Dear Former Pupils Mrs King has asked if I would write something

2012 - 2013
Dear Former Pupils
Mrs King has asked if I would write something about what is currently
happening here at Beaconhurst for your newsletter. I hope you find
what follows of interest – things are certainly changing!
All-weather play area: this was formally opened on our recent Open
Day on 4th May. This facility has already enabled pupils in the Junior
School to develop skills
in tennis in particular Headmaster John Owen
and so improve our
competitiveness higher in the school. The surface will
also be well used for hockey, and no doubt our profile
as a school for both sports will be raised as a result.
Pastoral care developments in the Senior School: a
key strength of our guidance system is the vertical
tutoring groups (i.e. mixed year groups). Younger
pupils can learn from senior ones all under the
The new All Weather Play Area
guidance of a tutor. Tutor groups are small and
manageable and come under the umbrella of a House.
I am seeking to strengthen the role of the House in the school, and to this end I have appointed a
senior member of the existing Guidance Team to each one. The role of the new Housemistress or
Housemaster is central to how guidance or pastoral care will be delivered from August 2013. Each
Housemaster or mistress will oversee the academic, extra-curricular and pastoral development of
each member of their House and work with each tutor dedicated to their House to achieve this. The
House base will be in the main building, and a meeting room will be available nearby for confidential
meetings. Tutors will report to their respective Housemaster/mistress and any issues will be dealt
with by one of these senior members of staff. By strengthening the House identity all through the
school it is hoped that a distinct pastoral pathway will evolve so further enhancing what is already an
outstandingly positive feature of the school. I have appointed the following staff to fill the role of
Housemaster/mistress for the House shown:
BROWN
CAMERON
MORTON
PLANT
Mrs Fiona Casey
Mrs Marlene Banks
Mr Simon Nash
Mrs Vanessa Tierney
Supporting the team above will be Mrs Dawn Haughton in her new role as Head of Health and
Wellbeing. This role incorporates the duties expected of a Child Protection Coordinator but is much
more forward looking as the post aims to establish pupil needs at an early stage too. Mrs Haughton
will also oversee the PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education programme).
Taking on the mantle of Head of Careers will be Mr Grant Norcross. He has been shadowing Mr
Nash who is the current post holder and is fully briefed on what is required for next session.
46 week nursery: you may not know it yet, but our nursery has been awarded the highest category
of excellent in all six areas that were inspected by the Care Inspectorate. We now aim to extend this
outstanding offer to parents for 46 weeks of the year, not just in term time. We have also
rationalised our fee structure in this area of the school so making our outstanding nursery arguably
the most competitive in the area too. If you are reading this and you have children of nursery age
(i.e. over 2yrs and 9 months), or you know someone who has in our area, do contact us.
Wrap-around care all through the school: we are rightfully proud of our 8am-6pm provision,
targeted as it is at working and busy parents. A slight anomaly has existed at J1 and 2 level where
school has ended early on a Wednesday afternoon. In order to make it easier for parents from
August 2013, J1 and 2 will end lessons at the same time throughout the week i.e. 15:15. We are
aware that for some parents this gap in provision has been a headache and we hope that this
development will help attract new families to the school.
Grant Robertson
S5
Mountain Bike Training Area: Mr Norcross has been hard at work, along
with Mr David Sanderson, our new Outdoor Pursuits Co-ordinator, as well as
a team of pupils to develop this superb resource. It is down the hill from the
Headmaster’s house (shortly to become a reception – see later). It is
designed to provide challenges to riders wherever they are in their riding
development and, in this sense, has the power to appeal to adrenalin
junkies and timid riders just the same. The next stage is to continue the
tracks so that they create a circuit through the grounds, including as it will
the slopes overlooking Airthrey Road. A start has been made on this part of
the project as well. I congratulate the team who have worked on this project
and I am sure many pupils will gain a huge amount from the challenges it
will provide.
Piping and music in general: the school’s music has moved forward this year under the guidance of
Mr David Bain and once again we are able to offer piping instruction for our pupils – this is just as it
should be in a Scottish independent school such as Beaconhurst. I look forward to hearing the swirl
of the pipes around the campus as our pipers develop their skills. Keeping on the theme of music, it
was great to hear Miss Emma Shaw, daughter of Mrs Claire Shaw who teaches in the Junior School,
speak about a charity that is close to her heart at the Christmas Concert in Dunblane Cathedral. This
raised £1850 for this orphanage in Tanzania and show cased where gap years can take our Former
Pupils these days.
Upper School (S5 and S6) Centre: to underline our commitment to this area of the school, we are
busy finalising our plans for this development. The administrative functions of the school will move
to the former Headmaster’s house and the space created in the main building will be used for an
S5/6 Common Room and a dedicated study area. The House base will also be in the first floor of the
main building.
A spin-off from this is that our
campus security can be
improved as all visitors will
need to report to a reception
that is not in the middle of the
school.
Further security
improvements are in the
pipeline.
There is the intention to
change the second and top
floors too in the main building.
Learning Support will relocate
Proposed plans of the main building redevelopment
to the middle floor and this
will release space in the Junior School to improve provision for junior classes. Swap Shop will locate
to the basement and have a separate dedicated entrance.
Extension of the school day: currently there is one morning of the week – Thursday – when pupils in
the Senior school are in school for an 08:40 start as this is the day we have a morning assembly. On
the other four days tutor group starts at 08:45 with a start to lessons being made at 08:50.
However, regularly I hear from staff in both the Senior and Junior schools that 5 minutes is not
enough to address the administrative matters each morning, let alone have the opportunity to
discuss any issues a tutee may have. For this reason we are removing this anomaly and every
morning will start at 08:40 in both the Senior and Junior schools. The intention here is to give a
greater opportunity for the high quality of tutee/tutor interaction to flourish.
Visiting speakers: we are welcoming increasing numbers of outside speakers to the school.
