10th July 2020 — Framlingham College is thrilled to announce that Marty Gionis, who left in 2019, has been shortlisted for the “Rising Star of the Year” category at the Independent Schools of the Year Awards 2020.

The Rising Star of the Year award is given to a student currently being educated in a UK independent school or British International School, or who has recently left, who has achieved significant success in any aspect of their life and school career. Criteria included how the candidates may have overcome adversity or materially exceeded normal expectations for their background and age. This may, but will not necessarily, include national or international success in a particular field or some other service or contribution which has had a quantifiably positive impact on their school and/or the wider community.

Marty is an exceptionally talented musician who joined Framlingham College for the Sixth Form with the help of a Pembroke Scholarship.

During his time in the Sixth Form, Marty took every musical opportunity that he possibly could and was always passionately interested in all aspects of the life of the music department.

He was a member of Aldeburgh Young Musicians (a Centre for Advanced Training) and joined the National Youth Jazz Orchestra.

As soon as he joined in Year 12 he made an immediate impact on the life of the whole school. He displayed leadership in rehearsals and performances, and in the way he supported and tried to enthuse other musicians. His creative contributions to a wide range of musical events were incredibly imaginative and risky at times. But through perseverance and the most incredible work ethic, he was able to realise even the most virtuosic and mature performances. Playing two trumpets at once while being accompanied by his own videoed arrangement of himself playing every part in a big band arrangement (on every instrument) was inspirational, exciting and humbling at the same time.

Marty has left a legacy of creative minds that feel safe realising big ideas, and his gentle kind and extremely modest disposition are all facets of his character that pupils still aim to emulate. He showed our whole College community that anything is possible if you believe in your idea and are willing to work hard.

Marty studied A Level Music, Physics and French and got a distinction in Grade 8 Trombone while he was in the Sixth Form. He is now studying Jazz Trombone at Trinity Laban Conservatoire.

Director of Music, Lucy Bloore, comments: “Marty's joyful and curious approach to Music has had a lasting impact on the College. His talent and technical ability are impressive, but his influence is about more than being a virtuoso performer whom others admire. Marty has a thirst for musical experience, and a creative approach that is inclusive and outward looking. He has inspired pupils to think creatively, and to find ways to achieve the sound or effect they want. This has been particularly evident during this year as he is not physically with us, but I can see students developing through a similar approach. He is quite extraordinary as a performer and a rounded musician, and he has helped us to break musical boundaries by achieving what seems to be impossible! We were lucky to have been part of Marty's musical journey, and he should be proud of the legacy he has left behind. “

Framlingham College has an excellent musical pedigree and over the years has produced some exquisite classical singers, famous singer songwriters and award-winning composers. Marty joins the list and we can’t wait to see what his future holds.

The Independent Schools of the Year Awards are judged by an independent panel of experts with the results being announced in October 2020.

16th March 2020 — Framlingham College is thrilled to announce that one of the their teams, Titanic Investments, is through to the National Final of the Student Investor Challenge.

· 36,860 students traded in 9847 teams of four (35,196 UK students in 8799 teams, 1,664 international students in 416 teams) from 996 schools (948 UK, 48 international)

· 500 teams made it to the semi-final

· Only the top 8 teams make it to the final

A team of four Year 12 students – from Framlingham College, Suffolk have battled their way into the Student Investor Challenge finals, beating over 9,800 teams from schools around the UK and abroad.

The Student Investor Challenge, run by The London Institute of Banking & Finance, challenges teams of schoolchildren to invest virtual money on the London Stock Exchange and trade stocks and shares to make a profit.

Titanic Investment, consisting of students Arthur O., Ben S., Tom C. and Theo S., successfully invested their virtual money and finished in the top 500 teams to make it to the semi-finals. They then battled the semi-finalist teams to make the final eight. They’ll take part in the final in London, later in the year.

Bill Bethell, Titanic Investment’s teacher of economics and business, said “The Student Investor competition has caused a real buzz around the sixth from. It has been a tricky time predicting the extent to which the stock market would drop. Titanic Investments made some great tactical decisions over the timings of some of their predictions which resulted in reaching the national final. They thoroughly deserve their place in the final as they consistently managed their portfolio during the competition period.”

Catherine Winter, Managing Director of Financial Capability at The London Institute of Banking & Finance, says:

“This competition is a powerful way of engaging young people with how the finance sector works and relating it to everyday life. By bringing stocks and shares to life through a trading game, young people have proved they can grasp how economies work and the basics of investment.

“Only 8 teams have made it to the final, beating thousands of teams around the UK and abroad. That’s an astonishing achievement; and we wish them the best of luck for the final stage later this year!”

28th February 2020 — Framlingham College Prep School has achieved national recognition and been presented with a once in a lifetime prize which will see them run out at Twickenham, the home of England Rugby, at the 2020 Quilter Kids First training day as an RFU Quilter Kids First Champion.

The school, who have a proud history, has successfully implemented the Quilter Kids First approach to create a fantastic rugby learning environment, ensuring every pupil has the opportunity to play rugby for the school at all levels. It has been an incredibly successful year so far, with a significant number of pupils representing the National Independent Schools’ Lambs U18 XV or being involved in the Northampton Saints Development Programme, whilst the U13 team remain unbeaten in all of their matches and claimed victory in the Northampton Saints & Redrow Homes 7s just a few weeks ago.

There is also a focus on increasing the numbers of girls playing rugby, with the school having an after-school girl’s rugby club which has proved very popular. The environment is focussed on rugby’s core values of teamwork, discipline, enjoyment, sportsmanship and respect. To recognise these values, children are awarded Quilter Kids First green laces.

