“Academic achievement and personal development are excellent”. ISI Inspection Report
ANNUAL REVIEW
2019-20 1
WELCOME FROM SARAH CLARK
I
t is easy to think that the whole of the 2019-2020 Academic Year was dominated by the COVID-19 Pandemic; however in reality, we had almost two terms of normality before the world changed.
The impact of COVID-19 has been profound on every aspect of our educational delivery, but I am very proud to report that the students at North London adapted quickly and with determination to the new programme of study that was put in place in order to maintain an excellent academic education. From the youngest children in the School to the oldest, bespoke lessons were created that took advantage of the constraints imposed by remote teaching. Our teachers supported parents and students alike with interactive, clear and helpful materials and lesson plans, and also physically delivered interactive lessons through the Microsoft Teams platform to children from Reception to Year 13. The pastoral teams in the Junior and Senior Schools worked tirelessly to ensure that we continued to provide individual support for every girl, ensuring that no girl was without support during her time at School. Promoting positive mental health continues to be hugely important, and at the start of the School year students learnt about the research behind the five key areas that can support their emotional wellbeing – connect, keep learning, be active, give and take notice. They were then challenged throughout the year to think about how they could incorporate these five key ideas into their everyday life. The lockdown presented particular challenges to the pastoral teams in both elements of our School, but these were met with an innovative sense of determination and profound commitment to the students. We are immensely proud of the achievements of all our students in Years 11 and 13. They accepted lockdown, and the subsequent loss of the opportunity to sit their public examinations, with a determination and maturity that was unrivalled; throwing themselves into their continued online studies as well as helping and supporting many charities in their work to support our local community. The results from the 2020 cohort are exceptional, and we celebrate them alongside the qualities of perseverance, flexibility, good humour and intellectual curiosity that characterises our students. The headline figure of 50% A* at A level and Pre-U represents the strongest performance of a cohort of students at this level in the School’s history. Similarly, 96% all grades awarded at GCSE level were at A* equivalent. 2
International Baccalaureate students once again scored highly in this challenging and enriching qualification, achieving an average score of over 41 points and placing us again among the very best IB schools in the world. Three of our students achieved the maximum score of 45 points, something usually only achieved by around 150 students out of 160,000 candidates across the globe. In December 2019 we received a visit from the Independent Schools Inspectorate and were thrilled that they judged us as excellent (the highest grading possible in all categories) for both the achievement of the pupils including academic development and also personal development. Our innovative STEAM project goes from strength to strength with the appointment of a Head of Engineering Technology. This new subject offers students the opportunity to develop skills and solve problems in a creative, practical way in its newly refurbished teaching spaces. Alongside these vital skills, Engineering Technology aims to support students’ understanding of their own use of materials and technology in their day to day lives. The impact of the Black Lives Matter movement on North London last year was also profound. North London is a diverse and supportive community, founded with the pioneering belief that all religions and cultures should be treated equally. Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, we are re-evaluating our role in promoting antiracism and supporting all our students and families from BAME communities within our school. We are engaged in a detailed review of our curriculum and pastoral support structures so that we can wholeheartedly embrace these matters in the spirit and tradition of our School. North London Collegiate School has much to look forward to for the academic year 2020-2021. I know that we will meet whatever challenges and opportunities face us in the future with our characteristic determination, positive problem-solving attitude and innovative spirit.
SARAH CLARK Headmistress
4-5
EXAMINATION RESULTS
6
UNIVERSITY DESTINATIONS
7
ISI INSPECTION
8-9
ACADEMIC
10-11
PASTORAL
12-13
EXTRA-CURRICULAR
14-15
A YEAR IN SPORT
16-17
JUNIOR SCHOOL
18
EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
19-20
IMPACTS OF THE PANDEMIC
21
SUSTAINABILITY
22
PARTNERSHIPS
23
CHARITY
24
DEVELOPMENT AND ALUMNAE
25
IN MEMORY - BERNICE MCCABE
26
LETTER FROM THE CHAIR OF GOVERNORS
EXAMINATION RESULTS 2020
96% of all grades awarded at 8/9 and 76% entries were awarded grade 9.
The results from the 2020 series of examinations are truly exceptional, and we celebrate them alongside the qualities of perseverance, flexibility, good humour and intellectual curiosity that characterises our students.
50% of students awarded A* representing the strongest performance of a cohort of students in the School’s history. 79% of students awarded A*/A.
GCSE RESULTS 2020 SUBJECT
GCSE
We are immensely proud of the achievements of all our students in Years 11 and 13 this summer. This year’s results were derived from a combination of Centre Assessed Grades and a statistical algorithm administered by the examination boards.
A LEVEL AND PRE-U
ADVANCED LEVEL/PRE-U RESULTS 2020
TOTAL ENTRY 9
8
7
6
5
4
SUBJECT
TOTAL ENTRY A*
A
B
C
D
E
ART
26
16
8
2
0
0
0
ART
8
7
1
0
0
0
0
BIOLOGY
108
81
18
9
0
0
0
BIOLOGY
37
17
13
7
0
0
0
CHEMISTRY
109
82
17
10
0
0
0
CHEMISTRY
37
25
11
1
0
0
0
COMPUTER SCIENCE
36
18
13
3
2
0
0
CLASSICAL CIVILISATION
2
1
1
0
0
0
0
DRAMA
42
42
0
0
0
0
0
DRAMA
3
3
0
0
0
0
0
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
110
105
5
0
0
0
0
ECONOMICS
22
13
5
4
0
0
0
ENGLISH LITERATURE
110
100
10
0
0
0
0
ENGLISH
22
15
7
0
0
0
0
FRENCH
47
28
19
0
0
0
0
FRENCH
6
4
2
0
0
0
0
GEOGRAPHY
66
51
15
0
0
0
0
GEOGRAPHY
13
7
5
0
1
0
0
GERMAN
16
13
3
0
0
0
0
GERMAN
3
3
0
0
0
0
0
GREEK
4
2
1
1
0
0
0
GREEK
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
HISTORY
70
47
17
6
0
0
0
HISTORY
20
9
11
0
0
0
0
ITALIAN
12
12
0
0
0
0
0
ITALIAN
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
LATIN
43
33
9
0
1
0
0
LATIN
2
1
1
0
0
0
0
MATHEMATICS
110
82
23
5
0
0
0
MANDARIN
3
2
1
0
0
0
0
MUSIC
10
8
1
1
0
0
0
MATHEMATICS
54
31
16
7
0
0
0
PHYSICS
110
67
33
10
0
0
0
FURTHER MATHEMATICS
15
6
5
4
0
0
0
RELIGIOUS STUDIES
38
25
13
0
0
0
0
MUSIC
4
2
2
0
0
0
0
RUSSIAN
3
3
0
0
0
0
0
PHILOSOPHY
8
4
4
0
0
0
0
SPANISH
54
35
18
1
0
0
0
PHYSICS
11
3
6
2
0
0
0
Mandarin Chinese = 20 A* + 1 A Grade A*/9/8= 95.5% Grade A*/9/8-A/7 = 99.7% Correct as of October 2020
POLITICS
5
3
2
0
0
0
0
RUSSIAN
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
SPANISH
26
7
19
0
0
0
0
TOTAL
304
166
112
25
1
0
0
Grade A* = 50% 4
Grade A*-A = 79%
A*-B = 99.7%
I NTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE Students once again achieved an average score of over 41 points placing NLCS among the very best IB schools in the world. Three NLCS students achieved the maximum score of 45 points, something only achieved by less than 1% of candidates across the globe.
