28th Feb 2025
As we approach our centenary year at Belmont House School, we wanted to look back, and reconnect with former pupils, near and far. Here we have a series of thoughtful questions that we ask our alumni focusing on their lives, successes, and the school’s influence.
Name: Marc Shenken
Time at school: 13 years
Current Occupation: McDonalds Franchisee
How did your time at Belmont House School shape your career path?
The school’s largest contribution to my career path arguably happened after I left. Independently I had decided to become an Optometrist and after 2 days at uni studying that realised I made a mistake. I went back to the school and sought advice from Mr Shanks who advised me to study Physics and Maths. I was worried this wouldn’t set me up for a job afterwards and he assured me that it would give me plenty of options, including Accountancy. I ended up becoming an Accountant. That wouldn’t have happened without Mr Shanks’ guidance!
Can you share a key moment or memory from your time at Belmont that had a lasting impact on you?
See above – There are plenty of other fond memories I have of the school, but none had as much of a profound impact on my life as that incident. Ultimately Mr Shanks’ guidance – which forever changed my life – only came around from him knowing me so well as a person back then which speaks to the school’s key ingredient; to be a small school enabling closer relationships to grow between teachers and students.
What skills or lessons learned at Belmont have been most valuable in your professional life?
The school operated on a ‘Firm but Fair’ manner. I have adopted that in every aspect of my life.
In what ways did Belmont House School’s community or culture contribute to your personal growth?
As a child I benefited from a safe environment and this gave me the confidence to be comfortable in who I was. As an adult I often reflected on the fact that the teachers never compared their students abilities to their own. In fact Mr Doak would often say that the sign of a good teacher is when the student surpasses them (I have forgotten the quote again!). This concept is something I used time and time again as a manager as in my team I employ exactly the same mentality. I develop my people to be better than me, I encourage them to move on if other opportunities are better for them, and I encourage them to do the same for others. I think this goes back to the teachers of Belmont and how they made us feel as students.
Can you describe how Belmont’s teachers or extracurricular activities helped shape your future ambitions?
The school was a safe environment both in terms of my fellow students and the teachers. I was never made to feel “odd” for not being sporty. This allowed me to focus on what was important to me which was doing well at my exams at all costs. The teachers supported me on that but were always great fun to be around. However, ultimately it was the support of the teachers, and their effort to understand me that helped me shape what I wanted to do with my life. They supported me in the things I was good at, and let me drop the things I wasn’t good at which meant I was able to be the most successful version of myself.
What advice would you give to current Belmont students who want to follow a similar path to yours?
Take advantage of what the school can do for you in terms of experience and teaching. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice from all your teachers. Career and life advice can come from anywhere and not just the careers department. My example above shows how it was the Physics teacher that gave me some of the best life advice I ever received.
Looking back, how do you feel Belmont House School prepared you for the challenges and opportunities you’ve faced in life?
The school prepared me to be self sufficient, to believe in myself, and to focus on the things I’m good at, work on the things that can be improved, and sometimes to understand that some areas are just a lost cause (eg Art and PE). I do this all the time now as sometimes in business recognising the difference between a true lost cause and something that just needs (lots) more work can be critical!
Our thanks to Marc for sharing his experiences – would you like to feature as part of our Alumni of Belmont House School? Please feel free to get in touch with Richard Doak via email: RDoak@belmontschool.co.uk
