Reconnect’s new editor, SCOTT WILLIAMS, is still getting used to his new role. A recent visit to Exeter’s Steiner Academy inspired him.
THEY always say in the music biz that the second album is much more difficult than your debut, and thankfully that’s not the case with putting magazines together. Whilst I have a fair bit of experience of putting words on pages and designing magazines, I’ve never really had to sell advertising space before. It’s a little strange talking to new people not from the point of view of a journalist, but as someone trying to secure a small advert in a magazine. So, it’s been a steep learning curve (I’ll come onto more of that learning in a minute). Taking on Reconnect has meant, for now at least, taking on doing this aspect of the magazine business to ensure I can pay the bills involved in putting a free magazine together. I’ve only ever worked on magazines where I didn’t have to worry about advertising, the costs were covered by the cover price. But, this copy you hold in your hands is a free magazine, there’s no revenue from the cover price, and I’m quickly having to learn that advertising is the lifeblood of the magazine. It’s okay, I’m not making an appeal for advertisers (though if you do happen to be interested see page 3 for our highly reasonable rates). The future of the magazine is not in jeopardy just yet. As you can see in these pages, there’s enough advertising to pay the printers and there’s no danger of Reconnect disappearing. The point is it’s a whole new skill set I’m picking up at the moment. I wish it was something I’d learnt more about at school. My schooling was exciting at first, my parents worked abroad when I was little, and I first went to school in the Pacific, which was great. Lots of outdoors life with pigs, chickens, crops, fires, bows and arrows, and jungle crafts. Then much more average with seven Devon schools and higher education establishments having the responsibility for my learning as my family tried to settle in South Devon. Since then it’s something I’ve not given much thought about for years. That was until last month, when I was invited to visit Exeter’s Steiner Academy. They regularly advertise in these pages and they had invited me to have a look around their premises. The school moved about a year ago from the top of Exwick Hill to Thomas Hall and surrounding grounds near Cowley Bridge. The building was once the University’s halls of residence (I think I may have gone there when I was considering a place at the university in the Eighties). The high ceilinged hall looks like it could have been an old coach house at the gates of Duryard, and dates back to around 1585. The house itself is light and airy with large sash windows, moulded ceilings, and views around the school’s land dotted with surrounding newer buildings, and full of the sounds of kids at play. They may have only been there a year, but already there are classrooms, a kindergarten, play areas, movement rooms, music rooms, computer suite, lab classrooms, a dining hall, and more. A far cry from the crumbling buildings and prefab cabins of my youth. These are new state of the art spaces that already look like they’re well used by the 332 children aged from 0 to 16 years from across the various year groups. That number will rise to 624 by 2021. There are also a few areas that catch my attention – a school garden, a working copper forge, and a large woodworking room. All things I rather wish my education had offered me as I grew up. There were also colourful paintings around the classrooms. Piles of coats and rows of muddy boots showed the kids were getting plenty of the outdoors life, and the blackboards hinted at a rather intellectual, spiritual and holistic aspect to their education. The more I looked around and met the fresh faced kids who were quite happy to speak to a grown up, the more I wished I’d had this kind of education. It all seemed a bit less desk orientated than my lessons were. It reminded me of having my daughter in tow with me at festivals during the summer months. We had a rich time making things, developing arts and communication skills in the kids’ fields that decent festivals have fostered over the years. It really pleased me to see education developing like this, placing less emphasis on the classroom and more on the all around development of the child. I wish Exeter’s Steiner Academy every success in the future, it’s a school I’d have loved to attend as a child, and I’m sure all those that attend there will be enjoying it as much as I imagine I would have. It’s just one of a host of new educational opportunities coming to Reconnectland to benefit our children, a few of which were featured in last month’s issue, and are bound to appear in future issues. If it wasn’t for Reconnect I’d never have had a chance to visit this new school, and to reflect on my own schooling. Being editor of this magazine is proving just as much an education for me in my older years. I’m rather glad I decided to become your editor, I’m learning something new every day.