Habs Boys Skylight - Spring 2023

Skylight Spring 2023

Photo by David Gilliver

Featured in this issue

Haberdashers’ Elstree Schools appoints Executive Principal

TEDxYouth@Habs

HabsMUN

Orchestral Concert at St John Smith’s Square

Habs U16 at the National Schools 7s tournament

World Book Day

Habs Giving Day

Headmaster’s End of Term Message

Dear Parents and Guardians,

I will try to be honest; the more end of term messages I write, the harder they seem to become. Reading through the pages that follow, there are any number of events one could highlight and any number of themes one could dwell on. Habs is just an incredibly busy community with opportunities and achievements in such a plethora of fields, that sometimes I do not know where to start, other than to say that I am enormously proud of our students and staff who approach their lives (both in school and beyond) with a sense of wonder about the world and a willingness to try anything and everything. It is humbling.

This has been a particularly significant term with regard to our community. The success of our second Giving Day speaks for itself, and I was so heartened to see the enormously generosity and commitment shown by so many in honouring that principle of accessibility which sat at the very heart of our founder’s vision. Thank you most sincerely. I am no less proud of the work undertaken by our partnerships team, students and staff, and delighted to see their brilliant efforts rewarded with a much-deserved Herts Civic Award. Seeing our community come together to enjoy HabsMUN, the Careers Convention or the day of TEDx talks has been a real feature of the term and something to cherish.

Another development that will receive fuller coverage in the summer, when we formally open the building, was the arrival, finally, of Habs Pre-Prep at Elstree. To have our youngest pupils together with us on site is joyful; the project has been very long in gestation, but well worth it.

Elsewhere, there has been much to celebrate on the sports pitches, be it a full and competitive hockey season, with hundreds of students representing the school and a memorable trip to Bath, or success in the water, both in water polo and swimming. Our rugby 7s players retained the Fraser Bird Trophy (played between all the Haberdashers’ Schools) which is no mean feat, and our gymnasts can reflect with enormous pride on their progress in national competitions.

Many others were enriched by the number of trips at February half term, which will be followed by another suite over the next two weeks, providing new experiences, opportunities to learn and wonderful memories. The prize for the most unusual and unexpected trip goes to our five intrepid safe crackers who journeyed to Israel and ended 5th in this global competition run by the Weizmann Institute of Science.

I had the pleasure of one team member explaining to me, in some detail, exactly how their safe worked (a combination of acoustic levitation and gravitational ion

traps). Please know that I did not understand a word –but it sounded very impressive. What pleased me most, perhaps, about all these trips were the reports back about what fantastic ambassadors our students werekind, courteous and curious.

Our actors joined with counterparts from other schools to take part in the acclaimed Shakespeare Schools Festival, delivering a vibrant and playful performance of The Tempest whilst Sixth Formers from both schools enjoyed no less success in the French Drama Festival. Opportunities to work in teams, be it in sport or the arts, and pulling together to produce something exceptional forms character and creates special memories. There are any number of musical memories from the term, be it the astonishing standard of the Chamber Music Concert, the shared joy of the Spotlight Concerts or the breadth of the Guitar Festival Concert. Seeing a host of students from across multiple Haberdashers’ Schools performing together at Elstree was genuinely moving, and last Sunday’s orchestral concert, held at the historic St John’s Smith Square, saw students from the Boys’ and Girls’ Schools produce music of extraordinary quality; it would, in my humble opinion, rival the music of any school in the country.

I could go on. And thanks for reading this far. It has been an exhausting term for staff and students, and I must pay them all great tribute for their ambition, hard work and perseverance. Nothing that follows in these pages happens by accident, but is rather the culmination of incredible determination with a mindset that says, always, ‘yes, we can’.

I wish you a really good rest in the coming weeks and time with the people that you love. When everything is said and done, this is what matters most.

Mr A R Lock

Success Stories

Haberdashers’ Elstree Schools appoints Executive Principal

We are pleased to announce that the Governing Body has created a new leadership role, Executive Principal, responsible for both Habs Girls and Habs Boys (the Haberdashers’ Elstree Schools). This move is a testament to the schools’ desire to further progress the implementation of our ambitious 10-year strategic redevelopment plan.

The 2020-2030 strategy has been very clear in its intention to develop ever closer collaboration between the two schools for the benefit of all our students on the campus and to equip them with skills that better prepare them for their future; empowering them to make a profound impact on the world. Our philanthropic founding principles, with our deep sense of purpose in our community, lie at the heart of everything we do to enable future generations to thrive.

activities across all year groups from age 4 through to 18 and the on-campus Habs Boys Pre-Prep (4 to 7 years) opened in January. It really has been a year of significant achievement and testament to the hard work and dedication of our staff.

Mrs Hardy’s move to the John Lyon School as Head allowed the Governors to reflect and consider the most appropriate leadership structure to best support the schools through their next phase of development. Following discussions with external educational experts and the Haberdashers’ Company, the Governing Board have decided to create the role of Executive Principal for the Haberdashers’ Elstree Schools.

Caption

As highlighted in the 10-year strategy, the Governing Body, the Heads and the Senior Leadership Teams at both schools are clear about the benefits of single sex education; please be assured there are no plans to merge the schools, nor move to full co-education. Equally, all involved in leadership roles are clear that there are benefits to be gained from the unique co-location of the schools and the opportunity this brings for collaboration and shared academic and co-curricular programmes. There are economies and advantages of scale that the strategy implementation is striving to deliver, be they breadth of opportunity, economic, educational or pedagogical.

Many of you will have witnessed the successful implementation of the first phase of our strategy. The launch of co-education taking place in the Sixth Forms was the result of a year-long restructuring of the school day at both schools and involved multiple system and process changes. There are now collaborative PSHEE sessions and co-curricular

Following a rigorous evaluation process, Mr Gus Lock, currently Habs Boys’ School Headmaster, has been appointed to this role with effect from the new academic year. Since 2018, Mr Lock has led the Boys’ School with clarity, energy and humility, and he is deeply committed to supporting both schools and the specific ambitions of the strategy.

Both schools will continue to be led by their own Heads and a recruitment process has been initiated to replace Mrs Hardy and Mr Lock. The Heads of Habs Girls and Habs Boys will report to the Executive Principal, Mr Gus Lock; as will the Chief Operating Officer, Mr Rob Dunn, and the existing cross-school roles, including Director of Development, Mr Bill Friar, Director of Marketing and Communications, Mrs Avril Tooley and the Director of Partnerships and Outreach, Mr Josh Plotkin.

VEX IQ teams compete in regional competition

This half term, our VEX IQ teams along with three of the Habs Girls’ IQ teams travelled to City of London School for Girls to compete at a regional competition. Our teams had a wonderful day of competitive robotics which resulted in two awards.

Our Year 8 team HABS_Cybershot won the Excellence award which has qualified them for the Nationals competition in March. The Excellence award is awarded to a team which scores extremely high in all categories of competition. This includes teamwork, skills, programming, design booklet and judges presentation.

Our Year 9 team HABS_SciClones also performed well in each category but unfortunately were pipped at the post by their Year 8 counter parts. However, they did win the Design Award by being judged to have the best Design Engineering booklet at the competition. Our two other IQ teams HABS_Cognition and HABS_Dynamics competed superbly all day and learned valuable knowledge for the next competition.

HABS_CyberShot:

Ayaan 8J2

Oscar 8J2

Atharv 8R2

Jaiden 8S2

Joseph 8R1

Tarun 8R1

HABS_SciClones:

Yash 9J1

Ishaan 9R1

Oliver 9R2

Aaryan 9J1

Cheran 9J2

Aaryan 9J2 (ill on the day)

HABS_Cognition:

Cormack 9J1

Sachin 9J2

Arjun 9C1

Arthur 9R1

Shuaib 9C1

HABS_Dynamics:

Max 8S1

Dani 8J2

Kyle 8J1

Shayan 8H1

Shaurya 8C2

Braveen 8S2

Annual Safe Cracking competition success in Israel

On Sunday 19 March, the Sherlock Ohms safecracking team travelled to Israel, to compete in the annual Weizmann Institute safe cracking competition.

The annual competition is run with the aim of building a safe based on two principles of Physics. In the case of the Habs team, this was Acoustic Levitation and Gravitational ion traps. The Habs team were up against 46 schools from countries around the world including Canada, Hong Kong, Romania, Slovenia, America, Israel and many more.

Competition day kicked off with the judges’ intensive physics interviews, followed by other teams trying to crack the Sherlock Ohms safe. The Habs team, meanwhile had the task of attempting to crack other teams’ safes. The team broke into five from six safes and their own safe successfully defended four from six fully, with only one Slovenian team managing to fully crack the Habs safe.

The next day began with an exhibition of all the safes

– 46 to be exact – open to the public and professors. It ended with a prize giving ceremony and we are proud to announce that the Sherlock Ohms team placed 5th overall in the competition! They placed 2nd in the judges’ category and received high praise from the competition organisers, other teams and members of the public.

The students had a fantastic time in Israel as they tried the local cuisine, visited Tel Aviv, toured the Weizmann Institute and made new, international friends on their allotted free time. Their creativity and teamwork was immense as they cracked some difficult safes and it was brilliant to see their courage and ambition throughout the tournament. They also hope to set up a safecracking club next academic year.

