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Term-time weekly blog from the High Master, Sally-Anne Huang

It was good to welcome all of the pupils back on site on Friday and to have the chance to congratulate the Lower Eighth on their outstanding GCSE results.ÌýAs you may have seen, over 70% of all grades were a 9, with more than 90% 9-8.ÌýThis is a remarkable achievement, and even more so when you consider the national context of a reduction in top grades, and a still significant gap between girls and boys, with female pupils out-performing their male counterparts.ÌýThe Paulines and their teachers are continuing to buck the trends and have maintained our position as the top performing all boys school in the UK.

As you know, however, academic achievements are only part of what we wish to provide for our pupils.ÌýThis was a summer that saw Paulines crossing the globe on Physics trips to Hungary and Geneva and an Eighth Form trip to Zambia in collaboration with our international partner, Beyond Ourselves. Further partnership projects included an expanded STEM programme, launching the inaugural Space School with UCL’s Mullard Space Science Laboratory and adding a third Summer School.

Many of our sportsmen competed at international level. In golf, Shiv Ahluwalia (Sixth Form) won the European Junior Championship qualifier at The Caversham on 18 August with a one-over-par 73, earning a spot at the 32nd Junior European Open in Cadiz this November. He also placed 3rd at the Maylands Classic and 4th in the 14-15 category at the British Junior Tour European Open in La Touquet. In fencing, Sasha Georget-Roukline (Upper Eighth) has just been selected for Team GB at the FIE satellite event in AmsterdamÌýon 28 September. Our congratulations also go to Krish Patel, Old Pauline (2019-24), who has joined Northamptonshire County Cricket Club on a 2-year professional contract.

Meanwhile, in rowing,Ìýmembers of the 1st VIII crew who won at Henley in June, represented Great Britain at the Junior Rowing Championships in Canada. Alec Wild, from last year’s Upper Eighth, won gold with the men’s eight, while Victor Bocquet (Upper Eighth), coxed the women’s eight to silver and Alp Karadogan, Pat Wild and Christian Reese (all Upper Eighth) won silver with the men’s four.Ìý You may have also seen that OPs Freddie Davidson and David Ambler won bronze at the Paris Olympics.

We have academic prizes to note too. Dermot Christmas (Upper Eighth) earned joint second prize in this year’s Julia Wood Essay Prize for his essay, “The Pagan Period in Burma: To What Extent Did It Influence Burmese Resistance to the British Empire?” ÌýThis is an annual history essay competition named in honour of a historian from St Hugh’s College.ÌýAndÌýLuke Jeffries (Upper Eighth) has achieved remarkable success by being shortlisted in the History category of the John Locke Global Essay Competition. The winners will be announced at the award ceremony on 21 September.

I am painfully aware that all of this celebration places us in jeopardy of forgetting one of the school’s key character traits – humility – although I am sure you will agree with me that it’s important to mark such success on a national and international level.ÌýYou might also be reassured to learn that new School Captain, Lachlan Murray, chose another key trait – kindness – as the theme of his opening of year speech to the whole school and I hope that all new pupils, especially the Fourth Form, have experienced the kindness of the community as they have settled in over the last few days.

As this week draws to a close, we look forward to the start of the rugby season and a busy Open Day tomorrow.