a Lt. Commander and experienced polar explorer, come into school to deliver a talk to Year 10 and 12 Geographers. Paul’s talk detailed how the impact of COVID altered his training regime for Antarctica, with skiing practice and sledge pulling on the beaches of Devon rather than the Alps, the extremities of Antarctica and the hardships and joy of being on a long expedition miles away from home with only your team for company and the awe-inspiring beauty of Antarctica combined with the perils of tent crushing high wind speeds.  The talk was a great way to hear about an environment that our geographers are studying about from someone who has witnessed all the intricacies of the world’s coldest continent.

However, another facet to Paul’s talk was a story of resilience. On his journey to Antarctica and many other far-flung environments, Paul has had to overcome many challenges and hardships, and in doing so, experiencing moments of unparalleled beauty, from jumping whales over his kayak to views of the unspoilt wildernesses of Antarctica and the Himalayas. And, to top it off, Paul is a former student of Stretford Grammar. For students to hear of such experiences from someone who has come from the same background as them and travelled to Antarctica and back to Stretford, serves as an example of where hard work and determination can take you.

We would like to thank Paul for coming into deliver his talk, as well as the added extra of taking our school flag to Antarctica and having it fly from the teams sledges during the expedition! We now have a bit of our school that has been to the other side of the world!