Sometimes these are for the benefit of staff at INSET, for example, but on the whole they are for the
benefit of the pupils. We have now had visits from two local MSPs in Keith Brown (SNP) and Dr
Richard Simpson (Labour). Both explored the theme of political leadership, and both did it in
refreshingly different ways. Continuing this theme of Leadership we have also been visited by Col.
Alan Litster RM, CO of 43 Commando in Faslane. In January we had a visit from George Robinson, a
specialist in the area of inter-personal skills whose background has been in practical and academic
work at the University of the West of England. He was a huge hit, both with the staff that he
addressed and the parents that he worked with in the evening of his visit. So, by popular request
from all areas of the school, we have invited George back to give January’s presentation again. This
will be on the evening of Monday August 19th at 19:30 (Easyjet permitting). On Tuesday 20th he will
work with staff during the day and then give the next phase of his presentation on that evening,
again starting at 19:30. An issue we have, given that we are a small school, is the repercussions that
can occur when children in a year group fall out with one another. George is helping equip all the
adults involved in the school to cope with this. We have also had presentations under the aegis of
our new academic enrichment programme, from Kenneth Ferguson of the Robertson Trust, one of
the biggest charitable trusts in Scotland, and also from Alistair Urquhart, who wrote the
autobiography ‘The Forgotten Highlander’ which documents his time in the hands of the Japanese
during WWII. Needless to say, this was highly informative and yet challenging too and some quality
work has flowed from this talk. Remembrance in November was marked by the visit of Col Stuart
Douglas, the Army Careers Liaison Officer, who spoke to the whole school assembled as they were in
front of the main house about the meaning of the event. He made a great impact too. If any FP
knows of any interesting speakers who may be prepared to come to the school to talk to the
pupils, do let us know and we can take the link further.
Oklahoma: the Expressive Arts show this year is at the MacRobert Centre in the University,
and will run on Tuesday 25th and Wednesday 26th June. I appreciate just how much many
FPs have gained from involvement with this type of production and it would be great to
have your support at this year’s one if you can possible make it. Tickets from the
MacRobert.
Open Day 4th May: it was great to meet a good group of FPs who were present at this exciting event.
My son, who starts at Beaconhurst in J1 next year, called it an Opening Day as we were opening two
key developments on campus, but it was also very special for me to
meet former Beacon pupils, as well as a good group of more recent
leavers from the school. I hope that more FPs will feel able to come
to such events in future and see just how their old school is moving
forward. Once we announce the date, do please round up as many
FPs as you can and bring them along
– I look forward to meeting them.
The school – your old one – is moving forward, and at some pace at present. We intend to have in
place pathways for expressive arts, sport and outdoor education that extend from the very start of
the school’s offering at nursery level to S6. In addition we will have, as you would expect, a coherent
programme of academic progression that runs throughout the school. Crucial to our future is our
past, and I am keen to engage with FPs from whatever era in the school’s evolution. My wife and I
recently visited the London reunion of the Beacon Old Girls, and a truly joyful occasion it was too. I
hope to host more events of this sort here at school and look forward to working with a rejuvenated
FP network to bring such gatherings to fruition. You will always find a welcome here. All I would ask
is that you let us know you’re coming, and please bring a friend or two when you do come – some of
your stories are fascinating.
With all good wishes,
Yours sincerely
John P Owen
Headmaster
Future Events
Drinks
Please join us for drinks in the MacRobert Bar at 6.30 on Wednesday 26th June before the Expressive
Arts production of “Oklahoma”.
Glasgow Reunion
Kate Jackson will be in touch soon about an event she plans in the autumn.
10 Years On
Sarah Mitchell hopes to organise an event to mark the 10 years since her year group left
Beaconhurst.
London Reunion
On Saturday 20th April
on a glorious spring
day, Yvonne Horsfall
Turrner very
generously hosted
another successful
reunion at her magnificent house in Lewisham. It was a very happy event, made especially
interesting this year by the presence of the Headmaster and his wife. Everyone listened attentively
as he described his vision for the school and how he perceives a Beaconhurst education. It was
fascinating to hear how the present day school has developed from the Beacon of the past,
establishing valuable links.
The 2013 London Reunion
Pictured from L to R:
Jill Ford, Susan Kerr (Davidson),
Susan Barber (Elliott), Sylvia
Howard (Smith), Liz Owen, Lesley
Myles (Gunn), Bessie White
(Pyke), Frances Martin (Johnson),
John Owen, Yvonne Horsfall
Turner (Thomson), Fiona Dibley
(Weir), Anne Hambridge
(Paterson), Jean Benson
(Paterson), Kay Topham (Cook),
Elissa Bowyer (Forbes), Elizabeth
Graham (Grew) and Winifred
Fleming (Adam)
Obituries
Aja Lushington
It is with great sadness that we heard of Aja Lushington`s death on the 30th September 2012. Aja was
born in tea plantation country in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, in 1924, and lived there until she was seven
years old, then returned to Tighnabruaich with her sister Thelma and her parents. She was a pupil at
Beacon School and left in 1942 to study languages at St Andrew’s, returning in 1950 to teach French
and German. She remained there until her retirement, having been promoted as Deputy Head to
Clifford Hughes in 1976. After her retirement she went back to live in the family home, sharing with
Thelma until her death several years ago. Only in the last few months did Aja give up her
independence and move into the Invereck Eventide Home.
As Beaconites in the 1950s, we were all a little in awe of her as a
teacher, her loud voice and strict classroom control meant that there
was “no messing” in her class. However when we progressed from
Brownies to Guides, she was the leader of the 2nd Beacon Group and
we then saw a different side to her. She still kept us in order, but she
would take us to guide camps and there we learned a lot of life skills
and had a great time into the bargain. I have fond memories of Leckie
camps at the weekends when it poured and as the water level rose,
we floated the plates to each other in the sodden tents, or the
weekend that we camped in a bell tent and the temperature was
certainly somewhere below freezing and we all froze during the night
….and Aja was always there to cheer us on in spite of everything!
