We would like to welcome all new & returning families to British International School, Phuket. Good luck in this new term!

British International School, Phuket is delighted to announce the appointment of Daniel Silman as Director of Marketing and Admissions.

Daniel Silman

Daniel has over 20 years’ experience in the marketing and education industry and brings a wealth of experience and knowledge in global sales, student recruitment, marketing and brand management. 

Most recently, Daniel worked as a Global Business Consultant in Jakarta, where he delivered and implemented full business solutions for education organisations, NGOs and commercial businesses. His previous roles also include International Marketing Director at the University of Kent, UK. 

Please join us in welcoming Daniel to the BISP team.

One of the biggest decisions students have to make when nearing the end of their secondary education is what type of university will best fulfill their needs.

Read more of this article here.

In December, Year 12 swimmer Arijus Pavlidi competed at the 20th edition of the European Short-Course Swimming Championships in Glasgow, Scotland – his first senior swimming event representing his home country, Lithuania. 

Arijus, 17, now joins a distinguished group of British International School, Phuket swimmers who have represented their countries in a major global swimming event at the highest level.

A record 49 nations sent teams to the meet, held from 4-8 December at Glasgow’s Tollcross Swimming Centre. Arijus competed in the 200m and 100m backstroke and set lifetime bests and BISP Swimming Academy records in the heats of both events, with times of 1.55.54 and 53.75.

BISP Swimming Academy head coach, Colin Braund, said Arijus should be proud of his maiden performance on the world stage.

“Although Arijus has competed with the best junior swimmers in the world over the last couple of years, this was his first major senior competition,” commented Coach Colin.

Prior to the meet, Arijus had the opportunity to join his Lithuanian team mates at an altitude training camp in Spain, alongside world champion and European record holder, Danys Rapsys. “This itself would have given him some great insight into what is required to perform at the highest level,” Coach Colin said.

Arijus, who was awarded for his outstanding achievements in swimming at last year’s BISP Sports Awards, had only positive things to say about his experience is Glasgow, commenting how it has inspired him to keep pushing forward. 

“When I noticed how much bigger everyone was, at least compared to junior swimmers it was pretty intimidating,” said Arijus. “However, it felt like I am finally reaching the adult level, which is exciting.

“Because they were faster than me – some of them were world record holders – I was able to watch and examine the things they did differently from me and realise what I need to improve on.

“Apart from the technicalities of swimming itself, I also got a glimpse into the mentality of the top swimmers. Beforehand, I was training with a swimmer who went on to become a two time European Champion at the meet and I was pleasantly surprised at how normal he was. If I met and talked to him in the street I wouldn’t be able to tell that he is a European and World Champion. 

“Nevertheless, the mentality kicks in while doing laps at the pool. It’s the ability to push forward past your limits and to not give up that distinguishes him from other swimmers,” Arijus said.

Arijus’ goal for this year is to swim for Lithuania at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in July. “It has always been a dream of mine, and now that it is actually possible, I cannot stop improving,” he said.

Also over the December break, Year 8 swimmer Duana Lama claimed two silver and three bronze medals and broke five Nepalese records for her native Nepal at the South Asian Games in Kathmandu. Daniil Pancerevas, Marija Rutkauskaite and Arijus Pavlidi also competed at the Lithuainian Short-Course National Championships in Anyksciai, setting Academy records, personal bests and collecting eight medals combined.

For more information on the BISP Swimming Academy, please email info@bisphuket.ac.th.

Stephen Graham is a world-renowned literacy consultant with a plethora of teaching experience. He is currently visiting British International School, Phuket again as part of our long-term relationship, helping us help our children become better writers and better readers. He will be working with staff in both the Primary and Secondary sections of the school, to ensure cross-phase cohesion.

To find out more about what he is doing, parents are invited to a workshop he will be giving on Wednesday 15th January, 8:10-9:10am in the Conference Room.

