Absolutely Education Autumn 2024 by ABSOLUTELY Magazines

FOCUS ON Wycli e College

BREADTH OF OPPORTUNITY IN THE HEART OF THE COTSWOLDS

Special

Special Kindergarten

MONDAY 18 TO THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER · 9.30AM

Join us with your two-year-old for a playful peek into our unique Kindergarten life.

For parents and their 2-3 year-old child (born between 1 September 2021 and 31 August 2022).

Parents of younger or older children can also see the school in action by joining one of the regular tours.

Visit hernehillschool.co.uk for further details and to book

Visit hernehillschool.co.uk for further

‘Very Satisfaied’

98% ‘Very Satisfaied’ or ‘Satisfied’

See website for July ‘24 parent survey results

Parents know best

We attach great importance to the views of our parents. They are close to all we do and witness first-hand how their children progress, and to what extent we deliver against our ambitious stated aims.

The staff are so nurturing, and they weave learning into play in the most wonderful way. Our daughter has relished every moment she has been in Kindergarten.

Kindergarten parent

Asked in our most recent (July 2024) confidential survey about their overall satisfaction with their child’s experience at Herne Hill School over the past academic 98% responded that they were either ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’, with the vast majority being ‘very satisfied’ (85%)

Asked in our most recent (July 2024) confidential survey about their overall satisfaction with their child’s experience at Herne Hill School over the past academic year, 98% responded that they were either ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’, with the vast majority being ‘very satisfied’ (85%)

In the light of our parents’ understandably high expectations, we are proud of their strong endorsement of our provision and of their many complimentary comments.

The perfect setting for your child’s early

The perfect setting for your child’s early schooling

Embedding key values and developing ‘the whole child’ through a unique, continuous five-year curriculum

} Embedding key values and developing ‘the whole child’ through a unique, continuous five-year curriculum

Focusing exclusively on cutting edge

Early Childhood Education (age 2+ to 7+), the most crucial period in a child’s life

A true gem where children can flourish, find their love for learning, and grow friendships and self-confidence.

Pre-Reception parent

Te school has so many strengths: A friendly community tailored for young people. Outdoor space to imagine and play. Attention to progress and meet learning goals.

Reception parent

} Focusing exclusively on cutting edge Early Childhood Education (age 2+ to 7+), the most crucial period in a child’s life

Transitioning seamlessly from playbased to more structured learning

} Transitioning seamlessly from playbased to more structured learning

Expert staff embracing the ethos of under which children thrive with enthusiasm

} Expert staff embracing the ethos of Love · Care · Excellence under which children thrive with enthusiasm

Extensive wrap-around care from

} Extensive wrap-around care from 7.45am to 6pm

HHS is a magical fairyland that we never want to leave!

Year 1 parent

The school manages to inspire the children on a daily basis. They have a magical experience at HHS, where they learn to strive in a nurturing environment.

Year 2 parent

Report just released - see website

ISI Inspection Report just released - see website

020 7274 6336

Every child’s story begins with

Visit Habs Boys and Habs Girls for the space to make a difference.

MAKE A PROFOUND IMPACT

SCAN FOR HABS BOYS’ SCHOOL SCAN FOR HABS GIRLS’ SCHOOL

a blank page.

CONTRIBUTORS

Gareth Parker-Jones

Head Master, Rugby School

Gareth Parker-Jones became Head of Rugby in 2015, having been Deputy Head (Academic) before that. He read History at Oxford and his career has included spells at Sevenoaks and Harrow. He discusses the twin issues of smartphones and 'safetyism' and how schools can provide an antidote with time for fun and fearless pursuits away from the online world.

Ngaire Telford

Headteacher, Herne Hill School

Ngaire Telford grew up in New Zealand, training as a teacher at Victoria University. A er moving to London, she taught in the state sector before being drawn to Herne Hill – initially seeking a school for her own children. A passionate advocate of the importance of Early Childhood Education, she discusses how it builds foundations for success in learning and life.

Donncha O'Callaghan

Retired rugby international

Donncha O'Callaghan's rugby career began during schooldays in Cork and included a vital role in the 2009 Six Nations Grand Slam. Since hanging up his boots, other roles have included coaching on Ireland's Fittest Family. He discusses his ﬁrst book for middle-grade readers, a comic, and not entirely ﬁctional, account of a disaster dad's week in charge.

CONTRIBUTORS

Suzie Longstaff

Principal, London Park Schools (LPS)

A former Olympic and Cambridge University rower, Suzie Longstaﬀ heads up LPS' senior and sixth form schools. Prior to this, she led Putney High School GDST. In this issue, she talks about the need to move beyond rigid Victorian approaches to education and embrace this century's requirements for creativity, adaptability and critical thinking.

Dan Schreiber

Writer, comedian, producer and podcaster

Dan Schreiber's big break came, aged 19, when he met John Lloyd and was signed up as a QI elf. His long association with fascinating facts includes Radio 4's The Museum of Curiosity, the mega-hit podcast No Such Thing As A Fish and We Can Be Weirdos, which launched last year. He discusses Impossible Things, his new book encouraging children to 'just suppose...'.

Rachael Burford

Retired rugby international

Born into a family of rugby players, Rachael Burford picked up the ball aged six. Her career highlights include the 2014 World Cup and winning the league in 2021 as part of Quins. New roles include Head of Women's Rugby at the International Rugby Players & England Rugby Players Association. In 'Making of Me', she talks about the teachers who backed her talent.

CONTRIBUTORS

Colette Hiller

Writer, producer and actress

Colette Hiller appeared in the original London production of Annie and the classic sci-ﬁ ﬁlm Aliens, as well as many plays. Then she switched to creating, as a BBC producer and designer of large-scale cultural projects. She talks about her latest book, created to help children fall in love with words of substance and precision.

Oliver Knight

Head, Pangbourne College

Oliver Knight took on his fourth headship at Pangbourne College in Berkshire in September, joining from Ark Academy in Acton. He is also an author on education, sits on the board of a multi-academy trust and is an independent-school governor. He discusses why education needs to combine academic rigour with rich opportunities for adventure and exploration.

Priya Hira

Sustainability Lead, JAGS

Priya Hira has a background that includes secondment across the nuclear industry for the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. She studied Maths and Business at Aston, also studying and working in Germany. She describes how JAGS inspires its students to think about sustainability – all beginning with turning compost.

AN INDEPENDENT BOARDING AND DAY SCHOOL FOR GIRLS AGED 11 TO 18, SET IN THE BEAUTIFUL SUSSEX COUNTRYSIDE JUST AN HOUR FROM LONDON

OUTSTANDING ACADEMIC RESULTS • SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE EXTENSIVE CO-CURRICULAR PROGRAMME EXEMPLARY PASTORAL CARE & NURTURING ENVIRONMENT STATE OF THE ART EQUESTRIAN CENTRE FLEXI, WEEKLY AND FULL BOARDING OPTIONS

Open Mornings

WEDNESDAY 4 TH DECEMBER 2024 FRIDAY 14 TH MARCH 2025

TO ARRANGE A VISIT PLEASE CONTACT MRS SHIRLEY COPPARD,

From the EDITOR

Education is so much more than academics, as we all know, and learning for life beyond school has become a strong theme of this issue. It is something that Wycli e College – our cover and focus proﬁle – does more than ably, and we travelled to its Cotswolds home to see how it delivers education to equip young people for a bright and happy future (from page 32).

We talk to ﬁve schools about how they build a spirit of resilience from earliest years (page 58) and ﬁnd that all of them focus on showing children how to recover from failure. Learning how to pick ourselves up and have another go is a life lesson best taught early. Sport is a superb forum for doing just that, and it was

overcome (page 41). We hear a state perspective (page 42), as the Head of a Hackney primary describes her school’s robust phone-free policy. Phones are highlighted again in Healthy relationships (page 129), as TASIS England’s Director of Pastoral Care discusses how the school teaches students to be active bystanders. And in Let’s talk relationships (page 124), phones are incriminated as a tool for controlling behaviours. Paula DeVaux shares advice she gives to young people on recognising this and other signs and being wise advisors to each other. Indeed, when it comes to smartphones, I can’t help but think that we adults are the ones who have to wise up and undo some of the damage. We could start by restricting our smartphone use in front of our own and others’ children. Going smartphone free for a while might be as liberating for us as it is for them.

“I CAN’T HELP BUT THINK WE ADULTS HAVE TO WISE UP AND UNDO SOME OF THE DAMAGE – WE COULD START BY RESTRICTING OUR SMARTPHONE USE IN FRONT OF OUR OWN CHILDREN”

a real pleasure to catch up with two rugby legends who know all about trials – and the importance of try, try again. Ireland rugby international Donncha O’Callaghan talks about his new book on page 80, while England international Rachael Burford describes her school days in Kent and the two sports teachers who believed in her talent (page 134). Smartphone use by children has risen up the educational agenda dramatically in recent times, but some schools have been way ahead on this. The Head Master of Rugby explores the twin issues of smartphones and ‘safetyism’, which schools such as his work to

On a liberating end note: Halloween. In my day apple bobbing and fake spiders’ webs su ced. But after going behind the scenes at Norfolk scare attraction PrimEvil (page I92), where teachers, medics and local councillors are among those who return each year as scare actors (no, I am not kidding), I’m seriously considering the stress release potential for myself. Feel free to join me – we could all do with a good scream once in a while. Of course, that’s something that every child knows already. Welcome

Libby Norman EDITOR

CONTE

AUTUMN 2024

18 SCHOOL NEWS

What’s going on in the world of education

25 STEAM ATTRACTION

Careers + cool rides with ACS International Schools

26 BREAKING THE MOULD

Hurtwood House has a long history of doing di erent – and with amazing outcomes

FOCUS

32 BREADTH OF OPPORTUNITY

Wycli e College is a vibrant place to grow and learn – from nursery up to 18+

55 EARLY INVESTMENT

Herne Hill School on why early years is the best education investment PREP

58 BUILDING RESILIENCE

Five schools share their strategy for building inner strength

74 PERFECT WORDS

Colette Hiller's latest book gives children words of substance and precision

94 SUPER SCIENCE

How clever schools bring science out of class and into the real world

109 SPINNING CLASS

JAGS' lessons in the circular economy

115 INCLUSIVE BOARDING

Gordon's School on the beneﬁts of state boarding

124 LET'S TALK RELATIONSHIPS

Heping children learn what healthy relationships look like

134 MAKING OF ME

Rachael Burford's Kent school days and the teachers who believed in her talent

141 ASK THE EXPERTS

Your education questions answered Sixth form

150 CAREERS COUNSEL

Three careers specialists give topical advice

162 LOOKING STATESIDE

Essential intel for US university applicants

173 FOUR SKILLS FOR LIFE

Attributes and skills that employers really value

Up Front

RHS ROLE

Royal Hospital School (RHS) in Suﬀolk has welcomed Irfan Latif as Headmaster. Formerly Principal of DLD College London, he serves on the board of the Boarding Schools’ Association (BSA) and the Independent Schools’ Association (ISA). Irfan Latif says of his appointment: “It is an honour and privilege to lead such an iconic and historic school”.

