Your support is changing the lives of children and young people across our 54 academies
40% of our 44,000 students come from households earning less than £7,000
24% 56
Russell Group Universities students progressed to including 10 who received free school meals whilst at school In 2023 we are of our students progress to compared to the 12% national average Oxford or Cambridge
It is hard to overstate the difference that your support has made, and is making, across our 54 primary and secondary academies.
We hope the following report details the excellent and impactful use we are making with the contributions of time, financial assistance and in-kind experiences that our wonderful supporters are making.
The impact of Covid and the rising cost-of-living continues to be a challenge. The 44,000 children we educate rely on their schools for much more than education and your support is having a transformative impact on their learning – and their lives.
A development that we’re particularly excited about is the launch of Harris Futures, our new alumni platform. From a standing start, we have been delighted to see thousands of our former students being back in touch with Harris, hundreds of alumni attending events and dozens upon dozens of alumni joining us as guests on the Harris in Conversation podcast. Our alumni are mentoring current students or inspiring them in assemblies, offering to connect our students to the support of their employers and giving back in fantastically impactful ways to the academies in which they were a student.
We hope the following report gives an indication of the difference made by your generous support, and show, in a small way, how glad we are to have you involved.
Thank you.
Sir Dan Moynihan, CEO
Launched in September, Harris Futures harnesses the power of our alumni network for the benefit of our academies and current students.
At Harris, we know that an outstanding education is key to the futures of the students we serve.
Whatever their starting point, students leave our academies uniquely linked by a Harris education; having studied in the best academies, in the greatest city in the world.
So many of these young people used their time at Harris as a springboard to amazing things: apprenticeships, university degrees and professional careers which might not have been possible without the transformational educational experience that Harris offers.
Each of these former Harris students are part of an amazingly powerful network: a network that we are bringing together, as a force for good across our academies and across London itself.
This is why Harris Futures matters: because we have the power to make a difference for the next generation of Harris students.
Time & resources donated by our alumni
33 500+ 30+
Our alumni network matters because we have the power to make a difference. former students
– alumni have given assemblies, taken part in careers events or mentored students academies have attended Harris Futures events alumni have been guests on our Harris in Conversation podcast
Top Right: Former HCACP and HABS students supporting the open evening for a new Harris Academy, April 2024
Top Left & Left: Former students at the Harris Futures Launch Event at the House of Lords, October 2023
Bottom: Former HAPU student, now at LSEG, hosted 40 sixth formers for an office visit and networking afternoon
We know that poor children are likely to become poor adults – but we believe that a child’s life chances should not be defined by their family background.
This is why we fundraise: to be able to provide the best opportunities, best support and best ongoing life-chances, to every student in our care.
Disadvantaged children rely on their schools: they might not have books to read at home, they might not have gardens to play in; they might not have a quiet place to work; they might be coming to school hungry and going home to burdens that many adults would find difficult to bear.
Because we’re an efficient group, we make savings of ~£5m per year, all of which goes back into the education of our students. However, to offer the kind of education we believe in to the 44,000 students we serve – a significant proportion of whom come from socio-economically underprivileged backgrounds – comes at a figure that is greater than the funding we receive from the Government.
Donor support – your support – is the difference.
Your support is transforming our impact in vital areas, including:
Increased mental health provision
Additional support for refugee students or students speaking English as an additional language
Support for students to attend residential experiences, sometimes their first experience of spending time away from home
Enabling students to build their ‘cultural capital’ by facilitating trips to museums, galleries and other destinations which our students may not yet feel empowered to visit in their own time
Providing the care that disadvantaged students need: food banks, hygiene products; school uniform; warm coats; winter shoes; free breakfasts
Harris Westminster Sixth Form is a state school that exists to provide an outstanding education to able students from ordinary and disadvantaged backgrounds.
Students attend HWSF from every London borough, and from every background. We prioritise potential in students who might have had additional challenges, such as coming from a disadvantaged socioeconomic background.
1 in 3 of our students comes from a household earning less than £7,000. Many of these students will be the first in their families to study A Levels, yet alone progress to university.
And yet…
• 1 in 8 (and 1 in 11 for disadvantaged students) leave HWSF for Oxford or Cambridge (compared to 1 in 900 disadvantaged students nationally)
• 90% go on to university or degree-level apprenticeship, and 60% of students left HWSF for a Russell Group university (the national average for all students is 12%).
• In 2023, 57% of grades were A or A* and a remarkable 43% of students gained A*AA or better
Donor support is the difference underlining all of these remarkable outcomes.
At HWSF, our students study four A-levels, have weekly whole-school assemblies, are part of a university-style seminar group in their chosen subject, and follow “Cultural Perspectives” courses that broaden their experience and understanding of learning. We also invest in mental health support and enriching sport and cultural opportunities for our cohort. These students’ futures may be vastly different now than they would be had they not attended our school – and our school would be very different were we not supported by generous donors.
