Dukes welcomes Verita International School
A guide for new members joining the family
Chairman’s welcome
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WELCOME TO THE FAMILY
Welcome to Dukes. In this guide, we give you a brief introduction to Dukes – who we are, why we do what we do, and how we work together.
Aatif Hassan, Founder and Chairman
I know that for some of you, news that you are joining us can be a bit daunting. The unknown always is. However, I’d like to reassure you that, in becoming part of Dukes, you have joined a organisation that is led by the right values. left the world of finance for a reason: I went through some extremely challenging experiences in my life that reinforced for me that there’s more to the world than making money. I wanted to do something that filled me with a sense of purpose. A reason to get up day in, day out and work tirelessly because I felt inspired.
And the thing that fills me with that purpose? Seeing my children - all our children - learn, soak up the wonder in the world; see the extraordinary.
That is what I’m here to make happen with Dukes, and I chose your school because I saw it happening there too.
I really look forward to meeting you and getting to learn and understand what is unique and special about your school in more depth. Through willing, positivity, and having the experience of our pupils unwaveringly at the forefront of our hearts and minds, I believe this new union will be the start of something really special.
What will Dukes bring?
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Purposeful leadership and exceptional people.
It’s people first at Dukes, starting with our pupils; encompassing our parents, and celebrating our staff. We look for people who put their heart into what they do, and then help them to lead. Strategic focus, extra funding, and a growth mindset.
Being part of a wider family means more stability and security. In turn, this makes room for being more ambitious, and doing new and exciting things.
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Team & peer-to-peer training.
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Ultimately, great education is simple: quality teachers, spending quality time with students. We are working hard to make Dukes the best place for staff training & development anywhere in the sector, so our teachers can do what they’re best at, better.
Shared resources
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From US universities or digital marketing, to setting up a summer school, there is a wealth of niche expertise within Dukes that we can share to deepen the experience of our students.
A quick tour of Dukes: the why, what, and how.
What is Dukes? 2
An Extraordinary Family
The formula for the best education has been the same for thousands of years: quality teachers spending quality time with students. At Dukes, we are firm believers that nurturing closer relationships between people is the best way to help bring these learning experiences about and enable the education community to thrive.
Dukes is more than a collection of excellent individuals. We are a community of peopleeducators, parents, and young learners - who connect in closer ways to raise the bar for all.
Being part of Dukes means belonging to a family that is there for the long run. We strive together and we celebrate together. It’s a community for sharing and growth. And for those who share our purpose and our values, it’s a home, where extraordinary things can happen.
Individuals in a family are not all the same. Each of our member organisations has its own, unique take on how to deliver outstanding teaching and learning. Each has its own brand, ethos, history, its own special place in the community.
We love this and we want to keep it this way.
But there is also commonality. For us to work together well, there must be a common thread that weaves through the whole organisation, drawing us together, connecting us, making us strong.
At Dukes, our shared purpose and values form our common thread.
We are for: Placing the highest value on people.
We are against: Putting results before people.
Our Purpose Our Values To inspire and empower our children to live an extraordinary life 1 2 3 4 We lead with heart We love learning We’re a team We do it well
We are for: Once you’re part of the set, you’re set for good.
We are against: Isolation.
We are for: Joy in learning at every stage of life. We are against: Education as a means to an end.
We are for: Expecting the best from everyone and for everyone in the family. We are against: The ordinary.
We choose every new school very deliberately. Though each may have a different approach, in every one, these principles are embedded at the core.
Our Structure
Dukes has brought together a curated selection of exceptional schools and nurseries.
Around them, a collection of further offerings beyond the classroom offer our students the very best opportunities for developing their talents and pursuing their ambitions. As a family, we want to be with our pupils the whole way through their journey, as they ready themselves to take their next steps in life.
The Dukes Offering
“No one can be an expert in everything, but with such talent across Dukes, our collective expertise is something really special.” Richard Fletcher, Director of Performance
Our Strategy 2025
Across the group we are making great strides towards excellence in our five strategic priorities.
Doing it well
So how will we measure whether it’s working?
Pupil numbers
Are our parents and pupils reporting that they are happy? Happiness 1.
Operational resilience
How many are coming to us? How many are staying? For how long?
Are our academic programmes delivering? Educational outcomes
Staff retention & satisfaction
Do people love working with us?
