Dear parents
The new academic year is already well over a month old – time has certainly flown by. Pupils of all ages have settled down to their work with admirable focus and intensity. Sport and music are once again a crucial part of our daily programmes. Important projects for the year, such as oracy and pupil independence, have been launched and have begun to help arm pupils with more tools to ensure their success in learning. Year 13 pupils are working hard on finalising their applications to some of the world’s leading universities, including Oxford, Cambridge, LSE, Cornell, Duke and, in a first for the school, Peking. Their ambition is matched and supported by the school, and I know parents will join me in wishing all our university applicants well over the next few months.
These may all be part and parcel of a conventional school year, of course, but it doesn’t take me to point out that the past nine months have been anything but ordinary. The impact of the coronavirus is still apparent: parents have not been able to come on to the school grounds since January, which for a school which sets such store by its open and positive relationships with parents, has been particularly hard for our community. In addition, the restrictions on international travel delayed the arrival of several of our new teachers. I am pleased, therefore, to be able to share some good news. On the school’s reopening after the national holiday on 8th October, we will once again be admitting parents to the school for briefings and parent meetings, albeit initially still in limited numbers. The even better news is that almost all our new teachers will be in class from that date. We have two – Mr Sturiale in music and Mr Johnson in geography – already freed from quarantine, and a further six either in quarantine or just emerging from it. We have worked very hard to have our full complement of teaching staff in place, and the presence of all these new teachers takes us another step closer to achieving our collective goal of restoring the school to its pre-Covid condition.  
In a final irony, there is a certain symmetry to the way this special period is drawing to a close. All schools in China closed just after the Spring Festival holiday, and next week sees the break for the Mid-Autumn Festival and National holiday. As it was back in January, the school heads into a holiday with a series of celebrations of local Chinese culture and tradition, although in a far less uncertain atmosphere than in those distant days. Pupils and staff will join in three days of events involving language, history, costume and stories linked by the theme of Mid-Autumn, details of which can be found below.
There is still uncertainty across the world, of course. I do not pretend that there may not be setbacks in the coming months as the world adjusts to living with the coronavirus, but as I said at the start of this piece, I think we need to get back to a ‘business as usual’ mentality as soon as we can. Schools which provide a safe and secure learning environment are good indicators of any high functioning society. As we mark another series of milestones in overcoming the effects of the virus, is a fitting we use this holiday period to reflect on the journey we have been on together and look forward to a bright, confident future.
I wish all our families a peaceful, restful holiday.
Best wishes
Julian Jeffrey
MASTER

Chinese Culture Week
28th – 30th September

Chinese Culture Week will be the last week of September before the national holiday. Although the week is shorter than usual, various activities and events will be prepared for our pupils. In addition to the activities listed in the poster (below), there also will be Mid-Autumn Festival storytelling sessions and other classroom activities in the Nest. Finally, it is the Traditional Dress Day for the whole school on Wednesday.
We look forward to seeing your child appearing on campus in unique traditional dress.

Online University Fair

Due to travel restrictions this year, our University Fair will take on a different format. We are pleased to be offering a series of online presentations (three per week) from universities from all over the world. Over 200 universities from all over the world will be in attendance so this is a fantastic opportunity for our pupils to gain information first-hand.

Next week we have two universities presenting live online – Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the University of British Columbia (UBC). The presentations will take place in the Sixth Form Seminar room and all pupils from years 10-13 are welcome to attend. Presentations will start at 1320hrs, and early lunch is available. Pupils will need to contact a member of the university team if they wish to attend.

• Tuesday 29th September 1320hrs – Hong Kong Polytechnic University

• Wednesday 30th September 1320hrs – University of British Columbia (UBC)

On the 8th of October, there will be a live presentation from Cambridge University in the Seldon Theatre at 1600hrs. All pupils in years 11-13 will be attending. Parents of children in all year groups are welcome to attend. The presentation will be delivered in English on Microsoft Teams and will be recorded for the benefit of those who are unable to attend. If you have any questions that you would like to ask about admissions to Cambridge University, please email them (in Mandarin or English) to

luyi.feng@wellingtoncollege.cn.

Extended Project Qualification Marketplace
Black Box
1030hrs – 1400hrs, Friday
09th October

The Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) is an AS-level qualification which was introduced to our school last academic year. After an extensive application process, nine pupils were enrolled in the course. They had the opportunity to undertake an independent research project in an area of their choice, outside of their A-level studies. The outcome of the project is a 5000-word dissertation, a log outlining the EPQ journey from plan to project completion and also a presentation.
We are delighted to announce that our first cohort of EPQ pupils are nearing completion of the qualification and are presenting their findings during a marketplace presentation in the black box. All nine pupils will present their topics, and you are warmly invited to attend the event and ask the pupils questions about their work. Some topics being presented include an investigation into complex numbers, the threats of quantum computers to modern-day encryption and a primary research study into umami sensitivity.
All Wellington staff and Senior School pupils are welcome to attend what promises to be an exciting and insightful event.

It is with a certain trepidation, but boundless optimism, that we announce the next of our long-distance charity walks on Sunday 4th October. It follows on from the series of walks from April-June, which covered 32km, 42km, 50km and 25km respectively, raising thousands for local children's charities.
We are looking for community sponsorship for the walk as we are keen to support two important local causes:

• Hongqiao Peizhi school (红桥区培智学校), which educates disabled children from ages 2-18 years, helping them to move on from the school to live rich, fulfilling lives in the community.

• The Seven Colour Flower House orphanage (七色花舍), which provides medical and pastoral care to ill and disabled young orphans from across China.

It would be great if we could raise 30,000RMB with this walk. This would help significant numbers of children living very tough lives by providing for medical care and educational resources.

There are three ways to contribute:

1. Alipay

2. Bank Transfer Bank Details
Bank: 上海浦东发展银行
Bank Branch: 天津浦嘉支行
Account No.: 7713 0154 9000 00042
Please leave a comment that it's for charity!

3. Cash payment to Coach Eelco in office #114A