rence

Community thrives when individuals feel free to be themselves, when they can find solidarity among their peers and when support is part of the fabric of the institution. Communal living – central to the Cranleigh ethos for both boarders and day pupils – helps foster patience, understanding and a feeling of inclusion and shared experience. Conversations that might be awkward, clunky or divisive in the hurried minutes between lessons can become genuinely insightful in the safety of a boarding environment. Sharing a dorm with a pupil from a different faith, ethnicity, nationality or sexuality can be helpful and even revelatory. We often find that our young people are leading the way in this area

– they are better versed in the language required, less afraid of making mistakes, and more likely to embrace difference than older generations. This is work that is far from finished, and it is arguable that it can never be finished, but the signs of progress are uplifting.

David Mulae is Assistant Head Pastoral and a Biology teacher. After university he taught at Christ’s Hospital School in Horsham before joining Cranleigh. David has responsibility as a Deputy Safeguarding Lead for supporting the Pupil Leadership groups including Cranleigh Being and the Cranleigh Diversity Alliance. He is the school’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) lead, supports the housemasters and housemistresses and also supports pupil and staff wellbeing.

Simon Bird is Deputy Head. He read Modern Languages at the University of Birmingham and has a Masters in Educational Leadership. Simon was Housemaster of East House at Cranleigh for six years before being appointed to the role of Assistant Deputy Head and subsequently Deputy Head.