School News

EXAM Excellence Despite unprecedented circumstances, Perse pupils celebrated a wonderful set of exam results. Of the Upper Sixth, 91% of students pursuing higher education have gained places at their first-choice universities, and 48 students will be attending Oxbridge. Our GCSE results were equally fantastic, with 94% of entries being awarded an A*-A/9-7 grade.

Head Ed Elliott said ‘students have worked incredibly hard in challenging circumstances and have shown considerable resourcefulness and resilience in successfully adapting to all the teaching, learning and assessment changes that the Covid-19 pandemic has caused. They should be immensely proud of their grades and I congratulate them and their teachers on what has been achieved.’ Congratulations to our newest OPs.

PREP Wellbeing Week The Prep rounded off the first half of their Michaelmas term with a Wellbeing Week, with a wide range of activities and talks focusing on the importance of mental health. Pupils produced ukuleles from recycled materials, tried out sitting volleyball, learned some kung fu and Indian dancing, and built their own miniature rafts from materials collected from the grounds. The week gave the pupils time for reflection, mindfulness, and showed the importance of teamwork.

EXCITING School Developments The summer break saw the completion of the refurbishment to the Sixth Form common room, as well as the renovation of the lecture theatre.

A new space, the Hersch Room, has also been recently completed. Located above the Old Gym, it will be used as a quiet study area for the Sixth Form, and as an additional serving space for lunches. The room is named after Israel Hersch, who was the first Housemaster of Hillel House, the School’s Jewish boarding house, between 1904 and 1929. During the Second World War, the House took in several Jewish refugees from Central Europe and London. The important legacy of Hersch and Hillel House will live on in this wonderful new facility.

OUTDOOR Pursuits Summit 12 recently completed their annual summer camp. Originally intending to travel to Sweden, the team changed plans owing to Covid-19, and instead spent an exciting week in the Norfolk Broads hiking, swimming, and canoeing.

The Perse Outdoor Pursuits Ascent Group also completed a successful expedition to Duxford in July. Activities included archery and archery tag, shooting, backwoods cooking, bushcraft, orienteering (including a short hike), water sports and pioneering.

PRIZE AWARDED to Young Environmentalist William Walker (Year 8) was recently awarded the Orwell Youth Prize for his insightful essay ‘Creating Norfolk Wetlands’, an investigation into the environmental and social importance of wetland habitats.

OUTREACH AND PARTNERSHIPS Update Outreach projects at The Perse have remained active despite the challenges of lockdowns. We created a new competition for Year 9 research, The Perse Cambridge Aristotelian Award for Research, which drew interest from entrants across the country. We are returning to in-person partnership activities with primary and secondary schools this academic year, involving over 3,000 pupils. For example, we assist a school in Hertford through links in maths, music and sport and support a school in Norfolk in the creation of their Economics Department. We shall also be offering some local primary schools LEGO robotics engineering sessions. ANTHONY BROWNE MP visit Anthony Browne (1985), current Member of Parliament for South Cambridgeshire, visited the Upper on Friday 8 October. Mr Browne enjoyed a tour of the grounds, which he had not visited since he left the School, and then spoke to pupils about his career and his journey towards becoming a politician. After working as a journalist for several years, Mr Browne joined then-Mayor of London Boris Johnson, taking charge of business and economic policy. He successfully became the Conservative candidate for the constituency in 2019. Mr Browne took a series of topical and challenging questions from pupils, ranging from the Cambridgeshire housing situation to national issues like Covid-19 and Brexit. When asked, he said that his biggest political passion was taking action on climate change.

SPORTING Success Several Perse rowers competed in the National Schools’ Regatta as part of the Cambridge 99 Rowing Club in July, with Laura Burton (Lower Sixth) coming in first place in the girls’ single sculls event. She won with a sensational time of 9min 06.11sec.