Are we upholding rigorous standards of care? Compliance
How we re-invest into our educational settings, the Dukes Foundation and sustainability initiatives
Making our teaching and learning experience for our pupils extraordinary 5. Acting as a responsible organisation
Ensuring we have the right structures, resources and settings to succeed 2. World-class admissions
Providing exceptional customer ser vices
Having the best sta Caring, suppor ting and rewarding our most impor tant asset
Financial stability
Are we looking healthy enough to ensure we can provide quality education for our children in the coming years?
Quick Family History
Sancton Wood moves into new Bateman Street building. Eaton Square Prep moves into new building
Oxbridge Applications is the first organisation to become a ‘Dukes’ organisation
Summer Boarding Courses and Fine Arts College join, US university application support is added to our consultancy offering
Rochester Independent College joins
Cardiff Sixth Form College and Earlscliffe join
Building the Crown, our Culture Book, is published The Dukes Publications series is launched: three market-leading titles on university admissions
Broomfield House School, Kew Montessori School and St Margarets Montessori School join SEPTEMBER
AUGUST 2019
2019
Heathside School, Reflections Nursery, and Bright Beginnings join
Knightsbridge School, Miss Daisy’s Nursery, Eaton Square, The Lyceum, Sancton Wood, and Twickenham Park Day Nursery join
JANUARY 2020 Bassett House, Orchard House, and Prospect House join
JUNE 2021
Eaton House Schools join
SEPTEMBER 2021
Broomwood Hall Lower, Broomwood Hall Upper, Northcote Lodge, Northwood Senior and The Kindergartens group join
APRIL 2023
The Institute of Education, Dublin, joins the Dukes family
MAY 2023
International Sharing School Taguspark Lisbon joins the family
SEPTEMBER 2021
Dukes completes purchase of Kneller Hall and announces that it will be the new home of an expanded Radnor House School
FEBRUARY 2023
Copperfield International School Verbier joins the family
JUNE 2023
Colégio Júlio
Dinis Porto joins the Dukes family
JULY 2023
Notting Hill Prep and The Acorn Nursery join the Dukes family
NOVEMBER 2021
Duchess of Cornwall attends Dukes Poetry Together event at Royal Geographical Society
JANUARY 2023
The family, 2,500 strong gathers at Wembley Stadium for the Dukes Education conference 2023
AUGUST 2023
Her Majesty Queen
Camilla attends Poetry Together Showcase
NOVEMBER 2022
United Lisbon International School joins Dukes as first international member
NOVEMBER 2023
IEP Group joins the Dukes family
Devonshire House School joins the family 2022
MARCH 2022
MARCH 2022
Inaugural Dukes sustainable careers week
SEPTEMBER 2022
CSFC opens new campus in Cambridge, and Eaton Square opens new Sixth form college
JUNE 2022
The Pointers school in Blackheath joins the family
JANUARY 2024
Pippa Pop-ins nursery schools and Bruce College, Cork join the family
MARCH 2024
Consilium joins the Dukes family
MAY 2024
International School of Athens joins the Dukes family
APRIL 2022
InvestIN Education & JK Educate join the Dukes family
MAY 2022 Dukes Club launches
SEPTEMBER 2024
Verita International School joins the Dukes family
United Kingdom
Cardiff Sixth Form College • AGES 15-18
Sancton Wood School, Cambridge • AGES 1-16
St. Andrew’s College, Cambridge • AGES 15-18
Cardiff Sixth Form College, Cambridge Campus • AGES 16-18
Rochester Independent College AGES 11-18
Earlscliffe AGES 15-18
Reflections Day Nursery & Forest School AGES 0-8
Hove Village Nurseries AGES 0-5
Riverside Nursery Schools ST MARGARETS MONTESSORI • AGES 0-5
Riverside Nursery Schools TWICKENHAM GROSVENOR PARK • AGES 0-5
Kneller Hall School* AGES 11-18
Meet the family
Founded in 2015, Dukes brings together a carefully curated group of schools that represent excellence in British education.
Our central team is based near Piccadilly. From here, we serve our schools, providing administrative support and training, whilst promoting high performance, leadership, and well-being.