British International School, Phuket’s homegrown tennis talent, Tarita (Ig) Hongsyok, has won her first National Masters title with a straight-sets victory in the U10 Lawn Tennis Association of Thailand season-closing Masters.

The tournament took place at the National Tennis Centre in Bangkok from 21-28 December and welcomed the top 16 ranked players in each age group, from U8 to U18.

Ten-year-old Ig cruised her way to the final in the U10 girls’ division and beat her number-two seeded opponent in straight sets in the final, 4-2, 4-1.

BISP’s Ben and Brighton also qualified for the tournament and competed in highly competitive U8 and U10 boys’ divisions. BISP RPT Tennis Academy head coach, Adam Daley, and high-performance coach, Martin Regan, were court-side with the players as they took on the country’s best. 

“Our players performed extremely well. Boys’ tennis is very competitive and Ben and Brighton showed great determination and skill amongst a strong field of athletes.

“Ig was so powerful and so consistent,” Coach Adam continued. “She is technically very strong and a fantastic match player.”

Ig has had a successful year with the BISP RPT Tennis Academy. She won three regional tournaments leading up to the Masters, which helped her qualify for the national event.

A student at the school since Little Ducks, Coach Adam said Ig is a valued member of the BISP tennis team. “Ig has been a part of our programme since the very beginning and is one of those players who always gives 100 percent and simply loves being on the court. She is a great role model for our young female players in the school.”

Ig herself was thrilled with her big achievement in the capital. “I never thought I’d win a Masters event. I tried my best in every single point,” she said. “I was surprised to see tears in the eyes of my Dad and my coach when I won.”

Fifty BISP tennis players are currently preparing for BISP’s biggest tennis event of the year, the FOBISIA Tennis Invitational, which will take place from 27-29 February at the BISP Tennis Centre.

BISP will host some 24 international schools and 360 tennis players from across Asia competing in U10, U13, U15 and O15 divisions.

For more information on the BISP RPT Tennis Academy, please contact info@bisphuket.ac.th.

The British International School, Phuket (BISP) triathlon team launched themselves back into competition on the first weekend of Term 2, racing at the Tri Dash Thailand Series season-opener.

Nine BISP triathletes took to the start line at Bangkok’s Bangpoo Golf and Sports Club, Samut Prakan from 11-12 January.

On day one, athletes Qistina, Chiara, Liam and Romeo all made the podium after completing a 400m swim, 10km cycle and 3km run in the Junior Tri Dash race. Qistina and Romeo won the girls’ and boys’ 15-17 years-old category, and Chiara and Liam were second and third in the 13-14 years-old divisions. 

Day two’s adult competition saw Oliver and Jack claim first and second place overall, followed by Hugo in 6th after completing two consecutive sprint triathlons – the Dash, followed by the Super Dash Shootout. In the women’s event, Holly finished 2nd in her age group and 5th overall and Malika finished 4th in her age group and 9th overall.

The Dash comprised an 800m swim, 40km cycle, and 10km run after which the top four then advanced to the Super Dash Shootout – another 100m swim, 5km bike and 1.25km run. The athletes received a 30-minute rest in between. 

BISP Triathlon Academy head coach, Zane Castro, was pleased to see his athletes executing key race skills.

“Learning how to race is a key component of triathlon at this level. Seeing the athletes think about these aspects and executing the skills to the best of their abilities is what’s most important, race results are just secondary.

“I was very pleased with how we performed at the event – not just how the athletes raced, but how they took the initiative to register themselves in the morning and take responsibility for their bikes. These things are all part of the process of racing. It was also great to see them supporting and encouraging each other.”

The 2020 Tri Dash series will comprise of nine races with a range of different and exciting formats. Competing athletes accumulate points. The BISP triathletes will compete at various races throughout the year. Offical results are available here.

For more information on the BISP Triathlon Academy, please contact info@bisphuket.ac.th.

