On Friday 25 March, the Foundation Office officially launched its very first fundraising campaign “Defined by Vision, United by Ambition”.

This monumental moment in the School’s history was marked with a launch event at Holme Park. Guests included Old Blues; parents; past parents; governors and trustees, who arrived at the School for a welcome drinks reception in Stone Hall; providing opportunities to meet and chat with others from our wonderful Blue Coat Community.

Guests were then invited to take a seat in the Buttery, where the evening was introduced by Chairman of Governors, Peter Bertram. Peter and the governing body set up the Foundation Office four years ago, with a view to increase fundraising and engagement in our wider community. As Peter mentioned, the campaign has been postponed for the last two years, due to the pandemic, and he was delighted that we were finally in a position to launch. We were so pleased he was able to join us and show his support.

Foundation Director, Sarah Bunnell-Pyper, then outlined the ambition of the campaign; to increase the number of Foundation Scholars in the School from 14 to 28 at any given time and to double the School’s endowment from £4 million to £8 million over the next 10 years.

During her speech, Sarah said “Tomorrow marks the 362 year anniversary of the first students at Aldworth’s Hospital to walk through the doors for their first day at school, and that is when Richard Aldworth’s legacy became a reality. Aldworth was a wealthy merchant who, like many others at the time, felt it was his civic duty to do what he could to help others gain a proper education. As such, in 1646, he drew up his Will with the view to creating a free school for young boys in the Reading area, who could then go on to apprenticeships and as such, create a better life for themselves and their families.”

The aim is simple, to increase the bursary provision to provide even more transformative opportunities to students who would not otherwise have the chance to benefit from a Blue Coat education.

Sarah went on to highlight the many ways in which a person could choose to give; either through a one-off gift, or perhaps a regular monthly or annual donation. She thanked those in the room who had already followed in Aldworth’s footsteps by leaving a gift to the School in their Will, safe in the knowledge that their legacy, like Aldworth’s, will live on for many years to come.

Sarah concluded, “Over the years, I have spoken to many Old Blues who have said “Blue Coat changed my life”, “I owe everything to Blue Coat” or “I wouldn’t be where I am today without a Blue Coat education”, and those sentiments may ring true for some of you here tonight. In many of these cases, this is made possible through our bursary programme, and through this fundraising campaign it is our ambition that we increase this provision to provide even more transformative opportunities. But it isn’t just those who receive a bursary whose lives are changed. All of you here tonight know just how important community is at Blue Coat and when that community is truly diverse, we can see it has a hugely positive impact on everyone”.

Headmaster, Pete Thomas then spoke of his vision for the School and the increasing importance of our Bursary provision. Pete spoke in detail about the many opportunities afforded to those who are able to attend the School. Whether this is making the most of our outdoor education programme, spending time rowing on the river,  getting on stage for the latest musical or creating beautiful art work. The possibilities at Blue Coat are endless and we want to make sure no one misses out.  It is Pete’s hope that all students embody the School’s values (aspiration, integrity, courage, service and compassion) and go on to live lives as consequence just as our founder intended.

As part of their official launch, the Foundation Office is delighted to also share our new ‘Defined by Vision, United by Ambition’ pages on the Schools website https://rbcs.org.uk/united-by-ambition/ and invite you to take a look and also view our Stories of Ambition film, in which some members of our wonderful community talk about their own ambitions.

If you have any questions about the purpose of the Foundation Office and their Campaign; or indeed would be interested in giving, please do get in touch.

Please contact Foundation@rbcs.org.uk or call 0118 9335 889 to set up a meeting.

Sarah Bunnell-Pyper Foundation Director spy@rbcs.org.uk

Louise Smith Foundation Manager lms@rbcs.org.uk