapes, avocados and vegan goodies from the back field – the carrier bags for storing their finds are getting larger each year! Shortly after this we hosted a pre-recorded Battle of the Bands competition as a replacement for House Singing, with Emily Burne, Grace Huckstep andMillie Sullivan singing a lovely version of No Scrubs , accompanied beautifully by Diaz Clarke on the piano. By the beginning of the Summer Term, those in examination year groups were beginning to flag, having persevered through a testing schedule of in-class assessments in a bid to collect as much data as possible to go towards their teacher-assessed grades. As such, I
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