Star Trek Year Five photo IDW Publishing

Many years ago, in my first leadership position, I pounced upon a split infinitive in the very first set of reports that required my editorial skills. It lay innocuously enough, some might argue, in the midst of a professional narrative concerning the aspirations of a middle school student whose identity has long since been forgotten.

Read more of this article by BISP Headmaster Neil Richards.

World-renowned literacy expert Stephen Graham visited British International School, Phuket (BISP) in the week of January 13th, continuing a relationship stretching back some years. 

His work focuses on the explicit teaching of reading and writing across the range of text types and genres, establishing a consistent and coherent approach across the school. On this most recent visit, he worked with teachers who are already immersed in this methodology as well as with teachers new to BISP in order to ensure that consistency, particularly with a focus on the concept of a balanced reader. Stephen’s work with teachers included leading model lessons followed by discussion as well as individual work and whole (Primary) staff training. He also presented a workshop to parents, which was well attended and received.

23 January 2020

Six BISP students working towards their Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award (IA) camped on local islands off Phuket over the weekend as part of a three-day dinghy sailing practice expedition.

The Year 11 students built on their skills learnt in their first expedition off Ao Yon beach, Cape Panwa, back in October, where they were introduced to dinghy sailing and taught the basics of rigging, launching and landing, and manoeuvres like tacking and gybing. Students also received expert instruction on safety procedures and how to assess wind direction and points of sail.

This time, the students were asked to put their skills into action and plan three 7-hour days of “purposeful journeying” to nearby islands. The young sailors were required to plan their own routes, make camp, cook their own food and produce a detailed report of their journey.

The Silver IA group is now looking ahead to its final sailing expedition from 31 January – 2 February. For their final expedition, the students will also devise their own project which they will present to the rest of the IA students.

BISP teacher and IA instructor Chris Dilts, said: “The students showed a strong understanding of the skills learnt at their initial sailing training weekend and coped well with the extra challenges of a longer journey. 

“They had a lot of fun and it was a positive experience for all the teachers and students that joined the expedition.” 

For more information on the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award, please contact info@bisphuket.ac.th.

After an initial meeting last term, Soi Dog Foundation’s representative Sam McElroy visited the school to collect Year 8 students’ Lino prints, and was highly impressed with the quality of their work.

Each print is unique, featuring one of the resident dogs and cats at Soi Dog. The printmaking process is quite lengthy and has taken the students a term to complete. The foundation representatives plan to use our students’ prints in their merchandise in order to raise funds and help them continue their great work in rescuing animals in need. Over 50 students have donated their artwork to this amazing project.

If you are interested in learning more about the foundation, please visit their website.

27 January 2020:

Eighty British International School, Phuket (BISP) students travelled to Bangkok recently to play in the Harrow International Football 7s.

BISP entered both boys’ and girls’ teams in the U9, U11, U13 and U15 age groups. Just like the BISP Soccer 7s, the tournament ran over two days, from Friday 17 – Saturday 18 January.

After a successful first day of football, seven BISP teams advanced to Saturday’s ‘Champions League’. BISP then went on to win both the U9 girls’, U15 girls’ and U15 boys’ competitions. All the BISP sides finished within the top five of their respective divisions.

For many of the young U9 players – most of whom were Year 4 –  it was their first time travelling by air to an international tournament wearing BISP colours. 

BISP Cruzeiro U9 Football coach, Andre Velloso, said the boys had great fun and relished the opportunity to play in another big international school football tournament.

“The boys had a great tournament and I was very proud of how they played and worked as a team against some strong competition. Our defensive line was really good. Everyone had a positive experience,” he said.

Teacher Simone Giani – coach of the victorious U9 girls’ –  said the team played the best football she had ever seen them play.

“The girls showed fantastic teamwork, accurate striking and strong defence.

“Over two days they scored a massive 22 goals and didn’t concede a single goal. The respect, kindness and resilience demonstrated by all the players made me a very proud coach.”