The team would like to thank Mrs Selouk very much for accompanying the team, and of course Mr Vincent and Mr Ryan for their generosity with time and materials in the Design and Technology department.

Congratulations to the three teams who qualified for the 2023 F1 National finals!

Five Haberdashers’ Boys’ teams took part in the F1 in Schools London North Regional Finals at Harlow College last Thursday, which saw an exciting day of racing their cars, meeting other schools and presenting to the judges.

Congratulations to the three teams; Marl1n, Apex Racing and HMR Head who qualified for the 2023 National finals!

The teams all took away so many learnings from the day, as well as picking up other accolades at the same time. We saw Team Marl1n winning ‘Best Pit Display’ as they focused on sustainability, HMR Head winning the ‘Sponsorship and Marketing’ Award, Quadrant X taking part for the first time, learning a great deal about the competition and finally, Team Phantom taking part in the Development class, picking up lots of advice about how to advance to Professional class.

Well done to all involved, we look forward to following your successes in the National Finals!

Sixth Formers awarded silver in National Cipher Challenge

Congratulations to Asher (L6R1) and DanielSamuel (L6J1) who have been awarded a silver medal in the National Cipher Challenge! They were presented with their medal at a ceremony at Bletchley Park earlier this term.

Habs student wins The Real World Questions Essay Competition

Huge congratulations to Abim (U6R1) who won The Real World Questions Essay Competition run by the University of Law. Answering the question ‘Does the world need more entrepreneurs?’ He impressed the judges and was one of three winners. He has won a plethora of prizes including work experience with Birmingham Enterprise Community who work with start ups, a session with University of Law’s Employability Director and an exclusive workshop with PWC recruiters on how to succeed in the selection process.

Abim is incredibly happy to have won the competition and is looking forward to the sessions with the various companies.

Pupil selected for National Chess Junior Squad

Congratulations to Adi (7R) who has been selected to be part of National Chess Junior Squad (NCJS). NCJS invites children who get two half norms in specified chess events. Adi earned a second half norm in the Blackpool Chess Conference which was held from Friday 10 to Sunday 12 February 2023, scoring 3/5.

Habs Chess team qualify for ECF U19 National Schools Chess Championship 2022/23

On Wednesday 22 February, Habs A team claimed a respectable victory of 4.5-1.5 against Dame Alice Owen School at home in round two of the semi finals of the ECF U19 National Schools Chess Championship 2022/23.

This is a remarkable achievement which qualifies Habs A into the finals to be played in Nottingham in June. A total of 250 teams from 147 schools entered this year’s U19 National School Chess Championship – the largest entry this millennium.

Congratulations to Alex (L6M2), Savin (11H2), Avyukt (8M1), Kian (11R2), Ezzie (L6H2) and Madhav (11C1) for representing the school.

PSHCEE at Habs

Over the term, the school has engaged its community in lots of amazing things to support students. Staff have participated in EduCare courses in Child Mental Health or completed Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training. We also provide all Year 7 students with the Charlie Waller Memorial Trust mental health toolkit to take home in their first week of school and encourage students to identify what helps their wellbeing. There are form time discussions around what keeps us healthy and, during the national Mental Health Awareness Week, HabsDash becomes HappyDash! In our latest endeavour, we are trialling a sensory garden and architectural walk around the campus for staff and pupils to enjoy, which is proving to be a fantastic wellbeing asset.

Events

TEDxYouth at Habs

This term marked the highly anticipated annual TEDxYouth@HABS event, a student-led initiative intending to promote inspirational ideas that are genuinely ‘worth spreading’. Boasting an even more impressive line-up of speakers, 17 presenters took to the stage to explore the theme of Turning Points.

The media team, led by Suleman (U6M2), captured the event with incredible videography, ensuring that all our speakers’ talk can be published on the official TEDx YouTube Channel. We are proud to now represent the global community of over 13,000 TEDx events in 150 countries, all hosting incredible thinkers, innovators, and academics who shape the world we live in.

One of the many highlights of the event include our keynote speaker, Lord Karan Bilimoria, CBE. Lord

Bilimoria discussed ‘Luck, Serendipity and Sliding Doors: the turning points in life’, emphasising the small yet significant changes in his life that shaped him to become the man he is today. We were also excited to welcome Alpesh Patel, OBE who spoke about ‘what top traders can teach us about achieving success and happiness’, Akshay Ruparelia who questioned ‘how to edit the life story you think is already written’ and we heard Meryem Arik review ‘AI’s looming hardware crisis’ These were just some of the many fantastic speakers we were excited to welcome to the school.

No doubt, all speakers’ unique areas of expertise and passion resonated deeply with all our students and soon, the global audience too. We would like to thank all the speakers who came to the event and were an instrumental part to TEDxYouth@Habs.

We were privileged to welcome the following speakers, and listen to their inspiring talks: Title

Rt Hon Lord Karan Bilimoria CBE DL FCA: Founder and Chairman, Cobra Beer | President of Confederation of British Industry (CBI)

Alpesh Patel OBE: CEO, Asset Management | Financial Expert | UK Govt Dealmaker

Akshay Ruparelia: Founder, Doorsteps.co.uk | Entrepreneur | Forbes 30 U 30

Lavina Mehta MBE: PT | Speaker | Wellness Coach

Meryem Arik: Co-founder at TyTN AI

Shelim Hussain MBE: Manging Director, Euro Foods

Dr Vishaal Virani MBBS: Co-founder, Doctorpreneurs

Dr Christophe DeRay: Philosophy PhD | Teacher at Habs

Ian Wheeler: Head of English and Drama at Habs

Rinesh Mehta: Mathematics Teacher | Financial Expert

Dr Ian StJohn: PhD in Modern History and Economics | Author | Teacher at Habs

Luck, Serendipity and Sliding Doors: the turning points in life

The Mindset of Wealth: what top traders can teach us about achieving success and Happiness

How to edit the life story you think is already written

“Exercise for Sanity not Vanity”

Mind the gap: AI’s looming hardware crisis

How patient power is revolutionising healthcare

Why you shouldn’t be yourself

How I learned to love Peter Pan, and other stories

Our portfolio of turning points

The Industrial Revolution: the greatest turning point in Human History

Along with our very own A Level students: Title

Zain (L6J1): Linguistics

Aryan (L6C2): Philosophy

Manav (L6S2): Economics

Sahrid (L6R1): Physics

Shivank (L6M2): Neuroscience

How language has shaped everything

Ancient Philosophical logic in a modernised world

Changing the way we think about the world’s most important number

Is science tired of saving the world?

From Science Fiction to Reality: the promises and pitfalls of Brain Computer Interfaces

HabsMUN 2023

From Friday 10 to Sunday 12 March, HabsMUN was back at Habs! Over the weekend, students engaged in thoughtful and meaningful discussions, delving into some of the world’s most pressing issues.

The event started with a brilliant opening ceremony, including a flag race – a fantastic display of the flags and countries associated with the UN. The rest of the evening included significant speeches from the Secretary Generals and Head Chairs. Delegates also had the opportunity to listen to a thought-provoking talk from a journalist from the BBC who provided a non-politicised insight into the everyday struggles in Afghanistan for the citizens, leading up to and after the Taliban takeover.

Saturday saw the beginnings of the discussions and debating. Each committee debated at least five astute and considerate resolutions and each delegate

represented their respective country with passion, dedication and integrity. The Chairs were fantastic in their roles, guiding the conference with professionalism and impartiality and ensuring a fair, constructive debate.

This continued through to Sunday, prior to General Assembly, when all the delegations came together to discuss the best resolutions from each committee. This developed the sense of change; the scale of the meeting helped settle the importance and impact of the hard work that had prevailed over the weekend.

The conference was brought to an end by the closing ceremony. Prizes were distributed to the most distinguished delegates, which was an incredibly difficult task when the event had so many deserving individuals.

Well done to all those involved with making the weekend a success!

Careers Convention 2023

In the term, we were excited to welcome over 50 employer representatives for our Careers Convention. This biennial event, involving a large number of Old Haberdashers, takes place during National Careers Week and is a fantastic opportunity for students in Years 10 and 11 to hear from and speak to employers from a range of professions.

The Bourne Hall was full to capacity for a keynote speech by graduate recruitment expert James Darley, who gave us a brilliant insight into what graduate employers are looking for and what our students can

do now and in the future to help themselves stand out. Students also had the opportunity to hear from Magnus Djaba (OH 1992), who talked about his career in advertising, a panel of scientists and a panel of entrepreneurs; as well as to talk to employers more informally at stands in the Taylor Building. A range of career areas were represented, including architecture, journalism, hospitality, property, fintech, law and more.

We are grateful to all the Old Haberdashers and other friends of the school who gave up their time to share their experience and expertise for the benefit of our students.

Habs welcomes Old Haberdasher, Dr Aaron Graham

On Wednesday 22 March, Habs welcomed Dr Aaron Graham (OH), a Lecturer in Early Modern British Economic History at University College London. Dr Graham provided an illuminating and fascinating talk titled ‘A General History of the Pirates in 1724 - sex, socialism - or satire?’. It explored pirates, who they were and what they did. It was an inspiring opportunity to reassess much of what we think we know about pirates in this era, as well as a chance to learn more about pirate utopias, Jacobite satire and cross-dressing along the way.

