Students are nominated to receive a Head’s Praise for exceptional achievements and contribution to school life.

Headmaster’s Praise – 24 September 2021

24 September 2021

Today two pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Oliver Simpson for a superb performance of the Haydn C major cello concerto in Windsor Parish Church on 18 September – part of his prize in winning Berkshire Young Musician of the Year 2021.
  • Henry Lowe for creating the winning design in the first year Griffen Competition – an amazing Minecraft version of the school logo

Headmaster’s Praise – 10 September 2021

10 September 2021

Today 12 pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Oscar Chan has been awarded the Fourth Year Academic Achievement Prize.
  • Aidan Chan has been awarded the Scholars Tie.
  • James Fitzgerald for creating a logic world in Minecraft that he can move around in and switch on and off complex logic gates. It is very impressive!
  • James Healey for superb work on designing the 18th issue of the Polyglot.
  • Eric Huang for his excellent work in organising the talk at Abingdon School by Sir Vincent Cable and promotional material.
  • Johnny James for finishing an incredible 3rd place in the Triathlon at the UK School Games, hosted in Loughborough. The Games can be seen as an excellent stepping stone into the world of elite sport with 75 of the athletes representing GB at the Toyko Olympic Games having competed in the competition in the past.
  • Cameron Khoo for being Highly Commended in the Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge University, essay prize.
  • In Kongamnuaysuk has been awarded the Third Year Most Improved Prize.
  • Humphrey Lee has been awarded the Fourth Year Most Improved Prize.
  • Alexandre Peuch for an outstanding performance in the C3L6 chemistry challenge, organised by Cambridge University. Alex achieved a Roentgenium award and was placed in the top 0.74% (54) of more than 7300 entrants. He was invited to a residential camp at Cambridge University over the summer.
  • Clement Tsoi has been awarded the Third Year Academic Achievement Prize.
  • Isaac Yu has been awarded the Fourth Year Academic Achievement Prize.

Headmaster’s Praise – 2 July 2021

2 July 2021

Today 20 pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Callum Aiken for displaying fantastic team spirit and camaraderie within Athletics.
  • Oscar Bennett for competing in the 2021 BSSRA National Shooting Match 2021 in the England C team. Scored 195 out of 200. Helped the C Team to win their match.
  • Edward Bennett for stepping up to a leading role as principal flautist in First Orchestra and playing some terrific solos in the recent Summer Concert recording, as well as playing flute obbligato in the solo Bach aria recording with Owen Ravden.
  • Joe Betts for his fantastic approach to Hispanic literature. Joe reads independently and is already able to offer very interesting and intelligent insights on, for example, Lorca’s rural trilogy. In addition, he is unwavering in his enthusiasm and commitment overall in Spanish, attaining a very high standard in all areas.
  • Alex Boorer for his outstanding attainment in Spanish. The essays that he is producing are of the highest standard – fluent, accurate and convincing, whether the topic be medical advances or the value of homework. He also speaks with fluency, able to hold a natural conversation on tricky topics.
  • Josh Bromley for completing an outstanding recycled sculpture project, and accompanying digital sketchbook showing his process.
  • Freddy Chelsom for completing an incredible physics rap on Scalars and Vectors during their summer holiday.
  • Will D’Arcy for displaying fantastic team spirit and camaraderie within Athletics.
  • Thom Denning for breaking the school 800m record (U17), running a time of 1 minute 58seconds and qualifying for the English Schools National Championship.
  • James Fitzgerald for creating a logic world in minecraft that he can move around in and switch on and off complex logic gates. It is very impressive!
  • Jasper Furniss for his excellent leadership demonstrated by pulling his team through their Bronze DofE expedition in difficult circumstances.
  • Luke Hooper for having an exceptional season as captain of the 15B’s cricket team. He has led the team in a calm and assured manner. Luke has been keen to get all his teammates involved ensuring they all have the opportunity to play their part. In addition, his performance with the bat has been impressive making contributions every time he comes to the crease. Although Luke missed out on a half century (49) against Eton he did manage it against Bloxham. Many thanks, Luke, for all your efforts.
  • Rory King for absolutely excellent commitment, attitude and progress in Spanish. Through consistent determination and attention to detail he has already reached a very high standard in Spanish.
  • Alexander Lees for working so hard throughout the year and coming top of his recent mock examination in Art.
  • Josh Mensah for displaying fantastic team spirit and camaraderie within Athletics.
  • Chigozie Oge-Evans for breaking the school shot put record (U17), throwing a distance of 13m 49cm at Marlborough College.
  • Toby Pinnington for an extremely well-researched and beautifully written essay on Russia in the First World War, which won first prize in the 4th year history competition.
  • Stefano Rajasundaram for displaying fantastic team spirit and camaraderie within Athletics.
  • Julien Rohart for excelling with his music, having sat an outstanding grade 8 singing exam last week and this week playing one of the obbligato flute solos with Owen Ravden in his Bach aria recording.
  • Chester Shen for displaying fantastic team spirit and camaraderie within Athletics.

