JP Winners

Congratulations to our most recent group of Jack Petchey winners at St Charles Catholic Sixth Form. Students were presented with their Jack Petchey certificates by our Principal, Mr Twist for their incredible accomplishments and contributions to the college and local community.

Overcoming challenges and taking advantage of a myriad of opportuinities during their time in sixth form has shaped their characters! Each of their stories are unique and collectively these students have been outstanding ambassadors for St Charles be it through academic excellence, their participation in the College’s unique Personal Development Programme through their volunteering, work experience placements, visits/trips- in the UK and abroad. What a fantastic group of students.

Month awarded
Jan 2026	Emeline Mathys	Alexandria Hall
Feb 2026	Ehdaa Al Zaal	Alexandria Hall
Mar 2026	Kalaya Downie-Roper	Alexandria Hall
Apr 2026	Demilade Anikulapo-Kuti	Aquinas Hall
May 2026	Younes Ferah	Romero Hall
Jun 2026	Dianna Jitaru	Romero Hall

 

January 2026 Winner – Emeline Mathys

Emeline who studies A Level Law and Psychology with L3 Diploma in Criminology Yr 13 is described by Mr Macedo from our Student Support team as an exceptional young woman whose resilience, determination and maturity deserve the highest of praise. A woman of great ambition, she has consistently approached her studies with incredible strength and character, rising above many challenges with grace and focus which she should be immensely proud of. She has demonstrated discipline and commitment to her future goals. Her perseverance and ability to overcome obstacles has been truly commendable inspiring both staff and fellow students. She has always maintained a positive attitude and all her teachers cite her outstanding dedication to her education. She is highly thought of in Law & Criminology where she is described as intellectually inquisitive; she reads widely around the subjects and enriches the learning of her peers by bringing this additional knowledge into her classroom discussions. Her Psychology teacher echoes this stating she is a highly organised student who responds exceptionally well to feedback. She is always proactive, engaged and striving to achieve her best. Mr Ajayi, from our pastoral team comments that Emeline is a model student and highly deserving of the award; she is an outstanding example of personal achievement in the face of adversity. She has won many college awards and certificates for her excellent attendance and attitude to learning.

Emeline is now looking forward to her next steps which she clearly is ready for. She’s off to Kings College London to study Psychology and Criminology with a placement year which sounds very exciting!

Emeline wanted to spend her £300.00 to purchase a FlippedLaw Complete Subscription for the College. It provides teachers and students with 24/7 access to a richly detailed and clear video lessons, worksheets, MCQs and scenario questions.

February 2026 Winner – Ehdaa Al Zaal

 Ehdaa is in her final year of her two year A Level course at time of writing this. A student of A Level History, Law and Politics, all her teachers are delighted to support her nomination for this great award. Throughout her time she has consistently demonstrated a positive attitude and commitment to both her studies and the wider college community. A common theme cited across all her subjects is how increasingly independent she became in year 13 of her studies, consistently working hard to drive her understanding and improvement. Her History teacher states she has worked “super hard” and has been instrumental in mentoring the year 12 History students where she has been “a tremendous influence on them, helping them with their course work and progression into year 13.” Her Law teacher comments also on her incredible development over time and her resilience and determination have been commendable. These comments are echoed by the Politics team with them citing her as a fantastic role model to her peers, showing respect and maturity in everything she does. Her Pastoral staff refer to her leadership qualities and a stand out moment for Ehdaa was her involvement in the “Lessons from Auschwitz Programme” which she participated in alongside 200 students which included  five other St Charles’ students and staff member, organised by the Holocaust Education Trust in conjunction with the College. Ehdaa was a truly exceptional ambassador for the college on this highly emotionally charged visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau which she referred to as “one of the heaviest and most emotional experience of her life.” Her insightful and deep reflections post the project were incredibly moving (https://www.stcharles.ac.uk/89/latest-news/post/91/reflections-lessons-from-auschwitz#) and throughout all the stages of the programme she conducted herself with real leadership and maturity and highlighting her responsible and humble approach to everything she’s involved in. Ehdaa is off to UCL University next year to study History. Given her journey to date, we are confident she will be really successful on the next stage of her journey.

Ehdaa chose to donate her £300.00 towards the cost of transport (taxi) to and from the airport (Gatwick) for her peers on the 4th February 2026, one day visit to Poland (Auschwitz).

 

March 2026 Winner – Kalaya Downie-Roper

 Kalaya is an exceptional A Level STEM student, studying Biology, Chemistry and Maths. She has excelled in her studies during her two years at St. Charles. Her commitment and resilience have made her a model student. She is described as a dedicated and diligent student by all her teachers and pastoral staff. In the science classrooms she is reported to be proactive, consistently offering insightful questioning that drives discussion and problem solving forward for her peers. She is also reported in Biology to be an excellent peer mentor, willingly giving up her time to help her classmates grasp difficult concepts. She maintains a positive and relaxed demeanour in Maths and her maths teachers state that she has consistently excelled in her studies and has consistently been at the top of the entire cohort and is cited as an excellent reflective student. Her pastoral team add to this, commending her excellent attendance and punctuality throughout and her strong work ethic. Her kindness and her ability to approach every opportunity with enthusiasm has ensured she had made a meaningful contribution to the College community. She had embodied the College’s Leadership in Service ethos, acting as a superb student Ambassador at college open events in her STEM subjects. It is no surprise that Kalaya has now secured an offer to study Medicine at St. Georges next year building on her academic excellence and aptitude. With Kalaya’s great maturity and resilience, we are confident she will do well.