“The new Head of RHS in Su olk Irfan Latif says it’s a privilege to lead such an iconic and historic school”

School partnership

St Dunstan’s Education Group and The Villa School & Nursery have a new partnership, giving children at The Villa the opportunity to transition to St Dunstan’s schools at 7+. St Dunstan’s Head Nick Hewlett says: “Parents will now be able to beneﬁt from the new partnership without the worry of a stressful 7+ experience”.

TREE OF LIFE

Hazlegrove Prep’s King John Oak is on the Woodland Trust’s Tree of the Year Award shortlist. Oaks can live for over 1,000 years –Hazlegrove’s measures 10.74m around its trunk and is treasured by pupils, who this year received an Eco-Schools’ Green Flag award for their work via the Eco-School Committee.

Girls welcome

Aysgarth Prep in North Yorkshire made history at the start of the academic year by welcoming 34 girls into the prep school. With a nearly 150-year tradition of day and boarding education for boys, the school is embracing co-education right through Years 4–8. Aysgarth has been welcoming girls to the Pre-Prep for 30 years.

“Mentoring someone is not creating them in your own image, but giving them the opportunity to create themselves”

STEVEN SPIELBERG

OLYMPIA OPENING

Inspired Education has revealed plans for Wetherby Pembridge, a co-ed Senior opening in September 2025 and located in a purpose-built school site in London Olympia. It will be led by Nick Page, whose background includes leadership roles at Westminster and Harrow. The school will accommodate 475 pupils aged 11-18.

Phone campaign

First News relaunched its Look Up! campaign in September, to remind young people of the dangers of phone use around roads.

Last year, over 4,500 pedestrians aged 15 and under were injured – that’s a classroom each week. The assembly pack reminded children to put phones away and avoid being a SMOMBIE (smartphones + zombies).

New Leader

Emanuel School has appointed Ravi Kothakota as Head from September 2025. Currently Deputy Head: Pupils, he says: “I am delighted to be given the opportunity by the Governing Body to build on the exceptional work of Rob Milne, leading Emanuel towards an exciting future”.

CRICKET COLLABORATION

SPACE TIME

Science was out of this world for boys at Shrewsbury House School when they celebrated World Space Week in October. They were able to step inside a mobile planetarium and journey through the cosmos. The Surbiton prep is also celebrating as its Executive Head Joanna Hubbard (pictured) recently picked up a ‘Best Head of a Prep School’ award.

BOYS BOARDING

From January 2025, Sibford in Oxfordshire, will open a second boarding house for boys. Penn House will be for Years 7 to 13 and is undergoing renovation to ensure a comfortable living environment. Sibford School oﬀers full, weekly and ﬂ exi boarding options for students from age 11.

Northamptonshire County Cricket Club and Bedford School have announced a partnership to help promising cricketers. Bedford’s elite pupils will receive high-performance training, while the school grounds and facilities will be used by NCCC’s age-group cricket programme for the county.

SOMETHING THEY SAID

“The only advice... is to not be that person

your own personal experience” that

REI

giving out unsolicited advice based on

“WHAT’S INTERESTING ABOUT COLLABORATIONS IS THE POSSIBILITY FOR ONE PLUS ONE TO EQUAL THREE ”

KAWAKUBO

TAYLOR SWIFT

SCIENCE LIVE

Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock and Professor Brian Cox have joined with The Royal Society in the latest round of Brian Cox School Experiments. Designed for students aged 11-14, the videos are located on the Royal Society’s YouTube channel and explore robotics for astronauts, microplastic pollution, and green energy for sustainability.

CREATIVE OUTLET

Students at Queen Ethelburga’s Collegiate (QE) gained ﬁrsthand experience from experts in the creative industry in a day of workshops from NM Productions – which is led by former QE student Anissa Payne. Workshops included direction, storyboards, makeup and special eﬀects, plus set design.

Head arrival

Allison Saunders has been appointed Head of Notting Hill & Ealing High School GDST. Currently Senior Deputy Head at St Catherine’s in Twickenham and, prior to that, Deputy Head at St Helen’s, Northwood, she is a Cambridge graduate who has also worked in Civil Service and consultancy roles. She takes up her role in the summer term.

“The belief that the world is getting worse, that we can’t solve extreme poverty and disease, isn’t just mistaken. It is harmful”

BILL GATES

Worth welcome

It’s been an exciting start to the academic year for Worth School. The Catholic co-ed located between London and Brighton welcomed Marisa Bosa as Senior Deputy. It is also celebrating two recent accolades as a Best Boarding School of the Year ﬁ nalist and for Best Alumni Mentoring.

OUTDOOR SCHOOL

The Downs Malvern’s outdoor programme – with smallholding, farming club, market garden and fruit-tree planting – helped it scoop Small Independent School of the Year award, with its TDM Baccalaureate also receiving praise. The prep won Best Wildlife Garden at the RHS Spring Show and a Best Eco Initiative recently.

SOMETHING THEY SAID

MUCH AS TALENT COUNTS, EFFORT COUNTS TWICE”

ANGELA DUCKWORTH

CALIFORNIA SINGING

Cathedral Choristers from CCCS, Oxford went on tour to California at the end of the summer term, singing at concerts, services and alumni events in LA, San Francisco, Palo Alto and Monterey.

“The boys sang brilliantly throughout,” says Sophie Biddell, Director of Music.

Grand performance

Hanford Year 7 pupil Fleur won the ﬁ nal of the Shetland Pony Grand National at the recent Moreton Show. Fleur was also named ‘Rider of the Day’. She was cheered on by her team, Cherhill Shetlands, which races all over the country to raise money. This year’s charity is the Bob Champion Cancer Trust.

Olympic alumni

Four Ballard School, Hampshire alumni competed at the Paris Olympics. Rower Matt Aldridge won bronze in the men’s coxless fours. Emma Wilson (pictured) won her second windsurﬁ ng bronze in the iQFoil class. Sailor Hannah Snellgrove won two ILCA class races in her sailing debut, while Tim Nurse played for Team GB hockey.

WELLBEING HUB

Mayﬁ eld School welcomed back former pupil and Olympic rowing champion Emily Craig to open its new Wellbeing Centre, St Raphael’s. The centre is a hub for support, with nurses, a counsellor and Wellbeing and Pastoral teams on site. She spent the day with students, sharing her Olympic journey, from narrowly missing out in Tokyo to a Gold in Paris.

ROSES SELECTION

Year 13 Berkhamsted student Evie L has been selected for the England Netball Roses Academy for the 2024/25 season. She is one of only 23 selected for regular training camps in Loughborough. These are led by Roses Pathway Head Coach Sonia Mkoloma and support athletes on the journey to being potential senior England internationals.

“Evie is one of only 23 students selected for netball training camps in Loughborough”

“You

can’t live someone else’s expectations in life. It’s a recipe for disaster”

BEAR GRYLLS

WELLBEING INITIATIVE

Slindon College was awarded ‘Highly Commended’ in the Wellbeing and Mental Health Initiative category at the Boarding Schools’ Association Supporting Excellence Awards. The school, located in South Downs National Park, provides a specialist learning environment for boys aged 8-18.

ROBOT WIN

An all-girls team aged 15-17 competed against 193 countries at a worldwide educational robotics competition in Athens, bringing home the Katherine Johnson Award for Engineering Documentation for their robot building and game strategy. FIRST UK appointed the team, which triumphed at the FIRST Tech Challenge UK Championship, held in Cambridge in June.

Future engineers

Tomorrow’s Engineers Week 2024, hosted by EngineeringUK from 11th November, aims to provide young people aged 11-14 with resources and inspiration for engineering and technology careers. This year’s theme, ‘Power up your passion’ emphasises the diverse and creative opportunities. tomorrowsengineers.org.uk

NEW LEAD

Forest School has a new Warden from September 2025, when Claire Tao takes up the role. Her background includes City of London School for Girls. She led Merchant Taylors’ Girls’ in Liverpool from 2018, becoming Executive Head across the Merchants’ family of schools in 2021. She succeeds Marcus Cliﬀ Hodges, who will be retiring a er 20 years in the lead role.

Triathlon success

Walhampton Prep School hosted its ﬁrst triathlon in September, with 106 participants aged 7 to 13. Competing in teams, each child covered the swim, bike and run distances as a relay. The event raised funds for the school’s Foundation Trust, which provides bursaries to broaden access. It is planned to make this an annual event, opening up to local schools next year.

Charity challenge

Felsted parent Simone Gubbins, whose daughters attend its prep school, joined forces with the Head Chris Townsend for 12 four-mile runs in 48 hours to fundraise for the mental health charity YoungMinds. The duo took on the Goggins 4x4x48 Challenge, which requires runners to cover four miles every four hours – day and night –over two days.

CHARITY PARTNER

Sarum Hall girls vote to fundraise for a diﬀerent charity each year. Kulira, a charity which supports Ugandan children and their communities to progress and ﬂourish, is this year’s choice. Fundraising events are set to include themed fun days, Christmas cinema, secondhand uniform sales, and many more pupil-led initiatives.

