On 15 May, LE (Year 9) students at Christ’s Hospital enjoyed an engaging maths lecture from visiting speaker George Watkins, a mathematician and education specialist based in London.

The talk focused on distributions, with Dr Watkins presenting examples of patterns and distributions that can be observed in the physical world. Students were challenged to predict what different distributions might look like in a range of scenarios, encouraging them to think critically and apply their mathematical understanding.

One particularly popular example explored distributions within the Premier League, which sparked plenty of discussion and proved especially engaging for the students. The lecture provided an enjoyable insight into how mathematics can be used to understand the world around us.

Students from Christ’s Hospital have achieved national success at the CanSat Finals, winning the Highest Technical Achievement award after an outstanding series of launches and data analysis.

At the finals, the team completed two additional launches of their CanSat, successfully transmitting live data to the ground station using radio waves and antennas on both occasions. Their design also featured an innovative servo-driven mechanism that exposed fresh nano tape every 100 metres during descent to collect particulate samples from different altitudes.

Following the flight day, the team analysed their results and presented their findings to judges and competing teams.

The award recognises excellence in technical complexity, mission performance, innovation and robustness. Judges praised the reliability and precision of the CanSat, with all systems performing exactly as planned across both launches.

The students were delighted with their success, capping off a highly successful competition with a national award for engineering excellence.

Christ’s Hospital student Kishii (DG, Year 12) has been jointly awarded a prize for Best Use of Evidence in the prestigious FT-APG A Level Essay Competition.

The competition, run by the Financial Times and the American Politics Group (APG), celebrates outstanding academic writing and critical thinking in politics and current affairs. Kishii’s essay impressed the judging panel with its depth of analysis, balance and thoughtful use of sources.

In their feedback, the competition committee praised the essay for placing “the current administration and president into the wider historical context”, drawing effectively on previous presidents and political movements to identify similarities and patterns. Judges also highlighted the essay’s “critical” and “well balanced and nuanced” approach, as well as its “good engagement with sources both academic and contextual.”

The committee added: “This is fantastic to see and we have no doubt that you will go on to great things. Indeed, we hope that some of us may come across you in our own teaching if you choose to go to university.”

As part of the award, Kishii received a £50 book voucher, a copy of Developments in American Politics 10, and recognition in the American Politics Group and Political Studies Association newsletters, as well as the Financial Times Schools Digest. There is also the opportunity for the essay to be published online.

This is an outstanding achievement and a wonderful recognition of Kishii’s academic talent, intellectual curiosity and analytical skill.

Congratulations to Grecian (Year 13) student Amelie, who has reached the Grand Final of the prestigious West End Calling singing competition.

Amelie will perform at London’s The Other Palace Theatre on 25 May, appearing alongside some of the UK’s most talented young musical theatre performers.

The West End Calling Grand Final is held in a West End theatre and showcases finalists across junior, teen and senior categories. Performers sing in front of a judging panel, as well as an audience that includes agents, casting directors and industry professionals.

Reaching the final is a fantastic achievement and recognition of Amelie’s talent and hard work. We wish her the very best for the performance later this month.

On 1 May, our drama scholars attended a special screening of Lee, starring Kate Winslet, which tells the true story of photographer Elizabeth ‘Lee’ Miller, a fashion model who became an acclaimed war correspondent for Vogue magazine during World War II.

We were honoured to be joined by producer Kate Solomon and Anthony Miller, son of the eponymous Lee, who offered fascinating insight into the film and its creation.

Students asked thoughtful, sensitive questions, and many were deeply moved by this powerful and compelling work. It was an outstanding and thought-provoking evening, and we are very grateful to Kate and Anthony for so generously sharing their time and expertise with us.

On 27 April, students attended a Careers Tea focused on careers in finance, gaining insight into the industry and potential pathways.

The session was led by Kingsley Onalo, Senior Credit Manager at World Kinect Services (WKC). He spoke about his role managing global credit risk within the business aviation sector and highlighted how understanding financial resilience and global trends is key to success in the field.

Kingsley, who is currently undertaking a PhD in Credit Risk at Glasgow Caledonian University and holds an MSc in Finance and Investment from Brunel University of London, also shared his passion for mentoring young people and encouraging them to explore opportunities in finance.