Kalaya chose to give her £300.00 award money to the Maths Department to purchase scientific calculators for those who cannot afford them, for use at college but in particular to support home study in STEM subjects.

April 2026 Winner – Demilade Anikulapo-Kuti

 Demilade was nominated for her Jack Petchey award for her outstanding dedication and commitment to everything she does in our College community studying in her first year (2025-26) of A Level Economics, Law and Maths. Her teachers describe her as an absolute pleasure to have as a student in their classrooms where she is hardworking and always focused on achieving her best. She is cited by her Law teacher as approaching every task with curiosity and she aims high in all aspects of her learning. Her Economics teachers state she has been a shining light in their department this year with her infectious desire to learn and succeed with a brilliantly inquisitive mind. She asks interesting and insightful questions that aid the quality of debates and discussions in class for her peers. Maths staff say she brings a positive attitude to learning in class and she is a fantastic role model for her peers. All her teachers state she takes time out to help other students with their work and that she is a very humble and selfless young woman.

In addition to her academic excellence and drive, she has also demonstrated excellent leadership skills this year. On a recent Law Department “Legal Walk Trip” she single handily took responsibility for planning the route and confidently guided the entire class throughout the day. This year she has also been a member of the College Council and a college Student Ambassador where she leads by example, encouraging others and her positive influence has a significant impact on the college community. Her pastoral manager Ms Olanya states that she is incredibly proud of all Demilade has achieved and that she is a fantastic ambassador for the College’s values and a worthy recipient of the award. Her unwavering support of her peers and staff coupled with her kindness, genuine interest in those around, her enthusiasm and maturity make her a valued member of St. Charles. We look forward to watching her journey unfold for the next academic year.

Demilade opted to split her £300.00 between the Law Department and College Council. £100.00 is to be spent on new lanyards for the College Council and Student representatives to make them more visible in the college community for peers and staff.  She spent the other £200.00 on a lunch at Haute Dolci (Wembley) for 4 key students of the Law Department who organised the “Legal Walk Trip” activity.

May 2026 Winner – Younes Ferah

 All staff involved with Younes on his journey with us over the past 3 years at St. Charles stated they were incredibly proud to nominate him for the prestigious Jack Petchey award for his exceptional work ethic and unwavering dedication to his studies and future. During his time in sixth form Younes is described by the LS team as having stepped quietly from one success to another, both academically and personally. He has consistently demonstrated an exceptional attitude towards his learning, having started on Level 2 ICT and progressing to L3 Diploma in ICT. His dedication and perseverance consistently set a positive example for those around him and whenever faced with challenges, his resilience shone through. Younes became an established and much respected student of our college community. He brought a positive calm to every situation and a conscientious willingness to get involved and try out new experiences. For example he fully embraced the College’s Personal Development Programme and his Cultural Capital visits were moments of real enjoyment for him. By nature, Younes is reticent but highly reflective and pushing himself outside his “comfort zone” has helped him grow in confidence and self-belief. He demonstrated the importance of ‘soft skills’ such as adaptability open-mindedness, flexibility in his various successful work experiences and developed important communication and collaboration skills.

Younes inspires peers through his actions; his views are listened to and valued as evidenced in a recent focus group he contributed to. People value the respect, kindness and consideration he shows both students and staff, embodying the values of both St. Charles and Jack Petchey! We are confident Younes is now well prepared to continue his journey of success as he moves on to study Computer Science at University. We wish him every success.

Younes donated his £300.00 to fund an end of year trip to Nando’s, Bayswater for his LS peers and staff. The afternoon was a fun way for leavers round off their time at St. Charles with friends (see article on website). We wish Younes and his fellow leavers well.

June 2026 Winner – Sienna (Dianna) Jitaru

Dianna, who goes by the name of Sienna, was nominated for the Jack Petchey award by her Performing Arts teachers. They state that since starting her Performing Arts course 2 years ago, she has shown remarkable courage and determination and has development the confidence to express herself in a variety of ways; her acting, singing and dance skills continue to flourish.

An outstanding student, with an exceptionally hard working ethos and independent approach to her studies, Sienna is a valued and well-respected member of the Performing Arts Department and college community. She is described by her teachers as an absolute delight to teach. In addition to her talents Sienna is incredibly reliable, supportive and kind. She is consistently punctual, always engaged in her learning and contributes positively to all theoretical and practical elements of the course. Furthermore, she is always helping out at events in the Department, staying late and volunteering her free time to help with props, lighting, scheduling; anything that is required. She also has fully embraced every opportunity available to her on the course. She performed in the “Mouth of the Gods” at Hoxton Hall and was a key performer for the College in the intercultural exchange as part of the Border Crossings 30th Anniversary Performance. Recently she also participated in a script writing workshop with the Royal Court Theatre and has submitted a piece of writing to their Young Playwrights competition. Feedback from a festival event in June stated “Sienna was an absolute star at our local  Latino festival. As a volunteer, she helped set up, manage the help desk, conducted audience survey and was an absolute credit to St. Charles.”

What a great collection of industry activities! Everyone at St. Charles is immensely proud of Sienna for her resilience and dedication, and passion for her Performing Arts course and she is truly deserving of the award. Sienna is now considering pursuing writing (script) at university.  

She choose to use her £300.00 award money to take a few of her friends to see Hercules show in the West End, adding value but also fun to their chosen courses.