Headmaster’s Praise – 25 June 2021

25 June 2021

Today 12 pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Oscar Bennett for competing in the 2021 BSSRA National Shooting Match 2021 in the England C team. Scored 195 out of 200. Helped the C Team to win their match.
  • Rory Bishop for producing superb creative writing throughout the AFA course, culminating in the design and production of an outstanding anthology of work. Rory was responsible for the foreword and co-designing the layout of the anthology, which looks highly professional.
  • Freddy Chelsom for completing an incredible physics rap on Scalars and Vectors during their summer holiday.
  • Jasper Furniss for excellent leadership demonstrated by pulling his team through their Bronze DofE expedition in difficult circumstances.
  • David Hrushovski for completing an incredible physics rap on Scalars and Vectors during their summer holiday.
  • Philip Kimber for his entry to the Teddy Rocks Maths essays completion, run by Dr Tom Crawford at St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford, was cited as highly commended by the judges.
  • Ben MacLennan for competing in the 2021 BSSRA National Shooting Match 2021 in the England D team. Scored 190 out of 200. Helped the D Team to win their match.
  • Jake Morris for completing an incredible physics rap on Scalars and Vectors during their summer holiday.
  • Sam Penrose for producing superb creative writing throughout the AFA course, culminating in the design and production of an outstanding anthology of work. Sam was responsible for designing the front cover and images, which look highly professional.
  • Will Shorrocks for competing in the 2021 BSSRA National Shooting Match 2021 in the England B team. Scored 191 out of 200. Helped the B Team to win their match.
  • Ted Woodfin for putting together a great charity quiz in partnership with ASPA.
  • Joe Turner for achieving a Gold medal in Intermediate Biology Olympiad.

Headmaster’s Praise – 18 June 2021

18 June 2021

Today nine pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Alparslan Abdurrazak who has gone from not being able to swim at the start of term, to completing a length without stopping! Everyone was super proud of him!
  • Oliver Kirk for taking ownership of the beginning of his UCAS application by completing his super-curricular document with a huge amount of detail. This will help his teachers to include the granular detail required in a modern reference.
  • Charles Maddison for putting together a great charity quiz in partnership with ASPA.
  • Joshua Massey-Thompson for putting together a great charity quiz in partnership with ASPA.
  • Rowan Miell-Ingram for reaching the English Schools qualifying standard for both the 3000m (8:28) and 1500m (3:56). This should secure him a place at the National Final in Manchester, placing him within the top 16 runners in the country.
  • Alexandre Peuch for taking ownership of the beginning of his UCAS application by completing his super-curricular document with a huge amount of detail. This will help his teachers to include the granular detail required in a modern reference.
  • Oliver Simpson for winning joint first prize in the Oxfordshire Concerto Competition Final held on Friday 11 June. He played the finale of Saint-Saens’ cello concerto.
  • Luke Skates for winning the 800m (2:16) and 300m (40.8) at the Oxfordshire graded meet at Horspath.
  • Ted Woodfin for putting together a great charity quiz in partnership with ASPA.

Headmaster’s Praise – 21 May 2021

21 May 2021

Today three pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Oliver Simpson for being the winner of the Berkshire Young Musician of the Year 2021, out of 150 entrants, after a number of rounds. He will perform in September a concerto with orchestra in St Georges Chapel Windsor.
  • Boco To for his brilliant entry for the Radley German Poetry recital competition – a very engaging rendition of Valeri Scherstjanoi’s “Der Hund”.
  • Dominic Wood for producing this week’s SCAMPA News for local schools full of excellent ideas for air quality investigations.

