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QE has been named the regional winner in a new national competition involving skills in STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

A Year 8 team won the South East Regional Award in The Bright Ideas Challenge by coming up with creative solutions to the energy challenges that cities are likely to face in 2050.

Viren Patel, Eeshan Banerjee, Thomas Mgbor and Deshram Ganeshamoorthy each won a tablet computer as well as £1,500 in the competition, which is run by energy company Shell. They will now go on to compete for the national award.

By 2050, the global population is predicted to be nine billion – almost two billion more people than today – and three-quarters are likely to live in cities. For the competition, secondary school pupils aged 11-14 were invited to identify an energy challenge that a city might face in the future and then devise a creative solution.

The QE team looked at supplying clean sustainable renewable energy in the form of biogas. Competition organisers say this idea could promote a better quality of life for future city-dwellers by recycling the carbon dioxide produced by burning biogas and using it to feed algae that has been genetically modified to photosynthesise more efficiently.

The four have been invited to visit Make the Future London, a four-day festival of innovation being hosted by Shell at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park this summer, during which the regional winners’ ideas will be showcased and the national winner announced.

The QE winners were congratulated by the School’s Head of Technology, Sheila Patel, who organised their entry, and by Sarah Westcott, Head of Lower School Science. Dr Westcott said: “Competitions such as the Bright Ideas Challenge help to reinforce the relevance of what our boys learn in the classroom. We are delighted that the QE team performed so well in the Regional round and wish them every success in the final at Make the Future London.”

At the festival, students will also explore energy ideas brought to life through a series of Science shows, hands-on activities and careers experiences. And they will get a chance to watch the Shell Eco-marathon – a competition that sees thousands of STEM students from across Europe take part in an energy efficiency challenge, competing in ultra-efficient, self-designed cars of the future. The winners are the teams that go the furthest on the least amount of fuel.

Anna Haslam, Head of Social Investment at Shell said: “It’s the possibility of a great idea that can change lives which inspires every engineer and scientist to keep on investigating, keep on researching and keep on pushing new boundaries. And that’s exactly the opportunity Shell wants to give to secondary school students through The Bright Ideas Challenge – to inspire them to become the scientists and engineers of tomorrow.”

A visiting theatre company performed a play in French to the whole of Year 8.

The production staged in the Main Hall was given by the specialist troupe, Onatti. Their comedy, Les Garçons, is a farce about the relationship problems of a young couple who babysit together for an evening.

The 50-minute play performed by two native French actors featured audience participation and drew much laughter from the boys.

Christopher Kidd, Head of Languages, said: “In other schools, this play is normally performed to pupils in Years 9-11 so I was particularly pleased to see how well our boys understood it – and to observe that they clearly derived so much enjoyment from something performed entirely in French.”

Onatti Productions, who are based in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, write their own plays, aiming to make them modern and relevant to young people.

They endeavour to ensure that all the plays are pitched correctly, training the actors to present the performance in a specific style to help pupils follow the play. Mime and repetition are used extensively to enhance audiences’ comprehension and enjoyment.

In addition to the French productions, Onatti also put on plays for language-learners in German, Spanish and English. Before arriving at schools, they send ahead a vocabulary list and part of the script.

Three QE musicians have achieved Grade 8 with distinction – the highest possible grade at the highest possible level for instrumental examinations. 

The youngest is Drew Sellis, from Year 9, who is a pianist. Zechi Nwankwo, of Year 10, plays the trumpet. And Year 12 pupil Varun Vassanth, who is the current School Captain, plays the violin.

Cheryl Horne, Director of Music, said: “We've just received the results for the Spring ABRSM [Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music] exams and I am delighted at this considerable achievement by three of our students.”

For his examination, Drew played:

• J. S. Bach: Allegro in E Minor, No. 20 from Easy Piano Pieces and Dances BWV 1019
• W. A. Mozart: Allegro con spirito, Sonata in D, K.311, mvt 1
• Philip Martin: Allegro con brio from The Rainbow Comes and Goes

"I was very pleased with my result, having practised my pieces and scales for so long," he said. Earlier this year, a piece of music written by Drew won the original composition in the Spring Grove Music Festival. He had performed it (playing alto sax) for the judges along with fellow Year 9 pupils Tai Oyama and Bhirammah Ramanohar.