SOMETHING THEY SAID

“A GOOD HALF OF THE ART OF LIVING IS RESILIENCE”

ALAIN DE BOTTON

Open Events

Entry into Years 3 and 5 (ages 7 and 9)

Entry into Year 7 and Year 9 (ages 11 and 13)

Book your place

STEA M attraction

STEAM 2024, organised by ACS International Schools, gave 10,000 children a day of exciting study and career ideas – plus brilliant theme-park action

ACS International Schools returned to Thorpe Park, Surrey in mid-October for STEAM 2024, its second fun and information-packed showcase of science, tech, engineering and arts (STEAM) possibilities.

The sold-out event saw 10,000 primary and secondary school pupils join some 50 partners of ACS International Schools, including Barclays and Microsoft. Other organisations attending on the day included Surrey Police, Royal Air Force and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Children joined workshops and activities designed to

inspire interest, and perhaps also potential future study and career pathways.

The choice of the venue – Thorpe Park – added to the fun, since many students may not have been to this theme park, raising excitement levels. It also tapped into the power of ‘gamiﬁcation’ within education, giving children alternative perspectives on what the world of work can be like and the exciting prospects to do the things they love.

Of course, after all the STEAM opportunities, the dealmaker was the opportunity to enjoy Thorpe Park’s rollercoasters and attractions – tickets to ride were gained by attending speciﬁc activities and workshops where they could gather knowledge and ‘earn’ stamps redeemable against rides and activities.

“The aim of the event is to inspire the next generation,” says Graeme Lawrie MBE, Partnerships Director at ACS International Schools.

“It is more essential than ever that we bridge the skills gap now to ensure young people have access to these opportunities. A big thank you goes out to all of our partners and sta at ACS International Schools for making it happen.”

MOULD the BREAKING

Hurtwood House was imagined as a place to do di erent – a bridge between school and the world beyond. Its academic track record and stellar alumni list of actors, musicians and creatives speak volumes about the success of Richard Jackson’s ‘crazy’ idea

Hurtwood House School has always ﬂown in the face of expectations and earned many epithets along the way. ‘You must be crazy,’ Richard Jackson was told in 1970 – even by good friends – when he set out to create a new approach to A-level education. He envisioned a magical school which students could change to after their GCSEs. This would provide a completely di erent experience from what he perceived in those days as the dullness of the traditional public school system. Much has changed in education since then, of course, but Hurtwood was a leader in fresh thinking.

After Cambridge and a highly successful (and glamorous) career in advertising, Richard Jackson decided that the time was right to put his education ideas into action. He and his wife Linda and their young family uprooted themselves from their comfortable life in Kensington and arrived at Leith Hill Place, a rather

ramshackle mansion in the Surrey Hills, leased from the National Trust. There were no educational facilities of any kind, but Richard Jackson saw an opportunity to develop the vision here and the school opened its doors with just 17 students in September 1970. Equipment back then consisted of a secondhand Remington typewriter, and a child’s blackboard. The house may have lacked any formal teaching space, but it fulﬁlled his original brief of a ‘school that didn’t look like a school or smell like one’.

Domestic and ﬁnancial logistics fell to Linda’s expertise, while Richard taught and recruited sta and students, who from the start were on ﬁrst-name terms. Mutual respect was central, close constructive feedback was weekly and the atmosphere was that of a supportive extended family where everyone soon found themselves working as hard as they were playing. Delicious home-cooked food was plentiful, and dogs and (outside) horses completed the picture.

Hurtwood’s blueprint was laid down from these early somewhat bohemian years on Leith Hill – impromptu BBQs and picnics, informality and easy

interaction between students and sta , a comfortable range of nationalities and studies which concentrated on an increasing range of A levels. Fewer rules than in traditional schools, but higher expectations, made for lively challenges. Little has changed in the ethos of the school over the ﬁve decades since. The scale, however, has developed steadily and now it is an internationally recognised centre for 350 students; built on the twin pillars of creativity and academic rigour – Richard Jackson’s perfect bridge between school and university.

The ﬁrst key move was in 1974 when, taking a huge ﬁnancial risk, Jackson acquired Hurtwood House and moved a few miles across the hill. He had instantly recognised the potential of its gracious limed-oak beauty and Arts & Craft design – an inspiring backdrop for a boldly creative school. There was now the space to expand, and this meant growing the team of sta . Numbers grew, and Hurtwood spread out across the Surrey Hills, acquiring an impressive portfolio of boarding houses. They came with fascinating cultural and social histories, and each proved to be a di erent ‘home-from-home’ for successive cohorts of students.

The 1980s brought fundamental change, with the arrival of the Hurtwood Theatre. Richard Jackson had realised that Drama had huge potential to galvanise students because it demanded

“DRAMA HAD HUGE POTENTIAL BECAUSE IT DEMANDED MUTUAL CO-OPERATION AND PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY ALONGSIDE CREATIVITY”

ABOVE RIGHT

Hurtwood House inhabits a beautiful Arts & Crafts property in the Surrey Hills

mutual co-operation and personal responsibility, alongside creativity. Most importantly, it meant having fun. He dug out part of the hillside to construct the theatre and set about recruiting a whole new raft of students to study Drama. ‘Build it and they will come’, he was told. They did, and they still do, along with a stream of superb practitioners from every area of the creative arts.

This was a game-changer. Hurtwood had found its USP – what Jackson imagined as Hurtwood’s beating heart. The school began to buzz, putting on a stream of productions – everything from memorable Christmas musicals to Greek tragedy and Shakespeare to cutting-edge contemporary plays. These attracted (and still attract) an audience of enthusiastic locals, parents and friends, and agents and scouts on the lookout for fresh and inspiring talent.

A raft of newly minted A levels followed: Dance, Music Technology, Textiles, Psychology, Photography and Media. At the time these seemed bold options, going against the grain of opinion on subject choices. Nonetheless, Jackson invested heavily in a Media department. It meant the school o ered all the fun of making movies, alongside the considerable rigour of projectmanagement, co-operative creativity and the varied expertise of ﬁlmmaking.

Hurtwood has never forgotten its roots. A levels have expanded around core fundamental subjects such as Mathematics and Physics, delivered

by a growing team of committed teachers – many have been with the school for decades. Still very much a family business, it now involves children and grandchildren. Cosmo Jackson took the baton of Headmaster from Richard over 20 years ago and leads with the support of his wife Tina Jackson and senior management team. Richard Jackson now regards himself as ‘ceremonial’ but remains totally invested in his creation, and all its past students. Certainly, it is widely known for supporting the early ambitions of megastars such as Hans Zimmer and Emily Blunt, but Hurtwood values all its former students equally – whatever their chosen ﬁeld may be. They are an integral part of the ‘crazy project’ that worked beautifully: the great Hurtwood family.

ABOVE Creative projects are a conduit for building skills, as well as talent

ABOVE Hurtwood has become renowned for the scale and professionalism of its productions

BELOW Recent alumna Zaza Veyssiere is now at Berklee

Focus

“Wycli e is in that Cotswolds sweetspot where you have easy access to cities and international airports but sit in a bucolic setting”

RIGHT Headmaster Christian San José

Breadt h of opportunity

A peaceful Cotswolds location and wraparound care make Wycli e College a ﬁrst choice for local, military and international families alike – and it’s a vibrant and welcoming place to grow and learn. Absolutely Education ﬁnds out more

LIBBY NORMAN

There’s something refreshing about Wycli e College. It has independent-school history and traditions, but it wears them lightly. Indeed, there’s a phrase ﬁrst coined by an ISI inspector to describe pupils here – ‘conﬁdent and unpretentious’ – that has stuck, becoming part of the school’s Aims, Purpose & Vision. It’s easy to see why it is popular among locals, military families and international students alike. Wycli e does have a unique history, which may explain its grounded approach. Founded by educationalist G.W. Sibly in 1882, it got its name from the pioneering 14th-century theologian, philosopher and reformer John Wycli e – Sibly deeply admired his independent thought. There’s a strong Christian heritage, with a wonderful chapel that is well used. All faiths and none are welcomed here, and services are part of the rhythm of school life.

When it comes to location, the College is in that Cotswolds sweetspot where you have easy access to cities and international airports but sit in a bucolic setting. Stonehouse scores really highly on setting. Arrive at the picturesque railway station (around 90 minutes from London Paddington) and you are greeted by a plaque commemorating the Stonehouse Brick & Tile Company that once shipped Cotswolds bricks and wares by the million around the world. A fair few day pupils catch the train to and from school – a safe and scenic journey home to Stroud, Gloucester and other points along a reliable mainline route. Just as the town is well placed for a broad catchment of families, so too the through-school nature of a Wycli e College education – girls and boys can join at Nursery and leave at 18+. It has been co-ed for more than 30 years (so no awkward boy/ girl imbalances) and parents are attracted by both the stability and the

harmony of its single identity – and the facilities, specialist teaching and easy transitions a orded by a Pre-Prep & Nursery, Prep and Senior in one single location, albeit one where each age range has its own dedicated buildings and team. Balance is critical to the College culture, with careful design to ensure the right blend of international and UK students – and around a third are boarders. Having so many local day pupils ensures that the school is rooted within its community. Also, many Wycli e College teaching and support sta live locally and educate their children here. The Head of Prep Helena Grant joined in 2020 – after a teaching and leadership background that included Hillcrest Prep, Kenya and Monkton Prep, Bath. Her focus is on bringing the vision of the school to life through curriculum changes, with a strong focus on Round Square, extracurricular and enrichment.

This academic year, the College welcomed a new Headmaster in Christian San José, who travelled down from North Yorkshire to

Gloucestershire with wife Rosie (an English teacher and writer) and three young children. He was previously Senior Deputy Head at Giggleswick and, prior to that, a boarding housemaster at Radley – also running the CCF there. His leadership credentials are stellar. Before moving into teaching he was an Army O cer, awarded the Sword of Honour and Mentioned in Dispatches (2007). He studied

Geography at Oxford and even had a spell in the City in ﬁnancial PR before heading o to Sandhurst for military training. It’s a CV that ticks a lot of boxes for prospective and existing Wycli e families.

