The husband and daughter of a hugely popular teacher at John Kyrle High School, Sue Vinall, were special guests at the recent school Prize Giving.

Brent and Stephanie Vinall were there to collect the prestigious Pride of John Kyrle Award which was given this year in honour of Sue Vinall who sadly died in the summer.

John Kyrle held its annual Prize Giving Evening on September 17th. Several hundred parents, guests, staff, former staff, trustees and former trustees joined headteacher Nigel Griffiths and the school’s guest of honour, Ben Ray.

Jon Sanger, Joint Chair of Trustees, welcomed all visitors and said what a successful year it had been for the school.

Headteacher, Nigel Griffiths, said he was proud and delighted to once again report upon the fantastic achievements of students. Mr Griffiths ended his speech with a focus upon The Pride of John Kyrle Award. He said: “This is our unique award. We give it to individuals who have inspired us and who we are proud to have as part of our special community.

Headteacher Nigel Griffiths said: “This year, we are awarding the Pride of John Kyrle Award to someone who, sadly is no longer with us, but was a member of staff who we all remember with great fondness.

When Sue passed away I told staff that we should remember her with a smile. She was a joyous person. Her bravery when she was ill was inspiring.” Brent Vinall joined Mr Griffiths to collect the award on behalf of Sue. He thanked the school and said Sue would have been delighted.

The Joint Chair of Trustees, Jon Sangers, said the positive Ofsted visit in March and the recent excellent examination performances at A level and GCSE were further evidence of the strength of the school. Mr Sanger thanked all parents, staff and fellow trustees for their hard work and support. His final words were to the students who he congratulated on their hard work and achievements.

Headteacher, Nigel Griffiths, said: “As you will see tonight, students have excelled in areas of academic study, sport, and the arts. Students have been our ambassadors in the local community, the county and in many countries and on different continents abroad. This includes our sports tour to Canada in the summer and our annual visit to Uganda.” Parents and carers were commended by Mr Griffiths for their support of their children and the school. Mr Griffiths also thanked his staff, trustees and local community groups for all that they do.

Mr Griffiths made special mention of Councillor Phil Cutter, whose work had gained the school some additional funding. This had been spent on the school’s refurbished PE changing rooms. Mr Griffiths wanted to thank Phil publically for all he had done.

Following the award ceremony, special guest of honour and former student, Ben Ray addressed the audience. Ben said how honoured he was to have been invited back. He said he was hugely impressed with the range of awards given out and offered his congratulations to all prize winners. Ben said how well John Kyrle had prepared him to study history at Oxford University, to teach English in South Korea and for his forthcoming move into employment in the heritage sector. Ben referenced life lessons in the works of Douglas Adams, who wrote the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. These were about the importance of a positive mind set and the ability to learn from mistakes. Above all, Ben extolled the virtues of giving of your best, never giving up and being nice.

Ben’s speech was very well received. He was given a vote of thanks by head boy and head girl, Jackson Sharp and Jemma Clarke.