Visit to Christ College, Cambridge University

15th July 2024Mrs S Field

EGS students who had the privilege to be part of The Brilliant Club initiative, offered by our science teacher Dr Frimpong, were invited to Cambridge University for the day to receive their awards.

The graduation certificates were presented to the students from The Brilliant Club, an organisation set up to place PhD researchers and graduates in state schools to deliver academically rigorous programmes linked to their own research. EGS’ visiting professor was Pablo Garcia from University College London who tasked our students with the project ‘Understanding Childhood in Archaeology and Ethnography Through the Funerary Record’.

On arrival in Cambridge, we walked through the pleasantly old-fashioned city to Christ’s College where we were escorted to the theatre in the Yusuf Hamied Centre and listened to a presentation about life at this prestigious University campus.

This presentation included two current students talking about their own experiences and who then became our tour guides. The tour encapsulated the student’s dormitories, the library, the stately dining room, the sixteenth century chapel [which Henry VIII’s paternal grandmother lived adjacent to and had a window built to view the services] and the beautifully landscaped extensive grounds.

After the tour it was time for a buffet lunch (kindly provided by the University) before the awards ceremony.

It was a really interesting and insightful day for all of us. and we are extremely proud to have been part of this educational programme.

 

Guest Speaker: Louis Charalambous – leading media lawyer

8th July 2024Mrs S Field

We are proud to have had Louis Charalambous, a leading media lawyer, speak to our Year 12 students. His visit, organised through the Speakers for Schools initiative, was truly inspiring. Louis shared captivating stories from his dealings with famous personalities, offering a unique glimpse into their lives and the lessons learned from his experiences. His engaging narrative highlighted the importance of perseverance, integrity, and resilience, resonating deeply with our students.

The impact of his visit was profound. Students were not only entertained but also educated and motivated by his anecdotes and insights. Louis’s life lessons underscored the value of hard work and the significance of staying true to one’s principles, providing our students with invaluable guidance for their future endeavours.

We are incredibly grateful for Louis Charalambous’s attendance and the inspiration he brought to our school. His contribution to the development of our students through his words and experiences is greatly appreciated. We look forward to more such enriching sessions in the future, continuing our commitment to providing our students with opportunities to learn from distinguished professionals.

Louis Charalambous

Partner, Simons Muirhead & Burton

Louis is a leading media lawyer with Simons Muirhead & Burton. He has prestigious clients including celebrities, newspapers, TV channels and journalists. His caseload includes acting in many high profile disputes.

He is an expert in cases involving criminal allegations and political disputes. He has been recognised for his calm and strategic approach. His role in the Christopher Jefferies case, in which he acted for Mr Jefferies when he sued for libel, was dramatised in the award winning Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies. He features in The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann (Netflix) together with his client, Robert Murat. In recent years he was on the winning side in a libel trial about a London gangster and against a leading politician in an infamous incident with the police.

He now acts mostly for Defendant clients including The Sun newspaper although he also acts for whistleblowers which, he says, brings very different challenges. He has been a lawyer for over 30 years and prior to qualifying he obtained two degrees in politics.

Louis leads a team of media lawyers who he regards as the most talented in London. He regards building confidence in young people as crucial to their development especially in the law. Having been a solicitor for victims of industrial disease and a criminal defence lawyer in the early part of his career he feels capable of dealing with anything media law chucks at him including Big Brother brawls in the early years. He was born in London to Cypriot parents and raised in Hackney. He is a fervent Arsenal supporter.

Goodbye & Good Luck Year 13

6th July 2024Mrs S Field

As opted for by the students, one of the leavers events was a Staff v Students football game!

Wednesday saw the Staff XI play against the Year 13 leavers in a highly contested and hard fought match, played in great spirits. EGS staff are pleased (relieved!) to announce that experience triumphed over youth and the staff emerged victorious. The game ended 1-1 in normal time, but the staff XI held their nerve to win on penalties, 8-7.

The leavers really enjoyed the afternoon which ended with an amazing BBQ run by our SLT team.

We wish them all the best of luck and health in their future endeavours whichever path they choose, and look forward to seeing them on results day.

Year 13, we will miss you! Please keep in touch and join our Alumni membership.