Radnor House School • AGES 11-18
Broomfield House School AGES 3-11
Riverside Nursery Schools
KEW MONTESSORI • AGES 0-5
Radnor House Prep • AGES 2-11
Riverside Nursery Schools TWICKENHAM PARK AGES 0-5
Riverside Nursery Schools
RIVERSIDE, HOLLY ROAD AGES 0-5
Hampton Court House School AGES 2-18
Heathside School
Hampstead AGES 2-13
Devonshire House School AGES 2-13
Bassett House School AGES 2-11
The Acorn Nursery AGES 2-5
Notting Hill Preparatory School AGES 4-13
Orchard House School AGES 3-11
Pippa Pop-ins AGES 2-5
Kindergartens POOH CORNER • AGES 2-5
Miss Daisy’s Nursery BROOK GREEN • AGES 2-5
Miss Daisy’s Nursery CHELSEA • AGES 2-5
Pippa Pop-ins AGES 2-5
Prospect House School AGES 3-11
Hampstead Fine Arts College AGES 13-18
Hopes and Dreams Montessori Nursery School OLD STREET • AGES 0-5
Hopes and Dreams Montessori Nursery School CITY ROAD • AGES 0-5
Miss Daisy’s Nursery HYDE PARK • AGES 2-5
Knightsbridge School AGES 3-16
London Park School Mayfair AGES 11-18
The Lyceum School AGES 4-11
Dukes Education BUCKINGHAM GATE OFFICE
Eaton House Belgravia School • AGES 3-11
Eaton Square Prep School • AGES 2-11
Miss Daisy’s Nursery BELGRAVIA • AGES 2-5
Miss Daisy’s Nursery KNIGHTSBRIDGE • AGES 2-5
Kindergartens MOUSE HOUSE • AGES 2-5
Kindergartens MOUSE HOLE AGES 2-5
Broomwood Prep BOYS • AGES 8-13
Kindergartens CRESCENT II • AGES 0-5
London Park School Sixth • AGES 15-18
Kindergartens THE PARK • AGES 2-5
Eaton House THE MANOR GIRLS SCHOOL • AGES 2-11 THE MANOR BOYS SCHOOL • AGES 2-13
Broomwood Prep GIRLS • AGES 8-13
London Park School Clapham • AGES 11-18
Broomwood Pre-prep AGES 3-7
School AGES 3-11 * Opening soon
Dukes Plus:
Ultimate Activity Camps
Summer Boarding Courses
InvestIN Education
Kindergartens THE
2-5
The Pointer
LONDON
Institute of Education
Bruce College
IRELAND
Colégio Júlio Dinis
Colegio Inglés. English School of Asturias
Colegio Internacional de Valladolid SPAIN
PORTUGAL
United Lisbon International School
International Sharing School
UNITED KINGDOM
Prague Humanities Grammar School š.po
American Academy in Prague Bambíno Beehive Square Primary School
CZECHIA
JK Education
SWITZERLAND
Copperfield International School
American Academy in Brno
American Academy in Croatia
CROATIA
Verita International School
Colegio Ingles Zaragoza Saba Verda International School
Joyfe Centro Professional Joyfe
International English School of Castellón
Elian’s British School of La Nucía Engage Independent School
International School of Athens
ROMANIA
GREECE
SLOVAKIA
An overview of how Dukes is structured & how decisions are made.
Working together 3
How We Work Together
When a new organisation becomes part of Dukes, we interact in three ways.
Backed by Dukes
Dukes Role:
Stability, investment, strategic leadership
Opportunity to be more ambitious thanks to additional security
Enhanced by Dukes
Dukes Role:
Industry-leading training and development
A hub for sharing excellence
Expertise & additional bandwidth provided by the central team for services such as HR, marketing, accounting
Opportunities to explore new avenues with guidance from those with experience
Connected by Dukes
Dukes Role:
Access to a network of exceptional schools and the people within them
Peer support at all levels of your organisation
Shared expertise of some of the best educational organisations in the UK
Competitors become allies
Opportunities to do bigger, better things through collaboration
Most aspects of our organisations are run autonomously at the local level. We then have some elements that are kept consistent, and some which are managed centrally.
Autonomous Consistent Centralised
eg: Teaching & Learning Local Marketing & Brand Curriculum eg: Safeguarding Software
Health & Safety Approaches to inclusion eg: Compliance & Statutory Policies
Budgets, Payroll, Insurance Finance Accounting
Locally-led
By ensuring most activity and decision making is led at the local level, we enable the leadership and the staff on the ground to react quickly to the needs of their communities.
Kept the same
By making some processes and systems consistent throughout Dukes, we reduce the overall costs, allowing further investment into individual schools, and improve communication throughout the family.