IB DIPLOMA RESULTS 2020 SUBJECT
NO. 7
IB DIPLOMA RESULTS 2020
Higher Level Subjects
6
5
4
3
2
1
%7 *
%7/6 **
%7/6/5 ***
3
0
0
0
0
0
80
100
100
SUBJECT
Group 1 – English & World Literature ENGLISH HL
15
12
NO. 7
Standard Level Subjects
6
5
4
3
2
1
%7
%7/6 *
%7/6/5 **
3
0
0
0
0
0
75
100
100
Group 1 – English & World Literature 12
ENGLISH SL
Group 2 – Modern & Classical Languages
9
Group 2 – Modern & Classical Languages
FRENCH HL
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
100
100
FRENCH SL
12
9
3
0
0
0
0
0
75
100
100
LATIN HL
3
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
67
100
100
GERMAN SL
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
100
100
100
SPANISH HL
7
4
3
0
0
0
0
0
57
100
100
LATIN SL
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
100
100
100
SPANISH SL
5
3
2
0
0
0
0
0
60
100
100
Group 3 – Humanities & Social Sciences ECONOMICS HL
14
8
6
0
0
0
0
0
57
100
100
Group 3 – Humanities & Social Sciences
GEOGRAPHY HL
3
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
67
100
100
ECONOMICS SL
5
2
3
0
0
0
0
0
40
100
100
GLOBAL POLITICS HL
3
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
100
100
100
ENV & SOC SL
5
3
2
0
0
0
0
0
60
100
100
HISTORY EUROPE HL
8
6
2
0
0
0
0
0
75
100
100
GLOBAL POLITICS SL
3
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
67
100
100
PHILOSOPHY HL
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
100
100
100
HISTORY SL
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
100
100
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
100
100
100
Group 4 – Experimental Sciences
Group 4 – Experimental Sciences
BIOLOGY HL
5
2
2
0
1
0
0
0
40
80
80
CHEMISTRY HL
7
4
3
0
0
0
0
0
67
100
100
CHEMISTRY SL
5
1
1
3
0
0
0
0
20
40
100
PHYSICS HL
5
4
1
0
0
0
0
0
80
100
100
PHYSICS SL
8
0
6
2
0
0
0
0
0
75
100
MATHEMATICS HL
9
4
3
2
0
0
0
0
44
78
100
MATHEMATICS SL
16
3
9
4
0
0
0
0
19
75
100
TOTAL HIGHER LEVEL
82
53
26
2
1
0
0
0
65
96
99
MATHEMATICS STUDIES
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
100
100
6.60
TOTAL STANDARD LEVEL
80
38
33
9
0
0
0
0
48
89
100
BIOLOGY SL
Group 5 – Mathematics
3
Group 5 – Mathematics
Average IB points per candidate per Higher Level subject * Equivalent to A-level Grade A* ** Equivalent to A-level Grade A or A* *** Equivalent to A-level Grade B or A or A*
* Equivalent to AS-level Grade A
I B DIPLOMA RESULTS 2020
DIPLOMA POINTS TOTAL 45 44 43 42 41 40 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31
Points Total
Average Diploma Points Total per candidate
NUMBER OF STUDENTS
3
4
6.36
Average IB points per candidate per Standard Level subject
2
5
4
1
4
1
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
41.26 5
** Equivalent to AS-level Grade A or Grade B
POINTS
3
2
1
0
NUMBER OF CANDIDATES ACHIEVING THE TOTAL
15
7
5
0
DESTINATION OF OUR 2020 LEAVERS
5
9
6
DURHAM
WARWICK
UNIVERSITY
Brown (1), Columbia (2), Harvard (1), Northwestern University (1), Notre Dame (1), Pomona (1), Princeton (1), Stanford (1), UCLA (1), University of Chicago (1)
3
SUBJECT
McGill University (1), University of British Columbia,Vancouver (2)
A R E A S
6
5 ECONOMICS
SIX
Scaarland University - Germany (1), Trinity Dublin - Ireland (1)
22 13 11 10 GEOGRAPHY
TOP
HISTORY
DESTINATIONS
2
students are taking a gap year and will apply for entry to university in 2021.
21
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON
LIBERAL ARTS
11
OXFORD
ENGLISH
Aberdeen (1), Birmingham (1) Bristol (5), Cambridge (12), Cardiff (1), City & Guilds London Art School (1), Durham (9), Edinburgh (4), Exeter (1), Imperial (5), King’s (5), Lancaster (1), Leeds (2), LSE (5), Manchester (5), Nottingham (2), Oxford (11), Queen Mary (4), Sheffield (1), St Andrews (1), UCL (21) University of the Arts London (1) Warwick (6)
STUDYING AT INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITIES
11
CAMBRIDGE
MEDICINE
105
16
STUDENTS
12
TOP
STUDENTS STUDYING AT UK UNIVERSITIES
The impressively wide range of disciplines taken up at Higher Education by the Class of 2020 include; Ancient History, Anthropology, Arabic, Architecture, Art Foundation, Arts & Sciences, Biological Sciences, Biology, Biomedical Engineering, Classics, Computer Science, Data Science & AI, Dental Surgery, Drama & Theatre Arts, Economics, Economic History, Economics & Industrial Organisation, Electronic & Information Engineering, Engineering, English, Fashion Design & Development, French with Management, Geography, German & Russian, History, International Business with Spanish, International Relations, Law with International Study, Liberal Arts, Management, Management Science, Mathematics, Medicine, Music, Natural Sciences, Neuroscience, Pharmacy, Psychology, Spanish, Veterinary Science
6
The full, glowing report can be read here; this is a huge achievement for NLCS. We are extremely proud of our wonderful community. “Pupils demonstrate excellent levels of knowledge, skills and understanding across all areas of the curriculum and consistently achieve exceptional results in external examinations”.
ISI INSPECTION A
t the end of the Autumn Term, the School underwent a full inspection by the Independent Schools Inspectorate: inspectors observed lessons, examined samples of pupils’ work and talked with and surveyed pupils, parents, governors, teaching and non-teaching staff.
“Pupils are extremely articulate communicators who express themselves eloquently, both orally and in writing, and who apply their skills effectively to other areas of learning.”
We were delighted that following the visit the School was judged as excellent (the highest grade possible) in all categories for both the achievement of the pupils – including academic development – and personal development. Those aspects of a North London education which make us unique were so clearly identified and, in particular, the report referred to ‘highly motivated pupils’, whose ‘love of learning is stimulated by innovative approaches to teaching’.
“Overall, the school is highly successful in developing well-rounded, confident, highly skilled young people who are very well equipped for the next stage of ISI Inspection Report their education”.
“Pupils are kind, compassionate and thoughtful young people who understand the value of service to others both in their local community and across the world”.
