Students sing over seas
A NEW LIBRARY and other teaching facilities are being constructed at the RGS on the site of our old swimming pool, where Lambton Road meets Eskdale Terrace. The building is expected to be finished by July 2019 and will include art studios, maths classrooms, a large assembly space, and the new library.
The school recently had a small ceremony to mark the occasion of the first steelwork going up, watched by a party including the school’s librarian, and the head boy and girl.
School bursar Mike Pitkethly gave us some impressive statistics about the twelve metre-high building: “Fifteen hundred cubic metres of concrete foundations will support 170 tons of structural steel and 38,000 bricks, creating 2700 square metres of floor space over the three storeys.” We were also told that, by the time the two-year project is finished, 700 people will have worked a total of about 46,000 man-hours.
School librarian Mrs Richardson stated; “I am very excited for the students because the current library has become far too small for our ever-growing needs, especially the sixth form. The new one will be able to accommodate more computers as well as our excellent stock of books and periodicals.”
Once the new building is completed, the last phase might visually be rather spectacular. Before the work started, a number of portacabins were installed at the side of the school field as temporary classrooms. These were brought in on flatbed trucks via the empty space where the old swimming pool had been demolished. However, with the new building in place, removing them on trucks will not be an option. The only solution, says the bursar, will be to lift them out, over the top of the new building using a crane. We look forward to the sight of flying portacabins next summer! THE RGS CHOIR ARE BUSY rehearsing for a forthcoming European tour. Next February, 32 students aged between 11 and 18 will be travelling to Amsterdam to perform in prestigious choral venues such as the English Reformed Church and St Franciscus Xaverius. The choir’s repertoire will offer a sophisticated selection of classical, popular and sacred music. The school’s Director of Music, Zlatan Fazlić, says; “I believe that this is an opportunity for the choir team to build and improve the quality of our singing on an international stage.”
Apart from giving performances, students are also looking forward to exploring sights and experiences such as the famous canals, Anne Frank’s house, and the Van Gogh Museum. Mr Fazlić adds: “Amsterdam is a fascinating city... it will be lovely to visit the cultural landmarks.”
The tour is particularly exciting for younger students, whose singing experience has thus far been limited to local venues.