Dr Graham explored how the text that much of what we know about pirates is based off of – ‘A General History of Pyrates’– is actually likely to be a satirical piece of work. This immediately engaged the audience: is everything we know about pirates fake? This was not quite the case, for they did travel on boats and steal things from people, yet the existing depictions of them, which

are apparent in modern media (such as ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’) are not entirely accurate. One of Dr Graham’s most fascinating points was on the relationship between women and pirates. It was previously understood that pirates could not be women, yet a rereading of the text in a satirical context revealed that it was not a rare occurrence for women to be on ships openly as women.

He ended the talk with a challenge to all of us: look at yourself before you look at sources. The power of these words could be felt by the silence that greeted them in the hall. He challenged us to not just reassess sources, but to reassess ourselves. Were we looking at sources with a specific aim in mind? Did this influence our opinion of the source? Did this make us less critical of the source?

He explained how a lot of history about pirates had been misinterpreted because historians had found what they were looking for in a source, and as such had not been as critical of it as they otherwise may have been.

Overall, it was an incredibly fascinating and engaging talk, and everyone who listened learnt a lot about pirates and left with a newfound appreciation of the critical thought necessary to truly understand the past. We would like to give our thanks once again to Dr Aaron Graham for attending and giving this talk, and we would be honoured to have him speak again

Mencap’s Got Talent

Mencap’s Got Talent is a longstanding tradition at Habs and one of the most enjoyable events of the year. Habs Girls and Habs Boys come together as a community to share in the fun, dress up in the Mencap colours of red and pink and provide some fantastic entertainment during the talent show.

Sienna (Girls’ School, L6 JEP) said: “As well as giving incredibly talented people a chance to showcase their abilities and bringing the school together, Mencap’s Got Talent raises the awareness

of the charity Mencap. It helps raise the funds necessary to put on the Mencap Funday attractions which is run by the two schools each June for children with learning disabilities.”

The talent show was held on Friday 24 March and, after months of preparation and hard work by the committee, the event ran smoothly and was a huge success! The Mencap committee would like to thank everyone who kindly helped with the event and they hope everyone enjoyed the event. Congratulations to Diya (L6

JHB) who won the show with a display of traditional Bollywood dance.

If any students would like to volunteer for the Funday on Sunday 25 June, they can email mencap@habsboys.org.uk for more details.

Senior ski trip 2023 –Les Deux Alpes

48 pupils from Years 10, 12 and 13 set off on Saturday 11 February to Les Deux Alpes.

A hiatus of two years for the Senior Ski Trip meant that the beginners’ group was much larger than usual. However, they all got stuck in and made excellent progress, with the most improved skier award going to Arjuna (10R1). All students enjoyed lessons every day to improve their confidence and technique and had free time afterwards to put what they had learnt into practice. By the end of the week, the standard of skiing across all groups was most impressive, with the Ski King award, selected by the instructor of the advanced group,

going to Jeff (10R2). Two further awards were presented at the end of the week: Skiier of the Tour (pupil vote) went to Yuhki (10H2) and Person of the Tour (staff vote) went to Albie (10C2).

We were fortunate to enjoy a full week of bright sunshine under cloudless skies and even more lucky that the slopes and the snow remained in excellent condition. However, the region is in desperate need of some fresh snow soon or it will be a very short season this year. The pupils coped with the physical demands of a week’s skiing admirably and did themselves and the school great credit in the way they conducted themselves

throughout the week. There was always a positive and inclusive atmosphere – it was a pleasure to take the students away.

Special thanks to Dr Hobbs, Miss Barron, Mr Hardman, Miss Harrison, Mr Lee and Mr Simm for accompanying the trip and for all their hard work to ensure that it was organised and ran smoothly.

2023 Habs Golf tour to Portugal

The 2023 Habs Golf tour arrived home on Friday 17 February after four enjoyable rounds of golf on some of the most challenging courses in Portugal’s Algarve region.

After a dawn departure from Luton airport on Sunday 12 February, 14 students started the week with a practice session later that day at the Dom Pedro Millenium complex, before taking on the Millenium course on the Monday. The following three days saw the group enjoy the fantastic facilities at the three Quinta do Lago courses; Laranjal, North and South. The sun finally put in an appearance on the final day at the South course. The tour party also enjoyed many of the varied dining opportunities at the Vilamoura marina, including a memorable Brazilian “Rodizio” restaurant on the Wednesday evening!

It is heartening to see so many students keen to improve and develop their golf, and with the majority of the participants being from Year 9, there should be a good chance of the trip going from strength to strength in the years to come.

Many thanks Mr Ward and Mr McIntosh for organising the tour. It was fantastic to hear that there were a number of comments from fellow hotel guests and hotel staff as to how the students were a credit to the school.

Sixth Formers visit Düsseldorf for work experience exchange programme

During the February half term, three Sixth Formers spent a week in Düsseldorf for the return leg of the Düsseldorf Work Experience Exchange programme. Having hosted in January, it was great for the students to reconnect with their exchange partners and immerse themselves in speaking German for the week with their host families and enjoying the build up to the Karneval festivities.

The highlight however was definitely the work experience. James spent his placement at the St Vinzenz Hospital, accompanying the doctors on their A&E rounds and joining several surgical operations as an observer, reaffirming his commitment to becoming a doctor himself. Max spent his week at the Deutsche Bank, where he impressed his supervisor with the understanding of the finance industry which he has acquired through his study of Economics. Nayan, meanwhile, was able to learn first-hand how a top hotel is run during his placement at the Me and All Hotel, and put his German skills to good use interacting with both colleagues and guests. All three students made an excellent impression at their placements, gaining invaluable insight into the world of work whilst honing their language skills.

Thank you to Mrs Hanlon and Mr Walters who visited the students at their placements during the week.

February half term 2023 Russian trip to Riga, Latvia

Over February half term, students from Years 9 to 13 spent a week learning Russian at Liden and Denz Language School in Riga, Latvia.

The group arrived in Riga on Sunday evening and accompanied pupils to their Russian-speaking host families. Having had a language test before travelling to Riga, pupils were placed in groups according to their ability and attended Russian lessons from 9am to 12.40pm from Monday to Friday, they were presented with graded certificates at the end of the week.

In the afternoons and evenings, students were able to take part in a wide variety of activities, including a matryoshka painting workshop and cookery lesson in Russian, visits to Riga Ghetto and Holocaust Museum, Riga Motor Museum, Laima Chocolate Museum and Riga Central market, which has been in operation since 1570 and is housed in a series of WWI Zeppelin hangers.

On Saturday, the group ventured out of Riga to rural Līgatne, to a once top-secret Soviet Bunker code-named The Pension. Hidden underneath a rehabilitation centre

nine meters underground, the bunker was built during the Cold War to serve as a shelter for the Communist Party elite in case of nuclear war. The bunker’s secrecy grading was removed in 2003 and it is now a museum. Everything in the bunker looks the same as it did when the bunker was in operation, making it a very authentic USSR time capsule.

Thank you to everyone involved in organising the trip and accompanying the students.

February half term 2023 New York and Washington DC trip

During February half term, a group of 29 students and three teachers set off to explore the history and politics of the United States through prism of the two great cities of New York (Manhattan) and Washington DC.

The trip saw many landmarks visited with plenty of opportunities to learn so much more about the history and politics of such a young country. Liberty Island and Ellis Island, the 9/11 Memorial and Wall Street. There was also Rockefeller Centre, the Empire State Building, Ulysses S Grant’s tomb and the Riverside Church. The group had a tour of Harlem and visited the stunning campus of Columbia University. Before leaving New York, the students took advantage of the unusually warm weather to talk through Central Park to the Metropolitan Art Museum and the iconic Guggenheim Gallery.

For the second half of the trip, taking place in Washington DC, the group visited Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial, the location of the largest and possibly one of the most significant battles of the American Civil War. Students and staff toured the battlefield by coach and on foot. Later, they took a short walk in front of the White House and the following day visited Georgetown University, travelled to Robert E Lee’s house to see the memorials for the assassinated Kennedy brothers and the recently added grave of Supreme Court Justic, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The group saw the Capitol building and enjoyed a tour of the historic rooms within the Congress building. They visited a think tank “Centre for Strategic and International Securities” (CSIS), the National Mall – where they took in the view of the Washington Monument – and had the opportunity to visit a range of the great Smithsonian museums.

On their final day, the students had some whistle-stop tours to many of the famous memorials such as the Ford Theatre, the Lincoln and Jefferson memorial, the FDR memorial, the Vietnam and Korean War memorials and finally the Iwo Jima. The group also travelled to Potomac Mills the largest outlet mall in Virginia before finally departing from the USA from Dulles Airport.

Overall, the trip to New York and Washington DC was not only extremely enjoyable, but also exceptionally valuable for the insights it provided into both the workings of American politics and the backdrop of its fascinating, if turbulent, history.

Lower Sixth Politics students from Habs Elstree visit Parliament

On Tuesday 17 January, a group of Lower Sixth students from Habs Boys and Habs Girls visited the Houses of Parliament. They received a guided tour of this world-famous building from staff of the Parliamentary Education Unit. This included an opportunity to visit the House of Commons, a Commons voting lobby, the House of Lords and the Royal Gallery. After this the students took part in a workshop on laws and debating.

