31st July 2017

Tutor Farewells
We said goodbye to two fine tutors in Mr Challoner and Mr Edwards at the end of the year and we thank them for their many contributions to Wendron-Gordon over the past few years. Indeed, huge thanks to all of the tutor team and housekeeping staff for all of their efforts on behalf of the boys over the year. Most of all, thanks to Mrs Batchelor, who has continued to support, encourage and look after everyone in W-G. Best wishes to all for the summer break and for the year ahead.

Departing Upper Sixth
We wish the Upper Sixth leavers well for all of their future endeavours and adventures after Bromsgrove. An outstandingly talented year group, they have contributed hugely to a very successful year for the House and we look forward to hearing of many of their successes in the years to come.




A new Head and Deputy of House….
The end of term saw the announcement of next year’s leadership roles in Wendron-Gordon. Head of House for 2017-2018 will be Xaver Freigassner, with Harry Pugh taking on the role of Deputy Head of House. We wish them and the rest of the Wendron-Gordon monitor team all the best for the coming year.

…and a new Deputy Head Boy
We also wish Vinzenz Freigassner a very good year in his role as the School’s Deputy Head Boy. Following on from George Goodall as Head Boy this year, this is another honour for Wendron-Gordon. We have every confidence that Vinzenz will do an outstanding job in this position.

Prizegiving Awards
Prizegiving at Commemoration saw two notable awards for departing W-G Sixth Formers. James Kinder, Captain of both Football and Cricket 1st XIs, was awarded the Tony Limbert Trophy for his contribution to School sport. Oscar Chou was awarded the William Ledbrook Prize for Biology. Many congratulations to both.

Caps and Colours
Congratulations to James Kinder and Jordan Smith, both of whom gained their cricket caps in the final Routh assembly of the year. Miles Rosbrook also received a cap for Drama, whilst Oliver Rogers received his major colours for Drama. Well done to all.


Champagne and Strawberries
On the final Friday night of term, it was a real pleasure to welcome a number of parents and family members of the departing Upper Sixth to Wendron-Gordon, for the Champagne and Strawberries event, held on the W-G lawn. It was a real pleasure to see the boys relaxing with their family and friends on their last night in School, ahead of Commemoration. A few words were said about each leaver, ahead of them being presented with their Leavers Tie and Wendron-Gordon cufflinks.

End of Term Assembly Presentations
In the House’s final assembly at the end of the year, Senior ties, awarded for contributions to School and House life across a number of areas, were awarded to Vlad Khrypun, Ivan Lee, Marcus Ng, Alex Guliev, Sam Foulds, Alex Schranner, Tommaso Vago and Henry Köhler. Junior ties were claimed by Sam Roberts, Daniel Wan, Jamie Wood, Lawrence Yao and Frank Ng. The Endeavour awards, given to pupils who have set a fine example over the term, went to Simi Jolaoso (Junior Endeavour), Jordan Smith (Senior Endeavour) and Kelvin Chong (Commitment award). All three lads had an outstanding term.

Housekeeping Departure
Pauline left the team of W-G Housekeepers after thirty years of service to W-G. A collection around the House saw some lovely gifts and cards presented to her by Mrs Batchelor, whilst the boys stood and clapped her out of the House as she left for the last time as a member of the team. We hope that she will come back next year to visit us, and that she enjoys a long and happy retirement. On behalf of all of the boys of W-G past and present, we thank her for all that she has done for us.




The Next Step
Congratulations to Laurin Scherer and Alex Schranner, both Fifth form, who put on a very interesting and informative talk as part of the Next Step competition on Saturday 24 June. The competition saw teams from most Houses research, present and ask questions on a topic they have chosen that the teams felt would be a good policy for the UK government to introduce. The boys spoke very eloquently on the environment and argued convincingly for the introduction of a bottle return scheme in the UK whereby consumers would gain money for recycling plastic bottles. The boys were awarded third place in an impressively high-level competition. Well done!

Bake Off
Well done to the Lower Sixth formers who spent some considerable time baking the House’s entry for the inter-House Bake Off competition. Xaver Freigassner, Kelvin Chong and Alex Guliev did most of the work, although a number of their Housemates also gave assistance. The theme of ‘recreation’ saw the boys produce a masterpiece that recreated the 1st XV rugby pitch at School. Although the cake was not judged as the best decorated entry, it did gain an honourable mention from the Headmaster.