Centrally-led
Moving some processes to centralised management frees up administrative pressure on our organisations, enabling the focus to be on the pupil experience as much as possible.
How We Lead
The Board
Our Founder, Aatif, is supported by our CEO, David Fitzgerald, our Finance Director, Juan Casteres, and two Managing Directors. Dr Glenn Hawkins is responsible for our schools in Portugal. Chris Eversden is responsible for our schools across Spain.
Aatif
Our Leadership Framework
Board of Governance
1 ExComm
Each school has its own Board of Governance chaired by our Founder, Aatif, with at least one further Lead Governor (Managing Director & Dukes Board member) and an independent governor. Each Dukes Plus organisation has an equivalent review. These meetings take place termly and are the engine room for all decisions. They feed into the ExComm meetings.
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These are strategic meetings attended by the Head of each organisation, grouped together in their divisions. These meetings allow for collaboration and greater sharing.
The Education Advisory Board
Alongside our Board of Directors, our three Education Advisory Board members advise on educational practice and school governance throughout Dukes.
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Board of Directors
The ExComms form the basis of reporting to the Dukes Board of Directors, who also meet formally every term, plus an additional annual strategic review.
How We Govern
Our sense of purpose shows us where we’re going, and our values remind us the way in which we want to go about running the family. Alongside these, we have four key non-negotiables that direct how we govern:
Long-term thinking Investment in people Local management & flat structure Staying pupil-focused
“We’re not remotely interested in quick gains at the expense of long-term growth. If we’re doing our job right, our children will be with us for years, so long-term thinking is everything.”
Aatif Hassan, Founder
SUSTAINABILITY
Acting as a responsible organisation is one of the pillars of the Dukes strategy and a golden thread that weaves across the group involving our people, our students and settings.
We recognise that advancing towards sustainable development requires continuous innovation and during the last year we created our sustainability strategy to bring life to our sustainability policy objectives and commitments.
The overarching strategy is to reach Net Zero Carbon ahead of 2050 and implement the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This will be achieved via these four policy themes:
Health and well-being
- Nutrition, food and waste
- Stress and anxiety management
- Neurodiversity
- Clean water and sanitation
- Labour standards, poverty and economic growth
Responsible consumption and production
- Specification and procurement
- Energy selection and efficiency
- Climate and climate change
- Water use, pollution and aquatic life
- Land use, pollution and terrestrial life
- Air quality
Partnerships
- The meaning of partnerships and collaboration
- Types of partners
- Relationship building for equality, peace and justice
- Achieving sustainable cities
- Innovation
Together, these key themes provide the framework for our sustainability strategy and plan.
Widening access to quality education
Dukes Foundation is the main way this theme will be delivered. Membership of the Association of Charitable Foundations (ACF) enables trustees to remain at the forefront of excellent practice in how we manage charitable work.
OUR PEOPLE
Education Leaders
Sixth Forms & Colleges
Iberian Schools
Dr. José Azcue Head of School, United Lisbon International School
Miguel Santos Executive Director, International Sharing School, Lisbon
David Russell Head, Castellon
Sylvia Pineda Picado Head, Valladolid
Esther Fernándz Director, JOYFE
Central Europe Schools
Pavel Novák Head, American Academy in Brno
Dukes Plus
Martin Harris Principal, United Lisbon International School
Costa Monteiro General Manager, United Lisbon International School
Marco Carvalho Director, Colégio Júlio Dinis, Porto
Zoe Roberts Head, ESA
Carolina López Sanchez Head, Engage
Lenka Titerova Head, American Academy in Prague
Magda Nedvědová Head, Bambíno
Dr. Christina Tsibiridi Head, International School of Athens
Šárka Ochmanová Head, Beehive School and Square
Dr Ricardo Tavares Director, Dukes Plus
Shameer Thobhani Co-Founder & Director, InvestIN Education
Dukes Plus Consultancy
Alison Bissell Director, Dukes Plus Consultancy
David Wingfield Head, Eaton House Boys
Ross Montague Head, Eaton House Belgravia
Sarah Segrave Principal, Eaton House Schools
Patricia Watt Head, Eaton Square Prep
Claire Fildes Head, Eaton House Girls
Sebastian Hepher Principal, Eaton Square Schools