Speaking about his new role as the eleventh Headmaster, Christian San José said he was attracted by the “grounded” quality of the College, and the fact that it’s not stuck in the past. He is keen to emphasise a ‘One College, One Community’ approach with a clear, aligned pathway from Prep to Senior, through the important transition period of Years 7-9.

Wycli e is not afraid to do di erent, and that’s certainly true when it comes to sport. With 52 acres of glorious grounds for all things outdoors (and CCF is a strong element of that in Senior years). The College has earned a strong reputation in a diverse range of sporting pursuits. Rowing is a national-level strength – girls’ rowing is especially strong right now. It is a top international destination for budding squash stars, with four prized glass courts. This attracts pupils from far aﬁeld – currently there are young people from New Zealand, Malta and France here to learn while reﬁning their game. Basketball is a rising star

ABOVE Younger pupils enjoy a challenging and fun curriculum, with plenty of time outdoors

Chapel is part of the rhythm of College life

(also very attractive to international pupils), with coaching provided by an American ex-pro, who also coaches students at Bath University.

While rugby is played to a decent standard – and Gloucester RFC’s academy is down the road for the most promising talent – there’s also a healthy track record in football, played by boys and girls, and in girls’ netball and hockey. Choice is the name of the game as pupils grow up. Fencing, pistol and small-bore shooting, yoga, Zumba, CrossFit and strength and conditioning are all on o er.

Inter House competitions are ﬁercely contested – those wins really matter and the College’s ‘Bold & Loyal’ motto is never taken more seriously. The fact that Wycli e maintains Saturday school, and

packs in an hour’s enrichment at the end of every school day after lessons and before homework, means that there’s plenty of time to try out lots of di erent sports – along with drama, music, beekeeping, DofE, cookery, Model United Nations and more. There are some 60 extracurricular clubs and societies happening each and every week of the school year.

The attachment to Houses –competitive and social – is central to life at Wycli e, beginning in Prep where pupils join one of four Houses for the duration. These are not to be confused with the two cosy and colourful Boarding Houses where around 65 Prep children are boarders (most are full, with ﬂexi available). Many of these are from Forces families, with parents overseas, and the longstanding CEA

provision is a draw – although military families are often drawn here based on word-of-mouth recommendation. At Senior there are seven Houses, each shared by day pupils and boarders – also a separate Day House, Collingwood, for pupils in Years 9-13. It’s considered essential that Day pupils enjoy exactly the same House culture and benefits. Each Boarding House has its own unique identity – Haywardsend Girls’ House, for instance, has the rather daring motto ‘be a flamingo in a flock of pigeons’. You get the sense that these are spaces that belong to their young people. Rather pleasingly, they also reflect the history and development of the school. Haywardsfield, for instance, is the oldest House and a harmony of mellow Cotswold brick and stately bay windows. In contrast, Loosley Halls, for

“There’s careful design to ensure the right blend of students – having local pupils ensures this is a school rooted within its community ”

ABOVE Library time at Wycli e Prep

Sixth Form pupils, o ers three cool and modern single-sex buildings ranged round a secluded private garden.

A lot of care goes into ﬁnding the right ﬁt for each individual. Some Houses have pets and a lively atmosphere, while others are more tranquil. International boarders tend to opt for single ensuite rooms, but many UK families prefer the dorms. There’s a proper family feel, as each House has three dedicated sta for wraparound care. This, of course, means ‘eyes on’ their charges, both academically and pastorally. Rebekah Wilkins, Wycli e College Director of Admissions, says that this reassurance is critical for families – especially those who embark on the boarding journey. “I say to families: ‘your child will be happy; they will be safe, and they will be successful. But our priority is that they are happy.

Because if they are happy, they will learn,” she says. “Once they’re happy, we can start working them hard.”

Children being what they are, this inevitably means that some are encouraged to get out in the fresh air and kick a ball around, while others are nudged to catch up on work. Getting it right is a matter of knowing the child and their strengths and weaknesses – also how much gentle persuasion is needed to ensure they reach their potential. “We have pupils who are smart cookies who come out with three A*, but then others who come out with three Cs but, for them, that is almost more of an achievement.”

Wycli e College has a highly rated approach to both SEND and Gifted & Talented – both need extra support. Openness is encouraged at admissions stage. “We always say to parents, if

someone has a learning need, don’t tell us in September when they’re not happy,” says Rebekah Wilkins. The process of helping children adjust and achieve their best is a well-rehearsed process – small class sizes and one-to-one academic and pastoral support mean sta are geared up to help children settle in well, ﬁnd their strengths and then shine.

There are 20 GCSEs to choose from and 28 subjects at A level. Wycli e also o ers EPQ (Extended Project Qualiﬁcation) and a small number of vocational-based courses (three BTECs and a CTEC in Digital Media). There are SAT preparation sessions for students looking to the US for degrees (a popular choice here), alongside Oxbridge preparation. Individual careers guidance means pupils are steered towards courses and institutions that best suit

“House competitions are ﬁercely fought –those wins really matter and the College’s ‘Bold & Loyal’ motto is never taken more seriously”

ABOVE Sports are strong here, and with a great range of options beyond the typical independentschool games

their aspirations. Some of the 2023/24 leavers secured hardto-ﬁnd degree apprenticeships.

The buzz of Wycli e is down to the pupil mix. On the one hand there are international students from some 30 di erent countries, some here for the duration and others for a shorter period. (At Senior, the College runs a popular Pre-A Level Development Year programme.) And on the other, you have the military and local families –some are second or third-generation Wycli ans. “It’s quite lovely when you’ve got generations that have been to the College,” says Rebekah Wilkins. Flexi boarding is very popular. In fact, one challenge is capping the numbers on Fridays – parents love the fact their o spring can enjoy a Friday night social and get up bright and bushy-tailed for Saturday school while they get a lie in.

On a visit to the College’s impressive glass-walled Senior dining hall – a hub also used for social events – you can see groups of pupils making their lunch choices (lots to choose from, all appetising) and then sitting down for a sociable lunchtime chat. It’s all very civilised – the social skills aspects of life here are really important to many parents, says Rebekah Wilkins.

Indeed, beyond the strong academic outcomes that all parents want for their children, there’s the confidence building for career and life. And at Wycli e College, both are ably covered. In fact, you can’t help but feel it’s one of the most distinctive USPs of this ‘Bold & Loyal’ Cotswolds school –a resolutely grounded approach to life and learning that equips young people with both the essential academic qualifications to succeed and the quiet confidence and spirit needed to thrive and adapt in our interconnected and fast-changing world.

At a Glance

Wycliffe College

FOUNDED: 1882

HEAD: Christian San José

HEAD OF PREP: Helena Grant

GENDER: Co-educational

NUMBER OF PUPILS: 650

DAY OR BOARDING: Day, Flexi and Full Boarding AGES: 3-18

POINTS OF ENTRY: All years (Year 11 and Year 13 not always possible)

ADMISSIONS:

Director of Admissions, Rebekah Wilkins

Rebekah.wilkins@wycliﬀe.co.uk

Senior Admissions Manager, Fiona Lawson-Best Fiona.Lawson-Best@Wycliﬀe.co.uk

Prep Admissions Manager, Mike McDonnell

Mike.McDonnell@wycliﬀe.co.uk

RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION:

Built on Christian values

FEES: Per term Prep: Day – £6,995; Boarding – £12,175. Per term Senior: Day – £9,200; Boarding: £16,175

ADDRESS: Wycliﬀe College, Bristol Road, Stonehouse, Gloucestershire GL10 2AF wycliﬀe.co.uk

RIGHT

The balance of day pupils and boarders ensures a diverse mix, but ﬁrmly rooted within the Cotswolds community

Where

proven excellence now continues.

Talking HEAD

ONE JOURNEY

William

Brierly of Claremont Fan Court School on the beneﬁts and pleasures of a single location throughout your school days

For the ﬁrst time in my career, this September, all my schoolgoing children and even my wife will be at the school I lead as Head. Admittedly two of my four are now at university, but I am excited by the prospect of only needing one car and having the same holidays. However, as I commence my seventh year as head of a school that previously had 700 pupils and now has 1,200, my real drive for a single journey is not about the Peugeot 5008, but rather to optimise the learning experience of our pupils, who range in age from 2 to 18. While our historic 100-acre site has its very own folly, a mini castle called The Belvedere (with beauty but little practical use), I was more conscious that the pre-prep, prep and senior school felt like three little communities – metaphorical castles of their own.

It is rare for parents not to see an all-through school as a single school, but it is very easy for its constituent parts to work in silos. Schools need character and there should always be something

refreshing about the next step in a learning journey. But it is easy to overlook the synergies and opportunities of sharing best practice and overlapping planning in making the journey better still.

Claremont has a fantastic flair for creativity, to complement its success in science, the humanities (I could go on). And yet this had been an area where the youngest had not had the benefit of specialist teachers. I could say the same for gymnastics, where our seniors were placed second nationally in the four-piece recently, or about lacrosse. Looking the other way around, our youngest had the benefits of an exciting forest school yet we had not been guiding as many pupils to study degrees in environmental science as you might expect. Thankfully, coding and computing has always been a strength across the site, as are the traditional core subjects, but you can see my point.

“Importantly for an all-through school, working together provides opportunities for mentorship – which supports the youngest and enhances the soft skills of the eldest”

One school journey enables the youngest to ﬁnd their feet in a myriad of opportunities that they can pursue to become world leaders in if that is their wish. More importantly still for an all-through school, working together provides opportunities for mentorship –which supports the youngest and enhances the soft skills of the eldest. There’s also mindfulness. For instance, helping much younger groups in a tranquil and nonintimidating forest school at lunchtime can be invaluable for a child who might otherwise ﬁnd school overwhelming.

When we ﬁrst introduced vertical tutor groups into the senior school, people worried whether the interaction of di erent ages would be beneﬁcial and safe, but it quickly became clear to all that while the lion’s share of schooling is rightly within a single age-group, the sense of community, empathy, and more broadminded understanding we all gain from working with other groups o ers a brilliant education in its own right.