Aja with Clifford Hughes
Summer camps were another experience when we would go with 1st Beacon to somewhere like St.
Andrews or Oban for a week, and joined up with Miss Slessor and her guides. Those days were great
fun with camp fires and midges but the sun seemed to shine on us most of the time!
Aja was secretary of the Former Pupils’ Club for more years than I can recall. She remembered all
her old pupils and had a keen interest in their progress throughout the years, attending our reunions
and keeping us up to date with news of our members.
Latterly, she was involved in local affairs in Tighnabruaich, and was a leading member of the WRI.
The “Two Lushington sisters” were well known in the village and I am sure will be sadly missed, both
there and by all the school pupils who remember her.
Her death seems to be the end of an era as she was the last of the “old school” in more ways than
one. Kate Jackson, Carol Sinclair and I attended her funeral service in October in Tighnabruaich, and
it seemed appropriate that the sun shone, the sea glistened and the trees showed their beautiful
autumn colours on the day that she was laid to rest.
Deirdre Maxwell
Since learning of Aja’s death, the school has heard from numerous FPs who all wanted to record
their sadness at her parting and the impact she had made on their school days. Some were fellow
pupils when she was a pupil at the Beacon, some were her colleagues when she returned as a
teacher but most were her pupils. She was clearly a strict but dedicated teacher who inspired a great
love of the languages she taught. As pupils matured and got to know her better, they came to
appreciate the warmth of her personality and her sense of fun. She had a prodigious memory of all
her pupils and kept in touch with many throughout her time at the school and later as secretary and
treasurer of the FP club. Here are a few comments to give you a flavour of the many others we
received.
Mary Black
We stayed together in Claremont and as I was inclined to take time at home lessons and Aja liked to
study, we spent most evenings together in what was then the Domestic Science kitchen, quieter than
the sitting room! We “Dug for Victory” when younger gardeners were called up but unfortunately
one morning Aja put a fork through her welly and hurt her big toe – and that put an end to our early
morning digging for a while.
Betty Scott
When I joined the staff in 1965 as a Speech and Drama teacher, I felt I had walked into the cast of
“Miss Jean Brodie”. Two members of staff did not talk to one another. We were allowed one
digestive biscuit each with our coffee and these biscuits were carefully counted out. If one of the
warring pair handed round the biscuits, she would deliberately miss out the other one and vice versa.
Then Aja would quietly rise and silently offer the last biscuit to the person missed out. This was a
daily ritual. One day Aja had taken some girls on a trip and she instructed me to make sure everyone
had a biscuit!
Lesley Myles nee Gunn
I have many fond memories of Miss Lushington. A superb teacher of French and German, she
demanded rigorous attention to the correct use of grammar. Although a strict disciplinarian, her
sense of humour livened up our lessons and helped to motivate us. I remember appearing in several
French plays directed by her, “Le tour de France” (written by the class with much help from her) and
excerpts from “Le Voyage de Monsieur Perrichon” and “Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme”. These comic
excerpts were enormous fun and despite the fact that our audience probably understood little of
them, we hammed it up to such an extent that our efforts attracted wild applause!
Many years later, when about to embark on teaching French in a prep school, I wrote to her for
advice which she willingly gave. Since then I have enjoyed teaching French to people from age 4 to 84
….and all because I was inspired by Miss Lushington.
Isobel Wilson
She came to Beacon to teach when I was in 4th year and though she never taught me, I had a lot of
dealings with her. She was secretary/treasurer of the FP Club for 40 years and when I took over from
her in 2001, she was an immense help to me, knowing absolutely every former pupil of the school.
She was a great asset to the school and will be sadly missed.
CAROLYN MARGARET WILKINSON (nee Webster)
31 December 1942 – 8 January 2012
It is with deep sadness that we announce the
death of Carolyn Wilkinson on Sunday 8th January
2012, following a 2 year courageous and bravely
borne battle with cancer.
Carolyn was a Founder Member of the UK BMW
Historic Motor Car Club. She was well known to
members for over 20 years having been a regular
entrant with her husband, Richard, in most of the
Club events. In 2003 Carolyn helped Richard to
organise the annual Spring Rally which was a 4
Carolyn Wilkinson
day, 450 mile event which started in Blackpool and
crossed the Pennines to the “Heartbeat” country of North Yorkshire.
Carolyn was born in Glasgow on New Year’s Eve in 1942. An only child, Carolyn grew up in Scotland
and attended The Beacon School in Bridge of Allan before moving with her family to Letchworth in
Hertfordshire where Carolyn attended Hitchin Girls’ Grammar School. Carolyn was a keen tennis
player. Her greatest love though was ballroom dancing for which she gained many medals, often
with distinction.
In 1959, at the age of 16, Carolyn and her mother moved back to her mother’s hometown of
Keighley in West Yorkshire. There Carolyn met Richard who was later to become her husband.
In the meantime, Carolyn attended Secretarial College in Bradford and obtained employment as a PA
and secretary to the directors of the then well known exclusive department store in Bradford, Brown
Muffs. After a number of years Carolyn decided she would look for a position in Keighley to save
travelling and became a PA for the directors of EA Roper Foundry Engineers until her marriage to
Richard in 1970. Shortly afterwards, Richard and Carolyn were blessed with two daughters, Jane and
Katie, and in latter years she became a doting granny to Sam, Max, Sophie, William and Toby.
Carolyn was a devoted wife and mother and her support to Richard, Jane and Katie was unwavering.
She was a proud housewife and loved to spend her time looking after Richard and the girls. Carolyn
loved also to walk their Springer Spaniels, Gemma and Poppy.
