Termly Reflection 

There is always an exciting energy at the start of a new school year. Combined with fresh haircuts, broad smiles, nerves (understandable), the smell of new books, and the satisfaction of having a pencil case brimming with sparkly stationery… bliss. Perhaps the feeling is the same for children and their teachers…

We welcomed the legendary Mr Paul Fleischack to the helm of Clifton this year. A man whose track record speaks for itself, his calm demeanour and wise persona quickly pervaded the fabric of the school, and can be felt in all corners of the campus.

With matters academic firmly in hand, including the reintroduction of our Grade 000 class, the machine that is sport swung into action, with a focus on swimming, cricket, tennis and squash. There have been a good number of sporting ‘firsts’ already, with many of the children playing new sports. One historic ‘first’ must surely be Olivia Skead’s ‘five-fer’ against Cordwalles during the cricket season! We wish our hockey 1st Team well at the TWC festival, and extend the same to our 1st XV in their tour to St John’s, Johannesburg, over the holidays.

We are proud to announce a ‘mesh’ with Love Notties. Waste paper and tins are being put to good use in their recycling program, which, in turn, generates funds for food parcels for those less fortunate within our immediate community. Once we have established effective systems, the plan is to extend our recycling ‘reach’ to include plastic, glass and the like.  

In the theme of recycling, we are also delighted to have begun a composting programme, very much in its infancy, but one powered by the Senior Primary children, and constructed during a recent Outdoor Learning Day. Our intention is to be able to supply Clifton’s trees and plants with a decent amount of compost over time, with a focus on the 300 indigenous trees so generously provided by the Clifton Trust, and planted above the stream… the beginnings of our 100-Year plan. The campus, already looking spectacular thanks to our Grounds and Estates teams, will surely be a thing of beauty in the decades to come. It may be of interest to know that 3 trees, a South American Monkey Puzzle tree and 2 Oak trees all planted during Colonel Greene’s time have been declared ‘end of life’, and will be carefully felled over the holidays.

The reference to new ‘stuff’ can also be applied to some construction work in progress around campus. What was, at first, Col Greene’s tractor shed, and which has served many purposes (amongst them being ‘Spitfire’ and ‘Hurricane’ dorms, the girls’ dorm – ‘The Cottage’ in the early 1990s, then the Art Room, and, most recently a Grade 5 classroom) is having a major revamp, and will convert into 2 Grade 5 classrooms… we can’t wait! The school shop (with name soon to be revealed) will be relocating to its new and improved spot between Forbes and Haworth fields. Some may remember the building as the old tuck shop.

Forbes Field was named after Headmaster John Forbes, who served from 1962 to 1985. Mr Forbes was a highly regarded sportsman in his day, with a deep love for cricket, squash, and golf. This made him equally highly regarded for his prowess with a cane on the rear ends of mischievous Clifton boys, a good number of whom are current parents. Anecdotally, Mr Forbes’s nickname (‘Dagga”) was thanks to the evil mix of pipe tobacco he used. It was with great pleasure that we were able to welcome Mr Forbes’s daughter, Franki Aitchison back to Clifton in the last week of term. Franki’s husband, Richard, a highly regarded English master who spent some of his career at Michaelhouse, was also able to regale us with tales of days gone by.

Days gone by were brought to mind in another setting, too. During an Outdoor Learning day, Megan Holmes (Grade 4) found a ‘ticky’ (a coin worth 3 pennies) from 1943, minted a year after Clifton, Nottingham Road, came into being! It popped to the surface near the Maple tree… where the original car park for the school had been. We couldn’t help wondering how much tuck that coin could have bought! There has been a steady supply of ‘bits and pieces’ from the campus being deposited at Mrs Goldie’s office. Blake Marais (also Grade 4) found a great big penny (we’re still trying to establish the exact year), although old bottles seem to be the most common find. An interesting titbit for some may be that the area at the obstacle course was apparently used as a rubbish dump when British troops camped at Spring Grove Farm (now Clifton) during the South African wars. Mrs Goldie will supply a prize for anybody who can confirm/ refute this!