It was noted that older girls were ‘keen to point to the quality of teaching, academic symposiums and support they receive from their teachers as key contributory factors to their academic success’, and younger students had their ‘self-belief raised, with personalised feedback and support at the heart of their success as learners’. 7
ACADEMIC HIGHLIGHTS MATHEMATICS Our mathematicians from Years 8 and 9 competed in the regional final of the UK Maths Trust Team Challenge. The girls worked brilliantly, securing an impressive 3rd place overall in the competition. Students from Years 11 to 13 participated in the Mathematical Olympiad for Girls alongside more than 1800 others, and they performed impressively well; seven students were awarded distinction and one earned a prize (scoring full marks) and was invited to take part in the British Mathematical Olympiad.
GEOGRAPHY Students from Years 10 and 11 visited Iceland to explore one of its largest glaciers, experience the world’s only lava show and to battle the fierce winds on the east coast. The highlight of the trip was witnessing a stunning Northern Lights display.
COMPUTER SCIENCE Year 7 took part in ‘Python-for-Science’ a computer coding workshop, delivered by an educational technology company focussed on ensuring technological literacy in secondary school students by using innovative teaching and learning methods. Students continued to practice and build on these skills within science lessons by coding a food web and using agglomerative clustering to divide living organisms into the five Kingdoms.
O
ur teachers instil a love of learning in our students through subject passion and academic challenge. Although the 2019-20 academic year was unprecedented due to Covid-19, we are proud of the achievements within academic departments to inspire our students.
Following this, students in Year 7 to 9 learnt how to use Python code to programme Minecraft Pi and also wrote a Python code to use a Sensechat attached to a Raspberry Pi on the International Space Station (ISS). Two students entered the Astro Pi competition, which saw their coded messaged being displayed on the ISS.
STEAM We held our first ever Technology and Engineering Symposium, organised entirely by the students. Speakers presented their experiences in an interdisciplinary field, ranging from applications in biomedical sciences and the development of prosthetics to the development of cryptocurrencies. Science Café continued with speakers working in cross-curricular scientific fields, ranging from Biochemical Engineering to Computational Chemistry. Five teams of Upper School and Sixth Form students have worked with the School to help us reach our goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2030 by analysing our data, proposing solutions, and creatively suggesting achievable ways in which we could make improvements to our energy use. Two teams entered the ‘F1 in Schools’ challenge and were selected to take part in the regional final, competing with a model car, which the teams had independently designed using computer aided design (CAD) and manufactured using CNC routers and 3D printers. Both teams thoroughly impressed the
Iceland trip
judges with team spirit, verbal presentations and Engineering and Enterprise portfolio’s highly commended. Team “IQ” won first place in the regional finals and entered the national finals remotely at the end of July.
MODERN FOREIGN LANGUAGES Year 13 students participated in a Spanish Debating Competition alongside fourteen schools including Harrow, Eton, Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’, Westminster and Wycombe Abbey. The students were excellent ambassadors of the School, and their performance was highly commended by the adjudicators. Year 12 French students took part in the annual French Drama Festival at King Alfred School performing a revamped version of Francis Veber’s Le Dîner de Cons. The students received rave reviews and one student was awarded Best Performance in a Supporting Role.
ECONOMICS Under lockdown and with so much economics in the news, Year 13 economists delivered an outstanding and highly accomplished virtual COVID-19 conference to students and staff addressing questions designed to help them to understand and process the economic (and wider) implications of the pandemic. Each student chose one question and prepared a 10-15 minute talk that was recorded and collated online in a TED-style presentation.
“Pupils are highly successful collaborative and independent learners, both inside and outside of the classroom”. ISI Inspection Report 8
NICHOLSON LECTURES First started in 2012, our Nicholson Lectures – named after former Physics teacher Dr Kay Nicholson – have continued to flourish and prove ever popular with the girls and staff alike. Each week, the Library promotes upcoming Nicholson lectures by creating a selection of books and material relating to that topic. Talks this year have included:
Mathematical Olympiad
ACADEMIC HIGHLIGHTS
■
How to write a letter
■
Thalassa, Thalassa: the sea, the sea!
■
The use of performance-enhancing drugs in Sport
■
Eleanor of Aquitaine
■
The Two Dostoevskys
■
Sophie – A Tribute to Dr Sophie Bryant
SENIOR SOCIETIES SPEAKER PROGRAMME Our annual lecture series organised by the student leaders of each society, aims to enrich the students’ academic learning and develop their subject curiosity and passion. Our Keynote address, opening our year of talks, was delivered by Conrad Wolfram, of Wolfram Research, who gave a fascinating talking about AI, computing and maths education, and challenged students to consider the importance of tech and machine learning in modern education to assist with deeper student learning of their subjects. Other speakers this year included: Society – Dr Abel Gwaindepi; a research fellow at Lund University in Sweden, and visiting researcher at Oxford University’s Centre for the study of African economies, Dr Gwaindepi discussed the continent’s production and technological advances since AD1000.
■ A fro-Caribbean
Society – Professor Colin Jones; having held various prestigious research positions at Princeton, College de France and Columbia University, Prof Jones gave fascinating insights into the turbulent period of the French revolution, a time of far-reaching social and political upheaval in France and its colonies beginning in 1789.
■ H istory
Society – Maarten Speekenbrink; as Associate Professor of Mathematical Psychology at UCL, Maarten’s research specialises in human learning and decision making, and his lecture gave an introduction to the field of mathematical psychology and how humans learn to make better decisions.
■ M aths
Spanish Film Festival
‘FI in Schools’ challenge
Society – Dr Noemi Lopian & Derek Niemann; to mark Holocaust Memorial Day 2020, Dr Lopian and Mr Niemann shared the spotlight to talk from two contrasting perspectives on the importance of remembering the Holocaust and to encourage our students to consider the relevance of these events today.
■ J ewish
Rights Society – Zehrah Hasan; a human rights campaigner based in London, Zehrah outlined the experiences of migrant and BAME women who are survivors of gender-based violence and the relevant legal frameworks that should protect them in the UK.
■ H uman
Sciences Society – Professor Gary Lye; Prof Lye is Head of the Department of Biochemical Engineering at UCL focused on the different uses of biotech, from the production of medicines (such as therapeutic antibodies and microalgae vaccines) to the use of agricultural feedstocks to manufacture biodegradable plastics.
■ P ure
Young Musician of the Year 9
T
he focus of our pastoral care this year has been to continue to foster a sense of community wherein kindness and consideration for others is at the heart of all that we do. We encourage positive relationships between students and tutors, and make sure every student is supported and cared for.
PASTORAL
All students are encouraged to have the confidence to aspire, be self-disciplined, show courtesy and kindness towards others and become more outward-looking. We have continued to develop students’ sense of well-being and have promoted a ‘can do’ attitude, encouraging them to recognise and celebrate their strengths.
HIGHLIGHTS
Kindness Week
“Pupils have extremely positive attitudes to learning, are highly motivated and are determined to make the most of all of the opportunities that the school provides them”. ISI Inspection Report Additional tutor time has been introduced this year and it has been used for a variety of activities across the School. This additional time has allowed tutors to work with and get to know their tutees better. Much of this time has been used to develop and explore positive mental well-being and to build a sense of community and belonging. Activities have included: Kindness week Mental Health and Wellbeing Conference
■
Soapbox speeches
■
Board game challenges
■
Mindfulness sessions
■ A n
exploration of laughter – where students explored health benefits to smiling and laughing
■ T he
introduction of carousels to try different activities, including mindfulness, building confidence, cryptic crosswords, draw for joy, Pilates, Latin dance, current affairs, silent reading, story time, play reading, country music and sing along musical theatre.