Caron MacKay Head, Broomwood Pre-Prep
Louisa McCafferty Head, Broomwood Girls
Michael Hodge Principal, Broomwood Schools
Nadia Ward Head, Heathside School Hampstead
Magoo Giles Principal, Knightsbridge School
Shona Colaco Head, Knightsbridge School
Suzie Longstaff Principal, London Park Schools
Susan Brookes Head, London Park School, Clapham
Dr Adrian Rainbow Head, London Park School, Mayfair
Stephanie Piper Head, Radnor House Prep School
Amy Cavilla Principal, Radnor House School
Katherine Vintiner Principal, Hampton Court House School
Henrietta Adams Head, Orchard House School
Maxine Shaw Head, Notting Hill Preparatory School
Kelly Gray Head, Prospect House School
Adam Anstey Head, Broomfield House School
Henry Keighley-Elstub Head, Devonshire House School
Chris Woodward Head, Bassett House School
Charlotte Crookes Head, The Pointer School
Mike Stanley Head, The Lyceum School
Richard Settle Principal, Sancton Wood School
Rik McShane Director, Little Dukes
Nazish (Naz) Usman Principal, Hopes and Dreams Nursery
Aimee Kimbell Principal, Riverside Nursery Schools
Jo Allen Education Director
Zanna Clarke Principal, Miss Daisy’s Nursery
Rachel Watson Principal, Pippa Pop-ins Nursery Schools
Little Dukes & Schools
Mark Love Head, Earlscliffe
Tom Arrand Principal, CSFC Cardiff
Candida Cave Principal, Hampstead Fine Arts College
Alistair Brownlow Principal, Rochester Independent College
Emmy Schwieters Head, Hampstead Fine Arts College
Yvonne O’Toole Principal, Institute of Education, Dublin
Wayne Marshall Principal, St Andrew’s College, Cambridge
Grant Ferguson Director, Copperfield International
Dr Julian Davies Principal, CSFC Cambridge
Gareth Collier Director, Colleges
Micheál Landers Principal, Bruce College, Cork
Katie Krais Partnerships Director, Dukes Plus Will Finlayson Director, Summer Boarding Courses
Luke Hayward Managing Director, Ultimate Activity Camps Alicia Luba Global Sales Director,
Tania Virdie Head, JK Educate
Hitesh Chowdhry Co-Founder & Director, InvestIN Education
Hana Neužilová Head, Pražské Humanitní Gymnázium
Carly McCann Head, American Academy in Zagreb
Teresa
James Batten Head, La Nucia
TBA Head, Zaragoza
Juan José Fernández Director, JOYFE
An introduction to some of the faces, initiatives, & events you’ll get to know.
Getting to know us 4
Based upon serious journals such as the Harvard Business Review, the Dukes Education Insight journal is our opportunity to be thought-leaders in the education sector.
Articles are written by members of staff from across the group and printed copies are sent to all Dukes settings and education agents around the world.
Editor, Tim Fish, sets a theme for each issue and this high-quality publication helps position Dukes as a premium, intelligent and progressive organisation.
articles written to date
You can view past copies by visiting the Dukes Hub and Dukes website. Previous editions are now archived in the British Library.
1,700 copies distributed to Dukes settings and education agents around the world.
In 2023, ‘bob’, a cloudbased HR database, was successfully launched to our settings. In total, 2,305 members of staff have logged into bob.
Employee engagement and communications
bob is becoming the primary source of staff information in Dukes. Shoutouts on bob’s homepage will keep staff up to date with news and updates from individual settings and from Dukes. The Dukes staff newsletter is also published there.
Writers wanted!
If you would like to contribute to the Insight journal in 2024, please get in touch: marketing@dukeseducation.com
Scan to read... the latest copy of Insight
View the benefits available to you
Expect to receive tasks via Bob in the coming months. For example, keeping up to date with training, reading updated staff policies and updating your personal data. Details of how to action tasks will be published on the DHub.
Self-service
Employees can take control of their personal and job-related information. Personal details such as a change of address can be updated easily using the self-service functionality.
Connect & Collaborate
The group directory and organisation charts mean that it is easy to contact other people around Dukes. With the option to list hobbies in your profile, employees can even break the ice by finding common interests.
One-stop-shop
bob provided quick access to workrelated systems, including payroll, Dukes Hub and Dukes Club.
We are here, so you can get there.
Dukes Plus is a family of specialised consultancy services and educational experience providers with the vision: To empower young people to live a happy and successful life. Made up of consultancy and experience provider organisations, Dukes Plus reaches over 1,500 schools, over 5 million users and has over 100 corporate and university partners.
