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The Diamond Jubilee

Monday 6th February 2012 marks the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth IIs accession after King George VI sadly died at Sandringham in 1952. The first celebration of the Queen's 60 year reign will take place in Norfolk with a visit to King’s Lynn town hall and a nearby Infant and Nursery School. 2012 will be marked by a series of regional, national and international events. This encompasses a visit to Harrow, though it is not yet known what the plans for this day are.

Harrow High School wishes the Queen a very Happy Anniversary during this momentous year. We look forward to celebrating the Queen's 60 years of dedication with various initiatives inside and outside of school. This page will be updated regularly with details of the years events.

The Window above the Door

The window above the door at the front of the school celebrates the story of the Schneider Trophy for seaplanes, competed for in the 1930s with Old Gaytonian John Boothman as winning pilot. The successful Supermarine seaplane, same designer as the Spitfire, was powered by a Rolls-Royce engine. The engine was developed into the Merlin, the most successful aero engine of WWII, that powered many aircraft types, including the Spitfire, Hurricane, Lancaster Bomber and Mosquito.

Harrow High School hosts a talk by Colin Gent about the Schneider Trophy and Rolls Royce Merlin engines, The Window above the Door
Wednesday 8th February 2012, 7.30pm in the School Hall.

Free to all Harrow High School learners and staff (available from Miss Best) and £5 for visitors. To buy tickets please visit:
http://www.gaytoncentenaries.co.uk/Gent.aspx

Quentin Blake at Harrow High School

Quentin Blake shared his talent with Harrow High School’s Year 7 learners and also Year 5 learners from local Middle Schools on 18th January 2012.

Harrow High School has been working with the Harrow Metropolitan Police as part of an initiative focused on the safety of young people.
Together we have set up a series of events to encourage personal safety and moral awareness amongst our learners. One way to engage young people is through creative works and who better to help us with this than Quentin Blake.

Quentin Blake is recognised globally as an incredibly accomplished illustrator and children’s author. He has had a career spanning seven decades. His first illustrations were published in Punch when he was 16, he was Head of the Illustration Department at the Royal College of Art from 1978 to 1986, and was made CBE in 2005. He is most famous for his hilarious characters in Roald Dahl’s books, and more recently for his illustration of the character Mr Stink by David Walliams. Quentin Blake’s interpretations of good and bad characters demonstrate the artists social conscience.

Harrow High School learners and the middle school learners who attended the day will continue the theme of safety when drawing their own pictures, which will be featured in an exhibition at the Harrow Metropolitan Police station.

London Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Bernard Hogan-Howe at Harrow High School

On Wednesday 11th January 2012 London Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Bernard Hogan-Howe, gave a talk to 43 Year 10 learners in the lecture theatre. Commissioner Hogan-Howe spoke to the learners about his job as the Head of the London Metropolitan Police. He answered questions which included queries about Stop and Search, the Police’s attitude towards young people and also questions about institutional racism. The Commissioner responded by explaining the purpose of Stop and Search, saying that sometimes young people are targeted simply to rule them out of an open enquiry.

He further explained that young people are often targeted for Stop and Search as unfortunately, because of their age group, they fall into a high statistic of those who commit crime. He highlighted the correct way this method of policing should be carried out, and told the learners that they should be given an official form each and every time they are questioned by a Police Officer.

Commissioner Hogan-Howe spoke about the Stephen Lawrence murder. The learners were interested to learn about the history of institutional racism, and about the changes in policy to eradicate racial discrimination.

Later in the evening the Commissioner gave a further talk to around 200 residents of Harrow, Brent and Barnet. The Commissioner highlighted the importance of Safer Neighbourhood Teams and the value they add to local communities.

Head teacher Paul Gamble said, 'it is an honour to be included in Commissioner Hogan-Howe's first Road Show. Our learners benefited from hearing the Commissioner talk about Stop and Search in particular. It is something that affects many young people, and I think the learners were interested to fully understand it's purpose. Harrow High School is very proud to have hosted the 2 events. The Harrow Police do a brilliant job and it's important that the younger generation are well informed about issues regarding safety.'

The Grinch, The Panto

Our Christmas performance went fantastically well on Monday 12th December 2011. Doors opened at 6.30pm and the show was enjoyed by all from 7pm. Parents of learners, staff, members of the Old Gaytonians Association and the Mayor of Harrow attended the performance.

The evening was hilarious fun. It was clear for all to see how hard everybody had worked to make the show a success so well done to all the learners and staff who were involved!

Review: By Pubudu, Year 10. 'On Monday the 12th December 2011, our fellow pupils performed the Grinch - the Panto, after weeks of hard work. Organised by Ms Nickles and other teachers, the play was a great success. Learners, parents, teachers, members of the Old Gaytonian's Association, and the Mayor of Harrow attended the performance. Hilarious jokes and great performances by the all-pupil cast helped make the show thoroughly enjoyable, and great music and dancing filled the evening with delight. Not to mention showers of sweets at the end, as a treat! The show was also performed for primary school students from schools in the area. This was met with fabulous reactions, paying off the effort put into making the play a success by all the students and teachers involved. Many thanks to those who made the show fun and pleasurable and hope many more of these performances will follow in the near future.'

Grand Centenary Dinner & Centenary Tours

On Saturday 15th October Harrow High School hosted a dinner to celebrate 100 years of learning on the school site. The school hall was transformed into a delightful setting, with ambient lighting and a raised area for the speakers to address more than 200 guests.

The black tie event marked the nearing of an end of a hugely successful programme of centenary events. Over the past year Harrow High School has celebrated the achievements of the three schools. Guests at the dinner included the Rt. Hon. Michael Portillo, Sir Paul Nurse, Sir Nigel Sheinwald and Professor Kel Fidler. The oldest gentleman present was Ioan Robers, who joined the school in 1928. 