10
Phasels Wood Activity Centre
PASTORAL HIGHLIGHTS We have welcomed a number of external speakers to School this year:
Dr Kathy Weston
■
r Martijin van der Spoel spoke to D students about practical techniques and strategies to help students sharpen their study skills
■
r Kathy Weston spoke to students and D parents about building and developing resilience
■
he Self Esteem Team delivered a session T for parents on promoting positive health with young people
Year 9 Activity Day
The second annual Kindness Week was packed with initiatives and activities encouraging kindness towards others and to ourselves. Highlights included: ■ V ideos
for assembly made by the Year 9 Charity Committee
The Self Esteem team
■ T he
Big Six reminding us of the importance of ‘Push-Check-Hold’ (holding doors open for each other)
Two pastoral residential trips went out in the Spring Term; Year 7 visiting the West Midlands Safari Park, Phasels Wood Activity Centre and Warwick Castle and Warwick Castle, and Year 8 travelling to Bath and Bristol. Both trips provided excellent opportunities for students to get to know one another outside of the classroom, as well as providing lots of fun activities.
■ Whole
school quiz on the science behind kindness
■ T he
Mental Health and Wellbeing committee serving hot chocolate at break times
Mental Health Day was celebrated across the School in the Autumn Term with students considering the concept of belonging. We also held our second Mental Health and Well-being Conference in October 2019 that was organised by Sixth Form students. The theme this year was confidence. During the conference students heard from a number of key speakers, who provided helpful advice and lots of practical ideas and strategies. Students across the School have again been supported by peer mentors, and the tea and chat sessions on a Friday lunchtime have continued to be popular. Year 11 students have set up a new mental health committee for their peers and they have run a number of support sessions.
■ Sessions
to discuss kindness and unkindness themes in Jane Austin’s works
■ T he
creation of self-kindness boxes
■ S tudents
writing kindness postcards to each other
11
The first Feel Good Week was held in the Summer term to promote positive mental health. One highlight was the talk given by Mia Eisenstadt from the Anna Freud Centre on coping with lock down and seeking help when in doubt about mental health worries.
EXTRA-CURRICULAR HIGHLIGHTS T
he School offers a vibrant and diverse range of extra-curricular activities, providing an opportunity for every girl to find their passion.
Emilia
DRAMA
Every week there are over 50 clubs and activities, and over 40 societies, including Anthropology, Art and Design, Climbing, Community Service, Robotics, Mad Hatters, Creative Writing, Environmental Awareness, Film and Media, Gardening, Mental Health and Wellbeing and International Affairs.
Glimmers
Years 8 and 9 treated us to a wonderful version of Brecht’s Mother Courage and her Children, we held our ever-popular physical theatre evening, and our Glimmers promenade production and our annual Liveability panto were performed at Christmas. We were lucky enough to be the first school to be granted permission to perform Morgan Lloyd Malcolm’s Emilia and the Senior School created a truly superb production.
Year 7 Dance Display
MUSIC Our Old House Concert series continued to go from strength to strength thanks to the acquisition of a Steinway Model ‘O’ Grand Piano for the Drummond Room. We hosted our first Jazz Night, which celebrated the work of the Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Collective, which was a new group founded this year.
“Pupils display excellent attitudes towards learning, and wholeheartedly embrace the huge range of opportunities that the School provides for them, to discover new interests and skills”. ISI Inspection Report Winter Concert 12
Undeterred by the COVID-19 lockdown, the pupils love of music remained as strong as ever; the Music Society compiled student recordings and hosted lunchtime concerts, staff shared their ‘Desert Island Discs’ in weekly Music Appreciation sessions and we launched a fundraising project for the NHS based on Bill Withers’ ‘Lean on Me’, which enabled pupils, parents, staff and ONLs to submit recordings which were assembled as one mass performance.
E UROPEAN YOUTH PARLIAMENT Students attended the regional rounds of the European Youth Parliament, held at St Paul’s School. They engaged in high quality, collaborative debate and made a range of excellent, insightful points. The students competed against three other schools and represented the committee on constitutional affairs, debating amongst other things, the need for lowering the voting age and discussing how to improve voter turnout for under 25s. After a lively debate, the motion was passed.
Skiing trip
TRIPS AND EXCHANGES During the Autumn and Spring terms our students had the opportunity to take part in many trips in the UK and overseas including Iceland, the Western Front, skiing in Italy and Russia, and a residential trip to Warwick for our new Year 7s. Sadly, trips in the Summer Term were unable to take place, but this did not deter our English Department who created a vibrant and exciting ‘virtual’ journey guide of Dublin for Sixth Form students. Attractions included visits to the National Library of Ireland and The James Joyce Culture Centre, in addition students had poems and extracts to read, radio broadcasts to listen to and plays to watch.
FANTASY FASHION Celebrating the theme of ‘Eden’, this year’s Fantasy Fashion event was a night to remember. Students designed and produced outfits exploring issues relating to the environment and sustainability, the garden of Eden, wildlife and nature. Organised by the Arts Society, our annual event brought together over 120 students to raise money for KSDP (Karenni Student Development Project), a charity founded over 20 years ago by ONL Stephanie Lee. The evening included fantastic eco-initiatives run by the students including a thrift shop and a stall offering bespoke t-shirt screen printing. The Year 11 ‘Green Team’ presented an inspiring talk about their AntiFast Fashion Campaign encouraging staff and Sixth Form students to wear the same outfit for the whole of February and to pledge to buy no new clothes.
YOUNG ENTERPRISE Despite the many challenges of recent months, all three NLCS teams made it to the West London final winning four out of five of the awards on the day. Team Unify was selected to take part in the following round where they competed against 100 student teams to win the title of Best Company at the London and Essex Regional Final of the national competition securing their place at the UK Final. Unify, a social enterprise raising awareness of mental health issues, created a range of hoodies highlighting this important movement. Their use of both technology and partnerships with like-minded organisations to achieve their goals was praised by the judges.
Fantasy Fashion 13
Team Unify
A YEAR IN SPORT
HIGHLIGHTS
“Sport for All” continues to be the ethos at NLCS and PE, sport and activities play a significant role in the School’s Mental Health and Wellbeing strategy. Year 7 has focused on the effective and long-term benefits of the bio-mechanics of movement, Year 8 sampling Pilates, and Years 9, 10 and 11 selecting from a carousel of sport and wellbeing activities. The Sixth Form has a bespoke timetable to access the Fitness Suite as well as a range of wellbeing and sporting sessions.
In Cross Country, 13 students were selected to represent the borough at the London Youth Games, with a large number of students through to the Middlesex finals and our Junior Girls team qualified for the regional final of the English Schoolgirls Cross Country Cup.
Our continuing partnership with the Wray Foundation and Saracens enables us to offer a high-quality programme of sport, advice and mentoring for our Elite Athlete Mentoring Programme (EAMP) and provides access to Saracens rugby and Saracens Mavericks netball players. To enable students to develop with guidance from their PE subject specialists, baseline fitness tests are conducted throughout the year providing a valuable incentive to gain ownership over individual fitness and wellbeing and will be supported by our bespoke NLCS fitness app.
