Shiplake College News

In the first 'A Conversation With...' feature of the 2024-2025 academic year, we catch up with the Marketing Department's latest addition - Miss Laura Pasmore! Laura is an Old Viking and is the newly created Community and Development Officer and in this feature, we catch up on what she has been doing since leaving Shiplake in 2021, as well as the College's new exciting project... Shiplake CONNECTED.

What is your role and how long have you been working at Shiplake?  

I am working as Shiplake’s Community and Development Officer, which is a new role introduced in the Marketing Department this year. I worked in the department over the summer in an intern version of my current role but only started as Community and Development Officer at the start of September. 

What have you been doing since leaving Shiplake as a pupil?  

I left Shiplake’s sixth form in the Summer of 2021 and went straight on to study psychology at the University of York. I spent the three years of my undergraduate degree loving every aspect of university life and living in the beautiful city of York. I took up playing rugby at university – something I never thought my risk-adverse self would get involved in – which took up a considerable amount of my time, especially in the lead up to the annual York vs Lancaster Varsity Competition, Roses!  

As well as rugby, I spent my time at university exploring York’s countless attractions, visiting as many of the 365 pubs in the city as possible, and reading the occasional academic paper. I graduated in August of this year and have been back working at Shiplake since then.  

How does it feel to be here as a member of staff and not a pupil? 

Definitely different! It is very interesting to see the behind-the-scenes of the running of the school that as a pupil you do not notice or appreciate at all. The support staff who work tirelessly to make sure teachers can teach and pupils can learn are people I may not have known well when I was a pupil but as a member of staff, their constant help and support means you are well aware of how much they do for the school. It is also funny how I now get to talk to teachers and staff without their teacher hats on – you definitely get to find out more about them! 

How different does the College feel since you left?  

The majority of the time I spent at Shiplake as a pupil was during COVID so in that sense the college feels very different as you are now able to see other people’s faces and walk in both directions down a path. The other main difference is girls! Taking girls now in the main school is the best change I think the school could have made and their presence has created an even more inclusive and respectful atmosphere around the college.  

You've joined the department in a newly created role; can you tell us about any exciting developments?  

The main project we’re working on in the Community and Development Team is our new community site - Shiplake CONNECTED. This is a platform where Old Vikings, pupils, staff, and parents (current and former) can create their own profile which allows them to join a range clubs, get invitations to events, sign up for our mentoring service, and connect with other members of the Shiplake community. The site was launched at the end of August, and we already have a fantastic number of people signed up! My job now is to continue to grow the number of people on the site by coming up with engaging content and making sure CONNECTED stays dynamic and useful.  

What does a day in the life look like for you?  

I travel into work every day with Shiplake’s Registrar, Mrs Esther Pasmore, which is pretty convenient as we happen to live in the same house, and I quite like her company. After replying to some emails and approving new registrations for CONNECTED, I will get stuck into a longer task such as researching and writing content for the site or planning events with Head of Community and Development, Mrs Natalie Spearing. After the famous Shiplake lunch (perhaps the thing I have missed the most), I will catch up on admin for the pre-loved uniform site. This involves packaging and posting orders and updating the site as new donations come in. The tasks I do tend to differ each day, so it is difficult to outline a specific schedule of my day-to-day. 

What do you do outside of work?  

Since being back from university, I have started playing rugby at Reading Rugby Club as well as playing tag rugby in a local tag league. I also love running, particularly in the countryside near my house and I am planning to do the Reading half marathon next year! Although this is making me sound like I never sit down, I have always been big into reading, and I spend most of my time outside of work in the world of the book I am reading. I am also a big fan of a brewery/pub trip and love nothing more than a pub quiz!  

What does the future hold for you?  

I wish I knew. In the next few years, I would love to do some travelling with friends and work at more music festivals (something I have done during my extended summers the last few years). Sometime soon, I would also like to explore going back into academia and completing a post-graduate degree. Career-wise, I am hoping I can gain lots of experience in a variety of skills working at Shiplake and use that experience to understand the sort of field I’d enjoy working in.