In any time Carolyn had spare, she loved to be involved in charitable work. She was a very active
member on several committees including the NSPCC (for almost 30 years), the RNLI and Yorkshire
Cancer Research (for just over 25 years). In addition she also held the role of treasurer on the NSPCC
and Yorkshire Cancer Research committees for almost 20 years. Carolyn thoroughly enjoyed these
roles which suited her meticulous nature and attention to detail. Following Richard’s serious illness,
she also became a big supporter of the British Heart Foundation. Due to all Carolyn’s charity work,
she was very proudly invited to the Buckingham Palace Garden Party but regrettably, due to other
commitments, was unable to attend.
Very sadly despite the many thousands of pounds Carolyn was involved in raising for Yorkshire
Cancer Research, unfortunately none of the treatments available proved successful in combating her
illness. One can only hope that her hard work and dedication helps others and a cure will one day be
found.
Carolyn was an exceptionally warm, kind and caring lady with an extraordinarily thoughtful nature.
She was always bright and smiling with a fun loving nature which oozed energy. Carolyn will be so
dearly missed by all who knew her.
Betty Thompson (nee Allan)
It is with regret that I have to inform you that my
dear mother passed away peacefully on the 4th
March, 2013, aged 95 years.
She was born in Rangoon, Burma, and was sent to
The Beacon (as it was known then) with her two
older sisters, Jean and Norah, when she was 5
years old, in 1923. She boarded at the school with
her sisters and they went to their spinster Aunts
for the school holidays until her mother came
home permanently from Rangoon in 1930. For the
next 5 years she went to the Girls High School in
Glasgow and then went to the famous “Dough”
School also in Glasgow.
Betty Thompson
Betty was at Killern hospital for 7 years working as a Secretary for a Neuro-Consultant, but then in
1946 she travelled South and met Jack Thompson. Shortly after meeting him they married, settled
down in Potters Bar, in Hertfordshire and she never returned to Scotland to live, ever again. They
did however have many golfing holidays up there which they thoroughly enjoyed. In 1951 she had
her first child, Jeremy, and then I was born (Lucy) in 1956. We had a very happy childhood and were
extremely well cared for. Betty stayed at home to bring us up and then when Jeremy and myself
married and had our own children, she devoted her life to them. She was always enquiring after
them and subsequently knew everything about them. Consequently they all have very fond
memories of her and it was only 2 months before her death when she saw her first great grandchild,
Harry, who was born to Gary and Samantha (Lucy`s daughter).
When Betty was 88 she moved down to Cranleigh in Surrey to be next to me which was a fantastic
achievement to do at such an age! For the next 6 years she made new friends and had a wonderful
life with me and her son in law. She visited all the National Trust houses, gardens, places of interest,
beaches, restaurants and cinemas all within a surrounding area of 40 miles and enjoyed them all.
She is very much still in all our hearts but now resting in peace.
I have attached a photograph of her taken a couple of years ago when she was on another holiday
up to Scotland.
Regards.
Lucy Johnson (daughter of Betty Thompson)
It is with great regret that we also announce the death of the following:
Jeanette Smith nee Alexander who died on the 21st November 2012 after a very brave fight against
breast cancer.
Patricia Playfair who died suddenly in Spain at the age of 55. Having studied Art at Edinburgh School
of Art, she had taught Art at various schools.
Ben Jones
Ben Jones left Beaconhurst in 2004 at the end of
S4 but he’d already been bitten by the mountain
biking bug when Mr McKenna had taken a group
of pupils to Glentress. He rode a lot in Scotland,
including the West Highland Way, but when he
was 15 he heard through some friends that Trail
Addiction, a small British company based in Peisey
Nancroix near Les Arcs in France, needed a
website. He had learned various web skills
through his Computing Studies so volunteered to help. He went out with his father, designed his
first website, got a free holiday – and completely fell in love with the place! He returned the next
year for a month and by 17 he was guiding other enthusiasts down the mountain trails.
Ben went to Edinburgh University to study Geography but he returned every year during the
summer to work as a guide. It was extremely hard work, taking charge of a group riding during the
day, mending their bikes in the evening and generally making sure they had an exciting but safe
holiday. By the time he had paid his fares and any repairs to his bike, he was lucky if he broke even,
but he had the time of his life, pursuing the hobby which was what he most enjoyed in life.
When he left university, he decided to work for Trail Addiction full time, first as a guide and then
last year he ran it: bookings, accounts and day to day management. Another tour operator working
in the Alps saw the systems and processes he’d put in place and asked him to develop something
similar for them. Word spread and since then he has been working freelance for a selection of
clients both in the Alps and the UK developing booking management systems. The work is
intellectually challenging but clients appreciate his understanding of the business and ability to
respond to their specific requirements. This flexible work allows him to support himself while
skiing, climbing and biking as much as he wants. Last summer for example, he guided the
Professional World Cup Racing Biking team at Aiguille de la Grands Sassiere, a dream come true.
Ben is now starting off on a new
venture, spending three to four months
in the summer in the Alps with his own
company, organising and guiding
mountain bike trips. Mr McKenna and
Frazer Robertson had a two day taster
last year and returned home full of
praise. This will also allow him to
maintain his client base out there. For
the rest of the year he will divide his
time working from the UK and exploring the world, his perfect life style.
Dunblane Carol Concert
After leaving school I decided to take a gap year before continuing my studies at university. During
this I spent four and a half months in the Arusha area of Tanzania, living in a small village called
Nkoaranga which is 5km up into the mountains: I taught English at both the local primary and
secondary schools, and did care work at The Small Things orphanage. I had an incredible time and
really grew attached to the children whom I taught and cared for. Towards the end of my time, I
was given the chance to become a board member on ‘The Small Things’ – a non-profit organisation
which was being set up by a fellow volunteer to support Nkoaranga Orphanage and its parent
hospital. The orphanage is an incredible place: the children are all so happy and full of life, despite
many of them having difficult backgrounds, and the women who work so hard to care for them and
provide a safe place for them to grow up are truly inspirational. I was extremely grateful to be
offered the chance to do something to support them all once I was back in the UK, and so I jumped
at the chance!
