Almost 120 prizes were awarded to boys in the first three years of the School at Junior Awards.
Former QE First XI cricket captain and First XV rugby player Sunil Tailor (OE 1996–2006) was the guest of honour, telling the boys that he had now united his love for sport with his career in accountancy: he is the Head of Commercial Finance at reigning Premiership champions Saracens.
He even brought along the huge Premiership trophy to show the audience in the Main School Hall, where VIPs took their places, together with prize-winners, their families and staff for the afternoon ceremony.
Headmaster Neil Enright said afterwards: “Junior Awards is always one of the highlights of the end of our School year – an opportunity publicly to recognise the achievement of those who have stood out even in such a high-achieving context as Queen Elizabeth’s School.
“Gaining an award here is thus a considerable honour, and doubly so this year because the prize-winners achieved their success in our 450th anniversary year.”
The afternoon saw musical interludes played by the three year groups’ Music prize-winners. Year 7’s Eshaan Anil performed Fauré’s Elegie Op. 24 on the cello; violinist Joseph Donovan, of Year 8, played Nikki Iles’ Hay Barn Blues, and Year 9’s Shreyas Iyengar performed Beethoven’s Sonata No.8 in C minor Op.13 Pathétique Movement I Grave, Allegro di molto e con brio.
In addition to prizes for curriculum subjects, there are House awards, prizes for overall commitment and awards for extra-curricular.
In additional to congratulating the prize-winners and their families, Sunil spoke about topics including values in sport and organisational culture.
Sunil read Economics at UCL, graduating in 2009, and was a cricket coach at Middlesex from 2007–2011. He worked for more than ten years for accountancy firm MHA MacIntyre Hudson before joining Saracens in November 2022.
He chairs the newly formed Equality, Diversity and Inclusion group at Saracens and last year, following the racism scandal in English cricket, he was consulted about his own experiences by Middlesex CCC.
After Sunil’s address, the winner of the Year 7 award for debating & public speaking, Afraz Khan, gave a vote of thanks.
Following the ceremony, guests and staff enjoyed refreshments on Stapylton Field.
