Sport
Charting a course through stormy waters Mark Semmence describes a West Country transformation Barnaby Lenon, speaking at the recent HMC Conference in Stratford, is but the latest high-profile educationalist to express misgivings about the future of the independent sector; and anxieties regarding affordability and the place of independent education in a rapidly changing social and political context have swirled around the sector for some time. Lenon’s message, however, was clear: with independent education further and further beyond the reach of its traditional domestic market, schools which fall outside the magic circle of the M25 must adapt fast if they are to survive. The identification of, and investment in, a clear USP; a forensic focus on the quality of teaching and learning; the maximisation of a broad range of income streams and a market-oriented approach hold the key to success in challenging times. The experience of Mount Kelly since its formation in 2014 is a case in point. All three antecedent schools – Kelly College, Kelly Prep, and Mount House Prep – had experienced significant decline in recent years and faced a highly uncertain future. However, over the last two years, Mount Kelly has seen a 30% increase in pupil numbers from Years 9 – 13, a new
50m Olympic pool recently opened, and boarding houses now full to capacity, so the school’s recent history may offer some indications of how independent schools might survive the storm that is already upon us. The first step for Mount Kelly was to drive through and firmly embed the merger, though, given the very distinctive ethos and market-orientation of the three constituent schools, this was always going to present challenges. Pupils, staff and parents had clearly to understand the imperative behind the merger, and this required an unsentimental analysis of the economic reality facing the three former schools. It was also critical, if the sceptical were to be brought on-side, that the merger should be seen to yield immediate benefits: in a competitive market, there is simply no place for promises of “jam tomorrow”. Central to making the merger more than simply a legal reality was the clear understanding that every decision must be informed by a resolute commitment to the single school principle, and in matters of uniform, structure, curriculum, policy and process, the focus has been on the creation of
‘Learning outside the classroom’: On this occasion, at Dartmoor
Spring 2017
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