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After his stellar achievement of being chosen to represent the UK in a space competition hosted by NASA, Year 13’s Vinujan Sivakumar is now helping younger Elizabethans hoping to follow in his footsteps.

QE’s entrants in the UK Space Development Competition were part of the mock ‘company’ crowned as national champions in the UK finals held at Imperial College in March.

Vinujan was then selected as one of just 12 young people making up the UK team at the International Space Settlement Design Competition (ISSDC), held at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Florida, where he was elected as his company’s vice president.

Fresh from this experience-of-a-lifetime stateside, Vinujan has now pledged to assist the boys putting themselves forward for places in the QE team due to take part in next month’s London regional heat at the start of this year’s competition.

Head of Physics Jonathan Brooke said: “It’s a testament to the breadth of Vinujan’s talents that he was picked out by the organisers of the UK Space Design Competition to represent the UK.

“Vinujan has shown himself to be a talented communicator who can collaborate effectively with others and who demonstrated the ability to create plausible solutions to challenging engineering problems. I’ve also been very impressed by his willingness to support this year’s competition entrants.”

Mr Brooke also saluted the achievement of Vinujan’s QE teammates who made it through three stages of selection in the 2024–2025 competition to reach the national finals – firstly, they were chosen as part of the School team, before progressing through both regional and national heats.

They had, he said, showcased “the vision, creativity, and resilience needed to tackle some of the biggest challenges humanity will face in the future”.

The NASA-hosted ISSDC is the world’s largest STEM competition of its kind, bringing together hundreds of students from across the globe. Competitors were tasked with producing innovative yet realistic solutions to the immense challenges of human space colonisation, and were challenged to think like professional scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs,

Four international companies, each comprising 60 competitors, were given 48 hours to produce a 50-page proposal for a space settlement that met strict technical criteria set by industry experts.

Vinujan was one of eight team members who presented their company’s 35-minute proposal to a panel of judges. Following his election as vice president (engineering) – the second-most senior role in the company – Vinujan was responsible for focusing on and managing the technical aspects of the settlement design.

He said: “Leading a team of such talented individuals from across the world through the rigorous process of engineering and space design was truly an incredible experience. Although placed as runners-up, our proposal was highly commended by the judges.”

Thirteen Sixth-Form geographers heard Oxford’s Professor Danny Dorling deliver a powerful exposition of the national and global threat posed by poverty and inequality.

His lecture, Inequality: the next crisis and children, was packed with detail and backed with richly illustrated statistics.

Delivered at the Royal Geographical Society in Kensington, London, it proved a revelation to many. Year 13’s Hitarth Patel said: “I found the extent to which inequality is prevalent within the UK astonishing,” and Shravan Jayaprakash, of Year 12, described the lecture as “an exhilarating experience which broadened my perspectives about many issues in our country today, especially the widening inequality we face”.

In promoting the lecture, for the RGS’s school members, the society stated: “The greatest concern worldwide, for the future of where we live, is not climate change and its impacts; it is not extinction and loss of biodiversity, it is not artificial intelligence or asteroids – none of these worries come close to what concerns us most.

“More than any other future issue, most people in the world worry about inequality, poverty, and the cost of living; and they worry, above all else, for their children. Are they right to be most concerned in this way and, if so, what is to be done?”

Prof Dorling is a social geographer who is the 1971 Professor of Geography, attached to St Peter’s College, Oxford, as well as a visiting professor at both Goldsmiths and the University of Bristol. He is known for his support for Labour, particularly when Jeremy Corbyn led the party.

He has spoken on radio, featured on television and written newspaper articles. He is the author of more than 20 books, including two published in 2024 – Seven Children: Inequality and the Geography of a Failing State, and Peak Injustice: Solving Britain’s Inequality Crisis – and one which came out this year, The Next Crisis: What We Think about the Future.

The QE group, drawn from both Year 12 and Year 13, were led by Deputy Head Anne Macdonald (Academic), who teaches Geography.

