Chris Bevan always says that 'Prince Henry's was [his] catapult'. He credits Prince Henry's with helping towards his current career, as a Barrister. I joined Prince Henry’s in 2004. I joined the school in Year 9 after a very difficult start in life. In fact, I was raised in care and as far as I could see I had no future, certainly not one as a barrister! This school changed that. In fact, joining this school was the start of something very special and personal to me. I was nurtured by the school to achieve my absolute best through the most difficult of circumstances. Throughout my time with the school, I took all the opportunities available to me, both academic and extra circular. I performed well in my exams and even took some lead roles in the annual school musical on a few occasions. At Prince Henry’s, I was transformed from a scared child without seemingly much hope into a confident young man with a belief that an entire future is out there, beyond those doors, ahead of me. Since leaving school I went on to university and eventually studied law. I then won the most prestigious scholarship from a barrister’s organisation, one of the Inns of Court, which fully funded me to train as a barrister [Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, Diana Princes of Wales Scholarship]. I still have some training to complete, although I now work as a Prosecutor for Leeds City Council prosecuting criminal offences in the local courts. Because you are reading this, my fellow student, you are looking for inspiration. So, I have this to say to you: Strive for the best and be your best. You have all the tools in your bag to do so. Use them. It is down to you and regardless of who you are and where you come from, your whole life is ahead of you. This school is yours, so allow it to help you. Dream big and go get it! Allow this place to be your catapult too.

Dan is an ordinary lad from Otley, who became a Marine Commando. This is a 32-week process which culminates in the Commando tests: endurance crawls through two miles of tunnels, pools, streams, bogs and woods, then a four mile run back to camp and a shooting test, a 90 minutes speed march, carrying equipment and rifle, an aerial assault course in 13 minutes, carrying equipment and rifle, and finally a 30 mile march across Dartmoor, to be completed in less than eight hours, carrying equipment and a rifle. Dan’s interest in fitness started in his GCSE PE lessons at PHGS, and we are all incredibly proud of his achievement.

A keen all-round athlete , Lizzie only took up cycling when she attended a British Cycling Talent Team session at school to avoid a maths lesson and try and beat a schoolfriend who challenged her! A vegetarian since the age of 10, she had tasted success in athletics, at 800 and 1,500-metre track races, and even played as a goalkeeper for her school football team. Lizzie is one of the great success stories of British Cycling, developing through the ranks to become a dominant force in women’s cycling, and road world champion in 2015. She had the honour of being the first British athlete to win a medal - silver - at the home London Olympics in 2012 and became one of the country’s most famous sportspeople. But her many and varied successes aside from that include a gold medal in the team pursuit at the 2009 UCI Track Cycling World Championships, two wins in the season-long UCI Women’s Road World Cup and Deignan entered the new Olympic year of 2016 as reigning world, Commonwealth and national road champion. In 2019, she performed admirably in front of home crowds as the peloton came through Otley during the UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire. In September 2018, Lizzie gave birth to her first child, daughter Orla.