BISP Athletics Director, Jeff Lamantia, said the large group of students showed a high standard of behaviour both on and off the pitch.

“The students wore the Sea Eagle with pride and were a credit to our school and the BISP football programme,” he said.

Full results

U9 girls: 1st
U9 boys: 5th
U11 girls: 5th
U11 boys: 2nd
U13 girls: 4th
U13 boys: 3rd
U15 girls: 1st
U15 boys: 1st

For more information on the BISP Cruzeiro Football Academy, please contact info@bisphuket.ac.th.

British International School, Phuket (BISP) musicians across all Key stages have had incredible success in recent weeks. Students who took the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) exams in November 2019 received great results and one of our Year 13s will be performing in Bangkok in the coming months.

Chris (Grade 3 Violin), Thanya (Grade 4 Alto Saxophone), Lola and Holly (Grade 3 Voice) all achieved Merits while Taeeun (Grade 1 Musical Theatre), Rainer (Grade 6 Alto Saxophone) and Robin (Grade 6 Classical Guitar) achieved Distinctions.

Robin, for the second time, has achieved the “Top in Thailand” mark and will be going to Bangkok to perform at a celebratory event. What a truly amazing achievement!

India (Year 13), a long standing BISP student, recently auditioned to perform at the Global IB Conference to be held in Bangkok in March 2020. We are proud to announce that she has been selected to perform for a large audience of IB educators there.

“The latest research is showing that music education in schools can lead to better brain development, increases in human connections, and even stress relief. Students who have early musical training will also develop areas of the brain related to language and reasoning. Baroness Susan Greenfield’s antidote with regards to current ‘technology’ use by the young, is that we should go back to the basics in school – sports, reading and learning/playing music,” commented Simon Meredith, Secondary Principal at BISP.

These young musicians, who at times work independently as solo musicians, contribute much to school life as members of our major musical ensembles. 

Congratulations everyone!

British International School, Phuket (BISP)’s Year 11 Geography class recently took a field trip to Lampi Hat Thai Mueang National Park, just north of Phuket Island for the purpose of investigating upstream and downstream river changes.

“This was a great experiential opportunity to apply acquired fieldwork skills in a real world situation,” commented Philip Tucker, Head of Humanities.

The students made river channel measurements using fieldwork equipment, learning important skills for their final IGCSE examinations. On a hot day, the highlight of this excursion was perhaps the opportunity that many took to cool off in the Ton Prai Waterfall. After the river, waterfall and forest walk, the group had lunch at Thai Mueang Beach and then carried on with a beach and wave investigation. Whilst curriculum goals were met, the trip also served as a reminder of the wonderful outdoor environment we are blessed with, right on our doorstep, waiting to be explored.

We have recently received results of four students who took part in the Hong Kong International Science Olympiad (HKISO), a competition held around the world with Physics, Biology, Chemistry and Integrated Science categories. It was a tough multiple-choice test that covered all the Sciences (particularly tough for some of our IB candidates who do not study all 3 Sciences at that level).

One of our Year 10 students, Att, did amazingly well, achieving a Gold for his age group. This represents the top 8% of student participants in the world.

Two of our Year 13 students, Justin and Eddy, received Bronze awards for their age group, representing the top 24%.

Our final student, Zhanna (Year 9), didn’t quite make it into the top awards but, still did brilliantly well, and receives our commendations for participating and taking on new challenges.

 The Primary Staff at British International School, Phuket (BISP) enjoyed some very informative PD training last week from Lucy Nathanson, a Child Therapist from the UK specializing in Selective Mutism. Lucy has been working, via Skype, with a family here at BISP for the past year and spent the week completing some intensive 1-1 sessions with the child helping them with their selective mutism and sharing her knowledge with all staff. It truly has been a fantastic week for all involved and the child has made some incredible steps forward with talking at school.

