School news

Celebrating 10 Years of girls at Trinity

September 2021 marks the significant moment in the school’s history when girls joined our Sixth Form for the first time.

Melodie caught up with former Headmaster Mark Bishop and Chair of Governors, Lord Barwell, who were in charge of the decision-making process at the time.

At what point in your headship did you consider a co-educational Sixth Form would benefit the school?

"After my first year at Trinity, I began to realise that if we were to really thrive, we had to have something that made us more distinct from the two schools we were often compared with – Whitgift and Dulwich. We knew we were different in terms of size, atmosphere and ethos, but I became convinced that this wasn’t sufficient. Equally, each year we were losing some really good boys after GCSEs because they wanted to join co-educational Sixth Forms at places like Alleyn’s and Caterham, so I felt we had to make a significant and, at the time, radical change. Clearly, from the first idea, it then took several years of planning and intricate discussions with various stakeholders to bring it to fruition."

Were the governors receptive ?

"The biggest challenge was trying to get all the Whitgift Foundation on board. In surveys, Trinity staff and parents were well over 90% in favour and, needless the say, the boys were extremely keen on the idea. But the Heads of the other two schools and some governors weren’t in favour. The Old Palace Head was understandably concerned, but was incredibly professional and rational in all our discussions. The Whitgift Head was not keen for reasons which, at first, I didn’t really understand. It turned out that Dr Barnett had wanted Whitgift to take girls and so wasn’t delighted that we had made the first move. At the time Gavin (now Lord) Barwell was the Chair of the Trinity Committee and he couldn’t have been more supportive or helpful in navigating through the various committees and political manoeuvres, whilst Ian Harley, who was at the time Chair of the Foundation, was also an enormous help."

Were you surprised at the number of applications from girls?

"I was surprised, delighted and mightily relieved at the number of applications. To have gone through all the work to get agreement to then find that hardly any girls wanted to come would have been heart-breaking."

What was the reasoning behind all-girl tutor groups?

"As part of our preparations for the arrival of girls, we sent senior staff to visit other schools that had recently taken similar steps, and one of these had gone for allgirl tutor groups. My initial response when I heard this was negative as I had assumed that we must have mixed tutor groups but I was eventually persuaded, if I remember rightly, by Sara Ward, to change course and it turned out to be exactly the right move."

Did the performance of the girls exceed your expectations?

"There is absolutely no question that the first group of girls were the reason that the move to a co-educational Sixth Form was a success. They were bright, talented and they had real courage. It cannot have been easy moving from often smaller girls’ schools to a school full of 800 boys but they adjusted superbly to being at Trinity. One of our biggest concerns about the move was would it change our fundamental atmosphere and ethos, which is what most pupils, parents and teachers really liked about the school. I honestly think that the nature of the school didn’t change, but the girls broadened our horizons, added to the intellectual, sporting and cultural life of the school and just made it a far more ‘normal’ environment for both boys and girls before they go off to what will, of course, be co-educational universities."

The first cohort of girls joining us in 2011

When asked about the move to a co-educational Sixth Form, Lord Barwell, alumnus, who left Trinity in 1990, said:

"I was very lucky during my time as Chair of the Governors to work with Mark Bishop, who was an outstanding Headmaster. We agreed that we needed to do something to further differentiate Trinity from its competitors and to address the fact that some talented boys were leaving at 16 because they wanted to go to a co-educational Sixth Form. But as well as these pressures to change, I felt very strongly that it was the right thing to do. Once we had made the decision, my job - for which I guess I was well qualified - was to navigate the politics of the Whitgift Foundation and get their sign off. It's probably the single decision we took during my time as a governor of which I am most proud. Trinity today is a more successful, better school than it was in the late 2000s and the admission of girls into the Sixth Form is a big part of that change and very much something to celebrate."

Sara Ward, Head of Upper School at the time, was there at the forefront when the girls started:

“As soon as I was appointed, Mark Bishop told me that the decision had been taken to welcome girls into the Sixth Form at Trinity from 2011. Already excited about my new job, this was the icing on the cake for me. Throughout my teaching career, I have always enjoyed the vibrancy of the co-educational Sixth Form classroom and the contributions of the capable, creative and impressive young women I have taught. I was thrilled, therefore, to find myself working with a team of enthusiastic people to create the right physical environment in the form of a new Sixth Form Centre and – more importantly – the right academic and pastoral environment in which our new girls would thrive. What a great experience this was. I am delighted but not at all surprised to continue to see the wonderful contributions of our girls to all aspects of school life over the past 10 years – what a privilege this has been!”

Head of Sixth Form Antonia Geldeard (right) with Sixth Form students

Current Deputy Head and Head of Sixth Form, Antonia Geldeard said:

“A co-educational Sixth Form is undoubtedly an attraction when parents are looking at Trinity for their child, whether it is the parents of boys joining us further down the school, or students applying to study A levels with us. A diverse Sixth Form reflects real life and prepares our young people for university and beyond. Many of the girls who join us are brilliant mathematicians, physicists and chemists as well as those who choose to pursue the arts and humanities here. Our talented alumnae have gone on to read a vast range of subjects at university including Medicine, Engineering and PPE. This breadth and equality of opportunity crosses genders and develops our students within and beyond the classroom."

