Downe House
- web site: www.downehouse.co.uk
- telephone: +44 (0)1635 200286
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The Downe House MUN trips seem to be fated to coincide with the wettest weekend each year, as once again this year we arrived in Bath wishing we had brought our umbrellas. Happily, the weather did not reflect the rest of the weekend and we all had a good time.
The Bath Model United Nations is an annual conference for 5 th and 6 th form pupils from schools all over the country. Each school sends delegations representing one or more members of the UN and they take part in a variety of debates mimicking the structure of the real UN.
This year Mr Fuller had done such a good job selling the merits of the weekend that we had enough people to fill 3 delegations and we were eventually assigned India , Nicaragua and the Philippines .
One of the things that makes the MUN different from any normal debate is that you have to represent the views of your chosen country regardless of what you actually think of the topic. In order to do this accurately we had to research our country's political views and stances on various current issues so that we could use them in the debates.
Each delegate is responsible for a different area of current affairs, such as the Middle East or Human Rights, and for most of the weekend we were split up into committees according to our ‘speciality'. This can be unnerving, especially the first time you go to the MUN, as you are separated from the rest of your group and may not know anyone in the committee. However, being the true Downe House girls that we are, this did not faze us and we took it in our stride. Soon enough everyone had spoken in front of their committees and was well versed in the technical jargon needed for the weekend. It is quite amazing how scathing the phrase ‘honourable delegate' can be made to sound when necessary!
Once we had exhausted our reserves of patience for serious debate on the Sunday, we turned to more far-fetched resolutions, which included declaring one committee's chairman a superhero and sending him out to save the world, thus saving us the trouble of trying to sort out the problems ourselves.
Within each committee delegates pass notes to each other as well as speaking during the debates, which often leads to silent but very heated exchanges between rival countries, ending in declarations of war. Our diplomatic skills helped us to avoid any outright wars (except for the minor incident involving Pakistan, India and a nuclear bomb, but they started it so we don't count that!), but some delegates declared war so many times that they were evicted from their committees.
The delegation representing the USA had a hard time, as many countries used the weekend as an opportunity to pass some outrageous motions. One committee dissolved the USA , one re-instated it as a British colony, and another group of countries even declared a ‘New World Order', with each member state claiming a US state as their own. The most inventive idea came from the environment committee, which decided that the US was the ideal place to dump all of the world's toxic waste!
Although there were many entertaining moments, the main focus of the weekend was of course the problems faced by the UN. We all learnt a lot about international relations, and, even more importantly, learnt about how other countries view those same problems. I think we also came away with a much greater respect for anyone who manages to get the UN to agree on anything!
Vicky Spence UVI
Dan Cruikshank - 'Adventures in Architecture'
Dan is a leading expert on architecture and historic buildings and a regular presenter on the BBC. He is best known for his popular series Britain's Best Buildings and Around The World in 80 Treasures; and for his appearances in Under Fire and What The Industrial Revolution Did For Us. Dan's latest series, Adventures in Architecture has recently screened on BBC 2.
Pupils from Downe House have walked the 300km (200 miles) from Downe House to Salcombe in Devon to raise awareness and funds for Cancer Research UK's vital research. The girls arrived wet and tired, but triumphant, after a gruelling 16 day march which took them acorss fields, rivers and along the coastal path.
The competition is open to all students in Year 12 and essay titles are set by Corpus Christi. Poppy will be attending the Prize Giving on 3 July.
Annie entered her design for her AS Level Product Design Resistant Materials coursework and has been selected as one of the 20 finalists. She will take her project and portfolio to the Finals, which will be held at Dulwich College in London on 20 June 2008.
Sunday, 10 August 2008
Performances at 11am and 6pm at 'The Dell', the outdoor performance space in the RSC Centenary Gardens, bordered by the river and Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon.
Bring a picnic, all welcome!
2nd - 4th May in the Performing Arts Centre
‘Times' writer Mary Ann Sieghart gives Summer Term Medley Lecture
Newbury's MP, Richard Benyon, visited Downe House on 25th April speak to thePolitics Society about his work in the House of Commons and the constituency.
Congratulations to Emma Powell (U5) who was selected for NYT's highly acclaimed acting course.
On Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th March, Downe House hosted a charity fashion show. The events were organised by Rosie Fortescue, Georgiana Haig and Celia Thursfield, in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust, raising a total of just over £5,500.
Gillian Clarke, renowned poet, who has written poetry and prose for children and adults, visited Downe House on Sunday, 16 March. Her poetry reading began with her first publsihed poem 'The Sundial' and the audience were immediately impressed by her passionate and erudite ideas......
Diane Louise Jordan, businesswoman and one of the most popular presenters of BBC One's Songs of Praise, gave a talk and answered questions about how her faith influences the way she conducts her own business life and on matters relating to business ethics and corporate social responsibility more generally.
If you missed House Drama, or would like to see your daughter's performance again, a professional Double DVD recording by Kingsbridge AV Limited of all five productions will be available to order at a cost of £22.50 each.
Click here to find out how to order
This Trust was established in November 2006 as part of the agreed resolution of the OFT's recent investigation.
The objects of the Trust are to:
There are three criteria for eligibility:
For further details go to <Joining Downe> and click on <Scholarships>