The Small Things has completed several projects since being set
up in June 2011. These include Project MAJI (‘maji’ is Swahili
for ‘water’) which involved installing sustainable mechanical
filters into the water system in the orphanage kitchen and
providing removable ones for the different wards in the
hospital. Before this, the water had to be boiled on the stove
and then left to cool before it could be drunk, resulting in
numerous occasions of lots of children asking you for water
when there was none currently available. The new filter means
that lots of water is readily available and not having to refuse the children water is a great feeling!
We also took on ‘Light Up the Night’ which was a twofold project: rewiring the orphanage and
installing solar lighting in both the orphanage and maternity ward at the hospital. We decided to do
this due to a fire which was started on Valentine’s Day 2009 which was due to a short in the
electrical system and which seriously injured two children and would have killed all seven children
under 9 months had it not been for their heroic rescue by one of the orphanage Mamas. We
decided that solar lighting would also be a big help due to the frequent power cuts which led to the
use of candles and kerosene lamps whilst changing babies, and creating the mammoth task of handwashing all the children’s clothes! Project Light Up the Night has resulted in the orphanage being a
more pleasant and safer place for the children and Mamas.
In August 2012 (on my mum’s suggestion!) I approached Mr Bain to
ask whether he would consider holding a concert which would raise
money for The Small Things. I knew that the term calendar would
already be very full, but to my delight he was very supportive, and
agreed to organise a Christmas Carol concert which would raise
money for Project Education. Project Education works with The
Foundation for Tomorrow to ensure the sponsorship of the children
to attend a high quality boarding school and receive a good
education, without which they would be shunted from orphanage to orphanage and at best become
house servants. The Christmas Carol concert raised £1,850 towards four children, Pendo, Andrea,
David and Abdulli, to start school this January. This will give them the chance to become the
amazing young people that they can be and I am so grateful to everyone who was involved in making
the concert such a success! I was lucky enough to revisit Nkoaranga Orphanage again this winter
which meant that I was able to wave all four children off to school and I am really happy to say that
they have all settled in well and are really enjoying school!
Emma Shaw
Simon King
Simon was a pupil at Beaconhurst from the age of 3 until 13. Last summer he returned to the school
as one of the two guest speakers at Prizegiving and this is what he said about his experiences since
then.
It is a quarter of a century, 25 years, since I left Beaconhurst (then Beaconhurst Grange) so I feel very
old! It is a school I was very happy at so it is good to be here today.
In my final term was the 1987 general election, Margaret Thatcher’s last victory, and I was bitten by
the political bug. I formed my own political party, the People’s Democratic Party, wrote a manifesto,
made myself Prime Minister and, crucially, enjoyed appointing Beaconhurst friends to various
different Cabinet posts – and having odd reshuffles…And I have to say I found all of this great fun
(and fun is a theme I will return to).
I remembered this 1987 childhood Fantasy Cabinet experience in May 2010, as I sat with David
Cameron as the senior civil servant helping him put his first Cabinet together. I knew how to do this,
as over two years before then I had worked with Gordon Brown on various reshuffles. I did this in my
job as Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, a role I have now had for over four years for two
different Prime Ministers with very contrasting styles. Prime Ministers always have four senior civil
servant Private Secretaries, each looking after a quarter of the government for them. I cover home
affairs: Home Office, Ministry of Justice, counter-terrorism, national security and, for light relief,
culture media and sport. I manage the Prime Minister’s relationships with these Departments and
Secretaries of State to ensure that what he wants to happen, happens.
It is strange but true that Prime Ministers have many fewer civil
servants than other Ministers so I provide lots of policy advice. I
help him deal with various crises - phone hacking, riots, various
terrorism emergencies (some of which never see light of day, but
can be very busy to work on), the Olympics. I write speeches for him
and help him prepare for Prime Minister’s Questions (Gordon
Brown facing David Cameron and then David Cameron facing Ed
Milliband). The Prime Minister always has one Private Secretary
with him whenever he is working. We are in meetings like Cabinet
and COBR when there is a crisis. We travel with him. It’s fun sitting
by him in private jets and motorcades, but in an age of austerity it
can as often be on the Tube. I also get to meet the interesting
people he meets: the Queen, Barack Obama, the Archbishop of
Simon King outside
Canterbury, the world’s eight best tennis players. Is Roger Federer
No 10 Downing Street
the greatest man to enter Downing Street since Churchill, I
wondered, and of course, I must mention here Andy Murray. I actually had the bizarre experience of
umpiring a game when the Prime Minister played tennis with him in the State Dining Room.
Generally it’s a job which is very hard work, but also lots of fun.
So how did I get from my Fantasy Cabinet as a 13 year old in 1987 to helping with the real thing over
the past four years? I won’t give all the details of my embarrassingly colourful past but I certainly
took a rather unusual path to my current position.
I left Beaconhurst at 13 and went to boarding school in England. I had a fairly disastrous time there
because I was lazy, a poor performer and got comfortably the worst A-level results of anyone in my
year. And after school, I never got anywhere near graduating from a university. Frankly I had little to
show for my early twenties, when I simply had no idea what I wanted to do. I had a couple of short
term jobs, then got taken on by the Home Office as a temp in a very junior clerical role. That is
where everything changed: I worked my way up in the Home Office, getting on to the civil service
fast stream and eventually was asked to apply for the job as Gordon Brown’s Private Secretary for
Home Affairs. So it’s been quite a journey – and rather different from my colleagues, who were
generally real stars at school and university.