Where are our alumnae now?

Donna has been enjoying catching up with some of our alumnae to see where they headed after two years in the Sixth Form at Trinity. We share their news here.

JESSICA O’SULLIVAN

Jessica was our first Head Girl at Trinity having joined our Sixth Form in 2011. She went on to read Modern and Medieval Languages (French and Spanish) at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, finding time to take History and Portuguese modules as well. Jessica works as a Commercial Manager at Sky, having started there on a graduate scheme in 2018. Donna asked her whether the skills she learned as Head Girl helped her in her career. “I acquired leadership and teamwork skills working in partnership with Ejaaz Ahamadeen, the Head Boy, dividing and conquering the tasks we were given. I also developed my presenting, public speaking and time management skills – all of which are invaluable in my role today.” When asked what the best piece of advice she would give to Sixth Formers today, she said: “Never be afraid to admit you don’t understand something, or that you need help. Also, enjoy your time at school – you will never get to be with your friends every day, all day, again. Just enjoy! You’ll miss it when you are older.”

ELEANOR LEWIS

2015 leaver Eleanor studied Chemistry, Maths and Music at A Level and completed an extended project as well as AS Biology. She went on to read Biochemistry at the University of Birmingham, followed by a Science PGCE and a Masters’ in Education, both at Cambridge. Eleanor has been working with young people since she graduated and is now a Chemistry teacher. Donna asked her what the best piece of advice she had been given at Trinity. “Sara Ward once told me 'You can’t fix everything.' At the time I was panicky about being able to control things and help as many people as I could! But now I’m a teacher, I totally understand what she means.”

And what advice would she give her 18-year-old self? “Try to live in the moment a little more. Most of the things I worried about actually turned out fine, so try to enjoy your time at school and don’t spend time worrying about the future.”

LUCY ELLIS-KEELER

Lucy, who left Trinity in 2015, read Philosophy at the University of Bristol having taken A Levels in English Literature, Religious Studies and History. She is now a Compliance and Operational Risk Officer at Bank of America for EMEA, based in London, having started her career at the bank on an internship in 2017. Bank of America have supported her in working to achieve her Capital Markets qualification from the Chartered Institute of Security and Investments (CISI). Lucy supports multiple lines of business to manage Compliance and Operational Risk exposure, looking at policy, laws, rules and regulations, as well as risks posed by people, processes, external events and systems. Lucy is heavily involved in Bank of America’s partnership with the Vital Voices Mentoring Walk initiative which matches emerging female talent with senior mentors, offering guidance, career advice and support, born out of their own experiences. Having won two awards consecutively, within the bank’s prestigious employee recognition schemes, Lucy has progressed quickly and is an inspiration to young graduates interested in banking careers. “Choosing to study at Trinity transformed my sense of confidence and totally realigned my ambitions once I believed I could achieve anything I set my mind to. The school has a fantastic culture. It encouraged me to use my initiative to pursue my interests both academic and extra-curricular, and provided an incredibly positive and collaborative environment to grow and learn in. Learning from teachers passionate about their subject, who truly understand how to achieve great results but also learn how to think outside the curriculum was so valuable.”

DEESHA GANGULI

Deesha was our sixth Head Girl for the academic year 2017-18. She is in her final year as an undergraduate at Warwick University reading Politics and International Studies.

Deesha said: “I did Politics, Economics and Geography at A Level and absolutely loved them all! Something that stands out about my time at Trinity is the fantastic range of opportunities and experiences students can get involved in, which helped me develop other interests outside academics.”

Deesha is working hard on her dissertation on ‘Celebrity Culture in International Development’ and has very kindly volunteered to come back over the summer to assist the Alumni Department.

SHREYA GANGULI

Shreya was Head Girl for 2018-19 and is currently in her second year at the University of Edinburgh, studying History and Politics having gained A Levels in History, Politics and Religious Studies at Trinity. She told Donna she is really missing all her classes and teachers!

Shreya said: “There are lots of things that stand out from when I was at Trinity, but I especially enjoyed being in an environment that was so positive and supportive. There were so many wonderful opportunities and people when I was at Trinity, and I feel very grateful for my time there.”

Shreya starts a year abroad at the University of Oslo, Norway, this August.

We left the last word to one of our current Lower Sixth students.

ELLA SULLIVANMARTIN

Ella is in our Lower Sixth where she is studying A level Psychology, English, Religious Studies and Art.

“I came to Trinity following a great experience at an all-girls school, where I really enjoyed learning. However, since joining Trinity, I noticed that the mixed classroom presents a more open and diverse discussion between us as students. The co-educational environment certainly generates a range of views, with everyone welcome and willing to contribute. I noticed very quickly that the classroom environment improved my confidence to express myself, as I was given the chance to justify my views and debate with my peers. I feel that I have developed a better understanding of the content being studied and improved my academic capability alongside this. Without the environment at Trinity, I don’t think I would have developed this level of confidence and ability to speak coherently in and out of the classroom.”