Dipen Hansjee, a former pupil who went onto Westminster, returned today to give us the most incredible presentation. Dipen has spent some time studying various aspects of BREXIT as part of his work in the Upper Sixth, the numbers, the consequences, predictions and information to date but all done without spin or favour, just fact and further thoughts. I was left thinking that it is a great shame that our press and politicians failed to articulate themselves nearly as well or with the authenticity that Dipen managed.
Afterwards, Dipen talked about the influence of studying in the heart of our political capital and how enriching it has been, he is clearly a credit to his family, Orley Farm and Westminster! However, the lasting thought was how comfortable he was to return, to come and join us in the staffroom to talk with former teachers and his genuine delight to re-engage with Orley Farm with the simple intention of putting something back. Dipen kept thanking me for the opportunity to return when in fact, we are in debt to former pupils with such an extraordinary mindset! This summer we will be inviting this year group back for a reunion before they all leave for their respective next steps, be that university, an internship, apprenticeship or a gap year…it would be lovely to reconnect with extraordinary people!
Tim Calvey