It’s nearly a year to the day when the Class of 2020’s tenure at Shiplake College came to an abrupt end. There have still been no official in-person goodbyes and despite us thinking we would have held a postponed leavers event before now, we are still not in the position to be able to set a date.
So, to keep everyone connected in the meantime, we hosted a Zoom One Year On Reunion for the year group.
Around 40 Old Vikings from the Class of 2020 joined the event along with several staff who wanted to catch-up and pass on their good wishes, with Mr Howe, Mr Curtis, Mr Jones and Mr Shaw running proceedings.
As the OVs were admitted from the waiting room, Head of Sixth Form, Mr Curtis was there to welcome them, along with lots of banter about ‘lockdown haircuts’.
Then, Mr Howe gave an update on the school before handing over to Mr Jones who conducted a parody assembly with lots of excellence points given out, and a few infractions thrown in for good measure.
Following this, Shiplake’s resident mixologist Mr Shaw held a cocktail make-a-long. All OVs had all their ingredients ready for either a Gin Fizz or a mocktail.
With cocktail in hand, it was time for the Shiplake Bumper Lockdown Quiz, presented by quizmaster extraordinaire Mr Curtis. In round one, OVs had to guess the teacher from the baby photos presented to them. Round two was general knowledge which consisted of pre-recorded videos of different staff members asking questions. The winners for each question were the fastest to respond in the chat.
The event culminated in a relaxed catch-up and chat between the ex pupils and staff.
Our thanks go to Miss Pye and Mrs Brazil for putting the event together.
Miss Pye, said: “It has been over a year now since we were forced into lockdown and had to say a premature goodbye to the Year 13s. The class of 2020 has not only been unable to have a formal in-person farewell, but they have not had a proper start at university or been able to fulfill the gap years they had previously planned.
“Statistics have revealed that 1 in 5 students suffer from a mental health issue, with 33% reporting that they feel lonely. So in this time where a worldwide pandemic has restricted students from socialising and experiencing the normal 'post-school experiences', mental well-being for students is at an all time low.
“This online event was an important opportunity to get the class of 2020 together to catch up and be reminded that they are very much not alone and still part of the Shiplake community.”
Fingers crossed we won't have to wait too long to welcome them all back at the college in-person for their official leavers' event.