She said: “Growing inequality in the UK is a complex contemporary issue that cuts across the disciplines of geography and economics (and other social sciences). Danny Dorling’s academic work in this area is so compelling because it is grounded in extensive data-driven research. His work about the impacts of inequality on children from across the income spectrum encourages our students to think about their place in modern Britain and develop empathy for others who might face more barriers.”

Hamza Pasha, of Year 13, shared his fellow pupils’ reaction to the lecture. “I found Danny Dorling’s graphical presentation of inequality statistics helped me realise the magnitude of this issue and I was also surprised to learn how much more unequal the UK is in comparison with other countries.”

The Royal College of Organists held a special concert exclusively for QE musicians in a historic City of London church.

Six QE organists and four vocalists performed in the free lunchtime recital at St Lawrence Jewry Church.

It was the first in the RCO’s Young Performers’ series of concerts. Like the remaining two schools due to give concerts in the series – Cheltenham Ladies’ College and Eton College – QE is an RCO-accredited institution.

For several of QE’s organists, this was their first public performance, and it was one which gave them the opportunity to play on the church’s high-quality, modern organ, built by the German firm of Klais in 2001.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “It was a joy to spend a lunchtime in beautiful surroundings and to hear our QE performers. Well done, too, to Year 7’s Harry Xuan and Hercules Li, who introduced the concert with confidence whilst just about able to see over the lectern!

“It is great to see the Music department helping our pupils to realise their Boundless potential, taking full advantage of our place and proximity to the capital, whilst also investing in our partnership with the Royal College of Organists to promote excellence.”

Mr Enright thanked the RCO’s Director, Sir Andrew Parmley, and Director of Relationships, Madeline Smith, as well as the Music department, for making the concert possible.

The concert featured music spanning five centuries by: George Böhm; George Frideric Handel; Matthew Camidge; Giulio Caccini; Johann Sebastian Bach; César Geoffray; Samuel Sebastian Wesley; Théodore Dubois; and William Mathias.

Assistant Director of Music Jas Hutchinson Bazely said: “This was a wonderful opportunity for the boys to perform in a historic church in the City, and the perfect occasion to showcase the growing number of organists at the School. For all the musicians involved, it was an inspiring event, and I’m very grateful to the Royal College of Organists for their kind invitation.”

The Young Performer Series in the City is dedicated to the memory of Catherine Ennis, former President of the RCO and organist at St Lawrence Jewry.

The concert programme featured brief biographies of all the QE performers.

Although Harry and Hercules, who have both just started learning the organ in School, did not actually perform, the remaining six QE organists all did. The six included:

• Zach Fernandes, of Year 10, who said: “I most enjoyed playing on a new organ as it had a new type of pipes which I didn’t know about. Additionally, I enjoyed playing to a larger audience than I’m used to and playing along with many more people than usual.”
• Arthur Wang, of Year 8: “The 8-ft stops sounded very warm, and I quite enjoyed being able to see the pipes right behind the organ, with its direct connection to the organ. The pipes were pretty close to each other, so there wouldn’t be a bit of delay if I was playing on different manuals at the same time. It was a really beautiful organ as well, with all the shiny metal on the pipes.”
• Robin Peng, of Year 8: “I enjoyed being on an actual three-manual pipe organ the most. The organ at St Lawrence Jewry is so much grander than the ones that I normally play. Also, it had a mechanical link to the stops and the pipes, and it was exciting to both see and feel them in action.”

In addition to the organists, several QE singers drawn from Years 11–13, also performed. Joseph Donovan, of Year 11, said: “I loved singing with the organ next to me; the sound was really strong and full.”

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Year 10’s Adyansh Sahai took first place in a prestigious Hindi-speaking event – even though he was the youngest participant.

His talk on robotics impressed the audience at the celebration of the Hindi language, which was organised jointly by the UK High Commission of India and by the community charity, Sangam, UK.

