Gold standard schools
TWO Hillingdon schools have won Gold Club status for exceptional educational achievements.
Northwood School and Swakeleys School for Girls were celebrated in a scheme set up by the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, to recognise exceptional schools in the capital.
The Gold Club is part of the mayor’s drive to boost standards for all schoolchildren regardless of background.
Northwood School was awarded Gold Club status because of excellent academic achievement at Key Stage Four, which has placed the school in top 5% of schools nationally.
Headteacher Mark Anderson said: “The award is a reflection of the outstanding teaching that children receive at Northwood, but also the school’s belief that every child can achieve beyond their expectations.”
Swakeleys School for Girls was recognised because it is “at the leading edge of challenging low aspiration and under achievement”.
Headteacher Sue Pryor said: “This reflects our unwavering commitment to high aspirations and ambition for all.”
A total of 113 schools across London have been awarded Gold Club status in 2015. A FORMER music teacher from West Drayton is holding a concert in memory of his brother who died earlier this year.
Vincent Raven, 66, is raising money for The Royal Free Hospital, Hampstead, which cared for his younger brother Brian from Willesden Green, who died in February aged 57 from a liver disease.
He will perform Whole Joys at St Martin’s Church in West Drayton on Sunday (October 11) at 3pm. Admission is free but people will be encouraged to make a donation to the hospital.
The performance includes words by Elizabeth Barret Browning, William Shakespeare, Thomas Hardy and Edward Thomas, and music by Bach.
Mr Raven, whose daughter Hannah is a former Uxbridge Gazette reporter, said: “I like the idea that I am able to share the joy of music and beautiful words as a way of remembering my dear brother, and supporting the wonderful doctors and nurses who cared for him in his final days.”
The programme is the second that Vincent has performed at the church since retiring from his role as head of Hillingdon Music Service (HMS). He played violin for the National Theatre while still at school.
He was recently presented with the Michael Craxton Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Arts by the Mayor of Hillingdon.
To donate, visit www. justgiving.com/BrianRaven-words-and-music