The PE department supported the ‘Get Active’ 24-hour event for Years 10 and 11, raising over £2,000 pounds for the National Brain Appeal and provided the opportunity for students to try something new.
Our Over 13 gymnasts secured a silver medal at the Independent Schools Gymnastics Association (ISGA) regional qualifier, with two students securing second and third place individually. This meant the squad progressed to the National Finals.
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Our Senior Lacrosse Squad secured silver medals in the South-East regional tournament and reached the semi-final of Division II at the National Schools Lacrosse Championship (NSLC). The Under 15 and Under 14 squads secured a place in the quarter-finals of the NSLC making them both one of the top 16 schools in the country, in their age category.
PE Week provided a focus for our main winter sports with visits from Saracens Mavericks players and coaches, Kadeen Corbin and Kat Ainsworth, who shared their Super League and international skills. Laura Warren, our Strength and Conditioning Coach and Welsh and Great Britain lacrosse player, focused students’ talents on the latest tactics and principles of lacrosse competitive play. Derek Cole, Saracens Rugby, provided tips and insights into advanced skills and contact for our rugby players.
Despite lockdown impacting our annual Sports Celebration Evening, the PE department honoured the hard work the students put in throughout the year in all aspects of PE and sport in this video celebration. ➤ WATCH OUR VIDEO HERE
During the lockdown students rose to the challenges of remote PE by engaging with aspects of skills and fitness in various forums. Students completed weekly challenges, a Daily Fitness Log, and raised funds and awareness for charitable organisations, such as the 2.6 Challenge on behalf of the National Brain Appeal and the Epilepsy Society.
Our Netball squads excelled with every age group entering the Sisters n Sport (SnS) and Independent Schools Netball Cup National Championships, with our Under 15 squad securing a place in the semi-finals. Their qualification through to the national finals, was as a direct result of being the unbeaten national schools regional (Middlesex) champions.
Students also participated in the National Schools Sports Week at Home, organised by The Youth Sport Trust, with students and their families taking part in athletics, team sports, adventure sports and artistic sports. This provided fantastic preparation for our Virtual Sports Week in which the students logged House points, there were individual House winners in each age group and Gibbons House was crowned the overall winners.
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Wonderstruck Rocket Show
JUNIOR SCHOOL
STEAM Week
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e teach with ambition and rigour to enable all pupils to achieve exceptional academic outcomes in a supportive environment in which they are valued as individuals and can develop their interests and talents to the full. This year we developed a concept-based approach for Foundation Subjects which encourages in-depth learning about main ideas such as ‘Population Growth’ and ‘Leaders’ in a way that is aspirational and promotes intellectual curiosity.
World Book Day First School
Exhibition Saturday
Dance Squad
“Pupils’ ‘intellectual character’ is constantly stimulated …and risk-taking is genuinely encouraged”. The Good Schools Guide 2020
A modern foreign language is now being taught to the First School girls as well as all the Lower School girls. The librarian devised a Reading Map as a new resource for choosing books that further encourages wide reading. This is modelled closely on the London Underground, with Tube lines representing different genres and stations representing different books within each genre. It has helped to promote book talk and motivates young readers to read for pleasure. We have been working towards the Gold History Association Quality Mark. This has prompted a number of initiatives including a new History Club, a ‘meanwhile elsewhere’ element to topics in the curriculum which broadens global understanding, a Historical Fiction Writing Competition and a new prominently placed History notice board to promote curiosity and provide topical information. We are also working with Aylward and our School Archives to prepare a Lottery Heritage Fund bid. This will disseminate knowledge about the School and the local area and provide wider community access to the fascinating materials in our archives.
The Junior School Council organised a range of activities to raise money for this year’s Canonaid charities. These included a Science Quiz for Auditory Verbal UK, as well as Swahili Bingo Game for the Fursa Trust, who support children living in the slum areas of Nairobi. They also organised an ‘Environmental Day’ encouraging pupils to stay away from screens during lockdown and to appreciate the environment around them. Kindness initiatives included ‘Friendship Fridays’, baking, writing cards and making gifts for residents of local care homes and donating books to a local charity that aims for every child in London to have a personal book collection.
Our STEAM focus week introduced the science of flying to the girls. All Lower School girls visited the RAF Museum, worked with expert visitors and subject specialists during a series of workshops about flight and the aviation industry. The girls worked in vertically grouped teams to design their own aerodynamic flying machines which were tested using a launcher in a grand finale. We also welcomed back four ONLs to talk to the Lower School girls about exciting careers in the STEAM industries. The First School girls took part in a Leonardo de Vinci-inspired workshop, learning about his works and inventions. A spectacular Wonderstruck rocket show ignited curiosity about the world of science and the week culminated with a Flight Mixer Day, in which girls collaborated to build parachutes, catapults and flying machines. 16
Year 3 performed ‘The Growing Project’, a play encompassing two important elements of Junior School life: the power of stories to transform and the Learning Habits.Year 4 presented a beautiful and touching version of ‘The Velveteen Rabbit’ on the Performing Arts Centre stage. The First School girls delighted audiences with their performance of a specially written musical play ‘The Land of Oz’ and the Lower School girls performed in the Christmas concert on the theme of ‘Celebrations’. The Year 6 production took the form of a series of monologues, written by the girls themselves, based on the theme of ‘Other Worlds’. This production, ‘Year 6 in Wonderland’, was filmed both at home and in the Performing Arts Centre and showcased some lovely performances at the end of the girls’ Junior School careers.
Although opportunities to enter external competitions were not as accessible this year, some highlights included: ■
The Herts Maths Challenge - our 2 teams came 5th and 9th out of 21 teams.
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9 5 girls entered the Primary Maths Challenge with 2 girls achieving full marks and 16 going through to the Bonus Round.
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The Primary Maths Challenge Bonus Round - 6 girls were awarded gold, 4 silver and 4 bronze.
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ear 3 and 4 girls sat the First Challenge remotely - 62 girls achieved gold, 10 of which were full Y marks, 26 silvers and 8 bronze awards.
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he Junior School Chess Team were successful in the first round of the English Primary Schools’ T Chess Association’s national competition, and also competed in the semi-final stage of the ECF Girls’ National Chess Championships.
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➤ WATCH OUR VIDEO HERE After School Clubs continue to be very popular and new clubs introduced this year include Have Your Say, Mindfulness and Me, Eco Club, and Mission: Explore.We are delighted that our newly formed Dance Squad were selected to compete in the Primary National Final of the “Great British Dance Off”. Our Debating team joined in events with other schools to practise and hone their skills.
he Junior Cross-Country Years 5 and 6 teams dominated the Harrow AC challenge, winning T both age groups.
Canons Choir Music for Youth
The Velveteen Rabbit
Year 5 Team Building Workshop
The look and feel of the Learning Habit characters have been revamped to ensure that girls readily identify and develop intellectual character as part of a holistic view to their education. The same characters grow up and evolve as the girls move up from the First to the Lower School. Each of the characters now includes a special object to reinforce the idea of the character trait. Following the submission of hundreds of student designs to a professional illustrator, the new characters were launched and have been displayed around the Junior School. The consistent use of these characters in PSHE, in academic work and in activities reinforces the importance of developing intellectual character from a young age.
