Viewing archives for

Founder’s Day 2026 brought together the finest traditions from the School’s history with glimpses of its future – all enlivened by the colourful afternoon fun of the FQE Fete that was made possible by the parents, pupils and staff of today.

The day began with a morning thanksgiving service at St John the Baptist, Barnet’s Parish Church. After that, staff, guests and Year 7 pupils from the congregation repaired to Queen’s Road for the lunchtime Roll Call and Reading of the School Chronicle in front of the Main Building, which this year was seen at its very best following the recent removal of scaffolding put up during an ongoing £2.3 refurbishment programme.

Crowds of pupils, parents, alumni and local residents then flocked to Stapylton Field for an afternoon’s enjoyment at The Friends of Queen Elizabeth’s Fete, where the attractions included dozens of stalls, food from around the world, and a full programme of entertainment on the stage.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “What a joyous and spectacular occasion this was! Founder’s Day is a tremendous celebration of our QE community in all its wonderful, rich diversity, and it was lovely to see so many people at the fete having a good time. I offer my heartfelt thanks to all who made the day possible, including staff and prefects, and particularly our wonderful FQE parents, without whose tireless efforts the fete simply would not happen.

“Through our QE Global Schools programme, our broad Elizabethan community is set to become even broader this summer with the opening of QE Dubai Sports City and QE Gurugram in India. I was, therefore, especially pleased to welcome among us those schools’ Founding Principals, Dan Clark and Craig Cook.” During the church service, Mr Clark and Dr Cook received a replica of QE’s 1573 Great Seal to take to their new schools as they move towards opening.

“Founder’s Day is our biggest single fundraiser of the year. Donations are still coming in, but I am pleased to report that we have already greatly exceeded our £25,000 target, with the current total standing at over £35,000 – a magnificent effort!” Mr Enright added. “The money raised will go to helping us improve the learning environment at Queen’s Road – through projects such as the complete refurbishment of our Biology department, starting this summer – thus providing an even better educational experience for current and future generations of bright boys from all backgrounds.”

The service featured hymns and readings, with anthems performed by the School Choir and Junior Barbershop Group, and music before the service from School organists. VIPs attending included the Mayor of Barnet, Councillor Zahra Beg. The prayers included the traditional Prayer on Founder’s Day, as well as a Prayer of Remembrance for Old Elizabethans who have died in the past year. The Founder’s Day pledge in its various forms was said by all in the congregation, who also joined in the singing of the anthem, And Be It Known, written by composer Howard Goodall for the School’s 450th anniversary in 2023.

The Guest Speaker was economist Promit Anwar-Westander (OE 2002–2009), who has occupied senior roles at the Treasury, as well as serving with several international development projects. In his address, he spoke about success not being the absence of failure, and about persevering through it: “failing better”. He drew on deeply personal experiences, as well as more light-hearted examples, such as the long wait for the Premier League title endured by Arsenal, the team beloved of so many QE pupils.

After the service, all boys gathered in front of Main Building, joined by staff robed in their academicals. Mr Enright followed the time-honoured Founder’s Day practice by reading aloud the School Chronicle. Brought up-to-date each year, this charts QE’s history, starting in 1568 – which is even before the School’s foundation in 1573 – when one of QE’s early promoters, Edward Underne, became rector of Chipping Barnet. The Roll Call was read by the 2026 School Captain, Tunishq Mitra, with each House Captain replying: “Ad sumus” (“Here we are.”)

The stage on Stapylton Field played host to both School performances and to displays by parents and visiting groups. The former included an opening performance by the School Choir and a strings and winds ensemble, followed immediately by an opportunity to see hip-hop dance from a new School group drawn from Years 7–10, who recently performed a five-minute routine as part of Step Around Town, a regional dance event in Camden. There was also music from QE’s Junior Jazz, Bollywood dance from a group of School mums, traditional Chinese dance and Telugu folk dance, to name just some of the attractions.

The fete featured dozens of stalls, selling items ranging from books to plants. Hungry fete-goers were spoilt for choice, with the food on offer including South Indian dosa, meat & vegetarian barbecues, Sri Lankan kothu roti, and an international tent serving oriental, Eurasian and African cuisine. For the energetic, there were the ever-popular stocks and the jungle run assault course, while the PE department brought a cricketing attraction, with boys offered the opportunity to bowl a teacher out.

