Skylight - Autumn 2016

Art, Music & Drama

The HABS Community

Pitt Rivers Trip

Careers Convention 2016 On Thursday 10 November, the Careers Team held its biennial Careers Convention - an important event in the School calendar.

The Convention involved representatives from a huge range of sectors including advertising, banking, journalism, law, PR, architecture, engineering, medicine, scientific research and technology. Boys from Years 10, 11 and the Lower Sixth had the chance to talk informally to people at the very top of their fields (many of whom were Old Haberdashers), finding out about career paths, opportunities, and getting useful advice for the future. This year’s event was bigger than ever before, giving students the opportunity to discover careers that they may not previously have considered.

Wendy Tan-White MBE delivered an inspiring keynote speech on how technology is changing the world.

Boys and parents also enjoyed two interactive panel sessions. The first of these was on the Creative Industries, giving students the opportunity to gain valuable advice from Frank PR’s Stay in touch with Habs Andrew Bloch (OH 1992), Magnus Djaba (OH 1992) from Saatchi & Saatchi and Alan Hunter (1989) from The Times who have all enjoyed enormous success in this competitive field.

Online Community – www.habsonline.org.uk The second panel was on Entrepreneurship, and featured successful entrepreneurs Andrew Facebook – /habsboys Evans (OH 1994), Rishi Sachdev (OH 1994), Jyotin Sethi (OH 1998) and Dr Amit Patel.

Twitter - @habsboys We are extremely grateful to all of the speakers and exhibitors who gave up their time to join LinkedIn – Haberdashers’ Aske’s Alumni us for this important occasion.

Recent Reunions

Israel Reunion The HABS Foundation has recently held a number of successful events this term; to kick things off, a History Reunion on Thursday 6 October at the Institute of Historical Research, on Monday 14 November a reunion for the Class of 2007 leavers in Smithfield, London (next to Haberdashers Hall) took place, we hosted the Class of 2012 at our Elstree site on Monday 21 November and also held a reunion in Tel Aviv, Israel on Thursday 24 November.

The first Old Haberdashers in Israel (OHII) reunion took place on Thursday 24 November 2016 in the Goshen restaurant in the thriving heart of Tel Aviv. The Headmaster, Mr Hamilton, and Director of the Foundation, Mr Llewellyn, were welcomed to this very special event by the evening’s host Terry Newman (OH 1999) and over 50 Old Boys and Girls from our two Haberdashers’ Schools in Elstree. During a highly enjoyable evening (including a rousing rendition of ‘Jerusalem’), friendships were rekindled and established and the common experience of a Habs education was duly celebrated by all.

Sport Football Spurred on by impressive debutants Joe Leslie and Dilan Markanday, Habs 1st XI football team produced an excellent performance to beat RGS Guildford 5-0 in the Boodles ISFA Cup. Although the team were beaten in the following round, away at Tonbridge School, the team played some really attractive passing football on a tricky pitch and caused the home team numerous problems, all of which bodes well for the upcoming season.

Habs Remembers On Friday 11 November 2016, the CCF held its annual Remembrance parade on the Aldenham House Croquet Lawn, attended by Old Boys, staff and current pupils. At 11am, before the parade took place, the whole School observed a twominute silence.

School librarian, Mrs Stanbury, created a display in the library celebrating the life of William R ‘Nobbly’ Tanner (OH 1935) who served in the Army as one of Field Marshal Montgomery’s Desert Rats.

Nobbly, as he was fondly known to OHs, bequeathed his old uniform, medals and a note from ‘Monty’ to the School.

Rugby 21 members of the Senior Rugby Squad and three staff headed to Biarritz in South West France over the October half term break.

One of the objectives of the trip was to develop a greater sense of togetherness after a difficult domestic campaign and the boys forged a strong group identity thanks to the various activities the site had to offer. Highlights included a full surfing lesson in the Atlantic Ocean and an intense training session in the dark arts of defence. The squad performed with great tenacity and aggression in the match against the locals Souston and the boys returned to school invigorated by the touring experience.