Adyansh achieved victory at the event in The Nehru Centre in Mayfair, London, despite Hindi not being his first language.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “My congratulations go to Adyansh on this noteworthy achievement.

“We lay significant emphasis on helping boys develop the skills to express themselves well verbally, whether in English or in other languages: our newest facility, The Robert Dudley Studio, is devoted to that end. Adyansh’s success is a great example of someone who has mastered those skills.”

Young people aged 15–20 were invited to share their experiences in Hindi. Adyansh was pitted against A-level students and Oxford & Cambridge undergraduates.

During the talk, he engaged his audience, which included dignitaries and officials from the High Commission, by including a live demonstration of a robot he had recently built from a shopping trolley. Designed to assist people with mobility issues, the robot was customised with 3D-printed sub-systems.

He was awarded with his first prize by VIP guests including Virendra Sharma, Labour MP for Ealing Southall from 2007 until his retirement at the 2024 general election, and Parveen Rani, who was the 2024–2025 Deputy Mayor of Hertsmere.

It is not the first time that Adyansh’s language skills have come to the fore. Earlier this year, his poem entitled A villanelle on villainy was published in QE’s pupil-led creative magazine, The Arabella.

Adyansh began his talk by proudly introducing himself as an Elizabethan, his experiences at QE having contributed to the confidence and resilience he displayed when taking part.

His parents, Abhinav & Deepika Sahai, wrote to Mr Enright after his triumph in the competition:  “He was able to rise to the occasion with the confidence QE has instilled in him.”

Contractors have begun a major project to restore the School’s Main Building – the first important work on the structure since it was extended in the 1950s.

The project comes after QE secured a £2m Government Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) grant, with an additional £0.3m being contributed by the Friends of Queen Elizabeth’s charity.

The work, which is likely to take several months, will include fitting new roofs across the entire building, as well as significant measures to improve sustainability, and a host of other improvements and repairs.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “I am so pleased that we were successful in securing the funding we needed to deliver this important element of our current, hugely ambitious Estates Strategy. As ever, I am immensely grateful to our parents and alumni: it is their generosity that has made possible the substantial FQE contribution.

“While it is a little sad to see Main Building now wrapped in scaffolding, it will all be worth it next year when we see it restored to its original 1932 splendour, with new roofs and polished-up elevations. This work is an important element in ensuring QE remains ‘a state school like no other’ for our pupils.

“My thanks go to our Head of Facilities Management, Silvia Shann, her industrious team and our trusted contractors, who were busy over the summer holiday getting everything ready for the work to proceed.”

For its first three-and-a-half centuries, the School was based in Tudor Hall in Wood Street, High Barnet.

By the 1920s, QE had outgrown this home, so in 1932, it moved to its current premises on Queen’s Road, with HRH The Prince George, Duke of Kent, opening the new building (pictured).

Main Building combines classic 1930s features – such as the iconic bottle-green glazed tiles that still adorn the classrooms and corridors – with a homage to QE’s Tudor roots through its brick and stone masonry, and oak panelling. It was extended with new wings as the School continued to grow in the 1950s.

The work will involve fitting 130,000 new roof tiles for the main pitched roof areas, the replacement of multiple flat roofs, and work on the external elevations, including re-pointing.

Several leaks and instances of mould on internal walls will be rectified, followed by redecoration as necessary.

Sustainability measures will include the installation of improved insulation in Main Building, as well as the fitting of solar panels on the pitched roof facing south west to one side of the Main School Hall. The few remaining original windows will be replaced with units that are in keeping with the building, but now double-glazed.

“Generations of Elizabethans have been educated in Main Building and we have, therefore, always sought to be good stewards, keeping the building in good repair,” said Mr Enright. “This work will not only improve the day-to-day environment for our current pupils and staff, it will also ensure the building continues to serve the generations to come.”

The work is expected to be complete by the spring or summer of 2026.