What do I learn from it, looking back over the years? Well, two things I should say (and they make
me question whether I really deserve to be here today!): first, as I say, I never really got on with
formal education and second, I wasn’t very good at wining prizes either. I certainly didn’t win any my
last term at Beaconhurst, perhaps because I was concentrating too hard on putting my first Cabinet
together?! But discovering that fascination with politics, power, policies, running things as a 13 year
old was extremely important. It was when I got into that world properly as a temp in the Home
Office that things really started to take off for me because I found myself really enjoying working
hard at something which had always just seemed like fun to me.
So what I would like to say at this
Prizegiving today is this: to anyone
who has won a prize, that is a
fantastic
effort
so
many
congratulations and please feel very
proud; and to anyone who hasn’t,
please don’t worry about it too much
because whether or not you’ve won a
prize today, I believe that the most
important thing is for you to think
l to r
honestly and carefully about what you
Deputy Head Angus Weir, Head Boy Sandy Scott, Kevin
Simpson, Dux Thomas Barker, Simon King, Head Girl
find fun in life and what excites you.
Holly Wilkinson and Headmaster Iain Kilpatrick
Then think about what you might be
able to do with that because then,
hard work seems like fun and you
really can go far. There are endless options: in my case, it is politics; for my brother, Paul (who was
also at Beaconhurst and who did very well at school and university – you should really have invited
here today!) it is films and television so he now writes and directs films and television programmes.
Einstein said: ‘Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its
whole life believing that it is stupid.’ This seems a strange thing to say but I think he meant that
everyone, everyone in this room is completely brilliant at something, even if they don’t know what it
is yet. It can take a while to find out what you’re brilliant at but there is something - and a very good
place to look for it is where you have most fun.
Simon King
Holly Wilkinson
Holly Wilkinson, last year’s Headgirl, gave this speech at her final Prizegiving to explain what
Beaconhurst meant to her.
I am sure everyone is expecting me to stand here and talk to you about my memories from my
school career but how do you summarise 10 years, 370 weeks, 1850 days and 18,500 lessons in 5
minutes? If Mr Weir would like to check these figures afterwards he may be interested to know that
I have completed 103,600 minutes of maths and that this is a non calculator paper.
10 years ago, at the beginning of J4 I
met my year group, a group of 20
something people, most of whom
would be with me for the rest of my
school days. What was also a shock
was the distinct lack of girls. There
were 7 of us in total which seemed
very strange to me. It became clear
that this was never a problem or
indeed noticeable. This was of
course until we were thrown into
Scottish Country Dancing during our
PE lessons. For some strange reason
the boys insisted on dancing with
each other leaving the girls all alone
and a bit puzzled. Throughout the
years it is safe to say that nothing
has changed. Our end of school
prom was last week and the boys
were still dancing with each other.
Moving from Junior school to the
senior school is a difficult step for
everyone. You are not only
expected to move classroom every
lesson with a different teacher, you
must also follow a senior timetable.
Thankfully we have a transition year which although it made finding different classes and school
buildings easier, had a school uniform that was so different from both junior and senior school which
made you stick out like a sore thumb and you were automatically “the new kids” again. You hated it
the first time and the second time wasn’t much better. However, once you got your bearings and
became used to the back breaking weight of your school bag, you were ready to begin first year of
senior school.
S1 and S2 were very general years that gave me a flavour for all the subjects on offer in school so we
would be prepared to choose our Standard Grades moving into S3. Towards the end of S2 we were
introduced to the adventures of outdoor education. Lots of training was given to us about how to
pitch tents and use the trangias appropriately. We were all dreading it. Where were we supposed to
plug in our hairdryers and straightners? And how far away are the showers and toilets? The answer
to what seemed a couple of simple questions was not the outcome we had hoped for! However,
being able to pick our own groups turned the daunting experience into a lot of fun.
I chose to be with my best friends but being a group of VERY indoor girls our camping experience
would have been great if we didn’t find ourselves somewhere in the middle of the Cairngorms, knee
deep in bog, surrounded by various creatures of the wilderness, trying and failing to read a map in
horizontal rain and gale force winds. It definitely was not an ideal situation. At that moment in time I
couldn’t help but think back to the briefing given by the teachers on our training day: “It will be fun”
they said; “It is character building” they said. My heart sank at the memory, realising how wrong I
thought they were. But reflecting back on it now I have some really good memories from outdoor
ed’ that will stay with me for a very long time.
Having been prepped for a whole year in the art of study skills, a class that everyone found boring
and pointless at the time, we began our Standard Grade journey with this information at the back of
our minds. However, after not doing as well as expected in our S4 prelims, it dawned on us that the
information given to us probably should have been put into practice a lot sooner than study leave.
Study leave seemed to most of us like an extended Easter holiday where we could laze around and
do nothing. Our eyes lit up at the prospect. In reality it was to be the hardest 4 weeks of the year.
Our exams were dispersed within these 4 weeks, some just days apart and a lot of all-night study
sessions were put into practice to ensure
maximum fact retention. After a difficult 4 weeks
all we could do was wait until our exam results
came through the door and we then realised that
progression into 5th year was actually possible.
However, I learnt that a little bit of studying all the
time is a lot better than leaving it until the last
minute. I am now grateful I took my own advice
for my remaining years.
Head Girl 2011 - 2012
Holly Wilkinson
My final year at Beaconhurst has flown by and I
have had the honour and great opportunity of
being appointed to a position of authority within
the school. I feel I have utilised the skills I have
gained throughout my school career and used
them to develop my personality and confidence
further. Helping organise various events and
taking challenging tasks throughout the year has
made me a more rounded individual and has set
me up well for my chosen area of study at Dundee
University.
Although wary of the size of Beaconhust to begin with, I now realise that the smaller classes and
more 1 on 1 teaching has given me the chance to develop set skills and challenge myself both
academically and socially. 6th year has also given me the chance to work closely with members of
staff and my peers and for that I am grateful.