The 25 boys who were presented Art badges in Year 7 were specially invited to attend the Pitt Rivers museum in Oxford. Part of the University of Oxford, this museum has over 50,000 objects on show from all over the world. Highlights of the collection include a witch in a bottle, an 11.36m high totem pole, shrunken heads and a vast range of weaponry.

The boys created some fabulous drawings and sketches from the articles which most interested them. In the afternoon they were treated to an object handling session, during which they were given valuable and precious objects from the collection. In groups and just armed with a map and clues of where to look, they had to find out the answers about the identity and use of their objects. Museum staff commented on how focused the boys were and Habs staff are looking forward to seeing their finished sketchbook pages.

Senior House Drama Competition

Yorkshire Art Tour

Another busy start to the year saw the return of the boys’ favourite competition. Under the guidance of our new Head of Performance Drama, Mr Weinman, each house performed a short excerpt to great success. From the creative freedom this competition offers came a wide range of pieces to enjoy, from Pinter and Orwell to more recent selections, including an adaptation of TV’s The Office.

Special mention must go to Alexander Cohen (Hendersons) who took it upon himself to write an original piece in such a short timeframe and the cast of Growth led by Max Goldstone and Covi Franklin (Joblings), who produced a subtle masterpiece to grab first place.

25 students armed with sketchbooks ranging from Year 8 to Year 12 spent four days in Yorkshire, finding inspiration was never far away; admiring the grandeur of York Minster, creating 3D clay work at The Hepworth Gallery, discovering sheep as well as sculpture at The Yorkshire Sculpture Park, trying to comprehend the inner workings of a steam train at The National Railway Museum, and observing the stunning work of traditional and contemporary artists at The York Art Gallery. There was even time to take in a spine-chilling ghost walk of the streets of York! A fantastic time was had by all.

SKYLIGHT AUTUMN 2016

Autumn Music Concert The annual Autumn Concert boasted its usual display of first rate musical talent, from Year 7 boys through to the Sixth Form. The first half kicked off with Concert Band performing a powerful Count Basie number with an excellent solo from Andrew Crabtree, followed by the School Choir, who surprised everyone with Geographical Fugue, a piece not sung but spoken rhythmically. Wind Sinfonia provided an energetic rendition of Uptown Funk, and Habs’ signature Big Band rounded off the first half with three pieces, featuring scorching solos from Benjy Sandler, Sam PfefferMatthews, Alex Astruc, Freddie Bird and Rohan Virani. Special mention also needs to go to Habs Young Musician, pianist Harjivan Singh, who gave a sensitive and highly musical performance of Ravel and Rachmaninov.

In the second half we were treated to Guitar Orchestra, Percussion Ensemble and the Year 7 Singers, who had waited impeccably at the back for the entire concert, giving a memorable performance of a Beatles medley. Philomusica treated us to Pirates of the Caribbean, and Symphony Orchestra closed the night with a tight Rossini overture, with a commendable solo from Nikhil Chavda, and a little known piece by William Mathias.

Overall, the concert was a splendid night of top musical talent from across the School, and a triumph for the new Music team in their first concert at Habs.

Cricket In the first few weeks of the autumn term, shouts of ‘catch’ and ‘howzat’ could be heard alongside the usual cries of ‘ruck’ and ‘maul’ as the School Cricket Season continued into the month of September. In an exciting and successful new initiative, two T20s away at Merchant Taylors’ were organised and both games were played in perfect conditions under warm, sunny skies – considerably better weather than that experienced during much of May and June!

We were well beaten in the first game, but the second encounter turned out to be a thriller.

Tight bowling (two wickets apiece to Saavan Shah, Nikhil Chavda and Jack Ronayne) and fielding restricted our hosts to 140 for 9 in their 20 overs. In reply, the Habs openers Amaan Lakhani (57*) and Vinosh Jegatheesan (46) batted superbly, putting on 112 before Jegatheesan was stumped. Captain Jordan Urban followed him back to the pavilion two balls later as the pressure began to build. Still requiring just over 7 runs an over, Lakhani and Naresh Rasakulasuriar took the score to 139 with one ball remaining. Unfortunately Lakhani missed the ball and Rasakulasuriar was run out by the MTs wicket-keeper as he tried to sneak a single, backing up, to tie the game.

