After an unexpected, extended long service leave due to COVID-19, I am pleased to finally be back in the Junior Boys Boarding House!

For those who didn’t know, Mrs Bailey and I purchased a property in Tasmania that we will eventually retire to. However, Mrs Bailey has already transitioned down to Tassie and is loving her new job within the Emergency Department at the Royal Hobart Hospital as well as enjoying our new property and spending time with her beloved horses (the boys always had to hear about the horses!).

During my extended leave, I took on the role of Farmer Bailey. Thanks to many years of listening to stories and advice from the boys in boarding about fencing and farming life, I was able to put their expertise to the test. I found myself busily building gates, tank stands, fixing fences and chopping wood.  I even built a horse shelter for Mrs Bailey’s horses. Not to mention painting the entire inside of our new house. I was kept very busy during my leave of absence from work.

As restrictions lifted, I was very keen to return to SCOTS PGC and was luckily was able to get a flight home. Two weeks of self-isolation followed, and a further week to prepare for the boarding house return of the boarding students. Now here we are – the first week of Term 3!

It was fantastic to welcome the boys back and reconnect with boarding parents. It seems the boarding boys were just as excited for my return as I was. It’s a nice feeling to be missed so much. So after a longer than anticipated absence, I am happily back and ready for a great term ahead.

A heartfelt thanks to all staff who kept the boarding house running smoothly in my absence, especially to Mr Simon Mascardri and Mr Tom Bradbury who stepped into the role of Acting Head of Junior Boys Boarding.  Both were well supported by Mr Derek Kane and Mr Phil Strang.

We are pleased to welcome two new boarders into our “Band of Brothers”.  Declan Stanley has joined us from Brisbane, while Ethan McDonald has transitioned from a day student to a weekly boarder.  A very warm welcome to you both and to all of our returning boarders.  I am looking forward to the term ahead and working with each of you to achieve great things.

Let’s see what we can do together!

Declan Stanley – Year 8

Ethan McDonald – Year 6