Abingdonian 2020

81 www.abingdon.org.uk House Reports and the Cobban Prize for his brilliant all round contribution to the school. Nicholas Skelton is a national champion in swimming, and won the Chester Cup. Ashwin Tennant played some marvellous performances and won the Sheldon Peach Prize for piano. Seb Watkins captained the school chess team with distinction. Johnny Stavropoulos again achieved the highest mark in the school in the UK Advanced Linguistics Olympiad, earning a silver, and Torsten Ayerst did brilliantly, especially for a third year, to score a bronze. Todd Stanmore continued to make progress on the national stage in table tennis, as did Christopher Skelton as a swimmer. Johnny James is one of the top middle distance runners in the country, and he and Christopher Skelton are both outstanding triathletes. I am grateful to all my tutors for their brilliant support once again, and it was with real regret that we had to say farewell to two of them. Dr Justice was both supportive and ambitious for her tutees’ progress, and she brought a great deal of fun to tutor time; conspiracy theories flourished! I don’t think there was a conspiracy behind her leaving Franklin’s; she moves to be a boarding tutor in School House, so we will not have to say goodbye to her completely. I thank her very much for the great job she has done for us. Mrs Fishpool is the only tutor to have endured the entire Franklin’s regime, which testifies to her exceptional patience and tolerance. She has been a brilliant sixth form tutor, always prepared to give her time to her tutees, listening to their problems and helping them with their university plans as well as their school lives. She has written superb UCAS references as well as thousands of impeccable and caring school reports, and it is typical of her that although she will not be tutoring next term, she has agreed to write her final round of references for the boys she has been tutoring. She has been a fantastic colleague as well as teacher and tutor, and on behalf of Franklin’s House I thank her warmly and wish her all happiness for her retirement. David Franklin