If you would like more information about Selective Mutism and the work that Lucy does, please visit her website and Facebook page.

BISP Year 5 students set off on their annual residential camp trip to Khao Sok National Park recently. They spent 3 nights away from home, which was an experience in itself for some.

The camp consisted of many exciting adventures such as a long-tail boat ride across the Cheow Lan Lake, feeding fish, swimming in the lake, trekking through the national park and kayaking along the river.

The students spent their evenings on team building activities and displayed their creativity and skills at a talent show on one of the nights.

The young travellers returned to school right before the start of the weekend – tired, but still smiling! A special mention goes to Year 5 students Thayer, Je t’aime and Luga for their amazing camp t-shirt designs.

British International School, Phuket (BISP) IB students Melanie Preen, Michael Larsson and Arsenii Barbashov, should be extremely proud of themselves, having recently made a significant impact on the life of a five-year-old girl living in Bangkok born with amniotic band syndrome causing the loss of her left arm.

Amniotic Band Syndrome, according to Michael Harrison MD, is a rare condition caused by strands of the amniotic sac that separate and entangle digits, limbs, or other parts of the fetus. This constriction can cause a variety of problems depending on where strands are located and how tightly they are wrapped, and in her case, these bands were wrapped around her left arm, causing a significant reduction in the flow of blood, ultimately resulting in a loss of her limb just below the elbow

“Joren, the little girl’s father, contacted me after reading an article in The Phuket News about our students having the capability to 3D Print prosthetics,” said Jonathan Clark, head of ICT & computing at BISP.

“The team then took charge of the project, working with scale photographs of the girl’s arms to accurately produce a suitable fit, and after much hard work and perseverance to perfect the 3D designs, the students were successful in printing and assembling the arm to the required specifications,” he added.
“The BISP team CAS project, involved the creation of a fully functional prosthetic arm, utilizing to the fullest extent, the technological opportunities at BISP.”

Inspired by the project and his students, Jonathan added, “It has been overwhelmingly satisfying for the students to see images of the girl wearing their 3D Printed creation. Although the family did not wish for the images to be made public, they are extremely grateful to Melanie, Michael, and Arsenii, and are thrilled to see their little girl getting used to her new arm.”

The Phuket News spoke with the students about their involvement in the project and how it has made an impact on their own lives and future goals. With quite a touching altruistic mindset, they shared their thoughts. Michael Larsson stated, “I was extremely happy to be part of this project which could help someone. Around the world, there are people who are put in unfortunate situations, and for several reasons may not be able to help themselves, whether it be financial, social or other factors. So I think it is important that those who do have the resources should help out those who don’t. Considering my interests and hobbies, I saw this project as more of an opportunity rather than an activity. I had the opportunity to both learn from this new experience with 3D printing and some of the 3D designs and also had this opportunity to help someone who needed it.

Although we only helped one person, I think it shows that if we really put the time and effort, we could help people all over the world who need it. This project also showed the true capabilities of technology and how this will hopefully be utilized in the future to help more in need, despite some of the disadvantages or concerns.”

Student Arsenii Barbashov stated, “Throughout the project, I had a positive and inspiring experience. Although our group helped only one person, it is still a great achievement for us and our school community as it is well known that the hardest part of every great project is doing the first steps. The perfect reward for completing this project was knowing that you helped to improve someone’s life. Moreover, when you are making a prosthetic arm, you are putting a part of your soul into it, which makes every prosthetic unique. Now reflecting on our project, I think that we, and society as a whole, should be aiming to provide bigger opportunities for everyone and that everyone must be given a chance for success.”

Melanie Preen wrote to The Phuket News to say, “I am glad to have joined this project as I know that I’ve made an impact on someone’s individual life. My motivation for the project was to enhance the plethora of skills needed in today’s society being: problem-solving, decision making, benevolence and applying technology to alleviate problems. For instance, through available resources online, we were able to learn how to craft the prosthetic hand by combining 3D printing and build these printed components tangibly.