WILLIAM BRIERLY Headmaster

When we take our biannual school photo with the backdrop of the historic mansion it can test the patience to get the very youngest sat down when our ever-growing sixth form have been at the top of the steps for some time, but the outcome speaks volumes. Understanding others is what makes a community.

Claremont Fan Court School

ABOVE Claremont Fan Court School students

UNREGULATED CHILDHOOD

The Head Master of Rugby School on why regulated phone use and unregulated time to play, learn and socialise are vital for our young people

Irecently attended a meeting with 15 CEOs from diverse industries. They were collectively bemoaning the work habits of their Gen Z sta . As the only educationalist in the room, I was blamed for shortcomings in the education system and for its failure to produce su ciently robust employees. The conversation was a jovial one and in more serious moments they did speak positively about this particular age group. Nevertheless, the conversation did bring to mind Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation Haidt’s book makes two key points. First, unregulated access to smartphones has done and continues to do signiﬁcant damage to children. Second, a culture of ‘safetyism’, developed over more than 40 years, has produced children who have been mollycoddled and, as a result, are reluctant to take part in adventurous play or to seize opportunities where an element of risk is involved.

Haidt’s verdict on smartphones has attracted the most column inches and it

is reassuring that most schools have now imposed restrictions on their use. The impact of ‘safetyism’ has received less attention, but is equally important. Many children born in this millennium have experienced a childhood where perceived risks in the real world have been greatly exaggerated, while the genuine risks of the online world have been ignored. Schools like Rugby provide an antidote to these two modern problems. Smartphones have long been banned from our classrooms, with strict limits on mobile phone use outside the classroom. This allows our students to have more face-to-face interactions with each other and to engage wholeheartedly, and without electronic interruption, in the adventurous group activities where they learn the skills which are so

“Perceived risks in the real world have been greatly exaggerated, while risks of the online world have been ignored”

important for making the most of life at school and for thriving after school. Just as important are the opportunities for the students to have fun and spend unregulated time with each other, busy or not. We have more than 30 student bands, each of which has to ﬁnd the time to practise and manage the dynamics of group performance. There are informal games of sport long into the summer evenings. Students are learning about collaboration, managing their reactions, forging real-time friendships, discovering what they are good at and what they like doing – without other-world distraction.

We can safely and conﬁdently provide these opportunities, organised or not, because we are a full boarding school with the time and space to educate beyond the classroom. Perhaps the most important element of a full boarding school is the House system. Our boarding houses have approximately 50 students with 10 in each year group. There is something magical in the way that 10 students who come together at the age of 13 learn – despite, or perhaps because of, the inevitable squabbles and conﬂicts – how to live together successfully in a community and absorb the vital life skills that transport them beyond the Gen Z stereotypes presented by my CEO friends.

GARETH PARKER-JONES Head Master Rugby School

ABOVE

Rugby School students

Phone-free childhood Perspective

Karen Pedro, Headteacher of Gayhurst Primary in Hackney – part of the Leap Federation – on why her pupils are phone free

We banned phones for children three years ago following the pandemic. Not just smartphones but all phones. At the time I expected some pushback from parents –particularly those with children in Years 5 and 6 who were walking home alone –but actually, the rule was embraced and accepted by the large majority of parents. We felt comfortable taking the lead on this issue at Gayhurst. I think schools setting boundaries around phones was something parents desperately wanted. It has helped them to have much clearer messaging for their children that smartphones just aren’t appropriate for their age.

This is something that the Smartphone Free Childhood (SFC) movement has really tapped into. That sense of collective action by and for parents has lifted the burden for

so many families who might have felt they were facing this dilemma alone. It is why the SFC grassroots movement has been so successful this year.

What began as a couple of concerned messages between two mums about smartphones in February this year has exploded into a global movement in a few short months. As I write this, the SFC Parent Pact, an online pledge to withhold smartphones from children until they are at least 14, has been signed by more than 50,000 parents with children in nearly 8,000 of the UK’s schools. I am proud to say that parents of Gayhurst School pupils have signed the Parent Pact.

Banning phones really helped in terms of the volume of issues we were dealing with in school. WhatsApp was awful. We had children creating multiple groups and then excluding others from those groups. And it was done to such extremes, it was like wildﬁre, like playground bullying but on a high-tech platform that doesn’t shut o . That’s just not a way children should be spending their childhood.

By sending children a clear message that they can’t have phones in school, it also sets the expectation that issues around phones don’t belong in school either. We want school to be a safe space where children can learn and play together in real life.

“WhatsApp was awful. We had children creating multiple groups and then excluding others... like playground bullying but on a high-tech platform”

“What began as a couple of concerned messages between two mums about smartphones has exploded into a global movement in a few short months”

I’m sure it helps families to feel that they have our backing. I think many parents have felt trapped in an impossible situation. On the one hand, the fear of giving their children access to a smartphone and all the (now welldocumented) problems that come with that, such as harmful content, addictive algorithms and the anxiety merry-goround of social media. On the other hand, there’s a fear of their child being socially excluded if they don’t. Establishing very

clear boundaries in school has helped reduce some of the family conﬂict and the pressure parents and children feel.

We don’t just ban phones, we explain why. From Year 4 we talk to pupils explicitly, putting phone use into the context of the school playground – how you wouldn’t exclude others in the playground so it’s not OK online. And we link the issues around phones to PSHE and wellbeing. We don’t just teach e-safety, but also look at phone use in the

context of pupils protecting their mental health. We explain why using something like WhatsApp can be very negative.

We have seen a real shift in the past year and a half – the children can really see the link between being on a phone and their own state of mind. They start to see why it’s a negative picture. It’s far more common now to hear a child say ‘Oh, I’ve got a brick phone’ quite proudly.

For children entering secondary school in Year 7, the peer pressure ramps up even more. In my view, setting boundaries around smartphones in those early secondary school years is crucial, too. The more that parents buy into the idea that children do not have a smartphone until they are 14 the better.

smartphonefreechildhood.co.uk

ABOVE

Taking phones out of school can be a boon for children and their parents

ACADEMIC ADVENTURES

The

Head of Pangbourne College on the importance of both academic rigour and opportunities for adventure and exploration

Providing an academic education alongside an ethos of adventure and exploration is, I believe, fundamental to young people acquiring the knowledge, skills and character necessary to act with conﬁdence in imperfect situations and leave a positive mark on the world. In the words of educational psychologist Lauren Resnick, students who, over an extended period of time, are treated as if they are intelligent actually become so. If they are taught demanding content and are expected to explain and ﬁnd connections as well as memorise and repeat, they learn more and more quickly. They come to think of themselves as learners. They are able to bounce back in the face of short-term failure. So what we teach is as important as how we teach.

This means the curriculum sits at the heart of school life. Our students need

to leave us having been inducted into systems of worthwhile knowledge that enable them to participate in and shape the national discourse. As Alex Standish so beautifully put it: ‘school subjects then are a way of inducting children into the intellectual habits of humankind, and hence into a disciplinary conversation about knowing our world’. We have a responsibility in preparing students to take their place in the continuing conversation, enquiry, and debates.

Now, more than ever, to be successful we need to be able to work in teams and networks of people who may be di erent from ourselves – with di erent values, perspectives and ways of doing things. We need to be able to show not just the ability to do this, but to have an interest in it.

Alongside an academic curriculum programme, an

“Having an adventurous mindset means having a view of yourself that places the deeds you carry out as determined by the thoughts you have”

adventure programme designed to allow success and failure to be equal partners takes students outside of their comfort zone. This then allows them to face their fears and excel. It also provides a platform to foster critical thinking, problem solving and teamwork through hands-on experiences. It teaches them to know when to talk and when to listen. Also, when to press ahead with an idea and when to stop and go back to the drawing board. Being a good team player means more than simply waiting quietly for your turn to talk. It means being willing to not get your own way in order to achieve the wider goal or mission.

Pangbourne students are fortunate to have a wealth of opportunities that ﬂow from our Adventure Curriculum. This is a core part of life here and encompasses The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE), CCF, and our bushcraft and survival programmes.

Having an adventurous mindset, then, means having a view of yourself that places the deeds you carry out as determined by the thoughts you have. The most successful people take ownership of their lives and their decisions. They take risks but they accept the outcome and the responsibility when it goes wrong. They learn that ownership of decisions is liberating.

OLIVER KNIGHT

The Head

Pangbourne College

ABOVE

Pangbourne College students

STEM ADVANTAGE

The Academic Director of QE on how STEM subjects deliver transferable skills to beneﬁt all students, wherever their passions lie

Fostering an understanding of STEM from an early age teaches transferable skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving, exploration, collaboration, and innovation. Children, particularly younger children, are built to learn through exploring their environments, so encouraging this at an early age creates a passion for independent learning and the ability to tackle challenges conﬁdently and creatively.

At Queen Ethelburga’s Collegiate (QE), we o er a wide range of STEM subjects throughout all school years and levels. Alongside that, the school o ers a broad range of extracurricular STEM activities. These include opportunities such as the Practical Science CREST Award, Critical Thinking Club, Advanced Mathematics Club, QE Motorsports, the annual Suturing Workshop, Psychology Club, and the Medicine and Veterinary Society.

Our students can send items to space annually as part of the Mars Balloon national initiative and collaborate with local students on QE Volcano Day and QE Bath Bomb Day. Students also compete in a variety of national competitions, including Cambridge Chemistry Challenge, UK Biology Challenge and the University of Warwick National Scientiﬁc Challenge.

For those students looking to apply to medicine, dentistry and veterinary courses, we host a mock MMI interview as part of the Early Applicant Programme –supplementing this with weekly one-to-one application support. Other vital applicant experiences, such as volunteering in local care homes, alumni seminars, work

“Students with a good grounding in STEM adapt to many different environments – analysis and creative thinking give them an advantage”

experience support and regular talks from a retired GP, are also part of this programme.

We know that students with a good grounding in STEM skills are able to adapt to many di erent environments, where technology, analysis, creative thinking and creating solutions to problems give them an advantage. This may be a STEM ﬁeld or a di erent pathway, such as art and design.

