Partnerships

our connections and our relationships with the other schools. We’re always evaluating.

What do you think are the key aspects of a meaningful partnership?

It’s got to be useful for everybody taking part in it, it’s got to be a really committed collaboration, and therefore with that kind of outlook we can learn from each other, we can make changes and we can make them meaningful.

How do you see the Partnership Programme developing further at City of London School for Girls?

It’s been an absolute joy to do everything face-toface in person, to have groups of students working together on a joint cause in the same room. We’ve decided to keep some of our offers remote, because it works better in terms of widening our geographical reach.

One thing we’re really looking forward to re-developing this year is an event which we’ve previously run on a much smaller scale, which is a Leadership Day for Year 12 pupils, whereby they come together with some external coaches to develop their leadership skills. This is a really challenging day where they’re taken out of their comfort zones and work together with people they’ve never met before across the family of schools, and they take part in a treasure hunt at the end of the day. We’re really looking forward to that event.

We also have plans in place to develop a Robotics Club, with one of our teachers from CLSG leading it with two other primary schools. The hope there is that they will build a robot and enter competitions, and hopefully win some of them as well.

We’re also hopefully going to partner with Royal

Springboard and continue with our work that we do with industry partners. I’ve already mentioned Schroders, and for a number of years we’ve also worked with Linklaters, the law firm, around developing communication skills in our pupils and also enabling them to better understand how to access careers in the city, particularly in the leadership and legal profession.

What tips would you give to other schools that are just beginning to build their partnership programme?

I think the key thing is to not be afraid to reach out to other schools, or to industry. I think you’d be surprised at how many people out there are keen to partner. As I’ve mentioned, it has to be mutually beneficial and impactful. I think it’s also just not being afraid of making mistakes as well, being prepared to learn from the events that you’ve organised, to see how they work, to reflect on what works best. But, really, the key thing is building relationships and having an open and honest dialogue around what is most impactful for the students that we are here to support.

Have you had feedback from the students about the partnership work that they’re taking part in, and perhaps how they feel it’s impacting their education as a whole?

I think they’re much more aware, for a start, that we have this network - the family of schools and the partner schools that we have - which I don’t think they necessarily were a few years ago. Quite a lot of the pupils that I support with running clubs and societies are knocking on my door, saying: “Can we invite students from this other school?” They are responding in droves to the volunteering opportunities that I send their way, and it’s something that the parents have fed back to us in terms of that it’s really valuable to them that their daughters are going to be leaving school aware of that wider world around them.

We would like to thank the Deputy Head of City of London School for Girls, Ms. Rosie Lockyear, for giving up her time to speak to us.

Education Corner Podcast With Future Principal And Head