Throughout the process, we were able to enhance these aforementioned skills through collaborative efforts and heuristically understanding the capabilities of technology in our digital age to impacting the day-to-day life of a little girl.

Overall, this project allowed me to propel my aspirations to be a female role-model for the STEM community and emanate impactful attitudes towards our school community. I hope that me and my teammates will continuously emulate our success in the future – by utilizing technology to deliver solutions that are much needed in our world full of environmental and social issues.”

After following up with Mr Joren a few months after his daughter received her new prosthetic, he stated she is doing quite well. “She had been asking for a few months after initially contacting BISP, “Daddy when am I getting my new hand,” so now that she has it she is quite excited. Of course, there are some adjustments that need to be made as life with the articulating prosthetic is new for her. As with wearing a new pair of shoes, there is the time needed to break them in and similarly, she is working on getting used to the weight and mechanics of the prosthetic. She was very happy to assist in the design of her prosthetic, choosing pink for the primary colour, and purples for the highlights and articulating components.” Mr Joren added that while at times it may be a challenge for his daughter to get used to the new limb, Mr Clark and the CAS student group at BISP IP are continuously working with her to improve the ease and comfort of the articulation, expressing that her 3D printed prosthetic is a vast improvement over her first prosthetic, which was primarily aesthetic in nature when she was two years old.

Jonathan Clark said of the project, “The work undertaken has fully encompassed what CAS is all about and stands for, that is Creativity, Action and Service.”

According to the amputee coalition, 3D printing is a relatively new but promising technology available to amateurs as well as professionals. Free, editable designs are available online without copyright. Anyone with access to a 3D printer, such as the students at BISP IB program, and creative mentality, can create a prosthesis at quite a reasonable expense. A prosthetic hand can cost hundreds of thousands of baht; however, a 3D-printed prosthesis could be made for as little as B1,500.

3D-printing materials cannot yet replace the long-term durability of traditionally-made prostheses. However, this will soon change. In the meantime, technology is making cost-effective prosthetics a reality and encouraging creative people from all over the world to participate in their design.

Right now, suggests the amputee coalition, the field of 3D-printed prosthetics is in its infancy, and many models are still in the developmental stage. The 3D movement inspired many to take matters into their own hands in a “do it yourself” spirit, providing the tools for many to make homemade prosthetics. This practice is now influencing the professional market in how professional-grade prosthetics are made.

We can expect to see, suggest the amputee coalition, more companies prototyping various prosthetics using 3D-printing technology. 3D printing using higher-end metals such as titanium and other alloys is not common practice now, however, they are expected to be more so in the future.

For more information on Amniotic Band Syndrome click here

This story was first published on The Phuket News in print and online (Sunday February 9th 2020).

Year 11 British International School, Phuket (BISP) golfer Sebastian Sawtell will be flying to Vietnam next month, bound for the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final after finishing runner-up in the 2019-20 Faldo Series Thailand Championship.

Year 11 golfer Sebastian Sawtell (right) with his silver medal in Pattaya

Sebastian sealed a place in the Asia Grand Final after an outstanding performance in the U16 category of the Thailand Series Championship. The trio of qualifying tournaments were held in Phuket, Hua Hin and Pattaya.

At the third and final tournament at the Burapha Golf Club in Pattaya from 24-26 January, Sebastian fought back after being four shots behind the leader with nine holes to go, producing a birdie-eagle, birdie-birdie run of holes to tie the lead. The duel continued, but misfortune at the 18th hole meant Sebastian finished two strokes behind his Bangkok-based opponent but wrapped up the series in an impressive second place. 

Initially out of contention for the 14th Faldo Series Asia Grand Final to be hosted by Sir Nick Faldo at Vietnam’s Laguna Lăng Cô from 4-5 March, last week it was confirmed that Sebastian would be included in the line-up.