Tennis This term the senior team played two games in the group stages of the National Senior Students competition. The quartet of Sudeep Khadka, Adam Vaughan, James O’Brien and Josh Sassoon got underway against Monk’s Walk and came away with a win by four sets to two. The following week we faced the Watford Grammar second team knowing that a win was needed to progress to the knockout stages. Despite a hotly-contested line call in James’ match, we completed a decisive sweep of the singles to ensure victory, eventually winning by five sets to one and guaranteeing a knockout round berth for next term.

The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School

The Sunday Times Independent School of the Year 2016-17. www.habsonline.org.uk

Trips

Offenburg Exchange

Year 11 Aix-En-Provence Exchange A group of budding linguists spent a week immersed fully in French culture, visiting the nearby cities of Marseille and Arles, as well as exploring the city of Aix, famous for its university and for being the birthplace of Paul Cezanne. The group also got to spend time in a French high school with their French counterparts, a particularly poignant moment of the trip being our visit to the school’s memorial for our OH Rohan Patel.

The trip was an excellent opportunity for Year 11 linguists to practice their skills in an exciting environment, as well as to bond as a group and forge lasting friendships with their French counterparts.

Year 12 Villarreal Trip A group of Lower Sixth boys enjoyed a five-day trip to Villarreal in the Valencia region of Spain. Upon meeting their host families, the boys dived straight into action, heading to El Madrigal stadium to watch Villarreal defeat Las Palmas 2-1 in La Liga, where they were photographed by the local press! The excitement continued when they returned there for a guided tour and met some of the players.

The week consisted of a series of intensive Spanish lessons at the local language school, ‘TEC Idiomes’, and day trips to Valencia and Sagunto where, amongst other activities, they climbed a cathedral tower, probed ancient ruins and explored the innovative “City of Arts and Science”. A guided tour in Spanish of the world-renowned ceramic factory Porcelanosa followed, as well as football on the beach and platefuls of paella! The boys declared the trip a great experience which has improved their Spanish speaking skills.

Upon landing in Baden-Baden Airport, everyone was delighted to be out of the grey British weather and put on their sunglasses. The boys and staff then swiftly departed on a coach to Offenburg where they soaked up the breathtaking views of the Black Forest around them. As the boys and staff pulled in to Schiller Gymnasium, the hosts provided a very warm welcome.

The unforgettable activities we enjoyed included visiting a Cuckoo Clock museum in the mountains, going down a silver mine, having a boat ride on Lake Titisee and going to Germany’s biggest theme park, Europapark. We would like to give a massive thanks to Mr Swallow, Mr Perdikis and the Girls’ School Staff for organising such a huge and successful event.

Paris Exchange Early on Friday morning, just before half term, the French exchange group met at St Pancras Station and took the Eurostar to Paris.

The weekend and Wednesday afternoon were spent with exchange families to immerse the boys in the Parisian way of life, with many having the chance to play a laser tag game. Our linguists particularly enjoyed their visit with exchange partners inside Le Stade de France.

The many sightseeing visits during the exchange included exploring Le Louvre, Notre Dame, Les Champs Elysées, l’Arc de Triomphe, Montmartre (pictured) and La Tour Eiffel, with some spectacular views of the whole of Paris. A boat trip up and down La Seine offered further landmarks from a different perspective, and the guided tour of Versailles was most enjoyable and informative. A really worthwhile trip and a great insight into French life.

Prep & Pre-Prep News Habs Boys: Top Boys’ Prep School The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ Preparatory School has been the placed as the No.1 independent junior school in the nation by The Sunday Times. Their Parent Power annual review of primary schools is a closely followed indicator of academic success. This ‘table topping’ result means that the School is the top performing Boys’ Prep School in the country once again.

