The Old Askean Association
NameDavid ColemanLocationNorth East Surrey Crematorium – Cremation ChapelDate & TimeFriday 12/08/2022 10:40RequesterCatherine Chester – Co-op Morden
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I regret to report the passing of David Coleman, he started at Aske’s in 1947 .
Dave had been in hospital for 5 weeks after a fall and was discharged after a hip replacement. However he passed away soon after on 30 June.
Dave had been a very active Member regularly attending social events
and both he and his wife had been regular walkers with the Rambling Club. His many friends will be saddened by his passing and he will be missed at future OAA gatherings.
His funeral is Friday 12 August 10.40 am at North EastSurrey Crematorium, Lower Morden Lane, Morden SM4 4NU.
The funeral will be live streamed via the following link.
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2022 13:36:08 +0000
Subject: Webcast Confirmation – Event 1110048 – David Coleman
 This email is confirmation that a webcast is required for the following service:NameDavid ColemanLocationNorth East Surrey Crematorium – Cremation ChapelDate & TimeFriday 12/08/2022 10:40RequesterCatherine Chester – Co-op Morden Use the PIN number below to access your webcast Webcast Login PIN285-5417 https://www.wesleymedia.co.uk/webcast-view Webcast Viewing Instructions are available here. Please note that by sharing the secure PIN number you give full access to view the service and access the on-demand features. Your PIN number will be activated no earlier than 14 days before the service date. Event Number1110048 – please quote this on all correspondence and when calling Thanks, Wesley Media Team |
Randalls Park Crematorium was standing room only for the funeral of our much loved former Association Secretary and avid rambler Brian Burgess. Brian’s wife Carol had informed the Association that Brian passed away late on Thursday night 21st July, probably of a massive heart attack.
Brian was a good friend of the Association and the Rambling Club and until a few years ago both he and wife Carol were very active walkers in the Rambling Club. They were keen supporters of the charity walks for The Grove, Bournemouth. Brian often led walks for us too.
It is hoped to be able to publish the fulsome tribute that was paid to Brian by his son Stuart.
Twelve of us greeted the New year in typical City Diner fashion, good food plus beer and wine, for some of us lots of beer and wine! Our venue was our regular Nation Trust haunt – The George Inn at Southwark. It was a great to gather again and have a good chat about the past, the present and the future. Hopefully next time we meet on the 31st March our numbers will be greater.
Further details of our next gathering will be available shortly.
At long last after a hiatus of some 20plus months we could gather in person again. The occasion was the 2021 Advent Lunch held on Thursday 18th November at Chislehurst Golf Club. Some 40 plus members and guests including the Head Boy, Oisin Murcott, and Head Girl, Elize McDonald, of the School and a senior master, Glenn Hancock, met in the Napoleon Room and enjoyed a good meal and each others company. Glenn Hancock is Head of Enrichment!! This covers sixth form sports, Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme and the like. Judging by the dinner conversation the school is in good hands.
Glenn is also the first person that I have met to have played for “my” rugby club – Mellish RFC who play in Midlands 3 East(North) which sounds more like a map reference or postcode rather than a Rugby Football Union league.
It was a really splendid lunch. Perhaps it was the effect of having been away from each other for so long; but it was the most enjoyable Advent Lunch for many years. A massive thank you to Roger Goodman, our Social Secretary, for organising it all. I for one cannot wait for our next social.
Barry Mellish
Our President, Andy Jordan Smith, has been communicating with the School in particular our liaisons following the decision by the Haberdashers’ Aske’s Trust to drop the Aske part of the School’s name.
The School Principal is keen to maintain the links and has invited Old Askeans to attend a tour of the school. This will be held on Thursday 11th November meeting at 8:15 sharp in order to attend the Assembly which will include a Remembrance Service, a chance for us to reflect on all those who did not survive past wars but especially those of our alumni.
If you wish to attend, we need to provide names to the School by 22nd October, so please contact Andy Jordan Smith direct on 07787 243530 or e-mail him at atjordansmith@hotmail.com
At the last Old Askean Association committee meeting it was decided that our name should be unchanged. It was noted that the “Haberdashers Schools” have removed the name Aske where this is possible. See the statement issued by the Haberdashers Company for the reasoning behind this.
If any member(s) feel that our name should be changed they are requested to put forward a resolution at the AGM. Such a motion will require both a proposer and a seconder.