Our Junior School Canons Choir, performed at The Royal Albert Hall as part of the annual Music for Youth Proms and competed in the prestigious 10th annual Barnardo’s National Choral Competition at the Royal Festival Hall after being selected from hundreds of choirs. NLCS Young Singers after school club joined 8,240 children and sang at the largest school concert in the world - Young Voices at the O2 Arena.
The Junior School quiet courtyard redevelopment is now nearing completion. In the Autumn, the library was transformed into a Music Room, providing girls with a specialist space for music lessons, a rehearsal space for chamber music groups, ensembles and choirs.
During the Summer Term girls continued NLCS Young Singers at the O2 their enthusiastic music making by creating a Virtual Summer Concert. More than 300 beautiful singing and instrumental videos were received and compiled into two wonderful musical videos: “There is a power in the music” and “Music Celebrations”.
In September 2019 we took possession of a new and enlarged Science Room which provides space for girls to carry out practical investigations and experiments using a wide range of equipment and resources. The opening of the new Learning Hub within the courtyard space has been delayed due to the pandemic, but we are looking forward to taking possession of the double volume library and the two IT spaces, one upstairs for the youngest girls and one downstairs. These will put reading and research philosophically and physically at the heart of the Junior School.
➤ WATCH OUR VIDEO HERE
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orth London Collegiate School recognises and celebrates our diverse school community, in which individuals value themselves, one another, and the different contributions that everyone can make to the School, our wider community and the world. The worldwide reaction to the death of George Floyd in May 2020 brought into sharp focus the persistence of systemic racism in our global society and caused us to reflect on our own community here at Canons, focussing on what more we can do to counter racism wherever it arises. We cannot just say that we are not racist; we must be actively anti-racist in our actions, policies and educational delivery.
EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
Over the past six months, we have spoken with staff, students, alumnae and with individuals beyond our school community, and will continue to do so, to ensure that we address these issues in a coherent, intelligent and transparent way. We believe that our School community, motivated by the values that we uphold, is an agent for change in the world. We will continue to ensure that more generations of young people leave NLCS empowered and enabled to take the next steps in their education and lives for their own benefit and the good of society as a whole.
The past cannot be changed, but we must learn from it. North London Collegiate School condemns discrimination and inequality in all its forms. Our school was founded on the principles of respect and compassion, service to others, and active, positive participation in society and the wider world. We will continue to ensure that our curriculum enables us to deliver a liberal, diverse and intellectually stimulating education which challenges stereotypes and empowers our students. Through our extra-curricular activities, partnerships and school societies, we will challenge inequality and inequity, promote fairness and equality for all and celebrate the differences that make us all unique and valuable members of society.
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Physical Education continued with students completing a Daily Fitness Log to track their progress, and a series of interactive resources were created with a focus on students’ physical and mental wellbeing. Students also took part in sports challenges, such as the #twopointsixchallenge raising funds for the National Brain Appeal and The Epilepsy Society.
IMPACTS OF THE PANDEMIC SENIOR SCHOOL T
he Summer Term was like no other at North London Collegiate School. From the beginning of lockdown, we were determined to continue providing the same quality of education to our students online with our distinctive focus on scholarship, and academic stretch and challenge beyond the restrictions of examination specifications.
At the heart of NLCS’s ethos is academic enrichment. We pride ourselves on offering an ambitious academic education, and central to this is our Senior Societies Programme, where we have over 50 student-led societies covering a vast panorama of interests, from Film and Media through to Pure Sciences. Every Society continued to meet online and led thoughtful discussions on a whole host of issues, such as artistic creativity and freedom of expression.
As soon as we switched to online school, we introduced a daily pastoral form time, which enabled students to meet with their tutors and allowed for much needed social interaction and pastoral support to continue. Our counselling service was also moved online providing extra support for students. We were very proud of how our students adapted to the challenges of the virtual school and in true NLCS style, they responded with great creativity and resilience. In addition to online learning, we held screen-free days, where students took part in offline projects, ranging from illustrating a book to making afternoon tea for the family. We also introduced a ‘Feel Good Week’ encouraging students to consider the five key steps to positive mental health.
The core element of the Senior Societies Programme is our weekly lecture slot, where we invite visiting speakers to talk on an issue of particular relevance to each Society. We continued with our ‘visits’ online and welcomed, amongst others, Amelia Gentleman (award-winning journalist) and Ketna Patel (Pop Artist), who encouraged students to question and formulate their own opinions on a range of issues. All of this was complemented by a full range of online Extra-Curricular Activities, including Sport, Music and Drama. Staff-led activities ranged, from public speaking and verbatim theatre to computer coding and Computer-aided design. After just a couple of weeks, our students were keen to take the reins, and they added a spectacular array of over 40 student-run options, from Debating club to Magic Minds magic club, all attended remotely! Our Sports Department led a superb virtual Sports Day, whilst the Music Department enabled students to perform in virtual concerts. Our students organised their own online concerts and an end of term ‘Showcase finale’ that demonstrated the talent existing throughout the year groups. We were dazzled with some superb monologues, dance, musical performances, and even NLCS’s take on the loo roll challenge! While many might have thought lockdown would spell the end of a rich and diverse extra-curricular programme, we were delighted that our students and staff came together so enthusiastically to continue to enrich their education in a manner that our founder, Frances Mary Buss, would have been most proud! At the end of term, staff agreed that though this time had been incredibly challenging, and that we could not wait to be back in school with our students, we all learned an enormous amount from the experience and the value technology can add to the classroom.
Canons Choir Music for Youth Making PPE faceshields
Year 7 virtual ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ 19
Extra-curricular provision is at the heart of an NLCS education. Despite not being in school, girls from Years 2 to 6 were presented with many clubs that they could join in with virtually. We were also very grateful to a group of Year 10 students who ran a club for Junior School girls, providing some of the muchmissed contact between Lower and Senior School pupils.
IMPACTS OF THE PANDEMIC JUNIOR SCHOOL
The curriculum was also enriched by whole school events such as a VE Day celebration, which saw everyone dressing in red, white and blue and taking part in a virtual street party. The Lower School girls took part in a virtual poetry festival and recorded videos of their self-penned poems and enjoyed watching other girls’ performances as they were shared over a series of weeks. Events such as the Lower School Summer Concert, Year 6 production, Talent Show, and Year 2 and Year 1 assembly all happened virtually, recorded and edited into dazzling representations of talent and NLCS grit!
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s soon as the national lockdown was instigated and schools were closed, the Junior School switched to online learning. The aim was to provide the same rigorous NLCS education, coupled with our strong focus on pastoral care and extra-curricular enrichment. The timetable in the Lower School was adapted to provide a pastoral form time at the beginning and end of the day, and in the First School, girls were contacted by their form teachers every day at a variety of different times. This allowed us to maintain a sense of community, provide support to girls who were experiencing difficulties, and give the girls an opportunity to socialise despite not being able to meet in person. Lessons were adapted to be taught online using a variety of creative and interactive websites and resources. Both pupils and teachers enjoyed getting to grips with new technology and websites that have proven to be useful on our return to school this term too.
Despite being challenged in ways we could never have imagined, Junior School teachers and pupils demonstrated great flexibility of mind, resilience and persistence to make virtual schooling as successful and enjoyable as possible. We were extremely happy, however, to be back in school in small bubbles towards the end of the Summer Term and in full classes this academic year.
