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QE won two first places in the All England Grammar School Mathematician of the Year  (GSMOTY) competition for the second consecutive year.

Saim Khan, who enters Year 13 in September, was the winner for Key Stage 5, while William Joanes, who goes into Year 12, was first in the Key Stage 4 category. QE also featured among the Key Stage 3 high-flyers, with Aaryan Prabhaker, who will be in Year 9, the runner-up for that age group.

The results, announced during the summer, are for the 2023 competition. In 2022, QE pupils were also among the winners, taking first place for Key Stages 3 & 4.

Head of Mathematics Jessica Steer said: “Our congratulations go to Saim, William and Aaryan for their individual performances and for representing the School so well. More than a third of all the country’s grammar schools took part in this year’s competition, with thousands of competitors, and the competition organisers have said the standard was higher than ever. So the achievement of these three pupils is considerable.”

GSMOTY is organised by a division of education company Mathema Events Limited 2023. The GSMOTY website states: “Our competition aims to ignite an interest for maths in a fun and innovative way for all abilities.”

Entering GSMOTY involves sitting an interactive, online mathematics paper at home. Each of the three age categories has a separate 50-question examination, with an optional extra tie-break question at the end.

The competition includes questions drawn from the curriculum specification for the relevant key stage, as well as material which extends slightly beyond it. For the Key Stage 5 examination, for example, areas covered included: exponentials; logarithms & log rules; series summation; differentiation; and integration.

Saim described taking part as “an amazing experience – a true test of problem-solving skills and lateral thinking, as you extended concepts learnt in class in directions you hadn’t covered before. It was immensely enjoyable, with my favourite style of questions being those on integration because – whilst they often looked the hardest – they often had some of the most elegant solutions. Winning was the icing on the cake!”

The questions were set by GSMOTY’s chief examiner, Professor James Preston. The papers were marked by ten Heads of Mathematics from state secondary schools that are not grammar schools.

With most pupils set to enjoy two days off, while the School conducts its annual entrance test, inspiration can be drawn from the two-day Flourish Festival that saw 940 boys and 53 staff head out from Queen’s Road on 25 separate trips, taking full advantage of QE’s position within easy reach of both beautiful countryside and the world-famous cultural attractions of London.

The festival included a wide variety of trips for all of Years 7–10 and Year 12 organised through QE’s Flourish enrichment programme as an end-of-year treat.

Assistant Head (Pupil Involvement) Crispin Bonham-Carter, who leads Flourish, said: “It was a major logistical exercise: we sent the staff and boys to 25 separate locations and activities, including three museums, one airfield, one forest, three theatres, one ancient ruin, two country hikes, one set of botanical gardens, one university, one library, one girls’ school, and one zoo.

“We certainly celebrate academic achievement here, but, as this festival exemplifies, the QE experience is about so much more than that. Over two summer days, we gave boys the chance to pursue their interests, to learn something new, or, in some cases, to stretch themselves with some physical exercise in the great outdoors.

“It was a very diverse programme, but, we hope, with this in common – that all had the opportunity to relax with friends and enjoy themselves.”

The major trips involved in the festival were:

• Year 7
  Sponsored walk in the Dollis Valley, Barnet
  Whipsnade Zoo
• Year 8
  Kew Gardens
  Roman St Albans (Verulamium)
• Year 9
  Imperial War Museum Duxford, Cambridgeshire
  Science Museum
• Year 10
  Globe Theatre
  Heartwood Forest, St Albans
  Design Museum
  British Library
• Year 12
  Theatre trips (Garrick Theatre and Young Vic)
  Chilterns Hike (Cookham to Marlow loop)

Asked what makes a great School trip, Mr Bonham-Carter said: “It’s all about the people. All of the brilliant staff and all the boys out of School together, doing something joyfully different.

“It’s the multitude of shared moments: the stunning views, the brilliant performances, the M25, sudden downpours, awe-inspiring exhibits, ice-creams, tube delays – everything – the whole School – living and learning together.”

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Star swimmer Rocco Giustiniani won gold in both the 100m and 200m butterfly finals in Swim England’s Summer Meet at Sheffield’s Ponds Forge complex.

Rocco, who enters Year 13 next month, battled hard to win the shorter race, while in the 200m, he not only led from the start, but also achieved an emphatic personal best (PB).

Director of Sport Jonathan Hart said: “Many congratulations to Rocco on these impressive performances, which I know reflect a great deal of hard work in training.”

Rocco, who swims for London’s long-established Anaconda Swim Club, reached the final of the 17-year-olds’ 100m competition after performing strongly in the heats, where he was just outside his PB for that distance.

Placed in lane 4 for the final, he was behind at the halfway stage, but fought back hard to take gold with a time of 57.74 seconds, ahead of the second-placed swimmer on 58.04.

In the 200m final, he led all the way in lane 5, getting off very quickly and swimming the first leg in an impressive 27.88s. By the halfway stage, he was a full second clear of the field – an advantage he retained to the end, completing the race with a time of 2.09.53.

Last year Rocco was selected for the Sport England-funded Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme.

The selection was a confirmation of several years of success in the pool.

In the 2021–2022 season, he built on his pre-pandemic successes by winning the 100m butterfly London regional title. He qualified for the summer 2022 national championships, where he finished seventh.