We were given two talks from individuals who serve currently in Parliament. A Labour peer, Baron Turnberg, spoke to the group about his work for over twenty years in the House of Lords and answered their questions on policy areas including constitutional reform and social care. A Conservative Member of Parliament, Matt Warman (OH 1999), spoke to our students in Westminster Hall about recent developments in UK politics, including his own experiences as a Minister in the Department of Culture, Media and Sport in the May and Johnson governments.

In Westminster Hall, the group saw Ray Kenton (OH 2019) who is currently working as an aide to Toby Perkins MP, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the plaque that has recently been unveiled to mark the spot of the lying-in-state in 2022 of Queen Elizabeth II. In the afternoon, we watched from the House of Commons public gallery Rt. Hon Alister Jack MP answer an urgent parliamentary question on the UK Government’s decision to use Section 35 of the Scotland Act (1997) to overturn legislation of the Scottish Parliament.

We would like to thank all those who helped our students witness the work of the UK Parliament up-close. Lower Sixth students at the Habs Elstree are having joint lessons as part of Habs Nexus.

Habs welcomes Old Haberdasher Will Beckett as part of Visiting Speaker Programme

On Wednesday 18 January 2023, as part of the Visiting Speaker programme, Habs had the privilege of welcoming Old Haberdasher Will Beckett to speak to us about his experiences leading a food business in the 21st century. As the co-founder and CEO of Hawksmoor, a successful steakhouse chain in the UK, Mr Beckett shared valuable insights and lessons with us students in Year 12 and Year 13.

One of the key themes of the talk was how Mr Beckett and his business partner and Habs classmate, Mr Gott, were always thinking of new business ideas throughout school. Mr Beckett spoke about the challenges and failures they faced along the way, and it was truly inspiring to see how together they were able to overcome these obstacles to build a successful and sustainable brand. This resonated with our school’s value of ambition and taught us the importance of perseverance in achieving our goals.

We are incredibly grateful to Mr Beckett for taking the time to speak with us and for sharing his wisdom and experiences. His talk was truly beneficial for us students and gave us much to think about from entrepreneurship, to his emphasis on culture, as well as the acceptance of failure – these valuable lessons will stay with us as we continue on our own journeys in hopefully making the world a better place. Thank you once again to Mr Beckett for speaking with us at Habs.

Students from Habs Boys and Girls participate in European Youth Parliament UK

On Friday 3 March, two combined Year 12 teams from both the Boys’ School and the Girls’ School travelled to St Paul’s School in Barnes, London to take part in the South East Regional Forum of the European Youth Parliament UK (EYPUK). This is a team debating competition run by EYPUK, a youth-led charity, who aim to provide education for young people on a wide range of political issues facing the UK and Europe. They seek to build new skills in research, team work and public speaking, as well as confidence and friendships.

Our two teams the Committee of Economic and

Monetary Affairs and the Committee of Human Rights have been meeting weekly this term in preparation for the forum, which saw them take part in a whole day of several debates on issues including: the digital skill gap, fuel poverty, mental health support for young refugees entering Europe and the re-integration of ex-prisoners.

Well done to the Human Rights Committee and

Congratulations to the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, who were named co-winner of the forum and as such have been invited to the EYPUK Autumn National Session in Liverpool in September.

Psychology trip to the Freud and Clink prison museums

On Tuesday 28 February, Lower Sixth psychology students visited the Clink Prison museum and Freud museum, Freud’s final home for the last year of his life.

Their session at the Freud museum consisted of an ‘Introduction to Freud’ talk, where they learned about his controversial ideas and contribution to Psychology, general facts about his life and the opportunity to explore the house and complete a fact-finding quiz about Freud.

“We learnt about how his ideas play a somewhat significant role in the real world today, such as methods of free association and talking therapy which proves useful for people struggling with their mental health.” Said Simi (L6 Aleph)

The students learnt about Freud’s family, and his daughter, Anna Freud who was the founder of child psychoanalysis. Followed by a visit to the Clink Prison museum, which allowed pupils to understand more about how prisoners were dealt with.

Jess (L6 RL) reflected on previous learnings: “It led us to apply Psychology to the prison’s methodology, as we were able to imply that these methods were not particularly great for prisoners if guards wanted obedience, which stems from the Social Influence topic we had all previously studied. It also links to forensic Psychology, where we explore the differences between punishing versus rehabilitating prisons.”

Music, Art & Drama

Piano Festival

Our first major musical event of the calendar year was our second annual Piano Festival. On this day we hosted events from lunchtime to the evening curated to celebrate the wonderful breadth of talent we have here at Habs on the Piano.

At lunchtime, over 100 students took part in a recital programme that used three different venues across the school. Students of all ages and levels of experience took part, delighting their peers with performances which turned busy corners of the school into concert spaces, exposing all students to this fantastic instrument.

After school we were very fortunate to host renowned pianist and educator Jeremy Young, who gave a chamber music masterclass to some of our more accomplished students. An incredible opportunity for them to learn from one of the nations leading pedagogues.

In the evening eleven of our finest pianists performed as part of a recital concert, a breathtakingly high standard that made for a magical evening of music.

Composers’ Concert

Our Composers Concert is one of the most important evenings in our musical calendar. It gives voice to the students, celebrates their individuality and reflects something different about our music school than other concerts. Led by the incredible Mr Herd, these students meet every week in a workshop that aims to help them construct their pieces – it is largely student-led, encouraging a community of composers that support one another, and ultimately perform the works themselves.

To programme an event entirely comprised of original music, premiered that evening, is an astounding feat. It was an inspiring evening for all who attended, a reminder of the value of creativity and original writing. We look forward to hearing more from these young composers soon.

Habs’ Schools’ Music Festival

For the first time we welcomed other schools from the Habs Company to Elstree to take part in a concert, the aim of which was to build stronger links between our schools.

The students arrived after lunch, before taking part in a samba percussion workshop led by our very own Mr Ormston.

The evening concert was a memorable event, each school taking their turn to show something of their own identity, sharing their passion and talent for music with an audience made up of their newfound friends. It ended with a massed performance of Stevie Wonder’s Another Star. Every student was involved, the Bourne Hall stage alive with the energy of over 100 students working together for the first time.

We are committed to making this event happen again, it is certainly something that will live long in the memory of all involved.

One of the priorities in our music school over the last few years has been chamber music. Chamber music allows students to take ownership over their performance, to work together with their friends, using a collaborative effort to scale new heights playing some of the most exciting music in the western classical tradition.

Our Chamber Music Concert is the culmination of the students work this year, featuring a selection of performances at an astonishingly high standard. We heard from string quartets, piano trios, wind groups, and many more, dazzling audiences in the Seldon Hall with their musicality and skill.

Chamber Music Concert Spotlight Concert

The Spotlight series is an opportunity for the younger musicians to shine, a chance for us to celebrate their exciting talent and to see what lies ahead for the Habs Music School.

The music on this evening was incredibly diverse, ranging classical music, jazz, soul, Indian classical music, original composition and film music. It was a joy to hear so many different influences and styles come together and be performed so skilfully by our young musicians. Next term, we have three spotlight concerts to look forward to, if this evening was anything to go by, they promise to be very special events.

Guitar Festival Concert

One of the most popular events in our calendar is the Guitar Festival Concert, an event that includes students from all years of the Senior School (and a couple from the Prep!). The evening treated us to performances from soloists, chamber groups, and the incredible Habs Guitar Orchestra. This ensemble must be one of the largest guitar orchestras in the country, led by Miss Galuska, it finds a home for every guitarist who wants to be involved. Parts are written especially for the individual who plays them, an incredible effort and commitment to community – one of our school’s core values.

Orchestral Concert

The pinnacle of our term was the Orchestra Concert, held at the historic St John’s Smith Square.

This venue has an incredible connection to the history of twentieth century music, having housed premieres of works by Boulez, Birtwistle, Copland and Tippet, as well as featured conductors such as Claudio Abbado and Sir Simon Rattle. Our school has its own proud history, but we were humbled to perform in such a hallowed space.

Top of the bill was our joint Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of guest conductor Bjorn Bantock. Bjorn used to teach cello at Habs and is an acclaimed and much in demand conductor. With his characteristic flair and passion, he led our orchestra to new heights this term, performing Grieg’s Symphonic Dances and Tchaikovsky’s masterpiece, Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture.

Elsewhere on the programme was our Symphonic Wind Orchestra, String Orchestra and one of our senior string quartets. We heard the world premiere of a piece written especially for the occasion by Alex (11C1) a sign of the importance of student voice and original writing within our music school.

This was a memorable occasion; we hope to return to this beautiful hall again in the future.

Year 9 Drama Page to Stage project

This term, our Year 9 Drama students participated in a Page to Stage project in which they formed a theatre company, contributing as a performer or a sound or lighting designer, and rehearsed and staged an extract from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The Lime Tree Studio hosted 15 mini productions, all to thrilling audiences of Years 7, 8 and 9 students who found it interesting to see how the same piece of text was interpreted differently. Each company developed a clear concept, making performance and design choices about the where, when, what and who of the original text. A Wood Outside Athens became, for example, a beach littered with driftwood and rubbish, a tropical rain forest, a 1930s speakeasy, a prison and a gothic, graveyard setting.

Well done to all the Year 9 Drama students who were bold and inventive with their choices.