Coaches have been upskilled to assist them in creating a positive and nurturing programme which is very much focussed on the individual. All coaches have access to Quilter Kids First coaching materials and are encouraged to attend RFU training courses. Sixth form pupils have qualified as referees and officiated in Prep School fixtures.

Nick Gandy, Director of Sport at Framlingham College said:

“We feel truly humbled and greatly privileged to be named as a Quilter Kids First Champion. The RFU’s core values and taking the Quilter Kids First pledge has enhanced and given real substance to the culture of rugby at Framlingham College Prep School. We are blessed to have a coaching staff who have embraced the Quilter Kids First values and whose creativity, enthusiasm and encouragement are engendering a life-long love of the game amongst our pupils.

"It is an absolute honour to see the wonderful sense of pride the children display when they receive their green laces and to spread the word further, we have also started to award them to opposition teams after matches. The importance of the Quilter Kids First values should be at the forefront of how we all (as clubs and schools) approach rugby and we look forward working closely with the RFU to encourage more clubs and schools to commit in the future. There are some exciting developments in the pipeline as regards rugby at the College so watch this space!”

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3rd February 2020 — With 6 teams qualifying for National Indoor and Outdoor Hockey Finals this year; 8 Boys and Girls representing England and Wales at U16 & U18 levels, and a further 14 involved at the England Hockey Performance Centre; five former pupils winning 100% Hockey Scholarships to top universities in the United States (including Stanford); one ex-pupil on the GB Women’s U23 Development Programme and another recently named in the full South Africa squad for the forthcoming Olympic Games, Framlingham College is already making a significant mark on the national hockey stage. With the installation of the most sophisticated video technology, however, it threatens to raise the calibre of its Hockey Programme to another level altogether.

‘The benefit of this video system is going to be enormous - game changing, in fact!’ (Jamie Kingstone: Head of Hockey and former England Men’s U21 Assistant Coach).

The ‘360 Sports Intelligence’ system being introduced at Framlingham College, with nine cameras strategically located around the perimeter of its premier artificial pitch, will allow for a genuine 360 degree viewing of matches and training sessions in HD. It is the first of its kind in the UK and, with no personnel required to man the system, it can be used to benefit FCPS and Senior School pupils (7-18) across a variety of different sports, most notably hockey, cricket and rugby. Most of the cameras are positioned end-on in order to provide a tactical view of the game. This will help teams and individuals in their post-match analysis, as well as during and after training sessions. The system also provides live video streaming during matches, which can be accessed instantaneously by coaching staff on the bench using an iPad, or during half-time team talks.

‘The number of cameras we have here means we can change angles left, right and centre, providing a broad scope of the pitch, rather than the one fixed angle that teams have been used to in the past’ (Sam Rowe: Coach and Royal Antwerp HC & Wales Men’s Performance Analyst).

For parents and supporters unable to make the match or the live stream, this ‘360 Sports Intelligence’ system automatically produces a highlights package which will be routinely screened in the Fowler Pavilion and shared across College platforms. An extra camera along the side of the pitch which automatically tracks the ball is also to be installed. This is a first for hockey anywhere in the world, so it is particularly exciting to think that Framlingham College parents and pupils of all ages will be the primary beneficiaries of such ground-breaking technology!

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10th December 2019 — Framlingham College has had the most successful hockey season in its history.

Qualifying for 6 East Region Finals, the school has been crowned Champions in 4 and Runners- Up in 1.

Nationally, the school were Runners-Up and Quarter-Finalists at the U13 and U11 IAPS Finals – with 4 more National Finals scheduled for January.

This is a staggering statistic for a small rural school in Suffolk.

For the past few years, the U18 Girls’ squad has developed national recognition consistently qualifying for National Finals and regularly finishing in the top 4 in the country.

This year, that success has been filtering down the whole school with Regional and National success for every girls’ team – U18, U16, U14, U13 and U11.

Although the boys’ season officially starts in January, the U18 team has already tasted success winning the Indoor East Championships.

The current medal haul is, as of today’s date is:

U11 Girls – East Outdoor Champions and IAPS National Top 8

U13 Girls – IAPS National Silver Medalists and 5th at East Championships

U14 Girls - Outdoor East Champions

U16 Girls - Indoor East Champions

U18 Girls - Indoor East Silver Medalists

U18 Boys - Indoor East Champions

This tally may rise given the boys’ season has yet to start and the 1st XI Girls, currently unbeaten in the Tier 1 National League Competition, have 2 more games to play and their sights are firmly set on a place in the National Quarter-Finals.

Head of Hockey, Jamie Kingstone, comments: “It truly is the most successful season we have ever had. We have never had more than one team qualify for the Indoor Nationals let alone three.”

After Christmas, the three indoor teams will compete at the National Finals together with the U14 Girls at the Outdoor Finals.

Director of Sport, Nick Gandy comments:

‘This has been a quite extraordinary term for hockey at Framlingham College and our U18 Girls also remain on course to qualify for the Tier 1 Quarter-Finals of the England Hockey Schools’ Championships. A lot of the success that we enjoy is down to the quality of the coaching across both the Prep and Senior Schools, and the amount of time that is spent on the development of the individual. Quite simply, we have an exceptionally well-qualified and dedicated coaching team, led by our Head of Hockey, Jamie Kingstone. As a result, the College hockey programme is now among the very best in the UK. Having won gold, silver and bronze in recent years, we are hoping to add to this medal tally in the New Year.’

The phenomenal season cements Framlingham College’s reputation as one of the best hockey playing schools in the country.

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Notes to Editor: The Independent Association of Prep Schools (IAPS) is a schools’ association with around 650 of the world’s leading prep schools in membership.