Helicopter ride
Three W-G boys were treated to a trip in an RAF helicopter when it visited the School on 19 June as part of the Combined Cadet Force programme. Harry Pugh, Haydn Stanney and Vinzenz Freigassner enjoyed a superb view of the School and town from above. In the picture below, W-G can be seen in the centre foreground, to the left of the grey-topped Humanities building.




Fourth Form Assembly Awards
The Fourth Form assembly towards the end of term saw sporting commendations for many W-G lads. Artur Levashov, Jonathan Burke and Sam Roberts were all awarded commendations for their contribution to Athletics over the term. Cricket commendations went to Alex Hinkley (U15A), Jack Gibson (U15B), Dean Zulu (U15C), Simi Jolaoso (U14B), and Jamie Rodway and Andy Chia (U14C).


New Lower Fourth
We were delighted to welcome a group of next year’s Lower Fourth formers when those transferring from Page and Winterfold House enjoyed a couple of induction days on 16 and 17 June. The boys took part in lessons and activities, had tours around the House and School and spent an evening in W-G, getting used to the feel of Senior School. The lads, pictured below, made a really good first impression. We look forward to welcoming our other new joiners at the International induction at the start of next term.



Junior Cricket



The Junior Cricket competition saw the W-G team put up a really good battle against hot favourites Lyttelton, before eventually succumbing to lose the game. The next match saw the boys defeat Lupton House in a very exciting game. All of the boys who competed gave a fine account of themselves, whilst a large contingent of supporters enjoyed the summer sunshine down on the Lower Charford fields. The team was: Jack Gibson, Deal Zulu, Theo Bell, Jonathan Burke, Callum Lee, James Scott, Jamie Rodway, Sam Roberts, Michael Malam, Simi Jolaoso and Andy Chia.




New House Monitor Team
Congratulations to the new Monitor team for Wendron-Gordon for the coming year. The boys, Dzhemal Avdoi, Richie Chang, Kelvin Chong, Vinzenz Freigassner, Xaver Freigassner, Vladyslav Khrypun, Ivan Lee, Georgy Muradov and Harry Pugh, have already started to take on their responsibilities around the House. Best wishes to them all in their roles for the year ahead!



Sports Day Success
Outstanding achievements at the School’s Sports Day in early May saw Wendron-Gordon dominate the day, picking up three of the six trophies awarded, including that of overall winners of inter-House athletics. The Junior team of Lower Fourth athletes came second overall, as did the intermediate team, comprising Upper Fourth and Fifth formers. The Seniors won their competition, and Wendron-Gordon took the trophy for overall winners out of all of the boys Houses. The 4 x 400 team also won the trophy for this prestigious event. Well done to all who competed for the House. They wore ‘the green’ with pride and everyone who took part played their part in a magnificent day. Non-athletes on the day gave sterling support to their Housemates. The teams were: Vinay Nayak, Kody Chik, Daniel Wan, Simi Jolaoso, Michael Malam, Sam Roberts and Sushant Gurung (Junior); Callum Lee, Jack Gibson, Andrii Iermolaiev, Harry Chan, Jonathan Burke, Artur Levashov, Max Lee, Bennett Brockmann, Alex Schranner and Alex Lee (Intermediate); and Harry Pugh, Jordan Smith, Noah Riese, Vinzenz Freigassner, Georgy Muradov, Alex Guliev, Dzhemal Avdoi, Richie Chang, Jason Fan and Vlad Khrypun (Senior).






Young Enterprise awards
Bromsgrove’s Young Enterprise team, Embark, won the awards for Best Company and Best Presentation at the regional awards ceremony in June. Congratulations to W-G boys Andrey Uskov, Kelvin Chong, Richie Chang and Adrian Tse, all of whom committed much throughout the year towards this project, which saw the company produce, market and sell wine holders.


Monitor Appointment
Many congratulations to Vinzenz Freigassner, who in May was selected as a School Monitor for the coming year. The W-G boys are delighted for him; we know he will do an outstanding job.