Many of our students are interested in pursuing STEM-related pathways. This year, 133 students have received conditional o ers for science-based degrees, while a further 101 have conditional o ers for mathematics, computer science or engineering-based degree courses. Another cohort of students are hoping to embark on design and architecture courses.

QE is built on encouraging students to ‘be the best they can be with the gifts that they have’ and so we are dedicated to encouraging students wherever their passions lie. We o er a variety of lessons that meet di erent learning styles and needs, also encouraging extracurriculars that support individual ambitions.Our rich mix of classes, clubs, events, seminars, competitions, and leadership roles provide ample opportunity for students to challenge themselves while also ﬁnding their path.

By focusing on each individual and their needs, we deliver our curriculum and extracurriculars in a way that enables young people to get the most out of their time at QE. This is why, alongside 100 enrichment activities, we seek out beneﬁcial opportunities that o er something unique.

A recent example of this would be our project to create, release and choreograph the hit song and music video, ‘Feels Like Home’, alongside the record production, DJ and songwriting duo Billen Ted.

KEVIN OLDERSHAW

Academic Director

Queen Ethelburga’s Collegiate

ABOVE QE students

Talking HEAD

Life SAVER

The Head of WindleshamHouse on why schools need to prioritise allergy preparedness

Earlier this year, one of the teachers at Windlesham House School su ered a near-fatal allergic reaction to an unknown substance shortly after she arrived at school. Billie-Jo Button, who teaches maths at our prep school, began to feel unwell as soon as she arrived in school. She had felt lightheaded and not herself that morning. She later recalled that other members of sta were trying to have conversations with her and she couldn’t focus at all. She could, however, feel the lack of oxygen taking hold.

After the bell had rung, Billie-Jo noticed that her ears and nose were swelling. The swift response of our school’s medical team, led by our onsite nurse Kate Hooper, alongside our Anaphylaxis Kitt from Kitt Medical, played a crucial role in managing a very frightening situation.

After the incident, Billie-Jo told me, “Our school nurse Kate said I really needed my EpiPen, but I only had one with me because I try to spread my pens out to cover all bases. I administered the pen while Kate was on the phone to the ambulance. After some

“It’s hard to imagine what a worst-case scenario might look like unless you have been through it and witnessed it yourself”

time, I still wasn’t improving. I could hear my wheeze, and the ambulance was saying they couldn’t get to us for 20 minutes. That’s a long time in an allergy situation.”

At that point, Kate used a second adrenaline pen, which she got from the Anaphylaxis Kitt installed on the wall of the medical room, and this managed to keep Billie-Jo stable until the ambulance arrived. Since the incident, I have been keen to highlight the scenario to other schools and to raise awareness of the importance of having a good supply of adrenaline pens in school in case of emergencies like this.

As schools, we’re always aware that some children have allergies. They carry their adrenaline pens and we make sure our schools are nut-free, but it’s hard to imagine what a worst-case scenario might look like unless you have been through it and witnessed it yourself. It was a very scary moment seeing someone ﬁghting to breathe. In total, three adrenaline pens were

administered to Billie-Jo, as well as the use of an automated external deﬁbrillator, before she was taken to hospital. Thankfully, she has made a full recovery and is now back teaching in school again.

Billie-Jo praised Windlesham House for its quick reactions and for being equipped to deal with the situation. She added: “Some people don’t realise how serious these reactions can be. It’s also tough to drop into conversations without either underplaying it or making people scared. It’s not a choice for me, I have to be safe”.

If any positives have come out of this frightening situation, it is the need to highlight the importance of sta training around allergies and how vital it is to have access to a good supply of adrenaline pens in schools. All of our sta have been trained and understand how to administer the pens. I would urge all schools to do the same because you never know when such an incident will occur.

ABOVE Windlesham House

BELOW

Billie-Jo Button and Kate Hooper

BEN EVANS Headmaster Windlesham House School

ALLERGY prepared

Anaphylaxis needs urgent treatment. Enter one young design engineer who saw a problem he could solve

The severe allergic reaction experienced by Windlesham House Prep teacher Billie-Jo Button made the news earlier this year and is a reminder that, as Head of Windlesham House Ben Evans notes (see previous page), being prepared for severe allergic reactions is vital. Like many brilliant ideas, Kitt Medical came about as a result of a problem that needed a solution. Founder and CEO Zak Marks knew all about the risks of anaphylaxis – he has a severe nut allergy first discovered at the age of five. In his final year of a design engineering degree at Loughborough in 2020, he set about creating

something for public spaces that could save his or someone else’s life. As he described it: “just like a deﬁbrillator, but for allergies”. James Cohen became co-founder and COO in 2021 and together they piloted the Kitt Anaphylaxis Kitt through a handful of schools. Funding followed, and by 2023 the Anaphylaxis Kitt service had been launched. It is now found in over 400 schools and businesses.

How it works

Each Kitt is provided as part of a service, which means training, CPD and restocking of adrenaline pens before expiry or after use – some 8,000 people have been trained to use a Kitt so far. Having an adrenaline pen to hand that is in date is a critical

Over half of severe allergy su erers are carrying out-ofdate pens or have forgotten to carry their pens with them

issue, say the team at Kitt Medical, pointing to studies showing that over half of severe allergy su erers are carrying out-of-date pens or have forgotten to carry their pens with them. Bearing in mind that around a ﬁfth of anaphylaxis cases in UK schools will be ﬁrst-time incidents – meaning no pen – reliable equipment and the knowhow to assist are critical.

Each Kitt has auto-injectors containing two sizes of adrenaline pens. The training gives full guidance on how to use them and procedures to follow. There’s an online portal so incidents can be reported afterwards (and the Kitt will be restocked).

The Kitt’s usefulness has been recognised with both a London Mayor’s Entrepreneur Award and a Santander X Launch award, both in 2022. When he won the mayoral award, Zak Marks noted: “Even though I carry two adrenaline auto-injectors with me wherever I go, I’m still terriﬁed that one day the worst might happen to me. I often thought that I wished they had the equipment where I was going – but they can’t just have this stu lying around, going out-of-date, and with nobody knowing how to use it”.

With a Kitt on the wall, both anaphylaxis training and in-date adrenaline pens are problems solved.

kittmedical.com

Outdoor LEARNING

DUCKS, Dulwich College Kindergarten and Infants'

school, on the vital role of outdoor space in setting strong learning foundations

Choosing the right infant school for your child is an important decision, and there are many factors to consider, from academic reputation to the quality of pastoral care. Also vital among these considerations is outdoor space, which is so important for children's holistic development.

Outdoor play is fundamental for cognitive development, physical health, and social skills. It gives children freedom to engage in physical activity, explore nature, and experience social interactions. Schools with a variety of outdoor spaces provide an environment where children can thrive and engage in imaginative activities that indoor classroom settings might not support.

OUTDOOR LEARNING

Schools that integrate outdoor space into their curriculum o er a dynamic and engaging way for children to learn, so look for schools that use outdoor areas for a variety of subjects – from maths and science to art and storytelling.

Learning through nature helps to build children’s conﬁdence as they take measured risks. It encourages them to collaborate and build problem-solving skills, as well as language and literacy. By integrating outdoor learning into daily lessons, schools not only make learning more enjoyable but

ABOVE & BELOW

DUCKS pupils have a variety of spaces to play and learn outdoors

also foster children's deeper connection with the world around them.

DUCKS (Dulwich College Kindergarten and Infants’ School) is located in its own grounds, complete with playground featuring a fantastic rowboat, sports pitches, and playing ﬁelds. Pupils also beneﬁt from access to superb Dulwich College facilities – including the swimming pool – on its 70-acre campus.

DUCKS children have weekly Forest School lessons in the beautiful orchard area and by the pond. Activities such as building dens teach practical skills and spark creativity. Many Key Stage 1 lessons also take place here, and children use the area to work, plan, investigate and learn. They also have a lot of fun – one of the most popular activities is toasting marshmallows on the ﬁre. Co-curricular exploration is supported with activities such as gardening, nature walks and sports – including athletics, tennis and rugby.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR

When assessing potential schools, visit the outdoor facilities and observe children's activities. Also ask about co-

curricular programmes and the amount of time pupils spend outside. Things to look out for include: Play equipment Imaginative play areas not only encourage physical activity but also play. Look out for a variety of equipment that caters to di erent age groups.

Green spaces Look for grassy areas, nature corners, and gardens for learning, mindfulness and unstructured play. Also ﬁnd out about children's access to other nearby green spaces.

All-weather facilities Covered play areas mean children can be outside year-round, come rain or shine – a key consideration with our changeable weather.

Outdoor spaces have a signiﬁcant impact on your child’s early educational journey and set a strong foundation for the years ahead by fostering a love for learning and physical activity – also promoting social development and building conﬁdence.

“Learning happens everywhere here, with opportunities for the children to take risks, to collaborate with their peers, to design their own challenges and to problem-solve,” says Head of DUCKS Jo Parker.

* dulwich.org.uk/ducks

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EARLY investment

If you had to choose just one point to invest in your child’s education, Herne Hill School argues that the very best return is in the early years

Areport published by the Institute for Fiscal Studies in September 2021 found that the gap between private and state school spending per pupil had doubled over the previous decade, widening to about 90%. This gap will have undoubtedly increased over the past three inﬂationary years and is unlikely to reduce signiﬁcantly near-term, even with the government’s promised additional funding for education.

The ﬂip side of an independent education having become so much better funded is that it is increasingly una ordable for many parents – at least not for the entirety of a child’s school years.

As a result, more parents with some (but limited) funds available for private education are likely to be considering dipping in and out of the independent

“The Early Childhood Education (ECE) period, which runs through to the age of 7-8 o ers by far the greatest return on investment”

sector. But into which educational cycle is it best to invest? Fortunately, the answer has become clearer than ever. Multiple research studies from around the world show that the Early Childhood Education (ECE) period, which runs through to the age of 7-8 and requires a special pedagogical approach, o ers by far the greatest return on investment – not least because longitudinal studies have shown that advances achieved by that age tend to ‘stick’ and last a lifetime.

