'Eternity' taking part in the Tycoon Entrprise Challenge
'Glossy Donuts' taking part in the Tycoon Entrprise Challenge
(Left to right) Noor Randhawa, Alexa Byrne, Zara Islip and Amy Turner took part in the GAIN Investment Challenge
GLOBAL CITIZENS
Business Brains Our business students have been extremely busy this year, putting their skills into practice through various national challenges, including the Tycoon Enterprise Challenge and the GAIN (Girls are Investors) Investment Challenge . Over the academic year, pupils in Year 9 took part in the Peter Jones Foundation Tycoon Enterprise Challenge . With the support of staff and A level business students, they generated new business ideas before pitching their product to a panel. Five teams of business savvy pupils submitted their presentations, with the final two teams, ‘Eternity’ and ‘Glossy Donuts’ progressing and submitting their idea in the national competition. Both teams were successful in their submissions and received business loans to start their enterprises in school, selling products including friendship bracelets, donuts and lip glosses during break times and events. In January, Year 12 business students Zara Islip, Noor Randhawa, Amy Turner and Alexa Byrne entered the Girls Schools Association (GSA) GAIN Investment Challenge – a six week nationwide competition aimed at giving girls an insight into the dynamic world of financial investment management. Each team was assigned a company, and the girls were tasked with researching and assessing whether to buy, hold or sell the stock as an investment opportunity. With the support of their mentor, Krishan Parekh , an investor at HSBC, they put together an investment case which culminated in a final investment pitch to a panel of professionals within the investment industry. Q MUN 3 Queen’s hosted another tremendously successful Model United Nations (MUN) conference this year, with over 230 students from 15 schools across the North West, including one from Jersey, descending for a day of debate on geopolitics and international diplomacy. They tackled topics as varied as the use of Ozempic for weight loss, youth progression into gangs, and the repatriation of cultural property, in committees ranging from the Security Council to Human Rights and Health. As an entirely student led and student run event, organisation of our conference was in the hands of the Q MUN Secretariat, made up of our most experienced MUNers. This included selecting topics for debate, writing briefing papers and skeleton resolutions, handling communications with participating schools, managing the application process for guest chairing positions, allocating
countries to schools, and, crucially, developing the Crisis Scenario revealed on the day of the conference. The Press Team, led by Scarlett Toovey in Year 13, included students from Years 8 10 who recorded the briefing video for the Crisis, as well as produced a newsletter and video of the conference ready for the Closing Ceremony on the day. The School was delighted to welcome Xenia Wickett to deliver the keynote speech on our conference theme of progress. Xenia is an executive coach, moderator, advisor and geopolitical expert with a long career in geopolitics and international strategy. She has worked in the White House, where she led on South Asia policy and helped set up Homeland Security after 9/11. Xenia also ran Harvard’s eminent international affairs research centre and has held senior positions in business, NGOs and at the Chatham House think tank. A particular highlight of this year’s conference was the introduction of our Q MUN branded cotton tote bags, which were given as prizes to all winners of awards at the Closing Ceremony. At the end of the day, Q MUN Secretary General Anoushka Paymaster Thatcher in Year 13 brought her gavel down on the sounding block to close what was an energising day that inspired all to venture forth to be agents of change in the world. King’s MUN In November, 22 students from Years 10 13 attended King’s MUN , the first MUN conference held at The King’s School, Chester. Queen’s Sixth formers Cora Turner and Anoushka Paymaster Thatcher were invited to act as guest chairs of debate. Keynote speaker Nicholas Hercules , who has worked for the United Nations in Afghanistan, Gaza and South Sudan, gave a thought provoking speech on the priority the UN places on bringing everyone to the negotiating table while suspending judgement about the nature of a particular regime. Throughout the event, Queen’s pupils seized the opportunity to throw themselves into diplomatic debate and negotiation, with Daisy Wainwright and Cerys Fagan being Commended in their committees, Simran Sambhi receiving Highly Commended , and Olivia Steele, Maahi Chauhan and Catalina Solan being awarded Best Delegate in their respective committees. MGSMUN December saw 12 Queen’s pupils heading to Manchester Grammar School representing Saudi Arabia and Ukraine. Catalina Solan in Year 11 was invited to guest chair in the Health and Social Committee . This was the first time
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