Cricket was also very much in evidence at a planning consultation event held during the afternoon in the Main Building’s Conference Centre. This featured plans for the Sports Hall that the School hopes to build, if approved. In addition to the four-court Sports Hall building (with classrooms on the top floor), which would be able to house indoor cricket nets among other sporting facilities, the plans also envisage the creation of six ECB-compliant outdoor nets and six new Fives courts.

• To view the full 36-page fete programme, which includes special features, recipes and advertisements from firms supporting the event, click here.
• To visit the Founder’s Day JustGiving page and make a donation, click here.

The musical classic that began this year’s Valediction in many ways set the tone for the afternoon that was to follow.

The platform party processed into the Shearly Hall to the strains of Feeling Good – a song from a 1960s musical later made famous by Nina Simone, among others.

As the sounds of the QE Jazz Band faded and the audience settled in the summer heat, Headmaster Neil Enright told the assembled Year 13 leavers: “Feeling Good is, at its heart, a song of renewal and freedom; of stepping forward into possibility with poise, courage, and a quiet, unmistakable confidence. It feels especially appropriate this afternoon, as we mark this moment of transition for all of you.

“You stand on the threshold of something new: ‘It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, it’s a new life’ – and, for each of you, that new life begins now.”

Mr Enright celebrated the successes past and present of the leavers. Not only had they navigated challenges including a global pandemic with determination, they had set records for QE with their GCSE results. The outcomes of their university applications have also set new standards, including a highest-ever total of 62 offers from Imperial College London and a string of offers from leading US universities.

Looking forward, Mr Enright told Year 13: “You will make decisions some wise, some… educational. That is not only inevitable, but also essential. Growth requires risk. Be bold enough to seize opportunities, but also humble enough to learn lessons when things do not unfold as planned. Setbacks are not failures; they are part of the process… It is in those moments that perseverance becomes your greatest ally.”

This was a theme also explored by Guest of Honour Lord Karan Bilimoria – an entrepreneur best known as the founder of Cobra Beer.

After beginning by reminding the boys of the benefits they already enjoyed – “You have the privilege of being at one of the best schools in the country and indeed the best in the world – you will all be leaders” – he set out what was required to be an entrepreneur.

“You need guts – to take the risk. You also need to be creative and innovative.” Another essential was luck, Lord Bilimoria said, and he had his own definition of this key ingredient: “Luck being where determination meets opportunity. If you are not determined, you won’t see the opportunities.” As an example of such determination, he cited the story of a six-year-old boy in his native India who could not go to his local school. He, therefore, had to be passed textbooks out of the window by his brother in order to learn.” This boy, K. R. Narayanan, later became the 10th President of India (1997–2002).

In concluding his address, Lord Bilimoria struck an optimistic note. “However bad things may seem in the country at the moment…. remember all that Britain has in its favour,” he said. This included: institutional resilience; the Royal Family; the best schools and universities; the best arts (theatre, film, music, the BBC); the best lawyers; the best accountants; the City of London as a global financial centre, and high-tech industry.

In keeping with the formal-but-fun flavour of the ceremony, the School’s Jazz Band, Barbershop group and Junior Jazz struck a positive tone, with numbers including Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing and Duke Ellington’s jazz standard, Caravan.

The vote of thanks was given by Year 13’s Simardeep Sahota, who was the 2025 School Captain. Thanking the cohort’s form tutors, teachers, and Head of Year Akhil Gohil, he said: “We’ve come further than we ever thought we could, not despite each other, but because of each other.” And he quoted Master Oogway in the Kung Fu Panda martial arts comedy: “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift.”

In addition to the valediction for all the Year 13 graduands, there was a presentation of prizes for academic subjects, co-curricular activities, academic excellence, contribution & responsibility, and leadership & involvement.

After the ceremony, refreshments were served outside to the pupils, their parents, staff and guests by volunteers from The Friends of Queen Elizabeth’s.

This week saw QE mark National Writing Day as girls and boys from five Barnet primary schools got to grips with literacy and numeracy challenges during an exciting morning at Queen’s Road.

The Year 5 children worked in teams in competitive taster sessions designed by QE teachers, with support and encouragement along the way from Year 8 boys.

The morning helped give the young visitors the tools they need to wax creative in their writing through a vocabulary challenge and a poetry exercise.