Once ahead, one stays ahead. This is not only beneﬁcial in terms of subsequent educational stages, future health and earnings as an adult, but also for society

at large. American research found that for every dollar spent on high-quality early childhood programmes, society gains up to $7 through increased productivity and reduced costs associated with remedial education, healthcare and criminal justice.

Over the past three decades, advances in neurobiology, behavioural and social sciences have proven unequivocally what Aristotle predicated centuries ago: ‘Give me a child until he is 7, and I will show you the man’. We now know with certainty that it is indeed by 7 that foundational skills, values and personality are established. The fundamental reason underlying ECE’s importance is how our human brains develop. A newborn’s neural connections (synapses) form at a mind-boggling speed of up to a million per second, peaking at the age of 2-3, which coincides with the ideal time to start in a kindergarten, either part-time or full-time.

From then, a drastic ‘pruning’ of synapses sets in. Children discard the ones they do not need and strengthen

those which help them thrive in their environment. Overall, we lose about half of our synapses by adulthood, with the curve being steepest in the months and years following the peak. It is the steepness of this curve, and its mirror image of steep learning trajectories, which explains why continuity through 7+ in a familiar highquality setting o ers optimal development. Our age range at Herne Hill School directly reﬂects the science and matches the worldwide accepted actual range of ECE, which carries on for two years after conclusion of the English EYFS. We are fortunate to be able to channel our parents’ hard-earned investment solely into this pivotal stage of development. It also enables the children to become the oldest at the school in a co-ed environment, thereby honing their leadership skills and sense of social responsibility. They move on from us equipped academically and emotionally to meet life’s next opportunities and challenges.

NGAIRE TELFORD Headteacher Herne Hill School

ABOVE Herne Hill School pupils

From phonics to physics, at The Downs Malvern, we provide an environment where every child can achieve their potential and thrive. It’s a place where curiosity meets opportunity, and where children learn to navigate their world with confidence –whichever path they choose.

Discover Malvern: Please use the QR code, or visit www.thedownsmalvern.org.uk, to book your private tour.

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BUILDING

resilience

Resilience is a buzz word in education, so how can we help younger children to build conﬁdence and take setbacks in their stride? Schools share their winning strategies

NEW HALL SCHOOL

At New Hall in Oxford, the team work to create a culture where mistakes are seen as an integral part of the learning process. Younger pupils are taught that failure is not something to fear, but an opportunity to grow. Teachers emphasise that it’s normal to get things wrong and that the most important thing is the e ort pupils put into trying again. This is reinforced through classroom discussions, collaborative problem-solving tasks and stories where characters succeed after persevering. Sta employ a growth mindset approach, helping children understand that their abilities can develop through persistence.

To help children identify and build on strengths, they employ a mixture of approaches, including one-to-one teacher discussions, peer assessments, and self-reﬂection exercises. New Hall pupils are encouraged to think critically about their abilities, what they enjoy, and where they excel. Then teachers help them set achievable goals based on these strengths, gradually building on small successes. The team here ﬁnd that strengths-based learning is a great way to celebrate individual progress (rather than comparisons to others). This also fosters intrinsic motivation – pupils see the e ort they put in leading on to improvement.

Sport and outdoor learning are part of the toolbox for building resilience. Whether it’s on the playing ﬁeld, visits to the school farm or outdoor adventures, the activities help children push through challenges, manage

ABOVE

New Hall School pupils test themselves in outdoor learning

frustration when they can’t ‘get it right’ and also work within a team. The New Hall team say that outdoor environments present unique opportunities to fail safely and try again. They also foster problem-solving skills, risk-taking, and adaptability – supporting both wellbeing and mental resilience.

There is strong emphasis here on recognising not just academic success, but also perseverance, curiosity, and personal progress. Reward systems are designed to celebrate the process of learning, valuing e ort over achievement to help pupils understand why hard work and determination are as important as reaching the end goal. This approach motivates pupils to keep pushing through learning barriers, even when the going gets tough.

Fostering a supportive community where every child feels valued and encouraged is vital, say New Hall. Mindfulness practices and emotional literacy are integral parts of the school curriculum, helping children manage stress and navigate challenges. Opportunities for leadership – from being a prefect to participating in School Council – let them take on responsibility and shine in multiple ways.

KEW COLLEGE PREP

At Kew College Prep, the team understand that many children feel nervous about making mistakes, which can hold them back from exploring new opportunities. There’s a big focus on nurturing self-esteem – showing even the youngest and most timid pupils that mistakes aren’t something to fear, but an essential part of the learning process.

Prep sta say that a supportive and tightknit community is critical to this. Teachers focus on building strong, trusting relationships with each child, using praise to create a space where the children feel able to try new things. Whether they’re tackling a challenging maths problem, performing on stage, or competing in sports, pupils are encouraged to believe in themselves and their potential.

One of the ways a ‘tryer’ mentality is modelled is through sticky questions –

where there isn’t a clear right or wrong answer. These spark open discussions and encourage critical thinking, helping children to see that the journey of ﬁguring things out is as important as the solution. By exploring di erent viewpoints, they also learn to embrace uncertainty and recognise the value in trial and error.

Teachers model this mindset by openly demonstrating how they handle their own mistakes and learn from them, reminding pupils that nobody is perfect. This gives children the conﬁdence to step outside their comfort zones and keep going, even when things get tough or go wrong. In PSHE lessons, resilience is a regular theme, helping each child recognise their strengths and celebrate their progress.

The concept of a growth mindset is also introduced, teaching that just because something feels hard now doesn’t mean it will always be that way. This helps pupils to approach challenges with patience and

“A ‘TRYER’ MENTALITY IS MODELLED THROUGH STICKY QUESTIONS – WHERE THERE ISN’T A CLEAR RIGHT OR WRONG ANSWER”

determination. Achievements are celebrated via regular assemblies, where pupil successes, both in and out of school, are shared with the school.

Beyond the classroom, outdoor learning environments – including forest school sessions – o er even more opportunities to build resilience. From climbing trees to using tools for woodwork, Nursery and Reception children engage in ‘risky play’ which fosters independence and a can-do attitude.

The Kew Collee Prep team note that praise, reward, and recognition are

ABOVE

Forest school at Bickley Park

build conﬁdence at Kew College Prep

essential to helping children push beyond their perceived limits. Positive feedback, house points, and awards celebrate not only top achievements but also the e ort it takes to overcome hurdles. With problem-solving, sports, and mindfulness embedded within the curriculum, pupils have the tools needed to be resilient and conﬁdent learners.

THE KING ALFRED SCHOOL

At The King Alfred School (KAS) in North London, Head of Lower School Karen Thomas says we adults need to resist our natural tendency to protect the children in our care at all costs as it’s not in their best interests. “It does little to equip them with the tools and strategies they need to live healthy, happy lives,” she says. “Understanding what to do when faced with adversity is woven into the fabric of our educational provision,” she adds. “We place as much value on how we learn as what we learn.”

The KAS approach is that a shared language and an expectation for children to review themselves as learners is key to developing e ective learning dispositions, including resilience. “By helping children identify, understand and expect the feelings we get when something challenges us, we start to disperse the mystery of the

“CLASSROOM TALK OFTEN REFERENCES ‘BOUNCE-ABILITY’ – HOW DO WE GET BACK UP AFTER SOMETHING IS TOO DIFFICULT?”

learning process, allowing children to be curious and brave rather than afraid when they are not immediately successful.”

The concept of “productive struggle” is introduced to the youngest children as an important indicator that learning is happening. In the Early Years, for instance, resilience is also addressed through books – KAS favourites include Tilda Tries Again, After the Fall and Yes You Can, Cow. Together, teachers and children analyse characters’ emotions and actions from the safety of the story corner and this helps pupils to make links to their own learning experiences.

“Classroom talk often references ‘bounce-ability’ – how do we get back up after something is too di cult? We teach the children the science of learning – how their brain can grow and strengthen when

they take risks, learn new skills, solve problems, and make mistakes,” says Karen Thomas. “We talk with children about having a growth mindset, sca olding their approach to challenge with a positive mental attitude.”

Above all else, helping children become resilient relies on teachers and caregivers really knowing each child. “When we know their di erent strengths, experiences and levels of conﬁdence, we are able to provide the right level of challenge at school in terms of the learning experiences we design,” says Karen Thomas “We help children to identify when something is too easy, too hard or just right, so that they can exercise their ‘resilience muscle’ safe in the knowledge that that we will be there to champion their e orts, to cheer them on or to o er a helping hand.”

Christ Church Cathedral School pupils explore outdoors

BICKLEY PARK SCHOOL

Perseverance is a key School value here at Bickley Park,” says Headmaster Tom Quilter. “We aim to model and promote the beneﬁts of a growth mindset, embracing the concept that failure is a key part of success. Imagine, if as babies, we gave up the ﬁrst time we fell? We would never learn to walk. Some of my favourite assemblies, centre on the theme of learning to pick ourselves back up.”

The Bromley prep and pre-prep loves to remind children that it’s not that they can’t do it, they just can’t do it yet. “We are determined to make sure that we identify, nurture and celebrate every child’s strengths and talents. By ﬁnding that spark – ensuring e orts are rewarded and then celebrating achievement – we see selfesteem snowball,” adds Tom Quilter.

The curriculum is framed around what are known as the Four Quadrants of Learning – Academics, Sport & Outdoor, Arts plus Community. “Together they arm our pupils with skills for life – a love of learning; the ability to communicate conﬁdently; the desire to contribute meaningfully to society and to show initiative; resilience, teamwork and the conﬁdence to take risks.”

Sport & Outdoor is especially key to developing resilience and conﬁdence, with sport sitting alongside a Forest and Adventure School programme. “We aim to foster teamwork and leadership skills, whilst developing independence and the ability to manage risk,” adds the Head. “And we believe in sport for all – for example, ensuring that all pupils are exposed to healthy competition and can represent the school throughout their time with us.”

The Adventure School programme builds on forest school sessions and sees all children in Years 3 -8 taking part in residential trips which focus on progressively demanding skills and challenges – from camping in the Peak District and the South Downs to a kayaking adventure along the Cornish coast.

