Month: April 2019

We have been informed of the death of a former student of College.

Malcolm McKay (1957- 1963) a member of Armstrong House died following an illness and a Heart Attack last Sunday 25th February. He will be remembered by many from his era.

As yet we have no details of the funeral.

The Staff and students at College had an opportunity to say thank you to Paul of the Estates team for his 40 years of service. Gathering in the dining hall, the support staff marked the occasion with tea, coffee, biscuits and a superb cake created by the catering team.

Following this the end of term assembly saw the Chairman of the OSA read some comments prepared by Paul, as detailed below.

“It’s wonderful to still be here. It’s wonderful that the College is still here. Well, I am on Head number No 7, Head     groundsman No 4 and Bursar/Business manager No 4. My first three heads were here for thirty years and the last three were here ten years in total.

“I went to Gladstone Road Junior School and then Westwood Senior School. It was only when I took an interest in the history of the College did I find it was the twin school to Westwood, both designed by local architect Edwin Cooper (who designed more buildings in London than, Sir Christopher Wren).

“Prior to coming to College, I was gardener at an old people’s home in Brompton for six years. Anyway, on to March 1979, I came as gardener at Willersley House when the Gilbert’s were the house staff. Willersley had opened the previous September as a new home for 65 Lodge House boys –  47 of whom boarded.

“The Prep school – Lisvane was at Sandybed Lane. There were 234 pupils and one of the 72 boarders was a certain Zoe Hibberd (now Harrison) in her second term there. Mr Wilson was a day boy in form 5.

“At College, the school was quite different to what it is today. Lisvane Hall was the site of a tarmac tennis court. The gym was where Dr Kehrli’s classroom is. The drama studio and Mrs Walsh’s classroom was the Assembly Hall.

“The Bankory (35, Filey Road) was in its first year as a girls only house. The last of the Armstrong boys had moved out. The boarding community was much larger than it is now with 205 boarders. Anyway, I am sure you are bored with my history of the school, but I have one more bit of history trivia.

“My first headmaster here was Richard Wilkinson who was a pupil at Bramcote. Oswald Cooper was one of the Headmasters and owners of Bramcote and lived in Willersley House. When Mr Wilkinson was a pupil at Bramcote in the 1940s he boarded at Willersley for two terms when it was used as a boarding annex.”

The Chairman offered his thanks on behalf of the OSA stating that Paul has a tremendous insight into what has happened at College over 40 years.  It was since he became a Governor and involved with the  Old Scardeburigan Association that he truly understood the debt the School owes to Paul.

The new website needed archives. The Association was  informed that these were housed in bin liners and boxes in a very small room  in the Sixth Form area. Paul had retrieved these; they were destined to be disposed of in a skip.  He then outlined a number of Paul’s strengths. He described Paul as dedicated, loyal, hard working,  he has a wide ranging knowledge, determination, is always prepared to go the extra mile, is unassuming, just gets on with things, and is kind and considerate.

He observed that there is no person who knows more about Scarborough College than Paul Swinger. His recall, analytical ability and attention to detail assures him of an important position – with the Old Scardeburgian Association when he finally decides to retire.

He ended by thanking Paul  for everything he had done for Scarborough College over 40 years and whilst he appreciated that Paul did not enjoy this level of attention it was richly deserved.

Paul was presented with a gift, by the Headmaster – Guy Emmett, of two sets of photographs of the School.

The photograph shows  Sam and Amanda Dales (his wife, who plays the Duchess) with Scarborough College teachers, past and present who had a super evening out at York Theatre Royal. Sam (Lisvane & Lodge 85-99) directed the play which is notorious for being bloody and demanding.  John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi (1612) is not an obvious choice for an amateur group to perform. With a pared down plot and modern dress, Sam (Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre actor) directs an accessible, fast-paced and engaging rendition of the ultimate Renaissance revenge. Sam directed  York Settlement Community Players which was established 100 years ago and was the theatre group with which Dame Judy Dench worked when living in York. It was a powerful and gripping two hours drama and enthusiastically received by the audience.