2023 has been a year of exciting developments and excellent growth for Dukes Plus. More students have been reached and positively impacted than ever before.
Consultancy
A-List
US University specialist. Providing specialist support to international students since 2005.
The Medic Portal
The ‘Get into Medicine’ Experts with millions of users. In official partnership with the Royal Society of Medicine.
The Lawyer Portal Get into Law. Award-winning resources. In official partnership with the Law Society of England and Wales.
JK Educate
Bespoke private tutoring from 5+. Handpicked tutors and proven results. 97.4% 11+ success rate.
Oxbridge Applications
Established in 1999, the unequivocal leader in Oxbridge admissions. 20% of all applicants use OA.
Integrated into Dukes Schools & Colleges
Dukes Plus has embedded its leading programmes into Dukes Schools and Colleges through Dukes Career School (DCS). DCS will reach around 1,000 of our own Dukes students by the end of this academic year through a unique blend of online and in-person learning. DCS is focused on equipping our students with the key 21stcentury ‘career ready’ skills and bridging the important gap between school and employment. DCS has achieved phenomenal feedback and we will expand this into our prep schools from next year onwards.
Experience Providers
InvestIN
World class immersive experiences in London. 15 industries, 50,000+ students attended. Aged 12-18 years.
Summer Boarding Courses
The UK’s number-one multi-campus summer school at premier locations including Eton College, Oxford and Cambridge for students aged 6-17 years. 150+ nationalities attended.
Ultimate Activity Camps
Outstanding activity holiday childcare at renowned independent schools for children aged 4-14 years. Used by 17,000+ children each year.
Charity compliance
Grantmaking focus
Our Str ategic Fr amework
Making grants to educational, health and well-being charities in the UK and overseas
Partnering with organisations to help sustain the environment
Funding causes that promote equity and fairness
Working with our schools and colleges to facilitate access to the gift of a Dukes education for students from disadvantaged backgrounds
We are thrilled to announce that Glen Fendley has been appointed the Dukes Foundation’s new Chief Executive. With his extensive leadership experience and proven track record over nearly 30 years in the charity sector, Glen will play a pivotal role in strengthening the Foundation’s governance and policies.
As Chief Executive, Glen will guide the strategic development of the Foundation, ensuring all initiatives align with its mission to create an extraordinary impact. Glen will also oversee global operations for bursary funding and grant making, further expanding our reach and support to deserving individuals and organisations. We warmly welcome Glen to the Dukes Foundation and look forward to the exciting journey ahead under his guidance.
The Chief Executive will receive invaluable strategic support and guidance from the highly experienced Board of Trustees: Aatif Hassan (Chair), Adriana Giotta, David Goodhew, and Magoo Giles. Each trustee brings a unique set of skills, expertise, and perspectives, enriching the board’s discussions and decision-making processes. Their unwavering commitment to the Foundation’s mission and vision has been instrumental in shaping the grant-making strategies and ensuring that funding has the greatest impact on the communities we serve.
Additionally, Glen will be supported by Managing Director, David Goodhew, a renowned authority on bursary funding and social impact, a collaboration that ensures effective management and a seamless transition within the organisation. Laura Skinner, Dukes Marketing Director – Special Projects, will bring her 20 years of marketing expertise to support the Foundation’s internal and external communications, and strengthen the Foundation’s connections with all Dukes settings and wider communities.
Mission and Values
The Foundation’s mission is to change lives, create opportunities and spread hope by connecting children, families and communities to the compassionate and empowering spirit at the heart of Dukes. We will make an extraordinary impact with these values at our core:
Mission and values
Governance
Governance and Charity Compliance
In addition to strengthening the Board, there has been a clear focus on developing governance and policies to ensure transparency, accountability, and ethical practices. We have reviewed and updated data protection, code of conduct, and conflict of interest policies have been reviewed and updated to align with best practices in the philanthropic sector. These measures not only enhance the Foundation’s internal operations but also instil confidence in stakeholders, including donors, grant recipients, and the communities we serve.
Grant-Making
During the year, the Foundation engaged in a comprehensive strategic planning process to determine the grant-making focus areas. After careful consideration and consultation with experts in various fields, key areas were identified where funding can have the greatest impact.
Bursaries
The Dukes Foundation believes in the power of education to transform lives and break down barriers. We are committed to promoting social mobility and ensuring that every student, regardless of their socioeconomic background, has equal chance to succeed. To further this mission, the Foundation is partnering with Dukes schools and colleges to establish a ground-breaking bursary programme designed to provide financial support to hundreds of deserving young people who may otherwise face limitations due to their financial circumstances.
