CONTRARY to his hard done by narrative, Labour MP David Lammy was the envy of thousands of local working class children denied a decent education, while he attended a prestigious, expensive cathedral school in Peterborough.
Lammy, who was raised by his mother in Tottenham, attended a local primary school before – at the age of 10 – being awarded a much sought after scholarship to sing at Peterborough Cathedral and attend The King’s School – a first class provider of education seeped in pomp and upper class privilege.
Founded by Henry VIII in 1541, the beautifully constructed Church of England school is a coveted establishment, with student places fiercely fought over by parents desperate to avoid sending their children to other schools in the city – listed at the bottom of the national table.
The King’s School, on the other hand, has long been recognised as a school of excellence, and was recognised in June 1999 with the award of Beacon status.
As of 21 March 2013, the school holds the Ofsted rating of Outstanding, and while surrounding Peteroborough schools were recenetly highlighted as being overcrowded and having the worst GCSE results in the UK, from 2006 to the present, The King’s School has been the top-performing state school in the Peterborough local authority area for GCSE and A-Level results.
As well as singing in the choir, at the school, MP David Lammy would have had access to top class educational facilities and curriculum, including expensive school trips that have long been envied by pupils in less fortunate schools in the area.
Upon leaving The King’s School, Mr Lammy studied at the School of Law, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, graduating with a 2:1.
The outspoken MP then went on to study at Harvard University where he became the first black Briton to attend Harvard Law School.