Varun’s examination pieces were:

• Antonio Vivaldi: Danza Pastorale, Concerto in E, La Primavera, op. 8 no. 1
• Charles Dancla: Resignation, op. 59
• John Williams: Remembrances from Three Pieces from Schindler's List

Varun said: "Having played violin since the age of eight, it's something I've been working towards for a long time and I'm very proud of this achievement!"

Zechi played:

• F. J. Haydn: Allegro, Trumpet Concerto in Eb, mvt 3
• Jean Hubeau: Spiritual, Sonata for Trumpet, mvt 3
• Allen Vizzutti: Polka 

QE has held its inaugural Enrichment Week – and the School brought in two Old Elizabethan experts to assist.

Anthony Anaxagorou (1994–1999) (pictured below), who is a popular poet and performer, led two English workshops, while artist David Shillinglaw (pictured left), who was a contemporary of Anthony at QE, worked with Year 10 boys on a competitive Art activity.

Enrichment is an essential feature of life at QE: throughout the year, there are scores of opportunities to participate in activities that take place outside lessons, including clubs, sports, the performing arts, visits, competitions and House-based activities. In addition to extra-curricular activities, there are also subject-related clubs and clinics – the academic side of enrichment at QE.

Guided by their teachers, boys are expected to take advantage of these opportunities, with each pupil encouraged to select activities suited to their abilities and interests. In line with QE’s mission of producing young mean who are ‘confident, able and responsible’, enrichment helps boys develop skills and character attributes that will stand them in good stead throughout their lives.

Enrichment Week is an initiative aimed at strengthening the School’s provision even further. It featured activities that do not normally form part of the curriculum, developing in Years 7–10 boys a range of academic, personal and thinking skills.

The English department arranged for the visit from Anthony Anaxagorou. He has had several anthologies of poetry published, as well as a collection of short stories. He spoke about his own writing and led the poetry workshops, each for 90 boys from Year 9, on creative writing.

Since graduating from Central Saint Martins in 2002, David Shillinglaw has exhibited in galleries in Japan, China, The Gambia, Holland, and key cities such as New York, London, Berlin, and Istanbul. He assisted Year 10 boys in their inter-house Art competition. This was won by Broughton’s team with an artwork that explored street art and identity. The team comprised: Risharn Chandrann; Amar Isam-Abdu; Abishek Kengeswaran; Patrick Owen; Dharren Santhalingam and Ajith Suthakaran.

House competition is a key feature of enrichment at QE, and Year 7 took part in an inter-House drama contest during the week.

For Humanities, Year 9 pupils were encouraged to look at potential biases in the curriculum. In the Latin sessions, Year 7 boys learned about life in Roman Britain, particularly for Roman soldiers. Year 10 enjoyed a day devoted to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics); for Music, Year 7 boys spent a morning exploring rhythm; and for House drama, Year 10 pupils performing in Houses took the theme of ‘journeys’ to improvise a short play of their own creation.

Twenty-six members of QE’s Combined Cadet Force headed off to Kent for a week-long camp, giving them the chance to put into practice the skills they have learned over the past year.

The camp, or Exercise Cockney Fire, at St Martin’s Plain, Folkestone, featured a demanding shooting test – which all the QE boys passed _­­– a gruelling 24-hour field exercise and the opportunity to relax at a barbecue.

Afterwards, Major R P Manning, commanding officer of the London District Cadet Training Team, spoke highly of all QE’s cadets, pointing out that that their achievements went above and beyond the expectation set for them.

Captain Alexander Masson, the commander of QE’s contingent, said: “It was a really successful trip and a few cadets were recognised for their excellent efforts. Major Manning was particularly impressed with two Year 9 boys:  James Ford, who hit all 40 targets on the range (something which, he said, even regular soldiers struggle to do), and Sankeith Kirubakaran, for making the most progress on the ranges.” They were both awarded a prize from the army.

Captain Masson added: “In addition, we gave prizes to the best cadets, Uday Kataria (Year 10) and Shakshum Bhagat (Year 9), while the prize for the most improved cadet went to Yash Yadav, of Year 10.

“Hugo Flint and Akshay Narayan did brilliantly in leading the cadets throughout the week. In fact, all three Year 12s at the camp did an outstanding job. Jay Khetia was the Platoon Sergeant for the majority of the week, with Hugo taking on the position of Platoon Sergeant when moving into the field and Akshay was the Platoon Commander.”