Statement outlining the outcome of the Robert Aske Legacy consultation
Robert Aske (1619-1689) was a silk trader, merchant and Master Haberdasher and one of this Trust’s greatest benefactors. Thanks to the legacy (£32,000) he left to the Haberdashers Livery Company on his death, the Aske Charity was created. Today there are 14 schools which are the beneficiaries of the Aske Charity, and over the 350 years since he left the legacy more than 100,000 pupils have received the benefit of an Aske sponsored education.
Despite his philanthropic work, Aske’s life and work is not without some controversy. In 1672, he made an investment of £500 in the Royal African Company. This was a trading company which traded slaves from Africa to the West Indies between 1660 and 1708. The majority of investors came from the City of London business community, and included the Duke of York (later King James II). The history of the Slave Trade is painful and difficult to consider. It makes us question our assumptions about the past; answering these questions can deepen and enrich our understanding of our heritage.
The Trust began an extensive consultation in the summer term which concluded in July. There were a wide range of opinions from all stakeholders including pupils, parents, staff, alumni, local community and governors. Since the outset of the consultation, openness and transparency have guided discussions.
The consultation focused on three key areas:
In some areas complete agreement was found on the way forward, in others, opinion was divided. But the Trustees took all points of view into consideration before agreeing the action to be taken.
The current motto, ‘Serve and Obey’, will be dropped by the Trust and by our schools. There was overwhelming agreement that its 16th Century origins need explanation and are no longer relevant to the society in which we live. It is important that pupils and staff feel a connection to any motto or strapline that will be adopted and discussions will begin on a new one as part of the Trust’s ongoing work on culture.
There was a wider range of views regarding the use of ‘Aske’ in the name of our Trust and schools. Those in favour of its removal think that Aske’s investment – however small – was offensive, unacceptable and at odds with today’s values. Others thought that our school names are overly complicated and need refining, and that an opportunity has arisen to do this.
Those in favour of retaining ‘Aske’ believe that, through the legacy that founded the Haberdashers’ schools, Robert Aske benefitted generations of children. They also felt that historic acts should be viewed in the context of their time or that removing the name could be seen as tokenistic.
Having taken all views into account and accepting that there will be inevitable disagreement, Trustees have decided that ‘Aske’ will be removed from school names and from the trading name of the Trust – this includes letterheads, signage and visuals in everyday use. It will be retained in the formal, legal name of the Trust, in recognition of the significant contribution made by the Aske Charity. The new trading name of the Trust will be Haberdashers’ Academies Trust South. This will be in use with immediate effect.
Changes will be made on websites, letters and prospectuses and these changes will be seen quickly. The process for uniforms and school bags will take time and there is no expectation that current pupils purchase new uniform until they would ordinarily have done so.
This has been a challenging and complex discussion and every single voice has been an important part of the process. The Trust now has a range of learning opportunities: to support the understanding of historical acts, to look at events from different perspectives and to encourage the debate of difficult issues. To support this, we will seek to re-purpose the statue of Aske at Hatcham College. A formal committee will meet to review the extensive restrictions over its treatment and aim to contextualise it in a way that ensures alignment with the Trust’s values and longer-term educational objectives.
There is an understanding and acknowledgement that not everyone will agree with the actions that are being taken, there will be some people who do not. Despite this difference, there is a unity for all involved and a genuine shared interest of our schools and pupils at heart.
One of the big big events at the Askean Rugby Club Dinner will be launch of a new charity ‘Friends of Askean RFC’, which has been created to support the rugby club and the local community.
It follows a very generous donation by a former player, Mike Lalley, who wants to put something back for all the good times he enjoyed playing for Askeans.
We are launching the ‘Friends’ website – It is your website and, with your help, we will update it on an on-going basis. Including details of a number of new planned and regular events.
We are excited about this new project and want as many Askeans as possible to get involved in the events and the website.
If you’d like to help the launch, there is a Just Giving page that will be opening next week, for a short while.Our aim is to build on the legacy and ensure the future of Askean Rugby
Watch out on the website and just giving.com updates and future emails.
Thanks for reading,
Steve Homewood, Paul Walsh,
Chair Askean RFC Chair ‘Friends of Askean RFC’
The Club at Well Hall, Kidbrooke Lane, London, SE9 6FLRegistered Charity : 119261, England and Wales.
Click here to see the website
www.friendsofaskeanrfc.com