Headmaster’s blog 06/07/22

For me, it has been a wonderful first year in Marylebone – thank you to all within our strong and supportive community for making me feel so welcome. While it would be impossible to list all that has taken place during 2021-22, I wanted to highlight some key areas of school life:

Firstly, the return of sporting fixtures, drama productions and music recitals has provided our boys with opportunities to represent our School, develop their character, build their confidence and skills, and more. I’ve been delighted to see the expansion of our sports facilities at Marylebone Lane this year, with the introduction of our boxercise studio, and I have greatly enjoyed all the plays and concerts that I attended this year. We have very much finished the year on a high with the Summer Concert, The Useless Tree as our Lower School play, and a cracking Sports Day.

Secondly, the staggering number of trips our boys have undertaken – from hiking the Chiltern Hills to sliding down the ArcelorMittal Orbit, and from visiting London’s museums and theatres, to exploring the Brighton coast, to name just some of this year’s excursions. All enabled our pupils to take learning beyond the classroom. Alongside this, we have welcomed many interesting visitors to our School, talking to both pupils and parents about careers options, university admissions, mental health matters and other topical issues, thus supporting and enriching our curriculum.

Thirdly, the valuable and important volunteering and fundraising that our boys have undertaken with gusto, from visiting Marylebone Library to help older people learn to better use digital devices to Year 8 sleeping under the stars to raise awareness of youth homelessness, and from the donation of 100 shoeboxes of gifts in December to West London Mission to raising over £5,000 in our first sponsored spin event. All have helped our boys contribute positively to the world around us.

Last, and by no means least, we now await the exam results of our GCSE and A Level cohorts. Of course, we were wowed earlier this term by our GCSE and A Level Art and Graphic Design exhibition – our first exhibition in a number of years which showcased the hard work and talent of our young artists, particularly as much of their fabulous art was undertaken during unprecedented spells of remote learning.

Now, our current Year 13 hold over 120 offers at universities around the UK (predominantly Russell Group institutions), in continental Europe, and across North America, with institutions such as NYU, UPenn, Babson, Northeastern, Notre Dame, and Toronto all offering places to Wetherby Senior boys. I’ve been incredibly impressed by their hard work and commitment, and by how our dedicated Sixth Form staff have supported and guided boys to achieve their goals. I will, of course, update you all later in the summer when the GCSE and A Level results are published.

There is much to read in our weekly newsletter and, for those of you who were not able to attend today, you may wish to read my inaugural address to our School from today’s prize giving. It is wonderful to have so much to celebrate, and to do so in a formal fashion, en masse, has been a very fitting way to end our year.

Wishing all a pleasant and relaxing summer.