PE took the form of online trackers that the girls submitted weekly to record the exercise they had been engaging in. Each year group was provided with a series of instructions and challenges to complete. The Director of Junior School PE organised a very successful virtual Sports Day for the Lower School that culminated in a nail-biting virtual presentation of the final results! The First School were able to take part in a socially-distanced Sports Day on the school grounds as they had returned to school by the end of term.
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SUSTAINABILITY AT NLCS M
inimising our impact on the environment is something that we are very passionate about and in February we completed our Environmental Strategy Plan with a commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2030. Our plan covers eight key areas of focus including education and engagement, on-site energy consumption, waste, food and water, travelling to school and Biodiversity.
We are well on our way to becoming a certified Eco School: ■
We have a full recycling programme and our paper is FSC certified.
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Catering Department is committed to ensuring that all leftover food is collected and redistributed, our fish is MSC certified, we have removed beef and lamb from the lunch menu and our products do not contain palm oil.
A great deal of our environmental initiatives are led by our students; we have an active Green Team in Year 11, a senior Environmental Awareness Society and NLCS is a member of the London Schools Eco-network, a collective group of like-minded students tackling the issues of climate change and our environment. Members of these groups also attend our Environment Committee, along with teaching and support staff. Our Fridays for Future Club have encouraged students to use their voice by starting petitions, writing to MPs and raising environmental awareness both in and out of school.
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panels have been installed and our electricity comes from a green supplier. Everyone in school is encouraged to save energy by switching off lights and electrical equipment when not in use and all computers are shut down automatically in the evenings.
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600 students continue to use our coach service every day, helping to reduce the number of cars on the roads and the Homerun App was successfully launched to parents and staff. ‘Stop idling’ signs are around the School site to remind drivers to turn off their engines and we have installed charging stations for electric cars.
Our carbon footprint has been calculated and independently audited by OneCarbonWorld, part of the UN Climate Neutral Now programme. This year, our students voted for Trees for Life as our offsetting organisation. We are also delighted that we are one of the first schools in the world to work with the UN Climate Neutral Now Initiative to become a carbon neutral organisation.
At Canons, we have lots of animal and plant species that call NLCS home. Our gardens are full of pollinator-friendly flowers and, with the help of our wonderful Grounds team, we are cultivating green-fingered students with Gardening Club. Our beautiful wild spaces around the School have been deliberately left un-kept encouraging wildlife. We only use peat-free products and compost in all our green waste on-site.
NEWS NLCS students have joined the London Schools Eco-network, a collective group of like-minded students tackling the issues of climate change and our environment. Student eco-teams meet weekly via Zoom to make plans for future projects, including a joint video presentation and an MP email campaign for World Environment Day and a Virtual Schools COP26 (global climate conference). In addition to this during the Summer Term, the Environmental Committee hosted a week of online events including debates, environmentally friendly cooking tasters and lectures to involve the whole school community.
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L ONDON ACADEMY OF EXCELLENCE TOTTENHAM – PARTNERSHIP STUDY DAY
PARTNERSHIPS
In September 2019 we were delighted to welcome Year 12 Economics students from the London Academy of Excellence Tottenham (LAET). This state Sixth Form opened in 2017 and is already providing an academically rich and ambitious education for local teenagers; this summer, the first cohort of Year 13s achieved outstanding A level results.
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his academic year we have continued to nurture our range of partnerships with schools in both the independent and the maintained sectors. Our partnership work has included debating and public speaking events; academic symposia, subject specialist days; and student mentoring.
We are proud to be an official partner school for LAET and we currently enjoy many links with them, including helping with preparation for university interviews and inviting their students to many of our subject conferences and symposia.
This year, we celebrated our 19th year of partnership with the Whitgift School and have also worked with Eton, The Ark Academy, Sacred Heart and The Michaela Community School amongst others.
London Academy of Excellence Tottenham
N LCS AND WHITGIFT SCHOOL – CROSS CURRICULAR SYMPOSIUM
These partnerships provide our students with knowledge, skills and experience well beyond the ambitious programme already offered at North London.
Students worked together in subject areas such as Medicine and Natural Sciences; Economics and Business; Politics and Geography; and English and Psychology. NLCS and Whitgift have enjoyed this Year 13 partnership for 19 years and judging by how much academic stretch and intellectual and social exchange was in evidence at the Symposium, the bond between our two schools proves to be as fruitful as ever.
Working with students from other schools broadens their outlook on the world, provokes thought and discussion, and deepens academic and personal confidence.
Climate Change Conference
IB Workshop
C LIMATE CHANGE CONFERENCE In March 2020, we held our first ever partnership day on the environment, an area the School has been forging ahead with this academic year. Year 7 students from NLCS were joined by boys from Queen Elizabeth’s School for a day of collaboration on their responses to the climate crisis.
Cross Curricular Symposium
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I NTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE WORKSHOP Year 10 students were joined by pupils from Abbot’s Hill School and Palmer’s Green High School for a workshop introducing the principles and practices of the International Baccalaureate. Following an introductory lecture on aesthetics, the girls broke into groups to consider how we might evaluate questions of style and taste.
CHARITY S
In October 2019, we held ‘Get Active’, a 24 hour sponsored event involving students from Years 10 and 11. Students participated in a range of activities such as lacrosse, judo, bouldering, yoga and gym work from 9am on Saturday 12th October to 9am on Sunday 13th October including a 2am Latin dance class quickly followed by a glow in the dark badminton session. The spirit and energy of the girls was phenomenal. Money raised went to the National Brain Appeal.
Mary’s Meals Charity
Christmas Panto
upporting the community and giving back is something which the NLCS family feels very strongly about and takes a priority in our termly activities.
It was a busy year for Canonaid, the School’s Charity Committee with representatives from each year group offering opportunities for students right across the School to get involved in fundraising. The two charities students voted to support were Centrepoint and Tree Aid. Students ran a very successful Coin for Life drive, collecting used foreign currency. Each of the Charity Committees also organised an event or sale. Year 7 organised a Reverse Advent where they asked each girl to bring in a food item per day for one week and all food items were donated to Harrow Foodbank and Year 9 organised a wonderfully entertaining teacher karaoke event.
Delivering PPE
We hosted our annual Community Christmas Party for residents of local care homes. Guests and students ate together and watched a pantomime organised by the Drama department. Covid-19 and the national lockdown inevitably meant that we were no longer able to physically get out into the community. However, that didn’t mean that our charitable work had to slow down. Production of our PPE face shields for local GP surgeries and care homes continued over the lockdown weeks and, with the help of Canonaid, we were also able to supply the face shields to the Year 7 Charity Committee 23
Livability Care Homes as well as ‘Happiness’ cards which the girls made to help bring little moments of joy to the residents there. We were so grateful to be able to continue supporting them during such extremely challenging times. In response to the challenging times, students created a NLCS Acts of Kindness Group and in collaboration with Canonaid created a video of well-wishing to send to care homes and NHS workers. In addition to this, over 30 NLCS musicians and singers came together to create a virtual orchestra, performing The Beatles’ ‘Here Comes the Sun’ – an amazing achievement.
