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ELY AREA
WILDLIFE CAMERAMAN’S VISIT GOES DOWN A STORM AT KING’S ELY JUNIOR Pupils and staff at King’s Ely Junior were in their element when they got to meet award-winning wildlife photographer and cameraman, Doug Allan. Doug, a recipient of the Fuchs Medal and the Polar Medal (twice), was Guest of Honour at King’s Ely Junior’s Prize giving and Service of Thanksgiving, which took place in Ely Cathedral. Hundreds of students, staff, families and friends of King’s Ely attended the service, where Doug gave a fascinating account of just some of his adventures before presenting pupils with a
whole host of prizes for academic achievement, academic progress, allround contribution, specific subjects, major colours and chorister prizes.
He has won countless awards for his photography, on programmes including The Blue Planet, Planet Earth, Life, Human Planet and Frozen Planet.
Much to the delight of the pupils, Doug was also able to stay behind after the service, enabling them to meet him personally, ask him all sorts of questions and get copies of his latest book, Freeze Frame, signed. Doug is a biologist who spent 10 years with the British Antarctic Survey before becoming a natural history cameraman and presenter.
PRINCIPAL AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF KING’S ELY RETIRES Sue Freestone retired at the end of August as Principal and Chief Executive of King’s Ely after 15 years at the helm. Sue became Head of King’s Ely in 2004 having previously led Sibford School, Oxfordshire from 1997. She made her mark as soon as she arrived in Ely by reversing the decision to drop Rugby at King’s Ely, bringing it back to the school in the nick of time. During Sue’s time at King’s Ely, pupil numbers have grown by over a third and are now set to reach a record 1,100 for the new academic year in September 2019, when the new Principal, John Attwater, takes over. Chairman of Governors at King’s Ely, Jeff Hayes, said: “In the 15 years that Sue has led King’s Ely, she has overseen several significant and material improvements to the school. She has worked hard to raise the school’s profile, and King’s Ely’s reputation locally, nationally and internationally has improved to the point where I believe the school is now seen as a ‘go to’ school in Cambridgeshire. Sue has been a transformative Principal.”
Many structural changes have taken place during Sue’s tenure with the purchase and renovation of the Old Palace and the building of a new first-class Arts Centre, with extended Drama and Dance facilities and Theatre, and many significant improvements in some of the more neglected areas of the school. Sue has worked on building a strong relationship with the local and wider community. She has overseen the development of the choristers, instigating the establishment of the Ely Cathedral Girls’ Choir in 2006, and has worked hard to instigate and develop partnerships with maintained schools in the area, culminating in the launch of the county-wide Cambridgeshire Educational Partnership in 2019. Sue was presented with a stunning bronze horse’s head, created by former King’s Ely student (Old Elean) Eddie Waites, in front of hundreds of students, staff, families and friends of the school at
what was an emotional End of Year Service at Ely Cathedral. As she leaves the school, Sue says: “It has been a huge privilege to lead this school. I have been so fortunate to have had a team of dedicated professionals around me who are as passionate about the school as I am myself. It is they who are the secret of the success of King’s Ely in recent years. The greatest joy of my job is that I have responsibility for the whole school which means that I see our young people grow and develop; in some cases from the age of three to 18; from little children finding their way into the fine young adults who launch themselves onto the next stage, comfortable in their own skins and bursting with confidence and ambition. I wish them and King’s Ely a happy and successful future.”
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