Charities
Grant-making benefactors will be selected through the ‘Extraordinary Impact initiative’. This initiative invites charities and organisations to apply for grants that will make a significant impact on their mission, projects or beneficiaries. They must align with the Foundation’s four commitments:
Mental Health and Well-being: Our Foundation will fund programmes that provide accessible and affordable mental health services, raise awareness, and reduce stigma for young people.
Education Initiatives: We will fund projects that leverage technology, promote experiential learning, and foster creativity and critical thinking skills.
Protecting the Planet: Our Foundation supports projects and organisations that work towards sustainable solutions, conservation efforts, and environmental education.
Young People’s Healthcare: We will fund projects that improve access to healthcare, promote preventive care, and address the specific health needs of young people.
Throughout the year, the Foundation supported organisations working in various sectors, including education, mental health, healthcare, and the arts. Grants have ranged from small, seed funding for grassroots initiatives to larger investments in established organisations with proven track records of success. The Foundation recognises that no single approach or solution can solve all the complex issues we face, and as a result, it will continue to support a wide range of charities and initiatives.
The Foundation is proud to have been able to support organisations and individuals who are working tirelessly to create a better world. Their dedication, passion, and innovative approaches inspire us and reaffirm our belief in the power of philanthropy to drive meaningful change.
So far, the Dukes Foundation has made significant donations to: Great Ormond Street Hospital towards the development of a new Children’s Cancer Centre, the British Asian Trust’s School Mental Health project, Place2Be, a children’s and young people’s mental health charity, London Youth, the Ruth Strauss Foundation and Poetry Together as well as a group-wide matched fundraising effort to respond to the devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
2024 priorities
Building the Bursary Fund Income:
By increasing our Bursary Fund, the Foundation aims to be in a position to transform the lives of thousands of young people over the next decade and beyond.
Extraordinary Impact Initiative:
Launching in 2024, this scheme seeks innovative, high-impact proposals that align with the Foundation’s core values and have the potential to create lasting change.
Establish a Heads’ Advisory Board: It is important for the Foundation to work closely with schools, and headteachers’ experience and perspective will add real value in a meaningful role. 1 2 3 4
Website
In line with our commitment to transparency and accessibility, we have launched the Foundation’s website. This marks an important step in efforts to connect with stakeholders, share information about grant-making activities, and provide a platform for potential grant applicants.
Additionally, the website showcases the impact of the Foundation’s grants through success stories, testimonials, and case studies. Visitors can learn about the transformative projects and initiatives that have been supported by the Foundation, gaining insight into the difference that funding has made in the lives of individuals and communities.
The launch of our new website and the opportunities it presents for increased engagement and collaboration are exciting new developments. We believe that this platform will serve as a valuable resource for stakeholders, enabling the Foundation to reach a wider audience and further its mission of creating positive change.
Establish a Youth Advisory Board: A Youth Advisory Board, comprising students from across the Dukes schools and colleges network, will provide invaluable insights and guidance on the Foundation’s grant-making strategies. This initiative reflects our commitment to empowering young people and ensuring that their voices are heard.
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members in-person events webinars articles
Dukes Club was created to bring together Dukes’ extraordinary community of families, staff and alumni and to use the power of the collective to be able to offer elevated, unique experiences and expert advice in areas that matter to them the most.
Dukes Club speakers are expert in their fields.
This year, our Dukes Club members will be offered the opportunity to take part in some truly extra special events. There will be something for everyone, covering a range of interests from sports to the arts.
Our research has shown the areas in which our members look for advice, and the challenges that lie ahead, and we will respond with a programme of impactful and meaningful support. Look out for the Dukes Club’s very first podcast series which members can access and enjoy at their convenience.
As we grow and develop, we will ensure that the Dukes Club offers real added-value to each of our settings so they can feel proud to offer the exciting and exclusive opportunities it presents to each of their families.
Scan to join the club... You are warmly invited to join our extraordinary community and enjoy its exciting benefits.
Julie Wilkinson creator of Brave the Rage
Chris Ashton former England rugby player
Dr Tara Porter Clinical Psychologist and Author Lulu Luckock education advisor and counsellor
Shona Colaco Head Knightsbridge School and Suzie Longstaff Principal London Park Schools