The boys spent four days at the army’s small arms ranges close to the town of Hythe, which have been used for live firing for nearly 200 years. All QE boys passed the tough CCF shooting proficiency test at either first-class, marksman or pass level. Those attending the camp were required to have previously passed their weapon-handling safety test.

Evening activities at the ranges included paintball target exercises and sport, with an awards and social evening on the last of the four days.

The final full day of the camp was spent on the 24-hour exercise, which was organised, planned and run by QE. It included a navigation exercise, field craft and a ‘night stalk’. Boys spent a whole night out in the countryside, giving them valuable experience of ‘living in the field’.

The boys were overseen by Captain Masson, Biology teacher Captain Mev Armon, 2nd Lieutenant Richard Scally, who is a PE teacher, School Staff Instructor Charlie-Maud Munro, Languages teacher Rosie Hall and Technology teacher Michael Noonan.

More than 100 prizes were awarded to younger boys at the School’s Junior Awards ceremony.

Prize-winners gathered in the School hall with their parents and teachers and received their prizes from Guest of Honour and old boy Dr Benjamin Lichman (2000­–2007).

The ceremony rewards boys in Years 7, 8 and 9 for their achievements. It features musical interludes which this year included pieces by Mozart, Fauré and Devienne. VIP guests included the Mayor and Mayoress of Barnet, Cllr David Longstaff, and Ms Gillian Griffiths.

In his speech, Benjamin urged on the boys the importance of asking questions. He illustrated this by recalling in some detail the famous story of Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin. Fleming, instead of throwing away agar plates which had accidentally become contaminated, was curious enough to ask what the effects of the fungal growth had been on the bacteria that had previously been spread on the plates. “And experiment followed by question followed by experiment (and on and on) eventually led to…the birth of the golden age of antibacterials, which saw the elimination of many types of infectious disease.”

It was important, too, that the boys persevere in asking questions, Benjamin said. The question “Are antibiotics good for human health?” would have been answered with a simple “yes” ten years ago, he pointed out, yet as the use of too many antibiotics has enabled some bacteria to gain resistance and become superbugs, it is now clear that that answer is not entirely true.

Benjamin followed in the footsteps of two older brothers when he came to QE. He was a keen flautist at School, playing in various QE ensembles, while also being involved in debating.

After gaining straight As in his A-levels, he went on to gain a first-class degree in Natural Sciences at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. Benjamin recalled his own first academic award: a Year 7 prize for public-speaking. Praising the School, which he said had been “central to my journey”, he urged the prize-winners not to be complacent in the future and warned them against excessive competitiveness and viewing their successes in comparison with others.

Benjamin arrived at Junior Awards just a few days after himself being a recipient at an awards ceremony – in his case, receiving his doctorate in Biochemistry from University College London. Writing his thesis, which comprised 316 pages and 86,729 words, had been a lengthy and laborious process, he told the assembled boys: “The whole four years involved working on an enzyme found in plants which helps create some of humanity’s most valuable medicines. You study so many different subjects. I think you are very lucky – I just spent the last four years studying a single molecule!”

He recently took up a post-doctoral appointment at the John Innes Centre in Norwich, which is home to one of the world’s leading groups in the study of natural plant products.

Earlier in the afternoon, the Headmaster, Neil Enright, thanked Benjamin for attending and he spoke on the importance of reflection. Alluding to the annual appraisals that are a standard feature in the modern working world, Mr Enright said: “This time to stop and reflect is valued by both employers and employees alike, giving the opportunity to ask the questions that American poet and writer Carl Sandburg felt were so important to reflect on: ‘Who am I, where have I been, and where am I going?’”

The Mayor gave a memorable speech about taking opportunities. The prize-winners should, he said, be very proud of themselves: they had been chosen as the top performers in one of the top schools in the country, an accolade indeed.

The musical interludes included performances from three soloists from Years 7, 8 and 9 respectively. Cellist Raphael Herberg played Fauré’s Elégie, pianist Guy Flint performed Mozart’s Allegro, movement 1 from Sonata in G, while Bhiramah Rammanohar tackled Francois Devienne’s Adagio, movement 2 from Sonata in B flat. All three boys featured among the prize-winners.

After the ceremony, refreshments were taken in the Main Hall, rather than the front field, because of the weather, but this did not dampen the celebratory atmosphere: winning boys and their families enjoyed chatting and mingling with their teachers and the Headmaster.