Executive Head, Mr Matthew Judd, said: “I am delighted at the success of the boys, which once again represents their energy and ability, as well as the outstanding teaching and support of the talented staff. The results reflect a really happy School where boys can have a lot of fun, are fantastically well looked after and can, simply, do their best.”

Fire fighters visit Pre-Prep On Monday 7 November fire fighters from St Albans fire station came to visit the PrePrep. The boys had a very exciting morning learning about what it is like to be a fire fighter. The fire fighters spoke about the dangers of fire and how to keep safe.

The boys had lots of fun exploring a fire engine and learnt about the different parts and tools that the fire fighters use.

Year 6 Dublin Rugby Tour During October’s half term, a cohort of Year 6 boys from the rugby A and B teams left home at 4am to catch a flight to Dublin on their annual rugby tour.

The next morning they trained for two hours in the fields outside Roganstown hotel. That afternoon saw the boys’ first match, against St Michael’s Prep School. They played excellently and won both matches (A and B). The As won 4-3 and the Bs won 7-4.

Donkin Cup On Monday 10 October 2016, the whole of both the Prep and Pre-Prep School participated in the annual Donkin Cross Country Cup. Well done to all of the Prep and Pre-Prep boys for their amazing efforts, and congratulations must go to Andrews House for winning the senior cup and Davids House for winning the junior cup.

Year 8 Trip to Bletchley Park Bletchley Park was home to the most important code-breakers during the World Wars and, without them, their outcome could have been very different.

Our Year 8 boys enjoyed a hugely enjoyable day there on Friday 7 October, visiting the ‘codebreaking area’, typing their initials on an almost 100 year old Enigma machine and marvelling at how, even with this great device, decoding was tremendously hard, as every day, the code changed and there were 159 quintillion possible settings!

The boys visited the area where the film The Imitation Game was shot, and saw the models and props used by the actors. They also viewed a live replica of the Bombe, the machine built by Alan Turing; one of the greatest mathematicians and code breakers of his time. Like all the Bletchley staff, he played a vital role in wartime.

MUN Visit to Cheadle

Middle School History Trip

On Friday 7 October, a small group of budding diplomats set off for Cheadle Hulme’s Model United Nations conference in Greater Manchester. After an inspirational talk from Year 12’s Abbas Kermalli, in which he echoed the immortal words ‘veni, vidi, vici’ there began a highly successful conference. Prizes were justifiably bestowed on Aniket Chakravorty, Samuel Grankin, Archit Sharma, Jasper Federman and Imran Kermalli, with an Outstanding Delegate Award for Abhishek Chatterjee.

An extended congratulation goes to the entire delegation of China, who collectively achieved a Highly Commended Award. Particular praise also to our young Habs delegates, for whom this was their first conference.

42 boys from the Middle School took part in a five-day trip to France and Belgium to a number of battlefields, memorials and museums associated with the Western Front in the First World War. This year’s trip was particularly poignant as 2016 is the 100th anniversary year of the Battles of Verdun and the Somme. It was fascinating and moving in equal measure as the boys learned all about the Western Front and remembered the 108 Old Haberdashers who died in the First World War and 17 million people globally who also perished.

The group laid a wreath and held an act of remembrance at Potijze Chateau Grounds Cemetery for Second Lieutenant Reginald Frederick William Walton (OH) of the 12th Bn., West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales’s Own), who died on 26 September 1917, aged 25. Subsequently, the group visited the grave of Second Lieutenant Francis John George Walton (OH), Reginald’s brother, at Serre Road Cemetery No. 1, killed on 1 July 1916, the first day of the Battle of the Somme, aged 25. It was a very sombre moment to contemplate the premature deaths of two Old Haberdashers, brothers killed within less than 15 months of each other.

Awards & Achievements Design and Technology Exhibition The department recently held its annual exhibition to showcase the AS and GCSE projects in Product Design, Resistant Materials and Graphic Products. At our Private View, our guest speaker was Mr Tom Fotheringham (OH 2005). Tom left Habs to study Architecture at Edinburgh where he was awarded a 1st Class Honours before completing his professional qualification at Cambridge. Currently working for Stanton Williams, Tom has worked on many projects, including the proposed extension at the Royal Opera House. He gave an absolutely superb presentation to boys and parents, proving how his interests in German and Music have played a key part in supporting his professional life.