Headmaster Neil Enright, who presented certificates to the winning teams, said: “It was great to see the enthusiasm of all our young visitors, and I warmly congratulate the winners. My thanks go to the visiting primary school teachers and teaching assistants for helping to make the day a resounding success, not forgetting, of course, the contribution of QE teachers and of our Year 8 helpers.

“This was part of our long-running outreach programme with local partner primary schools. We are always delighted to welcome their children here and thus strengthen our community connections. The programme is very much in line with our historic identity as a Barnet school – which goes right back to our 1573 royal charter. Through involving our own Year 8, we also ensure it’s aligned with one of the priorities of our new Boundless School plan, namely to nurture our pupils in becoming ‘community-orientated’.”

The outreach programme is coordinated by Sarah Westcott, Assistant Head (Inclusion and Wellbeing). This year, visiting youngsters have already taken part in Art and forensic science sessions. Still to be run are taster sessions in History, Geography and Economics.

On this occasion, the Year 5 pupils from Foulds, Whitings Hill, St Catherine’s RC, Underhill and Northside primary schools worked in teams to tackle four rounds of English and Mathematics activities:

• Round 1 was a word definitions challenge, designed to broaden vocabulary, recognising that this is one of the building blocks of effective writing. It was led by English teacher Panayiota Menelaou. Winners: Foulds team 1;
• Round 2 involved number puzzles and was delivered by Maths teacher Nadeem Kydd. Winners: Whitings Hill team 1;
• Round 3 focused on poetry-writing and helped the children express themselves in this specific genre. Head of English Robert Hyland presided. Winners: St Catherine’s team 1;
• Round 4 was entitled Shuttling Maths and was led by Maths teacher Phillip Brady. Winners: Foulds team 2.

The overall winners of the day were team 2 from Foulds School.

The day was organised by the English and Mathematics Heads of Department.

It was, said Mr Hyland, a pleasure to host the young visitors: “Holding taster sessions like these is a great way for QE teachers to share the love of their subject with pupils in the local community.”

His Maths counterpart, Jessica Steer, said: “We were delighted to welcome such resilient, enthusiastic children to our School. The challenges they faced were demanding, but they approached each one with determination, teamwork, and positivity. Their schools should be incredibly proud of the way they supported one another, worked collaboratively, and represented their communities throughout the event.”

Mrs Menelaou added: “These taster sessions are a fun opportunity for Year 5 pupils to experience Maths and English in a secondary school setting, helping them become familiar with the next step in their educational journey while interacting with our Year 8 students.”

Alongside developing their problem-solving skills, pupils enjoyed making new friendships and experiencing life in a secondary school environment. Their day included a well-earned break in the playground.

The Year 8 helpers were: Aditya Bhandari, Aarush Mehta, Vidyut Naryan, Aman Morjaria, Kushal Pasupuleti, Yajat Vyas, Eashaan Saha, Maanush Shah, Kiyansh Gupta, Patheen Patel and Duc Ta.

• National Writing Day is an annual celebration of writing run by an independent charity, the National Literacy Trust.

Six senior pupils have won Jack Petchey Achievement Awards, the School announced today.

The Jack Petchey Foundation allocated the awards after hearing from the six’s friends and classmates, who were invited to vote for those they felt contributed the most.

Today’s announcement follows yesterday’s news about a Jack Petchey Leader Award for Biology teacher Sam Acors.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “My sincere congratulations go to these six students. Our Boundless School plan sets out that we seek to nurture our pupils in becoming, among other things, Self-aware people who make things happen, Leaders of influence and valued collaborators, and Community-orientated. What better examples of those qualities could there be than these six Elizabethans?”