Throughout our whole school life we prepare to gain the qualifications we need to move on with our
lives after school. However, Beaconhurst offers something more. It provides the important part of
developing personality, confidence, and character in everyone. I wish you all the very best of luck,
especially Junior 1, in your remaining 24,050 lessons and 134,680 minutes of maths.
Holly Wilkinson
Rhona Kay
On leaving uni I spent two years carrying out my legal
traineeship in Glasgow. When I qualified, I moved to
Edinburgh to take up an assistant solicitor role with a
private practice firm, specialising in commercial litigation.
I stayed with that firm for 3 years, then took up a role
working in-house for Standard Life in their litigation team.
It was a fantastic experience working for a large
international company.
After 5 years at SL, I was contacted by a recruiter on
Linkedin about the role (which I now hold) with Cardif Lux
Vie. The job sounded very interesting and I had a couple of interviews and here I am! I am working
now, out of litigation, in the Wealth Management sector. My company is developing a savings life
assurance bond in which UK clients can invest. I'm responsible for providing legal advice for the UK
market. It's a very different role for me, so lots to learn.
Cardif Lux Vie is part of BNP Paribas group and the main language spoken here is French. Having
only studied French to Standard Grade level and given that it has now been 17 years since I finished
my Standard Grades(!), it's been a steep learning curve. However, I'm really enjoying living in
Luxembourg so far and it's a fantastic opportunity and great experience.
I really enjoy my sports. During my time in Edinburgh I played Hockey for Standard Life, and held
various roles on the club committee, from social convener to club secretary - the role I held just
before I left SL. I also love to play squash. I was a member of the Grange Ladies' second team for two
seasons. Here in Luxembourg I've been playing with the Aberdeen Asset Management hockey team,
which has been great. I got introduced to one of the guys on the team through one of my friends
from Standard Life. I have also played squash here, but not as often as I'd like. I intend to join a local
club soon. I also love to ski and try to get to the alps for a week at least once a year.
I have been on some amazing trips abroad over the
last few years. In 2009, I travelled around Thailand.
I then travelled around Colombia in 2010 with Jo
Lawson and three other friends and last year I
spent the month of October in Nepal. Nepal was a
fantastic experience. My friend Bronwen and I
hired a guide and trekked around Annapurna. It
took 15 days and was challenging at times, but I
loved every minute of it. We hiked to 5416m to
cross the Thorung-La pass. I felt a little sick with
the altitude going over the top, but was fine after
we descended again and what a view from up
there!
We then travelled to the south and trekked in the jungle
for 2 days trying to spot some tigers - without success,
unfortunately. I did see some very big spiders and
almost stepped on a poisonous snake that was sun
bathing. The scenery in Nepal was just breathtaking
though and I would recommend it to anyone.
Rhona Kay
Helen Park
Next week I’m travelling down to Warwick to meet my
friend Marge and spend 4 days there. Nothing odd about
that you might think - but Marje and I met in 1960 sitting
in the back row of Miss Lushington’s French class in
Room 5 so we have been friends for over 50 years.
Though I was a boarder and Marje lived in Bridge of
Allan that never affected our friendship. Through her I
met my husband and we have shared our lives through
infrequent visits – due to pressure of family and work – but also through a monthly letter for the last
40 odd years. Yes, a LETTER actually written down on paper although we have progressed to PCs and
printers! She lives in the very South of England and I live in the Borders so we haven’t met up for 15
years but when we do it’ll be as if we’d seen each other yesterday. I hope Beaconhurst engenders as
strong and lasting friendships as The Beacon did.
Memories from Hurst Grange
My brother and I were at Hurst Grange from 1939 to 1942, in his case, and 1939 to 1944 in mine.
Our parents were in India my father being ICS. We had been shipped back to UK in 1936 to go to
boarding school starting with Angus Field in Aberdeen until it shut down in '39 then on to Stirling.
While we were there L.H.Plant was the Head and as I remember it he started the place and had
flown Sopwith Camels in WWI. The main Master I remember was a Mr. Kinnear who taught Latin
and Greek, ran the Scout Troop and the choir. There also was a "Nunky" Watson who taught maths
and lived just around the corner.
Several years ago on one of my trips I visited Stirling and found the old place. I was rudely shooed
away by the people living in what used to be Mr. Plant's house - the right hand one as you look at
the school from the golf course. They thought I was scouting the place for a robbery and knew
nothing about it having been a prep school!
I remember the shooting range. It started me on a long career in target shooting ending up with my
marksmanship ability having me removed from an infantry draft being sent to Korea and held back
to become an instructor in basic training -- lucky me!
I also well remember the gym. There used to be a rope hanging from the ceiling at the Castle end of
the room. There was a moulding (probably part of the stable stalls) set in the corner. We would
swing the rope diagonally from that corner. One after another we would climb onto the moulding
and leap onto the rope as it swung back and forth attempting to get as many on the rope as possible
- sort of like trying to stuff a telephone booth.
One of our great tricks was to listen for German planes at night with our ears to upturned enamel
chamber pots under our beds. Surprisingly we could pick up their unsynchronized motors sooner
than those who operated the official sirens. Then, we would try to get a peek of them before we
had to go down to the shelter which was the dining room on the bottom floor.
I’m glad to hear the old place is still operational under a new label.
Bill Clark
FP Catch Up
Jennifer Begley
married
Cian Hayden on
28th August 2012.
Sheena Cheema
qualified as an
Outstanding Teacher
and has a job in a
school in London.
Ronan Crossan is going to
university to study
surveying.
Gordon Cameron
married Janine, a
beauty therapist, at
Solsgirth House on
19th October 2012.
They live in Stirling
and Gordon works as
a technical coordinator for a
utilities firm.