Congratulations to the following students who received design awards: AS Product Design Project: Finn designed and made a very elegant and Finn Heraghty technically complex trumpet storage stand.

The Sunday Times Independent Secondary School of the Year 2016-17 The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School is delighted to announce that we have been named as The Sunday Times Independent Secondary School of the Year for 2016-17.

This remarkable achievement is enhanced by the Preparatory School, once again, being ranked top Boys Preparatory School in the country.

The Sunday Times Parent Power award qualifies schools not only on their academic achievements but also includes co-curricular, parent feedback and the success of former pupils.

Haberdashers’ commitment to nurturing excellence is demonstrated in each and every accomplishment. Its academic success, extensive co-curricular programme and unparalleled pastoral care are underpinned by an ethos of endeavour that has led to nation-wide recognition.

Alastair McCall, Editor of The Sunday Times Schools Guide, said: “Habs Boys is always a top performer and a hugely popular option for anyone with sons who is considering independent education. The Headmaster has fashioned a school that excels academically but also stresses the importance of – and encourages participation in – the co-curricular activities that ensure boys leave the school with a deserved reputation for being star all-rounders.”

Peter Hamilton, Headmaster, said: “We are delighted to be named and recognised by The Sunday Times as the best independent school in the country. This is a tremendous accolade and one of which we are extremely proud. I would like to thank our pupils, teachers, support staff, parents and governors. Their hard work, commitment and passion is what drives Habs to the forefront of global education.”

GCSE Resistant Materials: Joseph Gale GCSE Resistant Materials: Purusotha Thambiayah

GCSE Resistant Materials: Daniel Glinnan

Graphic Products: Abhiram Bibekar

Joe made a golf putting aid that included a putting machine, golf ball holder and stand.

Puru made a superb pull along (automata) train. He has also started up a lunchtime and after school SolidWorks club assisting other pupils in developing their CAD skills.

Dan designed and made a compilation of board games for use in the back seat of a car. He also achieved maximum UMS marks in both his practical project and external examination at GCSE. Abhiram produced a re-branding of a fastfood restaurant named Orion.

The Annual Novel-Writing Competition Finale This is always a great occasion, with top literary agent and Habs parent Luigi Bonomi once again judging the students’ entries which was this year held at the Girls’ School. Our boys provided 12 of the finalists, each reading a short extract of their work to the audience, with Sam Newman and Daniel Levy particularly rising to the occasion. Our winners, selected for the quality of their writing, were: 1st Kurva by Yohaan Gokhale 2nd Depression is a Cruel Thing by Adam O’Reilly 3rd Caesar: Untold Story by Rahul George

Art Sketchbook Winners The work of the boys who attended the Yorkshire Art Tour was judged by the Art Department, who chose the following winners from each year group: Bailey Newington (8S) Mackenzie Pullen (9M) Hugo Max (10H) Felix Cheng (11C) Ben Zombory-Moldovan (L6M)

Events Theology and Philosophy

Law Society

This year’s Theology and Philosophy dinner took place on Thursday 3 November and was our biggest one yet, with over 60 current students, Old Haberdashers, and teachers settling down to dinner together in Aldenham House. This year’s guest speaker was the popular philosopher Nigel Warburton, famous for his ‘Philosophy Bites’ podcast which has been downloaded over 25 million times. He gave us the choice of talking on either Sartre’s Existentialism or Mill’s Liberty.

However, with the room being divided evenly between the two topics, he decided to treat us and talk about both! It was a fascinating talk, and was given particular relevance to our boys as Nigel Warburton said that freedom was very much an issue that the Sixth Form students have to grapple with on an almost daily basis. A thought-provoking idea, and one that the pupils eagerly engaged with – so much so that questions were still being asked well past 10pm!

