Badley Weekend - Bedales Programme for 28-30 September

The Olivier Theatre and Bedales Arts Programme are ten years old!
This is the annual Badley Weekend, when the whole of Bedales takes part in landscape projects - but this year there is more than usual for you to see and do and parents are very welcome to many events.

Friday 28 September, 7.30pm
Michael Pennington vivifies Shakespeare's life and work, and recounts his own life-long engagement with the plays.
Olivier Theatre.  Tickets £9 / £7

Saturday and Sunday
Students will be copse-clearing, lake-dredging, lantern-building, mask-making, mumming, drumming and madrigal-singing AND building a giant hazel sculpture that will be burnt on Sunday evening.  

Saturday 29 September, 7.30pm and 9.15pm
Open discussion - the Badley Jaw - on the place of the arts in education.  Speakers include John Aiken (Slade Professor of Fine Art, University College London) and Rupert Rowbotham (Education Officer, Oxford Playhouse).  This is followed at 9.15pm by a traditional Bedales Merry Evening of music and performance.

Olivier Theatre.  Tickets free.

Sunday 30 September, 7.00pm
Finale of the Badley Weekend.  Gather in the orchard for performances: there will be a Commedia Performance, Madrigals, King John's Morris Men, Mummer's play before a lantern-lit, masked procession with drumming to burn the hazel sculpture. All parents welcome to this too - not tickets required.

For details of individual students committments over the weekend please ask your child or your child's tutor.

Olivier Theatre tickets from John Barker by clicking here or phone: 01730 711511

Parent Support for Bedales Green Initiatives

Since last week's Carbon Neutral Debate at Bedales there has been a great deal of support expressed by parents for these plans - from those that attended the interesting morning and those that unfortunately couldn't make it. There have also been lots of enquiries for more information and how families can help and get involved. Isn't that GREAT!!
If you are one of the families wishing to show support for the Green Committee either through words or actions please contact Martin Box, Chair of the committee, by clicking here

. . . And if you are feeling inspired by green issues you may like to spend a moment voting for The Edge at the Eden Project. The Eden Project is competing for lottery money and need votes for this new development which will serve to expand the Eden Project's eductional platform on environmental change. To vote visit the website here

Kate Williams to play as part of Bedales Arts season

Just a reminder that Kate Williams is playing Tuesday, 18 September at Bedales.

Full details of this next concert in the school’s professional jazz series are in the Bedales Arts brochure and on the main school website but you may be interested in pianist Steve Lodder’s comments, quoted in the local press this week:

“I’ve played several times at Bedales and found it a discerning but willing audience…in other words they know their jazz and they’re prepared to go with something even if it’s a bit difficult, and in the end they’re always appreciative.

“I played with John Etheridge (of Soft Machine fame) and Harry Beckett (of Harry Beckett fame…) at the theatre and enjoyed the atmosphere and the piano, so to come and play with Kate will be amazing.

“I have admired Kate’s playing over the years and so when this came up I thought, who has the right musicality and lightness to make a two-piano gig work? It takes an unselfish player not to crowd a four hand line-up.

“We will be playing original jazz-driven tunes (written for the partnership) plus a smattering of other styles, Latin and a particular favourite of mine which I’ve not played before – Jimmy Ruffin’s Motown hit ‘What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted’.”

The concert at the Bedales Olivier Theatre starts at 8pm and tickets are £9 (£7 for concessions). Box Office: 01730 711 511 or email the wildly efficient John Barker by pressing HERE (also available at One Tree Books, Lavant Street, Petersfield)

Bedales works towards Carbon Neutral

By Don Macpherson
On Saturday morning, students and parents contributed to a lively debate on 'Greening Bedales'. Organized by Martin Box, Mark Taylor and the rest of the Green Bedales Committee, a series of distinguished speakers gave fascinating talks on issues from global warming to green architecture, with issues from political engagement to domestic composting.

As a result parents, students and staff emerged with a whole range of insights, from scientific theories to practical measures. As a first step, the school is intending to become carbon neutral, and re-imagine its founding role in leading debate around environmental concerns.

This conference was a welcome stimulus to the debate, and questions continued long after the end of sessions. Congratulations to Martin, Mark and the many organizers and speakers, for a terrific start to the year.

Polo Club

Bella Tullo, mother of Jaimie Tullo in Block 4 is interested in getting together a group of enthusiastic parents for a polo club. Bella is looking at grants currently available from the SUPA (Schools and Universities Polo Association) towards the cost of setting up a school polo club - but it all depends on getting a group of enthusiasts together and then 'making it happen'.

Please contacted Bella By pressing HERE if you would like to support this new and interesting initiative!

Green Bedales Reminder

Just a reminder that the Green Bedales debate is this Saturday 11am until Ipm.

The Green weekend is being kicked off with the students on Friday night with an environmental band (!) called 'Seize the Day' playing Lupton Hall.




The confirmed panel for the debate:

Charles Secrett | Advisor on Environment and Sustainability to the Office of The Mayor of London; formerly Executive Director, Friends of the Earth (chairing the panel)
Siân Berry | Female Principal Speaker for the Green Party.
Max Fordham | One of the UK’s foremost authorities on environmentally friendly engineering.
Ty Goddard | Director of the British Council for School Environments (BCSE).
James Hanson | Environmental consultant with Jacobs UK Limited.
Maddy Harland | Editor of Permaculture Magazine.
Alexis Rowell | Liberal Democrat Councillor in the London Borough of Camden, and Chair of the Sustainability Task Force.

A professional artist has also been arranged, 'Pen Mendonca', who will be documenting all the key points during the presentation in cartoon form, which should be great fun and also be a good solid record of the day.

GREEN attire optional :-)

Come and tell us what YOU think

Click here to book your free tickets

GCSE Official exam figures

The GCSE Results % A* - C are as follows:

Art 97%
Biology 100%
Chemistry 100%
Greek 100%
Dance 100%
Design 93%
Drama and TS 96%
English 100%
English Lit 99%
French 87%
Geography 97%
German 88%
History 89%
Japanese 100%
Latin 90%
Mathematics 81% - IGCSE
Mathematics 95%
Music 100%
Physics 100%
Russian 100%
Science- D 96%
Spanish 100%
Technology 60%
Textiles 94%

A Warm Welcome

Wishing everybody a great start to the new term. In particular a warm welcome to all new students, staff and parents! We are sure to have another happy and successful year.

Spending Suggestions

The BPA now has a new fund created from various fundraising efforts. How this money will be spent will be decided by a small new committee made up of teachers and parents. We are looking for any suggestions from the community. Some of the ideas put forward so far include:

- Additional planting for contemplative garden
- Further books for all libraries
- Specialist magazine subscriptions
- Money put towards a bigger project - possibly building
- Fund a trip to help the connection school in Swaziland
- Re-print one or more John Badley books now out of print
- Create a fund for teachers to take specialist professional development courses
- More outdoor furniture (benches etc) outside the boarding houses
- Indoor games equipment for Common Room e.g. table football
- Equipment for the Music Schools
- Materials for development of the Green Bedales
- Film editing equipment

All suggestions are very welcome - if you are a parent, teacher or student please write to us as soon as possible.