WHSU Newsletter 2024
A message from the WHSU Committee Welcome to our latest WHSU newsletter which we do hope you find interesting.
We are always delighted to get such kind and positive feedback from you and the 2023 newsletter was no exception, inspiring memories which are lovely to hear and share.
of calm where the less academic side of education was enjoyed such as sewing, pottery and music lessons.
With members of all ages living all over the world with such interesting tales to tell, we always love to hear from you, so please just get in touch. Stories and memories are kept in the WHS archives and play an important part of documenting the history of the school. The WHSU Committee meets regularly and our meetings are now held in the Private Dining Room in the Hastings building, named after Edith Hastings the first headmistress of the school, and refurbished as part of the incredible development programme under the name of Project Ex Humilibus. Hastings Dining Hall is on the site of what many will remember as Avon House. I recall the excitement when this house was purchased in the 1970s as it had an outside swimming pool, a rare thing for a city school to have then. However excitement diminished pretty quickly when we discovered that from April until July we had to jump into the unheated water for weekly swimming lessons with no dithering and threats of detentions for screaming which was considered most unladylike. However despite that, Avon House was generally considered a place
have been dwindling as we no longer charge for membership and we have no income as such apart from donations and a small amount from the sale of souvenirs. The largest costs we incur relate to the production and distribution of this Newsletter and the Annual WHSU lunch. With reserves low we therefore plan to send future newsletters by email folding it in with the main school Alumnae mailing. We ask all those who would like to continue to receive the newsletter to please sign up on the enclosed form. If you cannot receive an e-mail version, please let us know via the form and we will send you a printed version. You may wish to print off your own copy at home. Your assistance with this is greatly appreciated and will help make the sharing of WHSU news and activities more sustainable – both financially and environmentally - going forward. We are also very aware that over the last few years the numbers joining us for the annual WHSU lunch in the spring have fallen and so we have decided to merge this lunch into the WHS Birthday Reunion lunch in November. This will be subsidised for WHSU members. Last November’s lunch was very well attended with a mix of old girls from across the years who enjoyed the tours around the school. Your invitation to the next lunch which is on Saturday 16 November 2024 in enclosed we would really love to see you there. Best wishes to you all from Sarah Mitchell and the WHSU Committee.
In June, I was delighted to be invited to the 2023 Speech Day for Years 9-11 held in the amazing new Auditorium - the perfect venue for events such as reunions, concerts, gym and dance displays and parents evenings. At Speech Day the girls put on an impressive demonstration of their skills with speech, dancing and singing which were all excellent. Among the many awards made was this year’s WHSU annual prize, won by Tabby White. Becky McKinlay, the Chair of Governors made an inspiring speech and I felt proud to be involved with such an incredible school. At our latest committee meeting we discussed some necessary changes that we, as a Union, must make over the next few years. The funds of the Union
Do we have your email address? Sign up for future newsletters on the enclosed reply card. Editor’s Note: Apologies to Claire Strong née Munby whose surname was misspelt in the last newsletter.