September 2024 marks the 10th anniversary of the opening of Harris Westminster Sixth Form.
We have had a packed programme of events and activities to celebrate the achievements and stories of the ten years of students who have passed through our doors, as well as recognising the contributions of the wider community and the staff (past and present!) who have helped make this wonderful school a reality.
A highlight of this year of celebrations was a Dinner, held in Westminster School, where many of those who have been essential to the establishment and ongoing success of the school gathered to celebrate.
Congratulations, Harris Westminster – now to the next decade!
The
Harris is responsible for the education of one in 37 of school children in London. With the majority of our academies located in areas of high socio-economic disadvantage, education is the key to our young people being able to access a different future. We believe all children deserve the opportunity to succeed. We are providing them with this opportunity.
Donors and partners are allowing us to do more for our students, at a quicker pace, meaning we can support more children and young people to reach their potential. Thank you.
Thanks to the support of our donors, this year, our students have:
• Benefitted from the expertise of subject specialist consultants across 5 academic subjects, including Music, Computer Science and Geography. This has allowed us to ensure exceptional teaching and learning, especially in the newest Harris academies whose students may require additional support to reach their academic potential.
• Been taught in smaller class sizes during the pivotal final year of primary school, Year 6, in some of our newest primary schools, where students had suffered most from poor educational provision before these schools came into the Harris fold.
• Received vital catch up tutoring across our secondary academies, meaning students who were most negatively impacted by school closures in the pandemic were afforded the best chance of reaching their academic potential and progressing to their next challenge.
• Benefitted from, in some cases, lifesaving mental health support. Donors have enabled us to employ a central mental health team to support staff to best meet the rising and evolving needs of students, at a time when young people are facing a variety of new challenges and the primarily disadvantaged cohort we educate bear the brunt of long waiting lists for NHS mental health support.
• Experienced transformational Special Educational Needs (SEN) and English as an Additional Language (EAL) support, ensuring our staff and our teaching practices are best placed to facilitate a positive learning experience for the 1 in 3 of our students who speak English as an Additional language, or who have an additional need.
Donor support has enabled academic tutoring in our most socio-economically deprived secondary academies
“We did things like reading out loud to help with our confidence and reading in lessons. It was really good.”
– Year 8 student
“You know what, I didn’t want to come to tutoring, but now I have I know I have learned more as I have been able to get that time on my own with the teacher.”
– Year 11, student with SEN
Thanks to ongoing support from extremely generous donors, 14 of our secondary academies receive funding to be able to provide vital additional tutoring to students who will most benefit. The difference of this support extends far beyond academic outcomes. All academies in receipt of funding have a high percentage of students who receive the pupil premium, with seven academies having a pupil premium percentage of 45% or over. These children were amongst the most impacted by school closures during the covid pandemic, and this support has a transformational impact on their outcomes, achievements and their sense of self.
In addition to the work with our GCSE cohort, our donor-funded tutor worked with Years 7-10. As an Academy, HAO has a significant issue with students who leave their primary schools without being ‘secondary ready’. This means that they do not have the required knowledge and understanding to successfully access the Year 7 curriculum.
Yet, with donor-funded tutoring:
• Students in Y11 made, on average, half a GCSE grade’s progress in the subject they had been tutored in.
• All the students who were supported were able to move into post-16 education, studying academic or vocation subjects of their choosing, taking them a step closer to chosen careers.
• For the students aged 11-13 who were able to experience tutoring, all made 2+ years of progress in just 9 months.
“In Year 11, we prioritised borderline classes with students who were at risk of not achieving the level 4 that is required to progress into the Sixth Form. Our tutor was working alongside a very experienced Maths teacher as well as supporting in lessons and doing the extra withdrawal and holiday sessions, which meant that the students who he worked with achieved grade 4s and 5s that they may otherwise not have.” – David Astin, Executive Principal
£180k bursary
generously funded by a former Harris Head Boy
This year, we have been able to launch a new bursary scheme which will provide transformative financial support for Harris students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds through their university years.
The bursaries are being funded by a former Head Boy of Harris City Academy Crystal Palace:
“I credit so much of my success – from attending university to getting my first job in a corporate bank to making a career in the financial services sector – to my time at Harris Crystal Palace and the support I received. It is great to now be giving back to some of the most promising and deserving young people at the academy.”
The bursaries will be awarded to students who wish to attend top academic universities but are from financially disadvantaged backgrounds and who might not have the chance to make these next onwards steps without this transformational support.
Some of our supporters make financial donations, others gift their time or in-kind experiences. This support brings opportunities to our students that otherwise many would not be able to access.
Our students have been delighted to have brand-new football kits, generously funded by online retailer MandM.