Robert Davidson joined the Argylls when he left school and has had a very
successful army career. Two years ago for personal reasons he was advised to
transfer to the Royal Highland Fusiliers where he is now a Colour Sergeant. His
nickname is 'THE DUG'. It was given to him when he'd not long been in the
regiment and was over in Kosovo. Apparently he's very determined and as the
saying goes, when something puzzles him he's 'like a dog with a bone' worrying it
till the problem is resolved.
He is at present serving in Afghanistan as second in command to the CEO. Sadly,
this tour began with the terrible tragedy in which three of his regiment were
killed and many others seriously wounded but thankfully Robert is fine and
hoping to be home on leave soon.
Kathryn Hamilton married Matt Payne at
Hopetoun House and is now living in the
Borders.
Blair Hardie is now living in
Newbury, Berkshire
Lisa Henderson nee Smith married Iain at
Turnberry on 29th September 2012 after 11 years of
courtship! She closed her beauty salon two and a
half years ago to join the family business which
runs a private employability programme on behalf
of DWP across England and Scotland.
Isobel Dick is a beauty
therapist at Blythswood
Square Hotel, Glasgow,
and is engaged to Ben
Dooner.
Alex Hynes is now studying Music
Business at Stow College. He was
nominated for a Scottish Alternative
Music Award in the Best Acoustic
category and has also signed with a
record label in Glasgow. His first EP
came out in May.
Euan Lawrence is now managing an online
print and design company called
1oakprint.co.uk as well as acting as a social
media guru with clients all over the UK. In
addition, most nights he is a DJ in
nightclubs – and this year is DJ at the school
prom, something different as he never got
to his own prom!
Paul King married Eloise Moody
on 29 September 2012.
Dale Logan is working for
Prudential.
Duncan McCulloch is now living
in Frankfurt
Fiona McLure is working in
Strathdevon Nursery in Dollar
as a Senior Early Years Worker,
one of the youngest to hold a
post like this for a long time.
Kevin MacIsaac is now
living in Sydney and had a
baby daughter Lilith on 12
December.
Kevin McMorrow is engaged
to Elizabeth Relf.
Stewart McKay has had a busy life since he
graduated from Dundee! After two years
working as a trainee district manager for
Lidl, he decided he wanted to see the world
and headed to Korea to teach English as a
foreign language. He only intended to stay
for the one year and travel the Far East in
the process. However, he found that he
really enjoyed teaching and also met his
future wife. He ended up staying for a
second yearly contract, then got a job
teaching in the public school system in a
middle school where he has found himself
for the past 2 years.
He got married in Thailand in October 2012
to his wife Amanda from Toronto, Canada,
and had their first son, Harry, in April 2013.
They plan to stay abroad until 2015 when
they will probably return to Scotland to
allow Harry to start the education process
at home.
John Meharry will be studying
at University of Glasgow for a
masters in sport and exercise
science and medicine from
September 2013.
Fiona Menzies has just been
awarded an Accelerated
Graduate LLB from Stirling and
she hopes to go on and do her
Diploma in Legal Practice at
Strathclyde.
Andrew Murphy and
Maggie McColl married on
21 July 2012
Laura Muckett is now living
in Tranent, East Lothian, and
is the Marketing Manager at
the Scottish Seabird Centre
in North Berwick. She loves
her job managing all PR,
marketing and social media
for the five star visitor
attraction and sits on the
senior management team.
Her first child, Isobel, is now
6 and her little brother
Lewis James Muckett was
born on 20 March 2013.
Laura Jayne Nevin won a
competition by Campaign
for Wool to design a
sweater for John Lewis.
Steven Riddell left school to complete an HND in
Civil Engineering at Stow College
in
Glasgow. From there he went on to achieve a 2:1
BEng (Hons) at Paisley University again doing civil
engineering. Finally he moved up to Aberdeen to
complete an MSc in Safety and Reliability
Engineering at the University of Aberdeen. Having
been a sponsored student throughout the MSc
with the Royal Academy of
Engineering and
Petrofac fellowship scheme, he now possesses a
full (RAC) membership. He is now working at
Lloyds Register in Aberdeen as a project manager,
a very reputable offshore verification company
who deal mainly with third party - inspections.
Laura Ross nee
McKay had a
daughter Hollie on
12 November, a
sister for Jasmine.
Kirstie Smith was in the top
10 of Miss Scotland 2013.
Allem Talakshi married
Samina Nasib in July 2012
and had a baby daughter on
27th May 2013
Samantha Wray nee Muir
married Kenny in 2010
and had a daughter
Phoebe on 13th
September 2012.
Alan Roughead has
completed his traineeship
and now has a job with
MacRoberts the solicitors
in Glasgow.
Emma Shaw has been awarded a Canadian Robert
T Jones Scholarship exchange place at Queen’s
University, Ontario in academic year 2013 – 2014.
These scholarships are designed to reward allaround excellence in students exchanging between
the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, and
selected Canadian universities. They are awarded
on the basis of outstanding academic performance
to candidates who demonstrate a passion for the
pursuit of learning and a commitment to the
ongoing life of their university and/or wider
community.
Steven Riddell with
his brother Chris at
their sister’s wedding
Martin Roughead
is working in
London in UBS
Global Asset
Management. He
is to be married in
November to
Sarah.
Duncan Turner now runs his own business Carbon Lighting" which was
started 6 years ago. He mainly produces lighting solutions for architectural
projects but he does a wide range of work from high-end domestic LED
lighting to a recent commission creating a robotic "transformer" from a
Landrover with artist Kriksix. One of his most exciting projects involved the
lighting for the Olympic ceremonies.
Home wise he is quite settled in Ayrshire with his wife Jamie and two sons,
Jason who has just turned three and Chris who is 15 weeks. The house they
built is almost finished so he anticipates marketing it early in 2014 with a
view to moving closer to Bridge of Allan – where he would like to start
building again!
The family are quite active outdoors and sail regularly. Duncan is also still
vehicle daft and has a collection of about 15 vehicles now including a WW2
tank transporter!