Year 10 GCSE Devised Drama

The Year 10 GCSE Drama groups devised Children’s Theatre pieces for their exam assessment. Their research and creative process so far has involved workshops with Year 1 and Year 2 pupils, during which they played games and performed a trailer of their pieces, which are based on favourite children’s stories like Where the Wild Things Are. All the students, regardless of their age, enjoyed celebrating the joy of storytelling and the imagination and all had lots of fun!

Year 12 lead Drama workshops as part of Habs Diploma

As part of their Habs Diploma Elective course this term, 10 Y12 pupils have been visiting Fairfield Primary School each Monday afternoon to run drama workshops with Year 3 classes. They have enjoyed trying out ideas and developing fast paced and inventive sessions which the children have loved!

Habs student participates in regional heats of ARTiculation

On Friday 20 January, Yossi (L6J2) participated in the Regional Heats of ARTiculation, carrying out a moving talk on Anselm Kiefer’s ‘Eisen-Steig’, 1986. The event was adjudicated by Dr Edwin Coomasaru, Historian of modern and contemporary art.

Dr Edwin Coomasaru applauded Yossi for his incredibly powerful talk, which he described as being packed with emotional energy. Dr Coomasaru added that Yossi had brought to the fore some incredibly important stakes and had posed some very important and urgent political questions. He commended Yossi for thinking so attentively about what it is, and what it means, to represent something.

Well done, Yossi!

Habs Elstree team enter French Drama Festival

This half term, Habs Boys and Habs Girls were excited to enter an Elstree team into the French Drama Festival, hosted at King Alfred School. It was fantastic to see the students performing to such a high level and providing a brilliant show to all who attended. The team presented Jean Anouilh’s Antigone and we are delighted to announce that Girls’ School student

Veronika (L6 JEP) was awarded Best Leader Performer! We are incredibly proud of what this team has achieved, well done to all.

David Gilliver’s photography workshop for Year 8

Year 8 took part in David Gilliver’s Photography workshop, this year’s British Photography Awards Macro prize winner. The students were completely immersed in his light painting techniques and produced lots of long exposure photographs. Gilliver introduced himself and delivered a briefing on how to use the photography equipment before getting the students involved.

Hamza

We learnt all about long exposure photography and how light can be captured with this type of photography. We also learnt that the aperture of the camera shutter adjusts to light in the same way our pupils in our eyes do. We created really awesome freestyle artwork with things like glowsticks and even made artwork where we able to look like silhouettes. I would definitely do it again if given the chance.

Theodoros

I was introduced to a different way of capturing images through the David Gilliver workshop of Light Painting. It was fascinating how the use of a setting on a camera could change photography entirely. The use of a long exposure camera allows an image to decrease the number of frames per seconds dramatically to the point where it drops to one frame per 30 seconds. This allows light movement to give a really cool effect on how an image shows up.

Arnav

It started off with David showing us some different light tools and equipment. Some of the interesting ones that we used were the 200-pixel image creator and several types of wands/ sticks with different lighting modes. He then went on to show us how the camera works and how to start it. The camera would start to record a video and four to five students would take a light tool and start waving it around in different ways to create different patterns. This would happen for about 25 to 35 seconds before the camera would stop recording and the lights would turn on.

Year 8 perform The Tempest

On Wednesday 22 February, 12 Year 8 pupils took part in the Coram Shakespeare Schools Festival, the world’s largest youth Drama festival, and performed our version of The Tempest at Arts Depot in Finchley. Host of the evening, Iain Jones, commented:

“This company worked together as a highly committed and tight-knit ensemble. From the outset, as actors gathered on stage as storytellers, the audience knew that this was going to be a creative and playful show. The company moved seamlessly through scenes, locations and atmospheres.”

A week later, the company brough the show home and performed it during assemblies to the whole of Year 7, who will be taking part in the festival next year.

Sport

2023 Habs Gymnastics report

The U19 Milano Trio finals in Stoke was an exciting event, with schools competing from all over the country. Habs had three gymnasts representing the school - Chris (L6C1), Sudais (L6H1), and Jobe (L6S2) – who competed in individual floor, vault and group floor.

On individual floor, the team showed ambitious skills with higher difficulties but, despite this, no major mistakes were made and morale stayed high despite a few lost marks. On vault, the students completed handspring vaults and managed to score very well due to power, with Jobe earning one of the most highly scored vaults in the category.

The team’s group floor routine was a fantastic display of individual skills combined with two strong group

balances, that led the team to achieving the highest score in the event! Overall, the team are thrilled to have one silver and are looking forward to next year where they aspire to win gold.

The team also competed in the U18 Floor and Vault regionals, held in Chelmsford. Jacob (9M2) competed as the fourth gymnast for the team. With challenging routines and vaults executed throughout the competition, the team won gold and qualified for the national finals in May! Well done to Jacob for a difficult floor routine performed almost flawlessly.

Overall, the Habs gymnastics team performed well in these competitions and are excited to continue to improve and compete in future events.

Habs U16 at the National Schools 7s tournament

Our U16 squad became only the second Habs team in the last 20 years to win its respective pool at the National Schools Rugby 7s tournament at Rosslyn Park earlier this term.

To be one of 64 pool winners out of a total of 256 schools who entered the U16 tournament is a wonderful achievement and testament to the ability and attitude of our combined U15 and U16 players.

The squad won their first two games before facing St Paul’s to determine who would win the pool and enter the elimination round. The team produced a brilliant performance and won the match 38 to 17, putting them

through to the elimination round that determined the final 32 teams that would be entered into the second day of the tournament.

The squad faced St George’s from Weybridge, who had a rich history of success in Rugby 7s. The team played well but were unable to progress through to the final 32 teams with the win going to St George’s.

The players should be immensely proud of their achievements, the school is very excited to see what the future holds for such a committed and talented group of students.

Rugby 7s season report

Rugby 7s is a high tempo, action packed sport that requires high levels of skill, speed and endurance. Each team is made up of seven players (squad size is generally 12) and a tournament would generally consist of a minimum of six games of 14 minutes each. To be successful, each team must remain focused throughout the day.

This year, the Rugby 7s calendar was as full as it has ever been. Each year group (with the exception of Year 9) played in a minimum of four tournaments and there were some notable successes along the way.

The U13s won at the Habs 7s festival, a superb achievement when one considers the opposition included Merchant Taylors, London Oratory, Campion and Haileybury. The festival as a whole was a resounding success with some topflight rugby being played all week under azure blue skies.

The U13s combined with the U15s to retain the Fraser Bird trophy for the first time in 22 years. The Fraser Bird Rugby 7s is a competition that sees all of the Haberdasher Schools play one another over the course of an exciting afternoon. Each match is equally weighted

across both age groups and at the conclusion of the competition we were tied in first place with Monmouth. However, our free scoring style at U13 meant that we had scored more tries than Monmouth resulting in us retaining the trophy.

The U16 and U18 squads experienced mixed fortunes at the County 7s this year. On a cold afternoon in St Albans, both squads found themselves in difficult groups and lost narrowly to some illustrious opponents. They will have another opportunity at the national 7s towards the end of the month.

The school also hosted the Herts U13 7s this year: a reflection of our commitment to the sport going forward. Our talented U13 squad lost by a single try to the eventual winners, Berkhamsted in the group stages. The U12s have also enjoyed a host of opportunities to enjoy their 7s, competing at the Habs festival, the London Oratory 7s and the Bishop’s Stortford High School 7s this term. The performance of this squad has improved hugely as the term has progressed and we look forward to further success in the future.

Swimming report

On the 10 March 2023, four hard working Habs students went to race in prestigious Otter and Bath Cup. George (11M2), James (L6C2), Lanre (11M2) and Zach (11S2) had trained hard and were determined to put on a good performance.

The first event of the day was the 400 free relay, and the Habs team gave it their all. Despite a strong effort, they finished middle table, just missing out on a podium finish. However, the students gave it a valiant effort, pushing themselves to the limit and showing great team spirit.

Next up was the 200m medley relay, and once again, the Habs team put in a solid performance. They battled hard and pushed themselves to the limit, but it wasn’t enough to secure a podium finish. Nevertheless, the students showed great determination and sportsmanship, congratulating the teams that finished ahead of them.

Overall, it was a reasonably successful day for the Habs team. Although they didn’t come away with any silverware, they put on a good performance and showed great character and resilience.

Waterpolo U15s School National Finals

Fresh from winning the England Independent Schools Tennis Championships back in July, Sam (9S1) and Kaaviyan (9J2) pictured below, teamed up with Kian (9H1) and Xander (7C) to defeat the Buckinghamshire and Cambridgeshire winners to reach the LTA SouthEast Regional Finals, held in Sutton in November. The Habs team battled hard but went out in the semi-finals to Claire’s Court. All of the opposition they played against were part of the Delgado & Lee Academy based at the LTA’s Bisham Abbey national hub, so to compete and push them close was an incredible effort and punching above our weight. To finish the season in the top 4 schools in the South-East puts Habs tennis on the map!

U13s Waterpolo report

The first round of competition was played at QE Boys’ School, with five teams competing for classification and who will be the first seeded team in the next round of competition. Habs came out victorious in all of their games and played some outstanding waterpolo. The team played very well and will be looking forward to the next round after Easter.

Hockey tour to Bath 2023

For the first time since 2019, the 1st XI and Senior Development XI made the journey west to compete in the King Edward’s School Hockey Festival.

