SPGS,

Alleyn’s, DLD and Wallington High School for Girls

“Introduce them to all sorts of different experiences and ideas, so that they can begin to develop their own interests. The joy in them, that curiosity and creativity, then can shine through in the interview and in the entrance papers.” Jane echoed this, emphasising the importance of nurturing the “capacity for independent, creative thought.” Jane also reassures parents: “Don’t panic, the right school is there [...] trust the process.”

When it comes to choosing between single-sex or co-education, all our guests emphasised focusing on the right school for your child. Both Sarah and Tracey praised all-girls’ education for its inclusive atmosphere, free of gender roles or self-consciousness. “It enables the girls to grow in confidence, to feel that they can take on anything in the world, and that they are equals of anyone. It enables them to explore their identity fully free from any stereotyping,” stated Sarah. She takes pride in the confidence and community of St Paul’s girls: “There are as many St Paul’s girls as there are students, but what they do share in common is a sense of confidence and a sense of empowerment.” Tracey also credited the single-sex environment with creating a sense of community and confidence at Wallington High School for Girls: “They have that kind of safe space to be themselves.”

School for activities such as Masterchef, Battle of the Bands and CCF. “The partnership with the boys school brings the co-educational dimension, but it also means that our girls can grow up with a singlesex environment, [where] we can really cater to their needs,” stated Sarah.

Both also recognised the importance of providing opportunities for their pupils to socialise in a coeducational environment, with St Paul’s Girls’ School working closely with St Paul’s School and Wallington High School working with Wilson’s

Jane, having worked at both single-sex and coeducational schools, sees the appeal of both, but told us: “I think when co-ed is done really well, it is pretty hard to beat.” She described how girls at Alleyn’s are also supported to be confident and not affected by gender stereotypes or selfconsciousness: “Maths is our most popular subject, and two-thirds of the pupils doing Maths at A Level are girls.” Jane also praised the way pupils support one another and thrive in this environment: “You then have an amazing, amazing environment where boys and girls basically grow up together, and they learn about themselves and they learn about the world together.” Both Jane and James emphasised the importance of teaching both boys and girls to be free from gender stereotypes and work well in co-educational environments for life beyond school. “There are challenges and benefits with all kinds of schools, and we’re trying to prepare them for society, giving them as many opportunities to experience what life will look like,” stated James.

On the benefits of boarding in London, James described it as: “A halfway house, they’ve got that wrap-around care, but it’s an opportunity to be a little bit away from parents before going off to university.” Despite some parents’ possible fears about their children being given their first taste of independence in a big city like London, James assured parents that it is safe, and boarding schools such as DLD are looking after them and supporting them: “The city is different, but it’s not massively different. We’re still talking about kids, we’re talking about teenagers who just need to adapt and to learn and make their mistakes.”

Increasingly, many parents are concerned with how schools are preparing students for life beyond school and equipping them with the skills to succeed in the real world. Our guests agree that this is a key part of their provision. “Although our examination results are superb, we really want our students to develop their independence and thinking, creativity, curiosity,” Sarah told us of the ways her pupils are encouraged to make use of the many clubs and activities on offer. All our guests are also aware of the need to prepare students with the skills to work with fast-changing technologies, and all offer clubs and classes using AI, VR and coding: “When they go to university and in the world of work, all of these things will be there, and they will be expected to use them,” Sarah explained.

Jane asserted the importance of offering broad and varied opportunities to prepare pupils for life: “The entire purpose of education is to prepare our children to be all they can be, to find what they were put on earth to do, and then to do it with their whole hearts.” At Alleyn’s, they offer a wide range of clubs and activities integrated with the curriculum to enhance academic learning: “It’s our co-curricular, it’s not extracurricular,” explained Jane. This includes their new AiQ curriculum: “Developed along with MIT [...] we’re looking at the intersection between AI and IQ, and so it’s not just the skills that we need to live in an AI world, but how we learn differently, because AI is a feature of the way we are all living now.” educators is to: “Help to develop children’s resilience in a world that is both exciting and full of challenge.” Sarah added: “In every way we are trying to bring up young people so that they’re not afraid of the world around them, and they can negotiate it with confidence.”

Tracey also explained how Wallington High School for Girls makes use of their wide alumni network and strong pastoral care to inspire and support students: “We’re not an exam factory, we don’t operate that model, we operate trying to really focus on the holistic child, who is confident, courageous, and is curious to go out and try different things.”

Our guests ultimately agreed that their role as

Our speakers also felt that the diversity and internationalism of London are key to its appeal for many families. Jane asserted: “There’s something simply amazing about how diverse and inclusive and actually in general accepting and warm and tolerant and open our city is,” believing there can be no better environment in which to educate children to be future global citizens. Sarah agreed: “The international, global attraction of London, I think, is really one of those intangible benefits of an education in such an extraordinary capital city.” However, she also acknowledged the inequalities in the city, and the importance of providing support and care for pupils affected by this: “What being a London school enables us to do is to open those conversations, to embrace all of the diversity, all its richness and all its complexity and enable students to be able to understand class and other communities better. I think that’s another extraordinary privilege which can be difficult at times but is so important.” www.spgs.org www.alleyns.org.uk www.dldcollege.co.uk www.wallingtongirls.org.uk

We would like to thank our London school panel for giving up their time to speak to us.