His rise continued last summer when he smashed his PB in the nationals and took bronze in the 200m final.

Rocco’s accomplishments were recognised recently by his QE classmates, when they nominated him for a DVS Award.

The award for ‘independence’ was presented by Old Elizabethan (1991–1998) Priyan Shah, of the DVS Foundation in a special assembly. The citation spoke of his “working exceptionally hard at School, whilst maintaining a rigorous schedule of competitive swimming outside of School”.

Teacher and Old Elizabethan James Clarke won QE’s first-ever Leader Award from the Jack Petchey Achievement Award Scheme, having been nominated by his pupils.

Mr Clarke (OE 1999–2004), who leaves QE this summer after a dozen years in the PE department, was presented with his award alongside nine student winners drawn from Years 10–12.

QE’s ten recipients received their awards just a few weeks after the death of businessman and philanthropist Sir Jack Petchey at the age of 98. The award scheme that bears his name recognises outstanding young people aged 11-25 across London and Essex.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “Many congratulations to James. His passion for rugby is well-known, but the award also rightly recognises his commitment to helping students reach their full potential, both academically and in their extra-curricular activities. He takes with him our best wishes as he moves to a new position with Bermudan rugby.

“I also congratulate the nine pupils who have won awards for their contributions to School life, which covered a wide range of endeavour, from music to mentoring.”

Mr Clarke is pictured, top, receiving his award from the Deputy Mayor of the Barnet, Councillor Danny Rich, and then at Sports Day, where he anchored the staff team to victory in the day’s traditional finale, a 16 x 100m relay known as the QE Mile. He received the Leader award for his dedication to coaching and mentoring, recognising that this has gone beyond the rugby field.

Pupils winning awards were:

• Harrison Lee, Shrey Tater​, Chanul Athukoralage​ and Shreyas Mone​ in Year 12
• Karan Somani​, Sejal Bobba​ and Muhammad Ammaar Hurzuk​ in Year 11
• Noah Morley​ and Ahsan Rahman in Year 10.

Harrison Lee has led junior strings and various music ensembles, dedicating himself to enhancing their performances. He also consistently plays in School concerts, thus showcasing his passion for Music.

Shrey Tater is also involved with Music, with his contributions to the Senior Choir being recognised, along with his commitment to helping with extra-curricular activities, particularly with the younger years.

Shreyas Mone’s award reflected his role as an ambassador for the International Astronomy and Astrophysics Competition (IAAC). ​The citation added: “He is also known for his exceptional and captivating Physics blog, where he shares fascinating insights, making complex concepts easily understandable.”

Sejal Bobba is a candidate for the Barnet Youth Parliament, known for his role as a positive influence and role model for younger generations. He is actively involved in the School’s debating society and was also recognised for his friendly personality, always being willing to engage in conversations with anyone needing help.​

For the two youngest award-winners, Ahsan Rahman was reported to shine as a peer mentor, providing valuable support to new Year 7 boys dealing with examination stress and sharing strategies to avoid low grades. A committed sportsman and strong coach, he leads by example, on and off the field. ​

And Noah Morley is another exceptional musician, participating in six Music clubs per week and in numerous concerts. In addition to engaging in sports, he also contributes to the School community by assisting with House assemblies.​

QE has again expanded its outreach work with Barnet primary schools, adding a day focussed on Art to its programme this year.

Now in its ninth year, the primary schools initiative gives girls and boys in Year 5 an early taste of what it is like to be at secondary school, providing a range of activities designed to be both stimulating and fun.

As well as the youngsters coming to Queen’s Road, the programme also involves sixth-formers visiting primary schools as volunteers. They are now delivering activities to Years 4–6 in areas ranging from coding and chess to creative writing and public speaking.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “QE is very much a Barnet school, and we see this outreach to our friends in local primary schools as an important element of our community partnership work. Furthermore, although we have pupils at QE from a wide area, we certainly welcome applications from families living more locally. We therefore naturally hope that some of the boys who came along to these primary school outreach events may be inspired to apply next year.”

Earlier in the summer, QE announced a partnership with education technology specialists Atom Learning to support primary school children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Through the partnership, children aged 7–11 who are eligible for Pupil Premium are being given free access to online learning resources and to preparation for grammar school entrance tests.

For QE’s 2024 primary schools outreach work, as well as the Art day, there were days focussed on Science, on Humanities (first introduced in 2022) and with a double focus on Mathematics and English.

The departments involved include: English; Mathematics; Art; Music; Science; Economics; Geography; and History, as well as The Queen’s Library, which hosts literacy workshops as part of the programme.

Head of Art Craig Wheatley said: “At the Art day, our young visitors really enjoyed spending time exploring the creative process, and that involved working on activities such as doodling and creating collages without necessarily having a fixed plan.” The children used magazines and newspapers, building up a collage on top of text, and adding colour with pencils. They also designed a personal logo.

Activities on the programme’s other days ranged from a forensic crime exercise aimed at tracking down a (fictional!) murderer to designing and marketing a new product.

The young visitors often worked in teams, with a competitive element adding excitement to their day away from their normal classrooms.

QE’s partner primary schools are: Christ Church; Foulds; Monken Hadley; Northside; St Catherine’s; Underhill; and Whitings Hill.

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