The Old Diocesan Issue 12 - Magazine - Page 14
Moving ahead in 2026
Principal Tony Reeler has his eyes set firmly on the future of the school
T
he year 2025 was another
extraordinary one in the
life of the College, with
remarkable achievements
from our boys. This was the second
year that we had a parallel stream
of academics, and the NSC cohort
of 143 pupils plus the Cambridge
group of nine boys made us proud.
In the Western Cape, we were
recognised as the top-performing
school in mathematics, an award
shared with Claremont High. We
were sixth in the province overall,
despite our nine A Level pupils,
all strong academics, not being
included in the overall assessment.
We were the top boys-only school
in the province.
The overall offering at Bishops
was also recognised in the
international Carfax ranking
of schools. The ranking is
independently run, with no
financial or other contribution
required from schools to be
assessed. Only two South African
schools made the global top 150
list: Bishops and Michaelhouse.
As a proudly Anglican school, we
continued to hold three Eucharist
services per term, as well as each
term’s College Evensong. We try
to live out the ideals of our
Spirituality Statement, which
has this to say about respect
for others: “Bishops is pleased
and proud to welcome people of
various faiths into our community,
and to respect these faiths. We
are committed to nurturing the
spiritual life of all members of our
community, and encouraging those
who are not Christian to discover
within their own faith the path
to becoming the people we strive
to be. We are mutually enriched
as we grow to understand one
10 | THE OLD DIOCESAN
another’s beliefs, recognising
and valuing what we have in
common.” This beautiful ideal is
the cornerstone of Anglicanism.
Our campus has never looked
as good at it does right now.
Well-planned maintenance
programmes and dedicated
staff make this happen. The new
Ubuntu Learning Centre is a hive
of activity as boys study and learn
on their own – or together, in
a special collaborative space
– and our water polo pool has
been rebuilt to the required
specifications.
A final major project is planned
for 2026 – the building of a second
Astroturf facility for our hockey
boys, adjacent to the existing field.
This decision was made in order
to reduce the number of times
our boys have to travel to other
surfaces, and because of the
Principal Tony Reeler in his office.
impact that leaving the campus
to travel to other fields has had on
our cultural programme. There’s
also a need for the boys to spend
additional time on the Astro. The
surface will be multi-use and will
be a wonderful space for our PrePrep boys, who would otherwise
have to contend with muddy
fields during winter.
We bid farewell to Greg Brown,
who retired after 40 years in
education, 18 of them as Prep
headmaster. His contribution
will long be remembered.
Mr Lester Lalla, currently the
head at St John’s Prep, will take
over at the start of the second
term in 2026; we are delighted
with his appointment.
Interest in the school is at an
all-time high, with waiting lists
in every grade and more than
800 boys enrolled at the College