The dinner was used as an opportunity for Cllr Bill Stephenson, Leader of Harrow Council, to honour Sir Paul Nurse with the Freedom of the Borough. Sir Paul attended Harrow County School for Boys in the 1960s, and he gave a Centenary Talk in the school hall in September. Cllr Stephenson said: “Awarding the Freedom of the Borough is something we do sparingly in Harrow. The last time was in 2004 to Sir Roger Bannister which gives a measure of the kind of achievement we recognise. While maybe not a household name, Sir Paul is arguably this country’s greatest scientist and richly deserves this honour. He is a Nobel Laureate who has made seminal discoveries in the field of cancer research that will help to save many, many lives. In recognising Sir Paul, I hope we make sure that everyone in Harrow will be able to appreciate and celebrate his great achievements. The award also celebrates the centenary of Harrow High, a school with a great tradition of dedicated and inspiring teachers through the years and enthusiastic pupils who continue their support as alumni. I hope this award and Sir Paul’s achievements inspire every pupil in Harrow to exploit their talents to the full.” After Cllr Stephenson’s introduction the Mayor of Harrow, Cllr Mrinal Choudhury, was invited to the stage where he presented Sir Paul Nurse with the Freedom of the Borough Scroll.

Other highlights of the evening included former teacher of Harrow County, Mr J. Avery, presenting the current school with some Siamese coins which had been collected by the first Headmaster; Michael Portillo giving a speech which was met with great laughter and applause; Brian Kessleman who composed Voices that Should be Heard and Nadine Mortimer-Smith who performed at the concert in March, entertaining guests with a selection of songs.

Headteacher Paul Gamble said, “It is an honour that Harrow High School is associated with such a rich history of education. The current school slogan, ‘Excellence for All’, is not so far removed from the old school Latin motto, ‘Virtus Non Stemma’, meaning ‘worth not birth’. We are lucky to have so many prestigious role models connected with the school, such as Sir Paul Nurse amongst many others, for our learners to look to for inspiration. It is testament to the hard work of the Centenary Committee, consisting of both staff from the current school and the Old Gaytonian’s Association, that this year’s events have been so successful. Furthermore, I am pleased that so many Harrow County for Boys alumni have not only celebrated the extensive history of the school, but have also shown a real interest in the education of our current and future learners. I’m pleased to say that we already have two Alumni Talks planned for next year and we are working towards more of these as well as other sporting and academic opportunities that will allow us to continue working with the Old Gaytonian’s Association. As always, we remain dedicated to the highest standard of education for the learners at school here.”

The next morning, on Sunday 16th October, over 100 visitors arrived for morning tours of the school. Learners were dressed in historic uniform and they acted as tour guides as they took groups around both the oldest and newer parts of the school. Many of the visitors were former pupils and had stories of their own school days to share. Others were members of the local community, keen to get a look inside the historic landmark on Gayton Road. The tours ended in the library where an exhibition of memorabilia of the school throughout its 100 year history was displayed. Guests were then invited to the lecture theatre to view a nostalgic film made when the school was Harrow County for Boys. The day was undoubtedly a huge success with praise from all who attended.

Click here to open an image gallery of the event.

GCSE Exam Results Success: 80% A*- C

The number of learners leaving Harrow High School with the entrance requirements for further study is 80% with 5 grades A* to C. Results including English and Maths A* to C grades are estimated at 41%.This is a significant improvement on the school's previous year results and also well above the national average. 

Jack Eddleston got 3 A* grades and 6 A’s. Jack said, ‘It turned out really well. I was so nervous but as soon as I opened the paper I saw that my grades were fantastic. I’m going to study BTEC Forensics next year, and I’m confident that I’m well on my way to studying DNA Analysis at University in the future.’ 

Morsal Mohammad was very happy when she saw the grades of her ten GCSEs. She will study Biology, Sociology, English and Psychology at A Level with aspirations of studying English at University in the future. Morsal said, ‘I’m very grateful to all of my teachers as they gave me some really good advice to help me through my GCSEs. My family are going to be very proud of me for these results.’ 

The teachers at Harrow High School are so proud of the learners for achieving these fantastic results. Some learners will be continuing with their studies at Harrow High's Sixth Form and others will progress on to various sixth form colleges in the autumn term. Future A‐Level aspirations are wide, ranging from the Sciences to the Humanities. Subjects include Maths, Physics, English, Law, Economics, French, History and Information Technology.

A Level results for 2011

We produced excellent A Level results, with 28% of learners achieving an A or A* grade. Learners who achieved A* to B grades was at 42%, A* to C was at 63%, and 92% of learners achieved A* to E grades. 50 out of 55 learners have gone on to continue their education at some of the top universities in the UK. Harrow High School is very proud of the learners for achieving such outstanding success and we wish them the very best for their futures.

Centenary Events: Celebrating 100 Years of Learning

The School’s centenary is in 2011, to mark this significant anniversary the School and the Association are working closely together to plan a series of commemorative events. There is something to interest everyone: younger, older, sporting, cultural, historian and diner. We welcome everybody to come and join us. Information about these events will be on the Gayton Centenaries website

Instrumental Lessons now Available at Harrow High School

We now have a final cost for instrumental lessons at Harrow High School. The school is now able to offer tuition on a range of instruments at a cost of £150 a year. If you are interested in taking lessons, please ensure that Ms Hughes has your details as soon as possible. For students, a note in your planner from your parents would be the easiest way - alternatively, parents or carers can email Ms Hughes here.