The Sixth Form Law Society welcomed Mr Gareth Stephenson (Partner at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP) to Habs on Thursday 3 November. He spoke to boys in Years 10 – 13 in the Old Refectory about his experiences at this leading ‘magic circle’ law firm and the process involved in training and practicing there as a solicitor. Mr Stephenson has been a Corporate Partner for 20 years advising on large, complex mergers and acquisitions in multiple jurisdictions and is responsible for one of the firm’s Legal Services Centres in the UK. Pupils were entertained by his recollections of long days and nights in the office closing deals on behalf of clients, together with practical advice on what to expect from a career in Law and studying it as an academic subject beyond school. The talk was extremely valuable, especially to our Sixth Form students applying to study Law at university.

Creative Writing Course On a mild August morning, a group of boys found themselves on a train somewhere in the Welsh borders, travelling to an Arvon creating writing course in a grand country house filled to the brim with novels, plays, poetry and short stories which they were hoping to expand.

The workshops enabled our budding poets to view everything through writers’ eyes and opened up a world of new ideas which were swiftly put on paper. They learnt how poetry is about personal emotions and were challenged to write poems which were completely honest and genuine. To develop ideas, each boy worked on a prompt which he fleshed out into a plot and then expanded into a script.

Following guidance to help refine and develop their writing, the boys were left with work they were proud to put their names to.

Evenings were spent listening to poets reading a selection of poems and plays, with the final night given over to readings of the boys’ own works, penned during the course. It was astonishing to see how far they were able to improve in such a short period of time.

Junior Science Club This lunchtime club for Year 7 has been very popular this term. The boys have been able to develop their interest in Science and get involved in activities that enrich and enhance the syllabus they cover in their lessons. This term, the boys have had fun learning how to use microscopes, enjoyed a ‘Whizz, Pop and Bang’ demonstration session and discovered how to make slime into balls of putty using household products. Pictured are Purab Garg and Zuhair Hemani from 7M with their green putty.

Field Day Community Service 50 boys from SCS and CCF joined forces for a Community Service Working Party at Aldenham Sailing Club. Divided into four groups to carry out a range of duties including clearing dinghies, they removed nettles, cutting back saplings and moss, before laying the extremely heavy 40-foot long rolls of Astro turf. As a result, we now have a very hardwearing and low-maintenance surface for the storing of school dinghies.

LitSoc Spoken Word Poet Visit Joelle Taylor lit up the drama studio, combining humour with personal messages in her lively and passionate Spoken Word recital, which kept everyone gripped and entertained throughout. An inspiring and laudable woman, Joelle came from a humble background to finally attend school at nine years of age. A spoken word artist, slam poet and playwright, she performs across the UK and internationally. In 2001, Joelle founded SLAMbassadors UK (the national youth slam championships) and, as the programme’s Artistic Director, works with thousands of young people across the UK every year.

Joelle performed various works, including her signature poem, ‘Last Poet Standing’, exploring themes of gang culture, inner city poverty and the power of poetry to transform young people’s lives. These words resonated in the ears of the pupils who could then relate and sympathise with the situation and imagery she created with her lyrical tongue. The highlight was her new poem, which not only told the story of Joelle’s young friend who recently took his own life, but also enhanced a wider message of the importance of speaking up if any problems are weighing you down.

Joelle Taylor’s workshops throughout the school day and LitSoc performance at lunchtime afforded an incredible opportunity for our boys to appreciate the power of poetry and how its beauty can sprout from the darkest of places.

Royal Navy Cadets - Windsurfing 14 of the Royal Navy Cadets ventured forth onto the warm waters of the Hillingdon Outdoor Activity Centre Lake to try their hand at windsurfing. All the cadets had learned to sail dinghies, so this was a fabulous opportunity to enjoy the water in a different way. Despite some early wet starts, the cadets showed grit and determination and all managed to make progress, sailing in a straight line with many mastering the art of turning in a controlled manner. Rishi-Nayan Varodaria (L6M2), helped with the session as an Assistant Instructor offering support and encouragement to his fellow cadets. The session has left them enthusiastic for more water sports and keen to develop their interests further.