 

EGS General Election July 2024

5th July 2024Mrs S Field
On Thursday 4th July 2024 pupils from Years 7-10 took part in a Mock General Election to give them experience of how the country votes and the importance of using your voice in a democratic society.
Some students will have to wait till 2029 for their right to vote but it’s never too early to educate.
Thank you to all that took part; the results were very close to the actual election.
#enfieldgrammarschool #enfield #democracy #individualrights #yourvoicecounts #citizenshiplessons #elections #generalelection2024 #mockelection #politics #UKpoliticalsystem 

World of Wonders ‘A Week of School Trips’ – WOW!

5th July 2024Mrs S Field

It’s been a week of logistical planning and operations!

On Wednesday 26 June, over 500 students all out on trips into London, using public transport on the same day….which turned out to be one of the hottest days of the year.

Mr Thompson led 180 Year 9 students to the British Museum

Traveling on the train from Enfield Chase and then on the Underground to Holborn then walking to the British Museum on a beautiful day.

The pupils then embarked on a tour around the British Museum looking back at history over many hundreds of years old, this included Ancient Greece and Rome, Ancient Egypt and history in Asia.

The boys were fantastic throughout the trip and were a credit to the school dealing with the travel into central London and with the hot conditions.

Mr Walker-Trew led our Year 7 Cohort to London Zoo

“The students had the opportunity to see a wonderful array of animals including some very rare and endangered Indian lion cubs with only around 600 left world wide.
They  were able to explore the conservation projects of the zoo and the re-population of animals, such as these rare lions, back into the wild as well as the food chains and habitats the different animals survive in, in the wild.
Despite the boys going to the zoo on a very hot day, all the animals were on show leading to a great day for all the students and staff.
The zoo also sent an email saying “They hope to see us back next year as we had such a great day”!
Mrs Miller added;
“Arrived at London zoo to be cheerfully greeted by a lady who’d worked at the zoo for 20 years and commented on how well behaved EGS students had always been!
Managed to cover pretty much the whole site – Penguin Beach, Butterfly Paradise, Land of the Lions, Tiny Giants (including the bird-eating spiders), Giants of the Galapagos, The Secret Life of Reptiles and Amphibians, The Farmyard, Tiger Territory, Komodo Dragon House, Gorilla Kingdom, The Outback, Into Africa, In with the Lemurs and Monkey Valley.
Big shout out to Mr Leverno who bought everyone ice-cream!”

Ms Paraskeva and Dr Frimpong led our Year 8s to visit the Royal Observatory Museum in Greenwich

“Our Year 8 trip was an enriching and enjoyable experience for all involved. The trip provided a perfect blend of educational value and interactive fun, engaging students with the history of astronomy and the significance of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

Students were thrilled to stand on the Prime Meridian, straddling the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.  They learnt the significance of the Prime Meridian and how it became the basis for GMT, which fascinated some of the students.  They also enjoyed learning how the ‘old’ telephones worked!

The view of London from the Royal Observatory was breath-taking and we all enjoyed the beauty of Greenwich Park.

Some students were also able to visit the nearby National Maritime Museum, extending their learning about maritime history and navigation.

Altogether a very enjoyable day out!”

 

This WOW day was an amazing team effort involving nearly all the staff in the school in some way. Thank you to everyone involved for helping to give our students a day of enrichment activities.

JULY #BookoftheMonth: Stolen Histories

3rd July 2024Mrs S Field
#bookofthemonth for July is:
Stolen Histories (the truth about the British Empire and how is shaped us) by Sathnam Sanghera, which fits nicely with July being South Asian Heritage month (although at EGS we are celebrating the whole of Asia).
 
Why not join us in reading our monthly book? Let the library know what you think of the books
#lovereading #books #stories #readingispower

Year 7 Band On The Road!

3rd July 2024Mrs S Field

Over the last 2 weeks, the Year 7 Band have travelled to St Andrew’s Primary School and Raglan Primary School to perform in assemblies.

They got to show off their talent through performing 3 of their hits they have been learning over the past year, and to inspire the Primary students to pick up an instrument!

We hope to motivate lots of them to choose EGS as their secondary school and for them to become key members of our music department, much like our awesome Year 7 Band!