Following the talk, students continued discussions with Kingsley over dinner, providing further opportunities for questions and networking.

We are delighted to celebrate student Mimi, who has secured a highly competitive degree apprenticeship with Dyson, joining its renowned engineering programme.

Mimi progressed through a rigorous four-stage selection process, including an application, online testing, virtual interview and a final assessment day. Reflecting on the experience, she described the day as both challenging and enjoyable:

‘There were 10 people on my day and around 120 candidates across all the days. We started with a group task that required us to collaborate and perform calculations to choose components for Dyson’s new air purifier. Then afterwards we had two rounds of interviews – one motivations-based and the other a technical interview, including questions about the physics of hair dryers!’

The assessment day also offered a glimpse into life as a Dyson undergraduate. Mimi toured the Dyson Institute, saw its distinctive student accommodation pods and even viewed the very first Dyson vacuum. Conversations with current apprentices highlighted some of the programme’s unique opportunities, including working on cutting-edge products, overseas placements in Asia and a vibrant student community.

Mimi’s interest in the programme was first sparked after attending a Dyson workshop at Christ’s Hospital:

‘I was immediately really interested and excited about applying, and I’m very glad to have received a place!’

The Dyson Institute of Engineering and Technology degree apprenticeship is highly competitive, often receiving thousands of applications for around 30–40 places each year. Combining paid work with a fully funded degree, it is widely regarded as one of the UK’s most sought-after programmes, offering a salary alongside the opportunity to graduate without tuition fees.

The four-year integrated MEng International Engineering degree blends academic study with hands-on experience, enabling students to work on real-world engineering challenges while earning a salary. Apprentices gain experience across a wide range of disciplines, from motors and fluid dynamics to robotics and software, with opportunities to work internationally during the programme.

On completion, graduates move into accelerated roles within Dyson, contributing to the development of the company’s next generation of innovative technology.

Mimi’s achievement reflects both her talent and determination, as well as the ongoing success of Christ’s Hospital students in securing sought-after pathways into industry.

We are delighted to announce that Noah, a Grecian (Year 13) student and Monitor (prefect), has received an offer to study Engineering at Harvard University, alongside 100% financial assistance and additional grant support.

Noah, who is currently studying A levels in Philosophy, Mathematics and Physics, has demonstrated exceptional academic ability, curiosity and determination throughout his time at the school. This is the second Christ’s Hospital student this year to receive an offer from Harvard University.

Gaining a place at Harvard is highly competitive, making this a remarkable accomplishment. The full financial support awarded ensures that this opportunity is fully accessible, reflecting both Noah’s talent and Harvard’s commitment to attracting students from all backgrounds.

We offer our warmest congratulations to Noah and look forward to seeing all he achieves in the future.

Our Lent term newsletter is now available, bringing together the latest news, achievements and highlights from across the school.

From academic successes and co-curricular activities to trips, events and pupil achievements, this edition captures the energy and breadth of life at Christ’s Hospital over the past term.

We hope you enjoy reading it and celebrating all that has been accomplished.

Read it here: CH Newsletter Lent 2026

A team of students from Christ’s Hospital has secured a place in the UK CanSat National Finals, ranking among the top eight teams out of approximately 150 entries nationwide.

Led by GR student Mimi, the team has spent recent months designing and building a fully functioning miniature satellite, small enough to fit داخل a soft drink can. As part of the European Space Education Resource Office (ESERO) UK competition, students are challenged to incorporate key satellite systems – including power, sensors and communications – into this compact design.

In addition to the core mission of measuring temperature and pressure and transmitting data to a ground station, the team developed a secondary investigation into the density of particulate matter at different altitudes.

The project required significant dedication, with students working collaboratively during Thursday afternoons and Sunday evenings. Their efforts culminated in a successful regional launch, where their CanSat was deployed on a small rocket before safely returning to Earth using a student-designed parachute.

The team also excelled in the technical assessment, achieving an outstanding 32 out of 33 in their Critical Design Review. Following this, they were selected on 6 March to progress to the National Finals in May.

The next stage of the competition will determine which team goes on to represent the UK at the European Space Agency finals in June – an exceptional opportunity and a remarkable achievement for the students involved.