Independent Schools Of The Year Shortlists Queen Ethelburga’s Five Times

Published by Queen Ethelburga's King's Magna on Wednesday 20th of July 2022

We are excited to announce that Independent Schools of the Year has shortlisted Queen Ethelburga’s almost double the number of awards than last year. After three nominations previously, it is a fantastic achievement for the school to be shortlisted for five this year.

The Independent Schools of the Year are a prestigious national award ceremony. They recognise private schools across the UK and British schools overseas for their extraordinary experiences and opportunities given to students.

This year, the awards have recognised our schools, students and staff for their hard work. We have been shortlisted for Independent Prep School of the Year; Independent Boarding School of the Year; School of the Year for Community Outreach; Unsung Hero of the Year; and Rising Star of the Year.

Independent Prep School of the Year

Shortlisted for the fourth time, Chapter House has been recognised again for its outstanding student experience. The nomination comes after becoming an accredited Independent Association of Prep Schools member. A school’s association that recognises Chapter House for its excellent standards of pastoral care and broad curriculum.

Karen Kilkenny, Head of Chapter House, has said in response to the nomination, “I’m so proud and excited to see that both Chapter House and Queen Ethelburga’s have been shortlisted for an award. A reflection of the hard work of students and staff and the support of our fabulous parents.”

Independent Boarding School of the Year

Our second nomination from the Independent Schools of the Year goes to our boarding. The awards have recognised our boarding school for its staff support towards the student’s educational, emotional and societal needs.

This shortlisting is not the only success for QE’s boarding team this year. Earlier in the term, Queen Ethelburga’s Collegiate was awarded the Boarding Innovation Award for developing a Houseparent Assistant App. A boarding team member designed the app to help deal with administrative duties.

Unsung Hero of the Year

Our staff are the heartbeat of Queen Ethelburga’s, and it shows. We are so proud of Fran Graves, Head of Catering, for shortlisting for Unsung Hero of the Year. Independent Schools of the Year selected Fran because of her commitment to the school throughout the pandemic.

Fran has delivered exceptional meals over the Covid lockdowns. She offered international students (who had to stay at school over the holidays) a personalised meal service to make them feel at home. We wish Fran the best of luck and are always proud of our award-winning catering team for their hard work.

Rising Star of the Year

Finally, we congratulate three students for being shortlisted for the Independent School of the Year Awards. It is fantastic to see QE students recognised for their tenacity, ambition and hard work that extends beyond the classroom.

Deputy Head Boy, Amhra Dyer-Scott, has been shortlisted for Rising Star of the Year because of his keen motivation in sport. This year Amhra’s skills in Athletics have taken him to National Level, and he is now ranked 2nd in Yorkshire! We wish him luck with the award and his summer outdoor competitions.

School of the Year for Community Outreach

Meanwhile, our Deputy Head Girl and previous Head Boy have been selected for the Community Outreach Award because of their charity work. This is not the first time Olumwatoni Akinrinmade (Toni) and Cyrus Zarrebini’s selflessness and determination has been celebrated. Both have won The Lexden Prize for Sixth Formers because of their work with underprivileged communities.

Toni’s community outreach is inspired by her passion for helping females in STEM subjects. One of her charity commitments is working as Head of Logistics for STEMinAfrica. Toni oversees the planning and organisation of events for underprivileged students in African countries with little access to STEM education.

Whilst Cyrus Zarrebini set up The Zarrebini Foundation over lockdown to educate children and adults in Brazil and South Africa. His passion for free education inspired his first book, "What The Heck is Microeconomics?” which you can buy on Amazon. Cyrus uses the profits from the book to distribute free copies to students in South Africa.

Independent Schools of the Year Awards Finalist Announcement

We are thrilled with every shortlisting and congratulate both staff and students for their ambition and altruism. The nominations truly highlight our school’s motto – “to be the best that I can with the gifts that I have”.

The Independent School of the Year Awards will announce the finalists on the 7th of September.