Ben McCarey

FROM FRENSHAM HEIGHTS SCHOOL, SURREY

In this episode of Education Corner Podcast, Ben McCarey spoke to us about the innovative and informal approach at Frensham Heights, how they encourage teachers to use creative and experimental methods and how they hope to continue to support this alternative and effective method into the future.

Ben McCarey is a third generation teacher, he told us: “My entire formative years were spent in and around education.” Although this initially propelled him to seek a different career path, soon after graduating from university he “fell into education”. Since then, he has worked in a wide range of schools: “I spent six years in Bicester in a comprehensive in North Oxfordshire, I then went and did a stint in Brixton in South London in one of the most deprived wards in the country in a state academy, from there I moved to my last job before Frensham which was at Holyport College which is a state boarding school near Maidenhead, part of Eton College.” Ben described not initially planning to leave Holyport College, having worked at the school for a decade since its inception in 2014, but commented: “Then Frensham appeared on the horizon and from afar I kind of fell in love with it and started to see it as where I wanted to be and where I wanted my kids to be, and here I am.” staff, the fact that I’m no longer ‘Sir’ or ‘Mr. McCarey’, that’s been retired, the kids call me Ben.”

Adding that this is to reflect the school’s core values: “A belief in the goodness of humanity, the benevolence of the human spirit and the belief that that doesn’t just apply to us as adults - it applies to kids, too.” He believes that: “Too often the education system serves to [...] put kids into boxes, to say to them, ‘actually, the most important thing is that you comply with this long and very detailed set of rules so that you can learn to be a compliant human being.’”

At Frensham Heights, the very opposite of this is true: children are encouraged to express themselves freely and make their own choices, with adults and staff there to guide and support them. At the core of the school’s ethos is a desire to teach students that: “The human beings they become are so much more than the sum total of the grades they achieve,” according to Ben.

Whilst Frensham Heights is an academically selective school, they also look for pupils who will thrive in their unique learning environment. Ben explained: “I see us as an all-ability school, but that doesn’t mean we’re not an academic school.” Students are supported and encouraged to thrive academically - over half of GCSE grades awarded were 7-9 last year - but pupils are also given chances to succeed elsewhere, such as on

Frensham Heights has a deliberately informal atmosphere, all marked by: “The absence of uniform, the informality between students and

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Introducing Ben McCarey

the school’s high ropes course or on stage. In the school’s admissions process, Ben explained: “We want to know that students can interact positively with their peers, they can benefit and they can find enjoyment in the kind of experiences that kids have here.”

Like all boarding schools, Frensham Heights want their boarding houses to feel like a home away from home, but the informality and freedom at Frensham makes them more welcoming and homely, according to Ben. He emphasised that “reasonable and safe boundaries” are key to Frensham Heights’ goal of creating an environment where children are free “to go off and walk in the woods, to cycle around the site, to enjoy time with their friends,” but within a safe and familiar setting which can provide continued support when needed: “and then return to staff who they’re on first name terms with, who they have a relationship with.” Unlike other boarding schools, Frensham Heights does not have Saturday school, or compulsory sport on Saturday mornings, instead encouraging pupils to make the most of the “relaxation, enjoyment and enrichment” the school offers.

Frensham Heights’ website states that: “Teachers are supported to be brave and innovative with their teaching.” with experiential learning emphasised. Ben described this as: “Giving teachers the licence to experiment and to take risks, because if we want our kids to be risktakers, our teachers have to be willing to take risks as well and know that sometimes when it doesn’t quite work out, we’re going to be there to pick them up when they fall.”

Examples of this exciting and unique approach include the Flood project in Year 7: “Over the period of a week we simulate rising ocean levels and the kids have to adapt and plan their food supplies and their new politics and how they’re going to manage the situation.” As well as the Village project in Year 8: “They go and live wild in the woods for 4 days, build their own society, make their own bowls and spoons out of wood and cook their own food.” These challenges are designed to provide students with opportunities to experience independence, have the freedom to make their own decisions and work together to respond to unusual situations. Ben told us: “It’s about making sure that the learning experiences are really fun, really innovative, really engaging, building in risk [...] it’s about developing as a human being in a way that is unique and special and interesting, and will give you an experience that you can remember for your lifetime.” Ben also emphasised the importance of finding balance between exciting, experiential learning and more traditional academics: “It’s about striking balance and it’s also about how you enrich the curriculum beyond the classroom.”

Ben also spoke to us about the significance of Frensham Heights’ more diverse student body, with a wider range of abilities represented than some more selective or traditional schools. He believes that this prepares children for life beyond school, equipping them with social skills and understanding as well as academic success: “Allowing them to develop a greater level of empathy, a greater level of common humanity to be around a much more diverse range of human beings, which is what’s going to happen when they go into the workplace.”

Next year, Frensham Heights will be celebrating their centenary. “We were founded on the basis of a belief in the generosity of the human spirit [...] I like to hope at its heart the core ethos has remained the same,” reflected Ben. Over the years, the school has remained much the same, with the few changes only furthering its core ethos and values. “I think the DNA remains the same but kids change. One of the conversations I have most, particularly with teachers who’ve been in the profession for longer, is that these kids aren’t like the kids 10 or 20 years ago, and our job as adults and as a school is to get on board with that, to understand them, to understand where we need to meet them.” www.frensham.org

As for the future of Frensham Heights, Ben hopes “to grow our reputation at the forefront of progressive education.” The school is hoping to open “A Centre for Innovation and Research, particularly thinking about pedagogy and teaching practice” to help further the school’s excellent work and support others to do the same.

We would like to thank Ben McCarey, Head of Frensham Heights, for giving up his time to speak to us.