OLD school ties help build a community, but it must not become a 'magic circle' that excludes the less privileged, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said last night.

Instead, alumni networks 'must fit into, and contribute to the society that we belong to, nurtured us, and gave us these precious opportunities'.

Mr Lee made the point at a reception for alumni of Britain's Cambridge University, which is also his alma mater.

The university is celebrating its 800th birthday and yesterday's reception at Raffles Hotel was one of a series of events held around the world to mark the occasion.

It is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world, after Oxford University.

Last night's event also commemorated the 425th anniversary of Cambridge University Press, the oldest printing and publishing house in the world.

Addressing some 250 alumni and friends of Cambridge, Mr Lee noted that its students receive a 'first-class education' in the hallowed halls that have nurtured great men such as the naturalist Charles Darwin and economist John Maynard Keynes.

Beyond academic excellence, he expressed the hope that their time at Cambridge would help them 'develop a questioning spirit and a deep social conscience'.

'A university education is a heavy investment by society in a young person. It cannot be solely for his personal gain or satisfaction, but must also equip him to contribute to the community,' he said.

There are about 200 undergraduate and post-graduate students from Singapore at Cambridge.

The PM's wish was that they, like other Singaporean students studying abroad, would 'eventually come home to serve the country, in his or her own way'.

Distinguished Singaporean alumni of Cambridge include Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Senior Counsel Philip Jeyaretnam.

The university has embarked on a major fund-raising campaign to mark its 800th year.

Last night's reception, though not a fund-raising event, was attended by the university's vice-chancellor, Professor Alison Richard.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.