For the 2024 Norwich High School for Girls Senior Prizegiving ceremony, we are excited to be welcoming Norwich High alumna Helen Seymour and her colleague Rosie Steevenson as our guest speakers for the school’s service on Wednesday 10th July at Norwich High School for Girls.
Norwich High alumna Helen Seymour and her colleague Rosie Steevenson
“We are thrilled to have Helen and Rosie join us for our annual Prizegiving service. They have both had such impressive and diverse careers within their field and I am sure they will have a fascinating perspective to share with us in their keynote speech. It is a particular pleasure to welcome back Helen as a Norwich High alumna. Our alumnae go on to do so many brilliant things and it is wonderful to have them return to inspire the next generation of Norwich High girls with their tenacity and drive.”
As well as giving the keynote speech ‘Performing Under Pressure’ and awarding prizes at the Senior Prizegiving ceremony, Helen and Rosie will be speaking to the Prep School pupils earlier that morning and will share some of their experiences with them too.
Trailblazer Helen left Norwich High in 1997 and went on to become the first female typhoon pilot in the RAF before continuing to serve as a fighter pilot for over 20 years.
Helen began her career in the RAF as a front-line Tornado F3 pilot, where she flew with Rosie, a Tornado navigator.
Over her years in the RAF, Helen was involved in a huge range of operations and roles, including delivering air defence to the UK and the Falkland Islands and for NATO in the Baltic states. She served on operations as part of the liberation of Libya and held the role of Mission Commander in many multi-national exercises world-wide. Helen is also a Qualified Flying Instructor and Course Mentor. Most recently before leaving the RAF, Helen was an Evaluator Pilot on the Typhoon Test Sqn; responsible for the safe and effective introduction of new equipment and capability to the war fighter on the Typhoon Force.
“I am very honoured and excited to come back and speak to the pupils of Norwich High School for Girls at their Prizegiving ceremony. What an amazing opportunity to inspire the future generation of women as they start their journey through life, just as I experienced back in 1997!”
Rosie also spent over a decade in the RAF and, as a Tornado F3 navigator, her responsibilities included safe and tactical Air Defence of the UK and Falkland Islands in line with UK Defence Strategy. She maintained Quick Reaction Alert and was part of NATO’s Rapid Reaction Force. Like Helen, Rosie went on to become a highly qualified instructor and course mentor.
After leaving the military, Rosie became Chief Ground Instructor at a major European Airline and is now a qualified Crew Resource Management Trainer and provides specialist advice and training in human factors skills to Air Ambulance Crews. She is also a non-executive Director of an Air Ambulance Trust, where she advises on aviation safety and provides oversight to helicopter operations.