Over three days, both teams played a total of eight matches against some of the best school’s in the country. As expected, results were hard to come by, but valuable lessons were learnt and the weekend allowed the Upper Sixth leavers to play their final matches for the school in the picturesque surroundings of this world heritage site.

The 1st XI started Friday afternoon with a match against Solihull School. The opposition team featured a number of players from the prestigious Sutton Coldfield hockey club and dominated possession, moving the ball with real purpose and quickly went into a two-goal lead. Habs stuck to their tasks and worked tirelessly to restrict their opponents, but Solihill finished the game with two more, quick fire goals.

The second day had the 1st XI start the match against Framlingham School. There was an intriguing difference in tactics as Habs marked man-to-man, while Framlingham went to zonal marking. The opposition team scored two goals before half time and Habs went into the second half, determined to get a few goals of their own. Framlingham remained cool under pressure and, despite Habs securing a goal that made it seem as though the come back was on, the final result remained in favour of Framlingham. The final game of the second day was against Canford. The final scoreline was 8-1 in favour of the opposition, however there was lots of good play on show by the Habs team.

The Development XI enjoyed some success over the three days. A team composed of Year 11 to 13 students, it was fantastic to see the team work together and improve steadily over the three fixtures.

The tour was a huge success and will be a fantastic memory for all those who attended. We are already looking forward to the 2024 tour!

Football trip to Brentford

On Tuesday the 21 March, 25 Habs students were excited to embark on a journey to West London’s Robert Rowan Performance Centre, training centre to Premier League side, Brentford.

The site was second to none and the students were in awe the moment they arrived, both because of the facilities and the professional footballers who they caught a glimpse of. Including centre back Charlie Goode, who gave the students a warm greeting and settled the excitable nerves that came from being at a Premier League training ground.

The group were welcomed by Brentford Chairman, Mr Cliff Crown, and Head of Welfare and Assistant B team coach, Mr Allan Steele before being taken to the training pitch. Most of the 1st team were absent due to the international break, but the students spotted the likes of Romeo Beckham on the training ground. The drills were familiar to the group who watched on and it was noted that the intensity was still phenomenal despite there having been a game the night before.

Ezra (L6H2) said:

“The opportunity to stand so close to the drills is something none of us will forget in a hurry. We were told by Mr Steele that the training sessions look typically identical across both squads. He also explained the importance of goalkeepers being good with their feet – we had a drill right in front of us that featured this and it was demonstrated so well.”

After staying to watch the session for an hour, the group were given a talk by Cliff Crown about how he helped transform the club from League 1 to Premier League and his life after Habs. He discussed the financial struggles of a small team with a smaller stadium and the need to continuously rebuild and losing top players. It was fantastic to have Mr Crown answer questions from the group and talk about his ambitions for the future, including the short-term goal of the club’s pursuit for European football next season.

Next the students heard from B team Manager, Mr Neil MacFarlane who explained the process of nurturing talent from Under 18 and B team level so they can be promoted through the ranks and integrate them into the 1st team. Many of the students asked interesting questions relating to personal training, psychology and the difficulties of breaking into Academy level. It was fantastic to see so many of them making the most of such a brilliant opportunity and also hear the thought-provoking answers from an ex-professional who had personally been in the game for so long, and in so many varying roles.

The rest of the trip provided the group with the chance to experience and learn about the fabric of the club, including how it is implemented into everyday life. It was explained that, from the moment a player walks in, the atmosphere is solely Brentford. Even the changing rooms, which ascend in age groups through to the B team and finally to the 1st team, are all different in size but identical

in design to give a clear sense of progression throughout the journey of the individual.

Mr Crown further emphasised how important it was for Brentford to take a different approach to keep up with the big teams like Man City or Newcastle. He highlighted that their rise to the top was because of the hard work and endeavour of all that work at Brentford; the root of all they do, all the way down to the careful planning on the training pitch.

Overall, the day was an amazing opportunity to meet a variety of people at Brentford AFC, from Heads of Media to Coaches, and witness first-hand the workings of a top-flight club. All the students thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Isaac (L6M1) said:

“You feel like you are in the presence of a ground that makes such great players and in a space where great things happen.”

The school would like to thank Mr Lee and Mr Thomas for arranging the visit.

Old Haberdashers v Current First XI Football match

On Wednesday 22 March, the Current 1st XI Habs Football team played against the Old Haberdashers team in the prestigious ‘under the lights’ game. The match took place at The Maurice Rebak Stadium, home to Wingate and Finchley FC, and it was brilliant to see crowds gathered in both stands and around the pitch ahead of kick-off.

It was a well-contested match from the moment the whistle blew. Old Haberdashers took most of possession but it was the 1st XI who looked the most likely to score early on. Isaac (L6M1) won back possession on several occasions, Saad (L6S2) led the back four brilliantly and, with the back four, looked to feed the wingers in behind the opposition. The first notable opportunity came from Amar (11J1) who received the ball with time and space before taking a great strike on goal from range. Habs French teacher, Mr Pierre-Alexandre Walter, made a fantastic save to keep the scoreline even.

The 1st XI looked to capitalise on the chances they created, spurred on by the cheering crowd. Crosses from the wide players were being delivered, but dealt with by the opposition defence. The Old Haberdashers’ team made it a good contest, with their number 23 using his pace on the wing to test the 1st XI.

As the half neared a close, it was Old Haberdashers who took the lead with a close-range tap in from a cross. The 1st XI team looked to respond immediately, only halted by the whistle that came just as they were starting to get back into the flow.

Mr Thomas made three changes at half-time and the team provided a valiant display, but the equaliser was proving difficult to achieve. Habs battled well but were soon 2-0 down with a 60-minute goal from Old Haberdashers’ winger, #23.

The Current 1st XI were not deterred; Ben (11R2) made several excellent challenges and encouraged the team to move higher up the pitch. Theo (L6J2) made some great leads, including one occasion that included getting in behind the defence and getting a shot off, only to be denied by Mr Walter in goal. However, despite the fantastic courage and ambition of the team, the Old Haberdashers’ lead extended from two to three. This did not deter the 1st XI team, who continued to press and work hard in their desire for a goal of their own.

One highlight of the game would be Mr Lee taking to the field on the 79th minute, earning himself some cheers, and slotting into the centre back position for the Old

Haberdashers’ team.

The last 10 minutes of the game were positive for the Current 1st XI who ended the game on a high. They were fiercely determined throughout, always searching for goals and wanting to put on a good show for their supporters.

We wish Amar (11J1) the best of luck for next year, who departs for Watford FC in the Summer Term.

Hockey season report 2023

As hockey seasons go, the 2023 edition will be remembered fondly for several reasons. We have had success at all age groups and it has been brilliant to see so many students representing the school with enthusiasm and commitment, including those who have picked up a stick for the first time and those who have since played their last match for Habs. There has also been an unbelievable collective effort of all the staff involved, giving up their time to ensure students get to train and play matches week in, week out.

In total, there were 128 matches played across 20 teams. There was an impressive win ratio of 47.7% and the club scored 314 goals, conceding 249. The 1st XI grew throughout the season and enjoyed some memorable performances. They earned victories against Chigwell and Bancroft’s to name a few, but the performance of the season came in the 1-1 draw against St Albans School where the team produced a fabulous first half of attacking hockey and defended valiantly in the second

half. The 2nd XI highlighted the strength in depth at the senior end as they finished the season having won 8 of their 12 matches.

In the Middle School, the U15 and U14 squads were asked to play an expansive style of hockey and, whilst it took some time to implement, the resulting performances were exceptional. The speed with which the ball was moved and the composure with which they played was a sight to behold. The U15A’s lost just the one game throughout the season with brilliant performances in two draws against Forest School and a 3-0 win over Bishop’s Stortford College the highlights. The U14A and B team transitioned from junior hockey to full pitch hockey like a duck to water which bodes well for the future.

The future of hockey at Habs looks promising and thank you to all that participated and helped this term!

Orienteering success

The Orienteering team enjoyed its most successful season ever in the Herts schools’ orienteering league, ably led by captain Robin (U6C2) who now bows out after seven years’ service to the team (excluding lockdowns) as Herts U18 county champion. As ever, the pre-Christmas events took the team around local parks, this season Verulamium, Stanborough and Boxmoor, and then, after Christmas, things became a lot more technical on Mardley Heath and Chipperfield Common.

The team had a second gold medallist and county champion in Reuben (9H1), who won the Year 9 and 10 event, and our other medallists were Kai (10M2), who took bronze behind Reuben, and Leo (8C1), who claimed the silver in the Year 7 and 8 competition.

The combined efforts of our medallists and other team members Dylan (7S), Aeshan (7H), Josh (9H1) and Arjun (9C1) saw us finish second overall in the team competition. Very well done to them all. We are already very excited to start next year’s competition.

Pre-Prep & Prep

World Book Day Celebrations

The Pre-Prep and Prep celebrated World Book Day earlier this term. On Thursday 2 March, the Pre-Prep kicked off the celebrations by dressing up as their favourite book character and participated in exciting poetry workshops with guest poet, Joshua Seigal. Joshua encouraged pupils to depict their own monster and challenged them to write a descriptive poem about it using similes and alliteration. Great fun was had by all!

