APS News 27

AbingdonPrep News is the newsletter of Abingdon Preparatory School, Josca’s House, Kingston Road, Oxford OX13 5NX Tel: 01865 391570 www.abingdon.org.uk/prep Editor: Annabel Gaskell Abingdon School is a company limited by guarantee Registered in England and Wales Company No. 3625063. Registered Office: Abingdon School, Park Road, Abingdon, OX14 1DE Registered Charity No. 1071298 AbingdonPrep Farewells & Charity News Charities In these unprecedented times it has been hard to run any charity fundraising events, so we asked the boys if they would be willing to donate an Easter treat for the homeless. The boys were incredibly generous and we collected over 200 chocolate bars! The chocolate will be delivered to The Gatehouse in Oxford who will then distribute it to the homeless and vulnerable people they support. Sam Barder Sam started his role as a GAP Year Sports Assistant in 2018 and made a big impact on us as a community. He forged a great relationship with the staff, but it is his relationship with the boys that impressed us all. When the school realised his huge potential, it was not long before he was promoted to a Sports Coach. As a schoolboy, Sam excelled as a footballer and progressed through the Oxford United Academy ranks. Having broken into the Wantage Town first team at the age of 16, Sam spent a couple of years at Alfredian Park before signing for Didcot in 2016. He was part of the Didcot team which reached the Division One play-offs and the final of the Southern League Cup in 2017/18. In the 2019/20 season, Sam joined Thatcham Town as a semi-professional player, but later returned to his beloved Didcot Town where he remains. With his vast footballing experience, Sam took on the 1st XI & 1st VII (IAPS) football teams and enjoyed several unbeaten seasons with the Under 9A and Under 10A teams. His successes and expertise was not only limited to football. Sam developed his rugby, hockey, swimming and cricket coaching skills over the years and inspired the boys in his charge from Reception all the way through to the Year 8s. Sam drove the school minibus, volunteered to go on school trips and took on lots of Other Half activities at lunchtimes and after school. There was no limit to his boundless enthusiasm as a Sports Coach. We wish Sam the best of luck in his new job, where he will be training to become a Broadband Installation Engineer for Gigaclear. A natural born teacher lost to the commercial sector. He will be very sadly missed by us all! Ashley David-Ward Phillipa (Pip) Usher Phillipa joined the Abingdon Foundation in 2012 as a Year 4 Classroom teacher. Her vibrant and energetic approach to teaching was evident from the start. With very good subject knowledge. classroom management and understanding of new curriculum requirements, her skills set was much appreciated, especially in the Junior Section. Throughout her time at the Prep School, she has involved herself in a variety of events and trips, including visiting Jimba Gede, a school in Kenya we partnered with, in 2013. She has also been active and enthusiastic on the sports field. On a personal level, over this time, Pip has married and had a lovely little boy called James. Pip is to take up a new teaching role at New College Prep School in Oxford. We wish her all the best for this new professional journey. Trudi Hibberd. Snow fun at Keyworker School