22 May 2023

Beechwood Fencers Bring Home Medals from IAPS Championships at Millfield

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE BEECHWOOD FENCING TEAM WHO COMPETED AT THE IAPS FENCING CHAMPIONSHIPS AT MILLFIELD SCHOOL.

The Under 11 and Under 13 boys were in large pools, and demonstrated their sheer determination and stamina in a long day of fencing bouts. Congratulations to all who, when it came to the quarter finals, took points off England and National Fencers.All in their first IAPS Champs, Under 11 boys, Jonah H finishing 8th, Joseph S 12th and Jonas S (a year young!) 20th out of 25 fencers.

The Under 13 boys were fantastic, Will J being the veteran of the competition was an incredible support to all the other fencers in the team. A role model in his fencing too, composed and tactical, finishing an impressive 4th, narrowly missing out on a bronze medal, with the medallists all having previously competed in national and international vents.

Issac G, showed tenacity and perseverance, a year young in the competition, taking 5 points out of 10 off a current England Fencer to just miss out on the semi-final stage. Finishing 8th, he did himself and Beechwood proud!

The first time at the champs a year young, Matthew F fought until the very end, adapting tactically and a dogged attitude taking his final match to the wire. Finishing a very respectable 17th out of 21.

The Under 11 girls, were an army in the competition, warming up in the preliminary round and supporting each other throughout. In the knockout stages they had nerves of steel and gave it their all. Final results, Uju took the GOLD in a tense bout vs. Belmont Mill Hill Prep School. Josie D and Scarlett B took the bronze and Georgie H, Katherine T and Malin S-L finished 5th, 6th, and 7th respectively.

Congratulations to the whole Fencing team, you smashed it and we are all incredibly proud.

Thank you to the coaches and staff from Paul Davis Fencing Academy for their unending support and encouragement, and to the parents and staff who accompanied our fencers all the way to Millfield.

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26 Apr 2023

Beechwood Park Team Crowned National Debating Champions

Youth Speaks:A Debate is organised and promoted by Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland, and is a four stage competition designed to support and encourage the development of effective communication skills in children aged 11 to 17.

The competition aims to offer young people:

1. Experience in speaking on a public platform as a member of a team;
2. An incentive to formulate ideas on topical subjects and to put these forward while being in opposition to another speaker;
3. Discipline in dealing with a topic in a limited time;
4. The opportunity of learning and practising high standards of expression, presentation and appearance;
5. Impartial feedback and assessment of performance by experienced adjudicators.

Teams of three pupils prepare and deliver a short debate on a topic of their choice in front of an audience.

The Beechwood team, composed of Aidan Burger (12), Josh Davies (13) and Tommy Hubback (13), and guided by Beechwood English Teacher, Helen Beavis. had fought their way through local, district and regional qualifying rounds, before travelling to the Lawrence Sheriff School in Rugby to take part in the National Finals on Sunday 23 April.

In the final, the boys debated against teams from Rookwood School, Andover, Redmaids High School, Bristol, King Edward VI School Brimingham, Kyle Academy, Ayr and Ysgol Treffymon, Holywell, North Wales. Debates centred around topics as varied as “Let’s Ban Fairy Tales'' to “Should Schools Uniforms be Compulsory?” and “Private Schools Should Be Abolished” and ”Authentic Casting Is Necessary In The Acting Community”. The Beechwood Team’s topic centred around the Monarch and whether or not it should be abolished, a relevant topic as the country approaches the Coronation of King Charles III next month.

Confidently chaired by Aiden, Tommy and Joshua then eloquently and articulately argued for and against this motion, combining a confident delivery and well-reasoned arguments with touches of wit leaving, the audience both impressed and entertained. Despite strong competition from the other schools, the judges were unanimous in their decision that the Beechwood boys should lift the 2023 Intermediate Youth Speaks trophy. Not only did the team win the overall competition, but Aiden was also named Best Chairperson, and Joshua Best Opposer.

This win goes one step further than the 2022 Beechwood Debating Team who won the Regional Final last year, in a year when no National Final was held.

Of the achievement, Beechwood’s Interim Head, Maureen Cussans, said

“The whole school is incredibly proud of this phenomenal team performance by Aidan, Tommy and Josh. They have worked hard to get to this level, supported the whole time by the indefatigable Mrs Beavis as she has tirelessly coached and nurtured them to this outstanding success. Taking part in competitions such as Youth Speaks is just one of the many opportunities, both within school and beyond, that our Beechwood Top Formers (Year 8 pupils) are able to engage in, and this year, the boys’ success will, I have no doubt, act as inspiration to many pupils lower down the School. As all three boys move on from Beechwood to take up 13+ academic scholarships at their chosen senior school in September, they go safe in the knowledge that they have more than left their mark on Beechwood with this resounding success"

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07 Dec 2022

Beechwood Park Appoints New Head for September 2023

Beechwood Park School in Hertfordshire has appointed Christian Pritchard as its new Head from September 2023, following a rigorous recruitment process that attracted a high level of interest.

Mr Pritchard, currently Head at Beachborough School in Westbury, Buckinghamshire, was educated in Northumberland and started his teaching career in Yorkshire. He then spent time overseas teaching and leading British International schools, around the world, from Taiwan to the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates. In 2012, he returned to the UK as Head of Ranby House Preparatory School in Nottinghamshire. He moved to become Head of Beachborough School in 2018 and he will join Beechwood after five very successful years there.

Mark Hammond, Chair of the Board of Governors at Beechwood Park said:

“The Board has been extremely impressed by Christian’s vision and strong academic, pastoral and leadership skills. He is highly regarded as a Head, and is ideally placed to take Beechwood Park forward over the next few years, building on its reputation as a leading co-educational day and boarding prep school”.

Mr Pritchard will be coming to Beechwood Park with his wife Zoe who is a Primary and Early Years specialist teacher. They have two teenage daughters, currently attending boarding school in Oxfordshire.

Following his appointment, Mr Pritchard said:

‘I am thrilled and delighted to be joining Beechwood Park in September 2023. It is a remarkable school with a very bright future, where children learn with a tangible buzz of excitement. After visiting the school this term, and meeting the children, staff and governors, I feel that Beechwood Park is perfectly placed to provide a world class, sector leading, innovative learning experience to the children of Hertfordshire and beyond, which is tremendously exciting! I look forward to meeting and joining the Beechwood community, in due course, as we embark on this journey together.’

Following the departure of current Head Ed Balfour in December 2022, Maureen Cussans, experienced IAPS Head and Beechwood Park Governor will lead the School in the role of interim Head for the two remaining terms of the academic year, during which she will work closely with Mr Pritchard to ensure a smooth transition next summer.

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