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Sebastian Feszczur-Hatchett (OE 2007–2014) was a regional finalist in awards run by the Year in Industry scheme, having secured a placement at global consumer products company Procter & Gamble. He is starting his Chemical Engineering degree course at Leeds University this autumn.

Sebastian, an outstanding QE First XI cricketer who also achieved senior Middlesex selection, was one of six pupils – a School record – to be awarded Arkwright Engineering scholarships while in Year 12.

After leaving School last summer, he went on to take up his Year in Industry scheme placement at Procter & Gamble’s Innovation Centre in Newcastle. The centre focuses on the development of dry laundry and dishwashing detergents for all parts of the world.

The Year in Industry scheme is run by the Engineering Development Trust to encourage students into the STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) by offering pre-university and undergraduate gap year placements. Successful applicants receive paid employment as well as training and support throughout their placement. Sebastian successfully completed a detailed application process to match him with the most suitable employer.

“The aim of my project over this last year was to improve the understanding of powder solubility in order to support the design of new products for the consumer in China,” he says. “I firstly developed an experimental method to measure the rate of dissolution of a powder so that samples could be compared. Then I made a model to predict the dissolution of a finished product (i.e. what you would buy from a shop), based on the chemistry of the powder. My work is expected to save P&G up to $210,000 annually as new products can be developed quicker and as variations in performance can be predicted from the model without samples having to be manufactured.”

For the Year in Industry Contribution to the Business Awards North East regional final, hosted by equipment maker Caterpillar at Peterlee, Sebastian gave a presentation and answered questions about his project, although hampered somewhat by the fact that most of his work was confidential.

“I have really enjoyed my experience this year and am proud of what I have accomplished. I would highly recommend the Year in Industry scheme to any aspiring engineer or scientist.

“I hope the skills I have learnt this year will stand me in good stead. My long-term career ambition is to work on the development of cleaner and more environmentally-friendly fuels,” he adds.

Year 8 pupil Guy Flint has been announced as the winner of this year’s QE Big Read competition.

For the annual Big Read competition, organised by English teacher Panayiota Menelaou, pupils are challenged to have a photograph taken of themselves during the summer holidays reading a book in the most unusual location they can think of. The winning picture of Guy shows him devouring The London Eye Mystery (a children’s mystery novel published in 2007) while sitting in the cable car going up to the peak at Funchal on the island of Madeira. He wins a book token as his prize.

Congratulating him, Headmaster Neil Enright said the competition was an example of the creative ways in which the School seeks to encourage reading. The opening of The Queen’s Library and the continuing investment in building up its collections further demonstrate QE’s commitment to literature, the Headmaster added.

The importance of reading has risen to the top of the political agenda recently following Schools Minister Nick Gibbs’ idea to get 100 great works of English literature published at low cost so they could be distributed to schools. As part of an article in The Times on the somewhat mixed reception that the idea has received, Mr Enright was asked to name his favourite reading suitable for schools.

Mr Enright said: “There is of course a debate to be had about exactly which books should be on the Government’s list, but the renewed emphasis on the importance of reading is surely welcome. Not only does reading high-quality literature develop pupils’ linguistic abilities, but it also exposes them to the works of great intellects and gives them a grounding in the best that our culture has to offer.”

Mr Enright gave The Times his own suggestions for boys to read at school, including on his list only titles that are out-of-print and therefore cheaper to publish. These were:

• Flatland, by Edwin Abbott Abbott
• Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens
• The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Arthur Conan Doyle
• Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
• The Turn of the Screw, by Henry James
• 1984, by George Orwell
• The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck
• The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson
• War and Peace, by Tolstoy
• A Journey to the Centre of the Earth, by Jules Verne.

Five QE Sixth-Formers have been named among the top 1 per cent nationwide for their marks in their financial studies qualification.

The Year 13 boys excelled in the ifs University College Certificate in Financial Studies (CeFS). In recognition of their achievement they have been offered a scholarship of £750 if they enrol on an ifs University College degree programme.

Arnav Jhanji, Kavan Kothari, Ronak Patel, Rushil Shah and Charran Santhalingam took the CeFS last year. QE’s Head of Economics, Liane Ryan, explained that the CeFS is equivalent to an AS Level. Boys continue with the Diploma in Financial Studies, equivalent to an A Level, in Year 13. Ms Ryan praised the five for their hard work and commitment to the course.

Alison Pask, the college’s Vice Principal with responsibility for Financial Capability and Community Outreach, congratulated the five in a letter to the School: “This is clearly a fantastic achievement for the students, the School and Ms Ryan.”

The CeFS provides a comprehensive introduction to personal finance and aims to encourage students to become responsible borrowers, sensible savers and to give them an appreciation of the need for financial planning throughout their life. It also prepares students for further study through the development of the core skills of critical analysis & evaluation, synthesis and verbal & written communication.

QE pupils acquitted themselves well at the country’s top schools chess championship, with a strong team performance and three boys winning prizes for their individual games.

Pitted against 15 élite chess-playing schools from across the UK and Ireland at the Millfield International Schools’ Chess Team Championship, the QE A team easily secured their place in the championship section as one of the top six teams in the first two qualifying rounds.

After five further rounds of intense competition at the event at Millfield School in Somerset, QE finished in third position overall, ahead of several independent schools known for the quality of their chess.

The three QE boys achieving prizes for the leading performance on their board were: Federico Rocco (Year 8), James Bunyan (Year 13) and Aneesh Chopada (Year 10) (pictured above, left to right).

Geoff Roberts, teacher in charge of chess, said: “I was very pleased with the strong performance of the team; finishing in third position in such a high-calibre tournament is an excellent achievement.

“Federico’s performance as the tournament’s best board 2 player was particularly impressive, given the quality of the opposing players he faced.

“It was a particularly special tournament as it marked the final year at the Millfield International for several stalwarts of QE chess with Chess Captain Jake Breindel, Ashwin Ravichandran and James Bunyan all enjoying their swansong; I was particularly pleased to see James bow out with an individual board prize.

“With many of the team comprising Year 7 and 8 pupils, chess at Queen Elizabeth’s has a bright future.”

In addition to the successes of the A team, QE’s B team gained valuable tournament experience, finishing sixth in the Major Competition. “Several of these younger boys are sure to feature strongly in our top team in the years to come,” Mr Roberts added.

He also expressed his gratitude to his fellow teachers, Marie-Jo Jacquin and Jonathan Brooke, for their assistance with the trip.

A team of six pupils impressed leading local figures with an impassioned presentation about making peace with refugees.

They spoke at Hendon Town Hall for a ‘Peace One Day’ event. Peace One Day is an organisation which promotes 21st September as a day of global ceasefire and non-violence.

QE’s Head of Religion & Society, Jack Robertson, said: “They gave a number of stirring arguments for their position, dispelling many myths, and a number of people commended them on their excellent presentation.”

Highlights included the statement: “For we are not a divided or a disunited kingdom, but a United Kingdom,” Mr Robertson added.

The boys’ audience included police officers, councillors and representatives of mental health providers. The team had the opportunity to question these people about the services they provide.

The team, all from Year 11, comprised: Abbeykeith Kugasenan Chettiar (pictured above left), Zayn Riaz (above right), Abbas Adejonwo, Ravi Karia, Simon Rey and Sahil Shah.