It is often said that necessity is the mother of invention and the challenges presented by this week’s unusually hot weather has required various adjustments. When I was a child, there was a lot of talk about ‘wartime spirit’ where families, neighbourhoods and entire communities came together to look out for each other as a means of facing adversity. Managing a week of ‘extreme heat’, whilst not strictly analogous to years of rationing or the threat of being bombed out of one’s home, has required a bit of nifty adaptation to ensure learning can continue to take place for all year groups. The principle underpinning the school’s approach was that we keep calm, be pragmatic, and carry on (as much as possible) with business as usual. Other prep schools in the vicinity, including the establishment on the other side of the road, have introduced half days, with pupils dismissed soon after midday.

Not so for stoic Antonians. Of course, we are one school operating on two sites but a faulty AC unit in the Year 1 classroom led to those boys coming down to the Senior House for lessons. Today, we will be welcoming little platoons of nursery children to the Senior House library where they can enjoy some cool air. A number of standing fans have come on rushed delivery from Amazon and discussions are being had about the possibility of installing air conditioning units in all classrooms. Adaptability and pragmatism have been the leitmotifs of this week, made possible because children (unlike so many grown-ups who get stuck in their ways) are prepared to make do and mend. I have often said to the boys that many of the most important lessons in life are not learnt from a textbook or classroom setting; I think school is about cultivating a mindset that is not overwhelmed when difficulties present themselves but sees every challenge as an opportunity for doing something new and exciting.