Patrick Martin's legacy

Patrick Martin was a pupil at Cambridgeshire High School for Boys (the school which became Hills Road Sixth Form College) from 1958 until 1965. When Patrick died in 2023, he very generously left a gift in his will to the History department at Hills Road.

Patrick’s legacy will enable his memory to live on through the following:

The establishment of an award scheme which will acknowledge any outstanding student contribution to the History department for the next decade - The Patrick Martin Award for History

The digitisation and updating of History learning resources, to ensure that all students have access to the best learning materials

Support for a European trip to Belgium and Germany, encompassing visits to the Waterloo battlefield, the site of the Wannsee Conference House, Checkpoint Charlie and many other places that link to the courses taught at Hills Road.

Patrick’s friend, Stephen Shaw, has shared the following with us:

“Patrick was born in Sheffield in 1947 and was a young boy when the family moved to the Cambridge area. He attended Cambridgeshire High School for Boys and then became a student at Hull University where he was one of a group of friends (myself included) who shared his passion for politics and history.

We often talked about our old schools and what was obvious was Patrick's great love for his Cambridge school. In particular, he maintained a great admiration, respect and sense of gratitude for his history teacher, Mr Barlow.

After Patrick’s death, amongst his possessions I found a collection of letters from Mr Barlow, written over many years. One that I found amusing was sent when Patrick had been a senior university lecturer for several years. The teacher said, I don't doubt, rather severely, ''You know my name. Will you please stop addressing me as ’Mr Barlow'”.

Patrick's fond memories of his time at Cambridge and his friendship with Mr Barlow, are reflected in his bequest to the college's history department. He was far too modest to suggest a memorial prize. However, having received such a prize myself from my school, a 'Patrick Martin Award’ seemed to me to be fitting.  I offer my congratulations to all future winners of the award. You are following in the footsteps of a brilliant scholar who loved your College.”