Headmaster’s Praise – 14 May 2021

14 May 2021

Today 18 pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Ben Broadbent for running a canoe polo session in the swimming pool for the 3rd years every week for over a year with very limited staff assistance.
  • Nick Case for running a canoe polo session in the swimming pool for the Lower School every week for over a year with very limited staff assistance.
  • Oliver Clark for some really inventive and dedicated independent work on a number of short films during the period of lockdown this year.
  • Jonathan Ferry for leading the Young MUN group since September last year and continuing to do so throughout the lockdown. He has been fantastic and a real role model to the 3rd Year students. He has passed on his enthusiasm and skill for MUN and has ensured the boys have enjoyed the activity.
  • Alex Heffernan for some bold and committed filming in all weathers for a documentary about Hinksey Rowing Club.
  • Lachlan Jones for promoting Chinese language learning to primary schools last year and to 2nd years during the taster lessons this term.
  • Philip Kimber for making this weeks house assembly which has been played to the whole house. It was absolutely brilliant and on map projections, their related politics and what we can learn about compromise from it.
  • Samuel King for taking part in filming a video for the website.
  • Charles Kum for excellent work, both during his period of remote learning in Hong Kong, and since his return to Abingdon, on his debut AFU film, which cleverly combines the two locations.
  • Alexander Lees for some excellent independent film work in his own time, and in the face of Covid restrictions, for his next AFU documentary about the work of the local search and rescue charity, OXSARS
  • Caleb Maijeh for producing an excellent report on ground level ozone pollution for the SCAMPA Project newsletter.
  • Alex Oldham for running a canoe polo session in the swimming pool for the 3rd years every week for over a year with very limited staff assistance.
  • Oliver Simpson for being the winner of the Berkshire Young Musician of the Year 2021. Ollie won the age 13-15 category, and also the title of overall Berkshire Young Musician of the Year 2021.
  • Ted Smethurst for participating in the New Views playwriting scheme run by the National Theatre. The play he wrote, “The Inheritance”, has been long-listed by the judges from the hundreds of entries written by students across the UK, and will now be considered by a team of National Theatre directors for one of nine rehearsed reading slots at the NT. These are given by professional actors in July. A fine achievement!
  • Ed Spackman for running a canoe polo session in the swimming pool for the 3rd years every week for over a year with very limited staff assistance.
  • Jake Wallis for running a canoe polo session in the swimming pool for the lower school every week for over a year with very limited staff assistance
  • Jonathan Watcham for taking part in the making of a film for the school website on what his hopes and aspirations are for life at Abingdon
  • Daniel Zhang for learning a very difficult piano piece in one week, and recording it for the online concert.

Headmaster’s Praise – 7 May 2021

7 May 2021

Today 11 pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Durotimi Adebutu for taking part in filming a video for the website.
  • Joe Betts for writing a strong essay for the Sheffield University Essay prize entitled ‘How Roman was the Roman Empire?”
  • Ianto Brewer for writing a strong essay for the Sheffield University Essay prize on the French and Haitian Revolutions.
  • Thomas Gardener for taking part in filming a video for the website.
  • Toby Hindley for taking part in filming a video for the website.
  • Samuel King for taking part in filming a video for the website.
  • Joe Noctor for taking part in the making of a film for the school website on what his hopes and aspirations are for life at Abingdon.
  • Maxwell Robinson for taking part in the making of a film for the school website on what his hopes and aspirations are for life at Abingdon.
  • Ted Smethurst for writing a strong essay for the New College of Humanities Essay Prize: “Is democracy experiencing a setback worldwide?’
  • Jonathan Watcham for taking part in the making of a film for the school website on what his hopes and aspirations are for life at Abingdon.
  • Scott Yap for taking part in filming a video for the website.

Headmaster’s Praise – 30 April 2021

30 April 2021

Today six pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Tim Fowler for an excellent video demonstrating 4-bit counter and the problems of switch bounce.
  • Liam Hilditch for scoring an unbeaten 133 to win the 1st XI game vs Berkamsted at the weekend.
  • Nick Raptakis for his superb 10 minute orchestral piece, ‘The Mountain’ that has been chosen to be performed by both First Orchestra and TVYO at the end of this term.
  • Ted Smethurst for being ‘Very Highly Commended’ for his story ‘The Menu’ in the National Youth Flash Fiction Competition.
  • Todd Stanmore for hitting six 6s in an over for the U15Cs vs Berkamsted. A very rare feat!
  • Ethan Walker for being top 12 in the country in the next round of the UK Linguistics Olympiad (just missing out on top 8 which would have given him a place in the UK squad).

Headmaster’s Praise – 23 April 2021

23 April 2021

Today 11 pupils received Headmaster’s praise:

  • Jake Ginks for achieving a Gold award in the Biology Olympiad.
  • Rory King for leading his team of economists in putting together the second edition this year of Griffenomics. Outstanding work.
  • Jenson Mckay has had his music technology peer reviewed by a well known US producer – incredibly complimentary. This is a huge deal and Jenson is to be warmly congratulated!
  • Rowan Miell-Ingram for finishing 3rd in the ESAA Virtual National XC Championships, finishing the 5km course in a time of 15 minutes 44 seconds.
  • Rory Mitchell for designing from scratch the second edition of Griffenomics. Rory self-taught himself the software and made a great contribution to the team as well.
  • Nicholas Raptakis for achieving a Gold award in the Biology Olympiad.
  • Nathan Shestopal for being the leading commendation winner in the second year in the Lent Term (43 in total).
  • Boco To for writing an impressively creative and poetic letter to Caspar David Friedrich in German as an entry to the ISMLA competition.
  • Jonathan Watcham for being the leading commendation winner in the first year in the Lent Term (40 in total).
  • Jeroan Yip for achieving a Gold award in the Biology Olympiad.
  • Ethan Walker for being top 12 in the country in the next round of the UK Linguistics Olympiad (just missing out on top 8 which would have given him a place in the UK squad).