The next day, on Friday 3 March, the Prep carried on the celebrations. It was an absolute joy to see pupils coming into school as their chosen characters – from Harry Potter to The Saucepan Man from the Faraway Tree, we had a wide array of characters! A busy book swap at

morning break had pupils selecting exciting new books to take home as well as donating to charity. The children then participated in an assembly celebrating all things book related before they then were involved in a book carousel, a book tasting with hot chocolate and cookies, creating book trailers and then competing as their Houses in a bookish quiz! They day ended with some storytelling for each class.

A huge thanks to Mrs Newman for organising the Prep events. We hope that the excitement of the day will result in every day being a book day for the children with much reading for pleasure.

Year 1 Mother’s Day Assembly

The Year 1 pupils enjoyed putting on a very special Mother’s Day Assembly. They entertained their families with sentimental poems and songs. Following the assembly, pupils treated their families to class made gifts along with afternoon tea and a special photo booth!

Perform Drama Workshop – Circus

The children had a wonderful time exploring the theme of The Circus this week when the Perform ringmaster came to visit the Pre-Prep. Each class took part in a drama workshop which helped to develop their confidence, concentration and listening skills. Through drama, dance and mime, the children were completely engaged as they performed a variety of circus acts to cheer up the clown.

Reception Dental talk

Reception was delighted to welcome our parent dentists in to teach us about oral hygiene. We learnt and practised the correct brushing technique, found out where we can brush better by chewing a disclosing tablet and identified healthy and unhealthy foods for our teeth. It was a fantastic fun and interactive session. We are very grateful to our parent volunteers for their time and generosity.

Year 1 Nutrition Talk

Year 1 had a fantastic healthy eating workshop on Monday afternoon, provided by Mrs Acharya. She spoke to the children about how different foods nourish our bodies. The children learnt about the healthy food plate and about how food groups have different roles to make us feel good! She told us how foods get their colours from the vitamins and minerals they contain. The children loved tasting the different colours of the rainbow - we learnt so much, thank you Mrs Acharya!

Year 1 Photography Club

Photography Club have been working hard this term learning new skills on their iPad. We spent the first week exploring the functions of the camera and setting up the grid lines (these helped us to keep the pictures centred and straight). Since then, we have been learning lots of new skills such as how to zoom in and out and crop pictures. Working as a team, we travelled around our new building finding interesting objects to photograph. Over the next half term we will learn lots of new ways to change the colours of pictures, edit and compose pictures, as well as how to shoot videos in slow motion! We are really looking forward to it!

Year 1 Florence Nightingale Day

Year 1 had a fun-filled day learning about Florence Nightingale. Dressed in their wonderful costumes, they were transported back in time and enjoyed making items such as candle holders, pill boxes, sashes, and medals. Their curiosity was in full flow as they were challenged to inspect the contents of a selection of suitcases and work out who each suitcase belonged to. During the afternoon, they set to work, improving the conditions of the hospital in Scutari. They role-played being soldiers, nurses, gardeners, and laundry workers and enjoyed using all the artefacts from that time.

Year 1 Roald Dahl trip

Year 1 pupils thoroughly enjoyed their visit to the Roald Dahl Gallery. They heard about the ‘disgusterous’ Twits in their filthy upside-down room and baffled their brains with optical illusions! The pupils had great fun role playing the scene from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, where Augustus Gloop got stuck in the bubble tube! In the afternoon, the pupils took part in an interactive ‘Dream Bottle’ workshop, where they created their own dreams inspired by exploring the Museum and choosing their favorite object. A great unique souvenir to take home.

Year 1 STEM ClubGraviTrax

Year 1 were very excited to meet for their first STEM club at Habs. They put their collaboration skills to the test to create a GraviTrax marble run which is powered by magnets, gravity, and kinetic energy. They practised working together in teams and learnt the importance of sharing, turn taking and communication. The budding engineers displayed lots of curiosity as they discovered how the parts fitted together and there was lots of excitement as they raced their marbles down the track!

Year 2 STEM ClubCatapult Challenge

Year 2 had lots of fun with their first STEM project. Their challenge was to build a rubber band powered catapult that could launch mini marshmallows into the air. It was harder than it looked to put together and their patience, determination and perseverance was really put to the test. The hard work was worth it - firing the marshmallows at the end was definitely the highlight! Lots of fun was had by all.

Year 2 St Paul’s Cathedral Trip

Year 2 had an exciting trip to St Paul’s Cathedral to enhance their crosscurricular topic on the Great Fire of London. They enjoyed the workshop and shared all the facts they had learnt. We wandered around St Paul’s and appreciated the beauty of the dome and the cathedral. A fun day was had by all.

Year 2 Ancient Egyptian Day

Year 2 took part in an action-packed Ancient Egypt day. The children looked fantastic in their costumes and were immersed into life as Ancient Egyptians. Their history topic was brought to life as they participated in craft workshops as well as drama and dance activities to enhance their understanding of Egyptian society, culture, and everyday life. A fun and inspirational day of learning was had by all!

Year 3 – Life in Viking Britain

Year 3 travelled back in time to under the rule of King Guthrum, King of the Vikings. They lived in a Viking village, visiting lots of workshops where they were able to make candles, heal the wounded and wrote in runes, making their own ink first. To end the day, Year 3 completed an archaeological dig to find old Viking artefacts. They also practised their battle formation.

Year 4 Synagogue Trip

It was so exciting to take our Year 4 children to the local Synagogue. The children were curious to learn about the different parts of a synagogue, the special Jewish festivals and meeting the Rabbi. We were so impressed with the questions that the pupils asked and how much they learnt from the trip.

St Patrick’s Fundraising Day

Thank you to all pupils, parents and guardians who contributed to St Patricks Day. We raised over £1,060 in aid of UNCIFs work supporting children and families in the Ukraine. Our Patricks House Captains and Prefects organised an amazing day of fundraising fun for the Prep and Pre-Prep. The children in the Prep and Pre-Prep wore non-uniform; there was a cake sale, a hula hoop competition, and the best were splat the teacher; it was so popular that we are planning on doing a 2nd session.

Years 3 to 6 Collaboration (netball and football)

On Saturday 4 March we joined forces with the Girls’ School and held our first football and netball festival at Habs which was open to all pupils in Years 3 to 6. We placed all the children in mixed football and netball teams and all the pupils took part in a football and netball tournament. It was a fantastic morning of sport which was enjoyed by all. Well done to all that took part!

Matilda the Musical

Pupils in the Prep had the incredible experience of going to see Matilda the Musical this half term. The pupils were mesmerised by the set design, music, costumes, and how nasty Miss Trunchbull was towards the pupils at the school! It was a trip enjoyed by all and we are looking forward to next year’s West End visit.

Karl Nova visit

On Friday 3 February, we were lucky enough to have a visit from Karl Nova!

Karl who is a hip hop artist, author and one of the UK’s leading poets, and he delivered award-winning poetry to the pupils in his unique, witty, and energetic style. Karl was the winner of CLiPPA 2018 for Rhythm and Poetry, his first published collection. Born and raised in London as well as Lagos, Karl is a social commentator, creative writing workshop facilitator, broadcaster, and cultural critic, who creates platforms for other artists as he seeks to uplift, inform, and inspire through this artistic expression. He certainly did not disappoint!

Judo competition

Earlier in the term, our Habs Judo team represented the school well, with their discipline, sportsmanship and heaps of resilience. The pupils enjoyed themselves, listened to their coach very well and gave it their very best. The team also had a fixture against Caldicott Boys’ Prep. The squad gave it their best and despite being smaller than the other team, the score went to 4 - 4 in the end, and the team just missed out on points (4030 to Caldicott). But nevertheless they showed great sportsmanship and had fun“

St David’s Day House Charity

Thank you to all pupils, parents and guardians who contributed to St David’s Day. We raised £1,135 for New Hope homeless charity. The pupils thoroughly enjoyed the day in which we had a penalty shoot, a non-school uniform day and a cake sale. Rebecca Palmer from New Hope, delivered brilliant and thought-provoking assembly on the homeless charity and how the funds raised would be spent.

Year 5 Radley Care Home visit

During the Spring Term, a small group of Year 5 pupils have been visiting the Radley Care home, in Borehamwood. The pupils have been making Easter bunting to brighten up their home and giving personalised homemade decorative Easter Cards to the residents. The students have made an enormous impact getting the residents to join in with each activity has been challenging at times but more importantly wonderfully rewarding. Being able to see first-hand those who suffer from several challenging conditions such as dementia and learning difficulties, overcome barriers and engage in some shape or form with the artwork has been profound.

National Gallery trip

Year 6 visited the National Gallery in London. They were given an inspirational talk on Still Life paintings. Followed by a tour of the galleries looking at different genres and periods of painting. The quote of the day “Mrs Hall is that the REAL Sunflowers by Van Gogh!” quickly followed up with “Oh my!”

Year 6 Maths and Dancing

Yes! It is possible to mix dancing and maths, and the Year 6 proved it! Parallel Line dancing to be precise! Corresponding angles, alternate angles and vertically opposite angles are but a few choice dance steps that our Year 6 learnt on Wednesday afternoon. Their fancy footwork was impressive to see! Great music, great dancing, and of course, some even greater learning! They then consolidated their understanding through various written activities. Who knew maths could be so exhausting!

Year 6 Hindu Temple

Year 6 had an amazing time visiting the Swaminarayan Hindu Temple in Neasden. The children learnt how the Temple was built and how Hindu worship is studies. They were particularly impressed with the architecture, the art and the religious rituals of prayer and giving blessings to their gods.