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t the beginning of the academic year, we could not have envisaged the global events that were to unfold during 2020. Although many of the plans we had in place had to be curtailed during this time, we are extremely grateful for the continued support we have received from the NLCS community. NLCS is dependent on philanthropic support to raise money for important capital projects and bursaries. Our provision of bursary places is central to the ethos of the School, and the Bernice McCabe Bursary Fund continues to flourish, providing opportunities to transform lives. Funded by donations, franchising and investment income, during 2019/20 the School awarded 74 bursaries, with a total value of £1,328,531. We are committed to increasing our level of donations to the bursary fund during the next academic year.
50 Year reunion
DEVELOPMENT AND ALUMNAE RELATIONS Although the pandemic hampered many of our planned events, we were delighted that two Neighbourhood Drinks in St John’s Wood and Hampstead were able to take place, providing an opportunity for local parent communities to come together. We are very grateful to the parents who so kindly hosted these evenings. Our global alumnae community continues to grow, and we are in contact with over 9,000 ONLs (Old North Londoners). Even though Covid-19 has impacted on our alumnae relations work this year, and we could not hold all the events we had planned, we are so grateful for the resilience of the ONL community, as well as its patience, grace, and kindness during these challenging times. Before lockdown we had several opportunities to meet. In September, we were delighted to welcome back the Class of 1969 for their 50-year reunion – it was wonderful seeing ONLs reconnecting and sharing memories of their time at school. An informal reunion of our 1986 alumnae was held at Canons in the early Autumn and, as Christmas approached, ONLs were invited to enjoy an evening of carols performed by our music students at The Parish Church of St George’s in Hanover Square. In the new year we welcomed back the Class of 2019 to North London for their one-year reunion and, in March before lockdown restrictions were imposed, we had a very successful Women in the Workplace event kindly hosted by ONL Sarah Anticoni, and featuring a fabulous panel, including ONLs Rosa Jung and Judith Breuer, as well as keynote speaker Lucy Frazer QC, MP for South East Cambridgeshire.
St George’s Church Carol Service
During lockdown, we put in place plans to strengthen our mentoring and career services programme, reaching out to ONLs to mentor our Sixth formers, and we have received a fabulous response. We are planning a schedule of events including virtual reunions, networking events, as well as reaching out to our global community. The upcoming digital issue of ONLine promises to be an inspirational read! A big thank you to everyone within the NLCS community who has supported, donated and given their time to our School during this challenging year. We were particularly delighted to raise an unprecedented amount of money for the Bernice McCabe Bursary Fund and Hardship Fund, largely due to the generosity of many outgoing Year 13 parents who donated their school deposits. We value all that you do. Class of 2019 reunion 24
A short time after the service at St Paul’s Cathedral took place, students and staff gathered in the grounds at Canons to watch the unveiling of a permanent memorial to Mrs McCabe. It is an armillary sundial, which overlooks the Chandos Beauty roses that Mrs McCabe always enjoyed seeing from her study window. Soon after she arrived at Canons in September 1997, Mrs McCabe mentioned that she had always loved sundials, objects of beauty which silently remeasure time through the passing of the seasons. Inscribed on the sphere are the final lines from a short poem, ‘For Katrina’s Sundial’ by Henry van Dyke: ‘…for those who love, time is Eternity.’ This poem, which Mrs McCabe had always found moving and uplifting, was read at the ceremony. In the years to come, we shall watch the sunlight falling on the sundial in this garden at Canons and remember Mrs McCabe with immense gratitude and love.
IN MEMORY North London Collegiate School remembers former Headmistress, Bernice McCabe OBE (1952 - 2019) On Friday 8th November 2019 over 2000 guests gathered at St Paul’s Cathedral for a Memorial Service to celebrate the life of our former Headmistress, Bernice McCabe OBE. The service was attended by Mrs McCabe’s close friends and family, NLCS students and staff – both past and present – along with Governors, representatives from NLCS Schools in South Korea and Dubai, The Prince’s Teaching Institute, and HRH The Prince of Wales. During the service, Headmistress, Sarah Clark, gave a very moving tribute, which began with the fitting quote “The best evidence for her work for the world is that it will go on, even though the active brain and the busy hand are still”, which was written after the passing of our founder Frances Mary Buss nearly 125 years ago. The service was an extremely moving and a most appropriate way to commemorate Mrs McCabe’s extraordinary achievements and the inspirational leadership that she gave to NLCS during her 20 years of Headship. In a final tribute, NLCS launched The Bernice McCabe Bursary Fund. NLCS is extremely proud of the fundraising that we do in order to facilitate so many bursary places, and to see firsthand how transformational a gift towards a bursary can be. We feel certain that Mrs McCabe would be delighted to know that this Fund is in place and will hopefully be supported by many; her fundamental belief was that every girl should be given the opportunity of an outstanding education, irrespective of financial background and we will work hard to ensure that her belief will be upheld for many generations of North Londoner’s to come. 25
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It goes, I hope, without saying that there is so much more to an education at NLCS than academic success, however important. The Annual Review gives a good flavour of the extraordinary range of societies, lectures, drama, music and sports that the School offers. We aim to find and develop our students’ interests, whatever they may be, and believe this is critical in encouraging and developing confident and independent young women able to take their place in, and make a strong contribution to, the rapidly changing world in which we live. With this in mind, we were particularly encouraged by the enthusiasm and dedication with which so many girls worked with charities to raise money and help others over the year and during the pandemic, in particular.
am delighted and honoured to have been asked to become Chairman of Governors at NLCS and pleased to contribute to this year’s Annual Review.
NLCS has a proud record as one of the country’s leading schools for girls, with a particularly strong academic tradition, a culture of inquisitive scholarship and a determination to inspire and stretch its students in all areas. Academic activities this year have, of course, like so many others, been overshadowed by the COVID-19 crisis. The Governing Body monitored closely what Sarah Clark and her team did to respond to the unprecedented challenges that the pandemic has thrown up. The hard work and effort put in were exceptional and we have been very impressed by what has been achieved. New methods of teaching and learning had to be implemented at short notice and, whilst some teething problems were inevitable, we are confident that what NLCS put in place bears comparison with any other school in the country.
We were delighted to find this year that the quality of education, in its broadest sense, that NLCS offers was recognised externally. The full ISI Inspection rated the School as ‘Excellent’ – the highest grade possible. We are, nonetheless, far from complacent and the Governors will continue work with Sarah and her team to enhance and strengthen further what we offer our students. Thank you, in turn, for choosing NLCS and for the confidence you place in us.
This term has thrown up new challenges and again we are pleased that the response has enabled the day-to-day experience of being at school to be as close to normal as possible. We are also very conscious that girls and their families remain under a variety of pressures in these difficult times. We place a particular emphasis on pastoral care and student welfare and so are keeping a close eye on these. We aim to help wherever we can. The cancellation of public exams this year means that results in 2019-20, based as they were on predicted grades, are not strictly comparable with other years. Nonetheless, we are pleased by the results achieved – in headline terms, record results. These are reflected in the range and quality of universities to which our leavers are going, including impressive success rates in entries to Oxford and Cambridge and the Ivy League.
ROBERT HINGLEY Chairman of Governors
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Canons, Canons Drive, Edgware Middlesex HA8 7RJ T +44 (0)20 8952 0912 www.nlcs.org.uk 27