The achievement awards go to: Year 10’s Pranav Bonagiri and Arnay Gupta; Year 11’s Abishek Prenav and Rohan Katkar; and, in Year 12, Zane Shah and Hasnain Jiwa:

• Pranav was recognised for his exceptional contributions to both robotics and sport. As a volunteer mentor, he supported two Year 9 robotics teams that progressed to the VEX Robotics World Championship. He was also a member of the Year 10 team that won the prestigious Innovation Award at the competition. Pranav’s award also acknowledges his success in Eton Fives. Alongside his playing partner, he earned Players of the Match honours at the Eton Fives National Championships and made a significant contribution to QE finishing top of their division.
• Arnay was similarly recognised for his dedication to robotics. He mentors Year 8 and Year 9 VEX Robotics teams, helping them prepare for competitions, while also assisting with the organisation of events.
• Abishek won his award primarily for his work as founder and programme director of I’m Possible – a youth mental health peer-mentorship service preventing suicides, which featured in a documentary, Manosphere, on S4C and BBC iPlayer. Abishek is the co-founder and executive director of MenTomorrow, an initiative which seeks to redefine masculinity for the next generation. In addition, he is one of 20 ‘change-makers’ from across the world invited to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) headquarters in New York for the Transforming Global Education Summit and was also invited by the United Nations Secretariat to its Palais Des Nations office in Geneva.
• Rohan received his award mainly for being an upstanding all-round academic student. A high-flyer even within the elevated context of QE, he also finds time to help others, mentoring younger pupils in Maths as well as in chess. Rohan is part of the Chess A team that will be going to the National Chess Championship Finals in Nottingham in the next few days.
• Nominated primarily for his work with the QE Islamic Society, Zane spearheaded with his peers a charity drive for Islamic Relief. To help raise the profile of the campaign and revive the society’s speaker programme (which had been dormant for six years), Zane invited in Saleh Rashid from Islamic Relief. The Islamic Society over a number of years raised more than £5,000 – with Zane’s own contributions including sponsorship from running a half-marathon – and were recognised with Charity Week Awards.
• An exceptional role model, Hasnain was praised by his peers for his leadership and mentorship with younger boys. This is in Vex Robotics competitions and CAD (Computer-Aided Design) activities. Additionally, he offers advice on A-level selection and careers.

The Jack Petchey Foundation was set up by businessman and entrepreneur Sir Jack Petchey, who died in 2024 at the age of 98. Since 1999, the foundation has been recognising and celebrating the achievements of young people across London and Essex.

The award-winners, including Dr Acors, have been invited to receive a medallion at a special awards ceremony on 7th July. They also win a pin, certificate, a book on Sir Jack and a £300 grant to spend on a project that benefits QE. The coordinator of the awards in School is Economics teacher Kishen Patel.

Biology teacher Sam Acors has won a Jack Petchey Leader Award after being nominated by his pupils.

QE is announcing the award to Dr Acors on National Thank a Teacher Day.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “It seems especially fitting to be able to congratulate Sam today on this award, which is well deserved.

“It’s also an excellent opportunity to celebrate the immense contribution that all our hard-working, dedicated and inspirational staff make to the success of Queen Elizabeth’s School.”

Dr Acors joined QE last year after working as a post-doctoral researcher at Imperial College London. His doctorate from King’s College London was awarded in March 2024.

His pupils praised him for the good humour he brings to his teaching, as well as his supportive and nurturing approach.

Expressing his appreciation for the award today, he said: “It feels good to have made an impact on the students and be appreciated. I got into teaching to make a positive difference to young people’s lives, so having won an award that suggests I have influenced many of our pupils means a great deal to me. That being said, the students at QE are outstanding, so it makes our job as teachers that bit easier.”

The Jack Petchey Foundation was set up by entrepreneur Sir Jack Petchey, who died in 2024 at the age of 98. Since 1999, the foundation has been recognising and celebrating the achievements of young people across London and Essex.

The foundation’s Leader Awards recognise the ‘above and beyond’ commitment of adults who help young people. It encourages their schools and organisations to get the young people themselves involved in making nominations for the awards.

The Thank a Teacher campaign is run by the Teaching Awards Trust and has a vision to help create a society which values and celebrates “the great work that takes place in education every day across the UK”.

The Trust was established in 1998 by Lord David Puttnam, with the support of all the leading political parties, the teaching unions and the wider education community, as well as industry and media partners.

Dr Acors’ research at King’s included working with post-doctoral researcher Dr Nathalia Almedia to create populations, or lines, of a special type of human stem cell, which could help uncover why HIV leads to different outcomes in different people.

Announcing this development in February this year, Professor Mike Malim, co-senior author of the paper, said: “This has been a long journey for us, and I am particularly pleased for Nathalia Almeida and Sam Acors whose dedication and attention to detail enabled the creation of this panel of lines. It will be fascinating to see what we and others can discover about HIV biology and pathogenesis in the years to come.”