Habs Community

Habs Foundation - A RecordSetting Habs Giving Day

Giving Day on Tuesday 7 March was a huge celebration of the Habs values of community and philanthropy, upon which both schools were founded. It was also a chance to see lots of silly hats!

It was brilliant to welcome nearly 300 Prep and Junior School parents and guardians to campus that morning. They joined their children for the TinyDash and MiniDash. The lunchtime GivingDash and we had a record 589 senior school students and staff from running (or walking) the full 3.5 km course. The atmosphere for all the Dashes was just sensational with all participants embracing the silly spirit of the ‘Habs Hats and Headgear’ theme by sporting an extraordinary array of head decorations.

By the end of the day, 1,529 members of the Habs community had participated in one of the dashes. That’s about 10 times the turnout for a typical Tuesday HabsDash. The overwhelming show of support on Giving Day smashed all the challenge targets set by generous donors, unlocking nearly £60,000 in additional funding for the Bursary Fund, as well as for student travel bursaries for those with financial need (the latter an initiative conceived and championed by senior school students themselves).

The Foundation has so far received £179,000 from 590 generous donors, and gifts are still coming in. 250 donors made their first-ever gift to Habs on the day. The total raised is enough to fund seven existing bursary places for a year, or to award an additional bursary next year to a family who never dreamed a Habs education would be possible for their child.

Even though Habs Giving Day 2023 is officially over, gifts are still coming in so we are keeping the website live for a few more weeks. If you had intended to make a gift but hadn’t had time to, it’s not too late to make it count by going onto our Habs Giving Day website (https://habs.givingday.co.uk)

We are so grateful to staff, parents, Old Haberdashers and volunteer helpers for their generosity and time in making this Giving Day a success. Thank you!

The First Five Years’ Old Haberdashers

Not even a national rail strike could keep members of the Classes of 2018 to 2022 from meeting up in January for a special ‘First Five Years’ London gathering. More than 100 young alumni from both schools found a way to make the event, which was hosted by the Habs Elstree Schools Foundation team at the Fable Bar in Holborn, just around the corner from Haberdashers’ Hall.

It was a chance to catch up with each other as well as a few of their former teachers. For many, it was the first time they had seen each other since pre-Covid times.

The next First Five Years Reunion will take place on Wednesday 4 January 2024, again at the Fable, this time for the Classes of 2019 to 2023.

Year 13 Breakfast and Introduction to The Habs Foundation

An innovation in the school calendar this year has been the Introduction to the Habs Foundation breakfast for current Year 13 students and the future Class of 2023.

The team hosted Upper Sixth students from both schools in the Bourne Hall on the morning of Wednesday 25 January, treating them to pastries, teas and coffees. Bill Friar, Director of Development, gave a very brief overview of the Foundation’s role in connecting Old Haberdashers with each other and the schools, as well as its fundraising work.

While recognising it may be years before they become interested in reunions and other Old Haberdasher activity, he explained that the team has begun hosting events specifically for young alumni, including an A Level certificate celebration event in December and a drinks reception in early January for the most recent graduating class years.

The Habs Partnerships Programme wins the Herts Civic Award

We are excited to announce that the Habs Partnerships Programme has won the Hertsmere Civic Award, for work undertaken to benefit residents of the borough.

Mr Josh Plotkin, the Director of Partnerships, will receive the award at a ceremony on Sunday 16 April, alongside two of the key members of staff on the Partnerships Programme, Miss Loren Hooker and Mrs Nina Harte. Many staff and students both at Habs and at partner schools and organisations have been involved in the Partnerships Programme, and they will be accepting the award on behalf of everyone who has contributed their time and expertise to the programme.

They were nominated for the award by Hertsmere Councillor, Meenal Sachdev, who wrote:

“The work of the partnerships programme has quickly evolved from community outreach activities to true partnerships: fundamental to the schools’ partnership ethos is a conviction that Habs students and staff have as much to gain from partnership work as their partners do. Habs enter into agreements with other organisations in a spirit of equality and mutual trust and respect.

The programme has quickly grown to include hundreds of volunteers putting in thousands of hours of work to make a difference in communities throughout Hertsmere and beyond.”

The Partnerships Programme at Habs aims to build long-term, mutually beneficial community partnerships, widen access and address disadvantage. Below is a quick summary of its achievements over the past 18 months:

• 20 hours per week of academic and co-curricular sessions for students from local state schools, led by dedicated Habs students and staff

• 19 Habs staff are currently devoting at least one hour per week to the programme

• Around 200 Habs students are currently devoting at least one hour per week to the programme

• 72 free places at Habs Summer School are targeted for disadvantaged children each year, with many staff involved in supporting roles here too

• 64 members of staff have devoted at least one hour per week to the Refugee Learning Hub we ran in throughout 2021/22 and continue supporting this year

• Around 80 applicants from partner schools supported through the university application, exam, and interview process, with some becoming the first in the history of their schools to get into Oxbridge.

Staff News

Staff News

Leavers

Ed Barnett, Head of Prep PE and Games, joined the Prep School in 2017 as Head of Prep Sport. During that time, he has made an outstanding contribution to the sporting life of the school and successfully driven forward the standard of provision that has become the envy of many other local Prep institutions. There have been notable successes for pupils and teams achieving highly at regional and national competitions, but his greatest contribution has been instilling a culture of inclusivity towards sport, such that every pupil now views physical activity as accessible and fun for life. In more recent times Ed has also contributed significantly as a House Leader, and he has demonstrated good pastoral instincts. Ed leaves an outstanding legacy in the Prep and, as a popular member of staff by both colleagues and pupils alike, will be sorely missed. Ed joins John Hampden Grammar School to be nearer his home in Beaconsfield. We wish him all the very best for the future.

Donna Beazleigh, Head of Libraries and Archives. In the short time that she was working at Habs, Donna brought enthusiasm, presence, and vision to the Library. She re-organised the Library, making it more user friendly and welcoming, and she has set us on course for greater collaboration with the library team at the Girls’ School. Whilst we shall miss her energy and dynamism as well as her warm humour and positive outlook. We wish her all the best in her exciting new role as she leaves to take up a new post in research for the University of Hertfordshire.

Bushra Chaudhry, Teacher of Chemistry, joined Habs in September 2015. She quickly established herself as an outstanding teacher of Chemistry and was instantly popular with all her pupils. As a sixth form tutor, she used her experience with the university admissions process to guide and advise her form groups wisely. She leaves us to take up the position of Head of Chemistry at a school closer to her home. She will be a tremendous Head of Department, but will be sorely missed at Habs but we wish her every success in her new job.

James Franklin, Senior Grounds Person. James was our Senior Groundsman, re-joining us after having worked at Arsenal FC training ground for 5 years. In January this year he decided to make a life change, leaving us to go travelling around Singapore and Australia. He had the first two weeks planned, after that it’s spur of the moment! His recent trip was to Fraser Island on the southeast coast of Queensland. Let’s wish him luck on the rest of his travels.

Katherine Laverick, Prep Teaching Assistant, joined the Prep School in 2021 as a Learning Assistant. Kate has contributed to numerous areas across Prep School life and her ability to interact with and relate to the boys has always been particularly noticeable. It was, however, her role as leading our After School Care provision in which she has been particularly impactful, and the pupils now enjoy an exciting offering between 4-5:30pm. Kate and her young son leave us to join her husband in Hawaii in his role in the armed forces. We wish her all the very best for the future.

Dominic Worsley, Teacher of Double Bass. We were delighted to have Dom Worsley join our Music School this year to teach double bass. Dom is a highly regarded bass player, principal of the BBC Concert Orchestra, and it was fantastic to have him share this experience with our students at Habs. Whilst Dom leaves us to pursue his performing career, we wish him the very best for the future and thank him for his contribution to musical life at the school.

Staff News

Appointments

Amanda Appiah

Junior Graphic Designer

Justin Burke Grounds Person

Beverley Chislett Invigilator

Joanna Coots Invigilator

Louis Corbett Senior School Teaching Assistant

Elizabeth Karfoot Director of Finance

Mike Kemmett Head of Grounds

Craig King Grounds Person

Jane Lemon Director of Estates and Facilities

Andrew Perrin Temporary Teacher of Design & Technology

Cath Ranzetta Invigilator

James Rossington KS2 Teacher Maternity

Hina Sedani Invigilator

Maurice Stables Invigilator

Christopher Stanley Temporary Teacher of German

Joanne Truman Invigilator

Tatyana Webber Temporary Teacher of Russian

Kenneth Young Interim Director of Estates and Facilities

Sally Young Marketing Manager

Sze Yuen Leung (Clio) Administration Assistant Transport

Clare Zinkin Prep Librarian & Learning Resource Co-Ordinator

Internal movements

Nicole Brown Finance Manager

Head of Commercial Finance

Catherine Daly Assistant Librarian Acting Head of Libraries

Nerys Fielden Teacher of Geography Temporary Head of House

Nicole Grossman Classroom Teacher

Acting Year 3/4 Phase Leader

Rozanne Hodis PA to Principal Deputy Head (GS) PMO Co-Ordinator

Natalie Leon Director of Finance and Resources P/t Strategic Project Consultant

Helen McKay PA to COO & Executive Support Team (back from Maternity Leave)

Ashleigh Smith Teacher of Art & Design

Deputy Head of House

Stay Connected