MandM have provided more than 6,000 sets for all 54 of our academies, at a value of more than £250,000, and these professional-quality kits have been personalised for each academy.
The new kits have been thoroughly welcomed by students and parents alike!
“We
used to wear our PE kits before, a polo t-shirt with leggings or shorts, and this kit now makes me feel like I’m part of a team. It makes me feel proud!”
– Sam, Harris primary student
Children across our primaries were able to experience the magical world of Wishmas, encountering beloved and festive characters as they journey through the story of their Christmas wish.
Thanks to the support of financial literacy charity, City Pay It Forward, over 200 students went head to-head in the inaugural Enterprise Challenge, held in the spectacular setting of the Drapers’ Hall, in the heart of the City of London.
We were incredibly fortunate to have Levi Roots as the Chair of Judges, bringing his personal experience from BBC Dragon’s Den to help select the ultimate winner.
This experience would not have been possible without external support. We know that applied learning is the best way to instil key life skills, and our students will remember this experience for years to come.
This experience would have been beyond the reach of many of our families and we are grateful to the donors who made Christmas wishes come true.
We are so grateful to all of our donors and supporters – these are just highlights of the many ways in which you are furthering our work. Donor support is enabling…
• students to attend residentials, for many, their first time outside of London or even away from home.
• students to experience behind the scenes of a working London Theatre, many for the first time, and allowing our academies to work with artists and experts, as we continue to bring creativity into our classrooms.
• a vast range of opportunities for students experiencing disadvantage across our secondaries.
“ Restore the Music has injected a phenomenal level of investment to our music departments, resulting not only in state-of-the art equipment, but a significant lift in student engagement, enjoyment and success with music.
– Rebecca Hickey, Secondary Director Harris Federation
”
Thank you – to all of our many supporters!
Meet some of our amazing alumni and find out more about their stories.
Harris Academy South Norwood (2014 – 2019)
Currently: Second year student at the University of Cambridge, studying Human, Social, and Political Sciences.
Shea attended Harris Academy South Norwood from 2014 to 2019, a period she credits for shaping her onward journey.
With ambitions of attending Cambridge from a young age, Shea was supported by her parents and teachers who encouraged her to aim high. Now, she is proud to be at such a prestigious university, and hopes her achievements inspire others. Reflecting on her journey, Shea says she would advise her younger self to stay focused on her goals and enjoy the ride, believing these years are both precious and full of potential.
“The Harris Experience Advanced Programme gave me the extra push I needed, and I’m very grateful for that.”
Harris City Academy Crystal Palace (1996- 2001)
Currently: Founder and CEO of the personal tax app Pie Tax. Tommy attended Harris Academy Crystal Palace from 1996 to 2001, a period he recalls for its innovative atmosphere and high academic standards. Tommy credits the skills that he built at Harris for underpinning his career as a tech entrepreneur. Today, as the founder and CEO of the personal tax app Pie Tax, he continues to draw on the expertise he developed during his school years.
Tommy’s long-term goal is to democratise technology and support young entrepreneurs. His commitment is to ensure that the opportunities provided by advancements in technology are accessible to everyone, not just a select few. The Harris commitment to advancing opportunities runs deep!
“I think the school’s focus on technology was really one of the fundamental reasons for my success in life as a tech entrepreneur.”
Harris Girls’ Academy Bromley (2014-2021)
Currently: Walt Disney World intern in Orlando, Florida.
Libby’s time at Harris Girls’ Academy Bromley was filled with memorable experiences and achievements. As well as the Harris in Harmony choir, Libby was actively involved in the school’s robotics team, starting as a participant and advancing to coach. This role gave her the chance to travel across the country for competitions and showcase their projects at Parliament.
Academically, Libby pursued Maths, Further Maths, and Physics at A-level, which provided a solid foundation for her studies at the University of Leeds. She is now excited to move to Orlando, Florida, to start an incredible opportunity working for Disney – and we couldn’t be prouder!
“Harris is incredible because if you show passion and dedication, they’ll help you achieve your goals, no matter what. I felt truly fortunate to be in a place where everyone was encouraged and supported to reach their full potential.”
Harris Academy South Norwood (2014-2020)
Currently: Graduate of the University of Cambridge, former sociology tutor at Harris Academy South Norwood starting a career in financial services.
Christine is a former student of Harris Academy South Norwood who recently graduated with a degree in HSPS (Human, Social and Political Sciences).
After completing her degree, Christine moved to Spain to teach English, which sparked her interest in teaching. This led her to return to the UK and become a sociology tutor at Harris Academy South Norwood.
Christine has recently started her first role in the financial services sector. Christine’s track-record so far suggests even more exciting things will be in her future.
“Harris has been crucial for me because I couldn’t speak English when I arrived from Italy in year 7. Graduating and attending one of the world’s best universities is largely thanks to my time at Harris.”
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