BISP Golf Academy head coach, Oliver Bates, said it was Sebastian’s incredible display of sportsmanship in the Thailand Series that caught the attention of the legendary Faldo.

“There was very little in between Seb and the winner and Nick just said Seb was so impressive that he deserved a shot in Vietnam.

“We’re very proud of Seb. He’s really coming along and turning into one of the best players around. It’s great that he now has a chance to contest the Asia Grand Final.”

Year 8 player, Damon, also finished strongly in Pattaya, claiming second place overall in the Nett division. “Damon continues to put in the hard work in training and it’s paying off at tournaments like these,” Coach Oliver said.

“He played very well and will take a lot from his first experience playing in the Thailand Faldo Series.”

Other members of the BISP Golf Academy continue to balance their busy competition schedule with their studies.

Late last year, Year 13 golfer Vanchai Luangnitikul (Mark) capped off a stellar 2019 with a gold medal in the men’s team event at the Southeast Asian Games in the Philippines.

Mark was part of a four-man strong Thailand team who claimed the regional victory at the Luisita Golf and Country Club in Tarlac City on 8 December. 

“Mark is a highly ranked amateur within Thailand and is developing into a world-class player ready to compete at golf’s highest level,” Coach Oliver said. “It will just be a matter of time before Mark takes that next step to the professional game.”

Year 13 golfer, Napat (Toy) Paramacharoenroj, took that step into professional golf last year and in December, regained his professional tour card at Q-school. 

Yr 13 golfer Vanchai Luangnitikul (Mark) with his SEA Games gold medal

Currently studying towards his IB Diploma, Toy has recently been offered several opportunities to continue his studies and golfing career at overseas universities come September 2020.

“Toy has various opportunities on the table and it’s now just a case of figuring out which one is the best fit,” said Coach Oliver.

Toy’s best performance last year came at the Singha Pattaya Open in October, where he made the first cut of 60 players.

“Toy is now playing with the best of the best, which is a hard transition, but he is learning, gaining experience and making the necessary adjustments that will allow him to be really competitive.”

And female BISP golfers Veronica (Year 7) and Mint (Year 9) are showing good progress at Thailand Golf Association (TGA) events.

“Veronica and Mint are both serious players with the right work ethic. It’s great to have them in the programme and I’m looking forward to seeing what they can do over the next few years,” said Coach Oliver.

At the grassroots level, the BISP golf programme continues to capture many aspiring young minds.

“We have between 40 and 50 students playing golf at different levels. It’s great working with the young ones and seeing their passion and enjoyment for the sport. Among many other things, golf is great for building confidence and making friends,” Coach Oliver said. 

For more information on the BISP Golf Academy, please contact info@bisphuket.ac.th

The British International School, Phuket (BISP) community has a united message for the people of China – stay strong and be brave.

The school is pledging its support to the people of China and the global fight to control the spread of coronavirus through a special video featuring secondary students and a message from the Headmaster, Mr Neil Richards.

BISP has also set up a donation booth in the main teaching block to fundraise for the GuangDong Zhong Nanshan Medical Foundation. The collection has been organised by Chinese parents in the ‘Friends of BISP’ community group and will run until Friday 14 February – Valentine’s Day.

In his video message, BISP Headmaster, Mr Neil Richards, says: “The coronavirus does not discriminate. It will attack people from various cultures, nationalities, ideologies, faiths, ethnicities. It attacks humanity, as a whole. And the response must be from humanity, as a whole.

“I’d like to thank the Chinese people for all that they’re doing to contain this virus, on behalf of humanity. And our thoughts and prayers are with all those people who are in the front lines of holding this virus back. And also, to all those who have been infected, whatever their race, creed nationality or ideology, our thoughts and prayers are with you all.”

BISP will continue to lend its support to the people of China and to all those affected.  For more information, please contact info@bipshuket.ac.th.