In all of these adventures, Tom Quilter believes it’s important to foster a culture where pupils recognise the importance of supporting and looking out for others. “We foster kindness, inclusion and respect in everything that we do,” he says. “We pride ourselves in being a kind school that celebrates and embraces diversity.”

CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL SCHOOL

At CCCS in Oxford, the boys are encouraged to ‘give things a go’, says Deputy Head (Pastoral) Nick Harrison. “From a young age through lessons, assemblies and play times we try to instil the belief that giving things a go and getting them wrong is much better than shying away from di cult situations. Our teaching sta are careful not to discourage our pupils from raising their hands during lesson time, even if they think they are wrong.”

There’s a new enrichment programme at the prep, which helps to reinforce this by giving boys the chance to take part in activities they wouldn’t normally do. “Our hope is that, through this programme, we can continue to

“IF OUR PUPILS FOCUS ON TRYING THEIR BEST, RATHER THAN THE BEST MARK, THERE IS NO CEILING TO THEIR LEARNING”

increase our boys’ resilience and increase their opportunities to explore activities they might enjoy and ﬁnd challenging.”

Alongside enrichment, PHSE is used to help guide pupils to understand their strengths and weaknesses. “We ﬁnd this an invaluable process that enables them to enjoy the experience of being good at something alongside the challenge of improving at something else,” says Nick Harrison.

Sport and wellbeing are a big part of school life, despite the school’s city central location. “We make sure our pupils know that they are in a privileged position to be able to play on such wonderful playing ﬁelds (Christ Church Meadows) and take part in woodland activities whilst still being in the heart of Oxford.”

Pre-Prep pupils have dedicated Woodland School lessons, now being introduced through to Year 8 as part of enrichment. “We are able to reinforce key messages that help to build resilience and help with their general wellbeing,” adds Nick Harrison.

In common with many schools, there’s a focus on e ort-based praise. “We ﬁrmly believe that if our pupils focus on trying their best, rather than achieving the best mark, there is no ceiling to their learning. We ﬁnd this attitude often leads to more resilient children and ultimately excellent results when testing in a more formal manner.”

CCCS is also a small school, with a family feel, so children are known. And it has a linear pastoral system, where older children visit younger classes, especially during Form time. “We ﬁnd this ‘buddy system’ gives boys the opportunity to speak to a range of ages and helps them to feel included and nurtured at every level.”

ABOVE

Pupils at The King Alfred School are taught to see failure as part of the learning journey

IB ELIEVE

IN DOING THINGS DIFFERENTLY

READING FOR JOY

Kathryn Loh, Head of Year 1 and 2 at Kew Green Prep, on the impact of an approach that develops both children’s reading skills and joy in books

Acommon question and focus from parents at the start of their child’s educational journey, from Early Years into Lower School is ‘when will my child learn to read’.

At Kew Green, the answer to that question embodies more than simply teaching the skill to read words or applying the necessary phonetic and grammatical skills. It remains our mission to instil and nurture a love and passion for reading, hooking the young minds that enter our classrooms so that they eagerly engage with storybooks. This sparks the ability to imagine and explore new worlds and characters, to learn new facts, share knowledge and discover more.

The ﬁrst three years of school, from Reception through to Year 2, mark a critical period when children develop the foundational skills in reading. This not only enhances their academic progress but also enriches the development of their mind, their personal development and their understanding of the wider world.

Encouraging our young learners to ﬁnd joy in reading requires a multifaceted approach. This includes exposure to a wide variety of books, an engaging phonics programme, and a positive reading routine both at school and home – with e ective partnership in

“The impact of an adult reading aloud to a child or group of children should never be underestimated”

place to motivate and encourage our children at every turn of the page.

Most recently at Kew Green we have found success in pivoting to a new phonics programme which leads with a dynamic, fun and in-depth approach. It ﬁnds the joy in phonics. The impact of this is that, through carefully crafted lessons which boost engagement, all our pupils are propelling through the early stages of our reading scheme.

For example, by the end of Spring Term last academic year, 84% of our Year 1 pupils were already working within the reading expectations for Year 2 and 33% were assessed as having a reading age of

a child over seven years. Looking beyond the outcomes and data, the phonics programme has unlocked their ability to decode and understand sentences and stories, sparking joy, passion and enthusiasm for reading and writing.

Curating an environment that champions the importance of reading and provides opportunities to read is paramount. A library of diverse books that cover a wide range of subjects and genres is essential for maintaining the interest of curious minds. In our classrooms, we encourage children to choose books from our library, to ﬁll our book corners with their choice of texts. Giving children a choice further engages them in the opportunity to read.

Each class also embraces a ‘wholeclass reader’ – a book read aloud by the class teacher every day. The impact of an adult reading aloud to a child or group of children should never be underestimated – from Early Years right through to Year 6 (and even beyond). A ‘whole-class reader’ gives children exposure to chapter books, also introducing more complex sentence structures, punctuation, grammar, vocabulary and literary techniques.

BELOW

Kathryn Loh with Kew Green Prep pupils

Talking HEAD

Food EXPLORERS

Emma Gray, Head of St Margaret’s Junior School in Bushey, Hertfordshire, on the importance of teaching young children about good food

NHS Digital reported in 2018 that just 18% of children aged between ﬁve and 15 years ate the recommended ﬁve or more portions of fruit and vegetables a day. The results were similar for both girls and boys. Yet fruit and vegetables provide the cornerstone of a healthy diet, containing essential vitamins and minerals that support a child’s rapidly growing body and developing brain.

Introducing young children aged between four and six years to the beneﬁts of healthy eating has to be done in a way that is interactive, memorable, fun and enriching. It is important that any sessions are short and engaging but emphasise key messages around food in a way that children understand. At our school we are working with a qualiﬁed nutritionist who delivers regular sessions to our younger pupils, and we have found that they are slowly but surely making the connection between eating real food and experiencing good health.

Over the last few months, the children have been exposed to a number of fun activities which are helping them to identify a wide range of seasonal fruit, vegetables and herbs – as well as learning why they should include them in their diet. The weekly workshops use a combination of storytelling, colour coding and craft activities to emphasise key messages around healthy food. The stories usually follow an interactive discussion with the children

“Younger pupils are slowly but surely making the connection between eating real food and experiencing good health”

about a particular food, and then they participate in a craft activity related to it.

The format for each workshop is 25 minutes maximum. That is long enough to retain attention. These sessions usually begin with a story about a tiny harvest mouse who has found herself living in a human house. She is a character that the children have come to know and love. The mouse spends her time nibbling leftovers and gains a superpower from every piece of fruit or vegetable she eats. Each week, the children discuss that superpower and ﬁnish the session with an activity that focuses on that particular food.

For instance, in a past session the children learned about the beneﬁts of beetroot. When the harvest mouse nibbled some, she gained super strength and managed to escape the clutches of the family cat. The message was – red beetroot contains the mineral ‘iron’ which is needed for muscle strength

and energy – so that means that beetroot can help make you strong. For the craft activity at the end of this session, the children made red playdough out of beetroot juice and then modelled their very own beetroot.

The impact of regular nutrition workshops on our youngest pupils has been very encouraging to date. The children can recount what they’ve learned, and they get lots of hands-on experience with healthy foods. From a communications perspective, the sessions encourage pupil voice and feedback as well as creativity from a young age.

While children are young, it’s so important for schools to exploit this crucial window of opportunity to reinforce the importance of a healthy diet and help them to learn about food and cooking in a way that sparks their interest. The more our children understand about the food they eat, the stronger the foundation for their educational outcomes and future lives.

ABOVE Lessons on food at St Margaret’s Junior School

EMMA GRAY Head St Margaret’s Junior School

TESTING TIME

Mentor Education on what parents need to know about the play-based assessments increasingly used by London schools to select reception pupils at 4+

These days, London parents are well aware of the pressures and strains of the 11+ school assessments.

Many are, as a result, interested in getting their children into a great school at an early stage, where hopefully they can stay until they are 18 and avoid the stress of further entrance exams.

We are increasingly being asked to help children do well in the play-based assessments that schools use to select their Reception classes. Our 4 Plus Team, who have all taken part in these assessments in schools, have helped many parents to make a real di erence to their children’s chance of success. Here are some of our thoughts to help you support your child to shine on the day of their 4+ assessments.

Many parents may feel that who passes on a given day is a lottery. However, we have noticed that children who pass one 4+ tend to pass many. By contrast, a child who fails one tends to fail many or all assessments. In other words, schools are consistent in looking for the same attributes and are using the assessment days to identify them.

The ﬁrst thing schools look for is readiness for school – can your child start learning from early on in Reception or will they need to learn the unspoken rules of school for the whole of their ﬁrst year? Secondly, schools are looking for aptitude for learning. These skills are largely behavioural, and we guide all our children and parents through what they entail. Thirdly, the most academic schools are looking for some ability to

“Schools are consistent in looking for the same attributes and are successful in using the assessment days to identify them”

do simple literacy and numeracy tasks. Parents tend to ﬁxate on those parts of the test, but our experience suggests they are signiﬁcantly less important than behaviours and skills around readiness for learning.

Typically, at an assessment day teachers will come out and call your child’s name and then take them into a classroom – you will not be able to join them. If your child will not leave you and go with the teachers, it becomes very di cult for them to pass the assessment. Indeed, about 10% of children fail at this stage of the day.

In the room, some of the activities replicate a classroom environment. Sometimes there is a group reading exercise followed by a Q&A session. Then there is a series of tests in which the child’s cognitive ability is assessed. These tests appear as games but are usually a puzzle for them to attempt to solve. For this part of the assessment, the child also needs to show that they are able to express

themselves and can explain themselves clearly. Some schools also have some sort of ﬁne motor skills test and a few even have a gross motor skills test.

PREPARING AHEAD

• Make sure your child can leave you – get them used to this idea in the lead up to school assessments.

• Ensure your child can explain whatever task they are doing – this is something you can practice. Also make sure they can draw your family and then explain who everyone is.

• Visit the school before assessment day so your child is not entering strange surroundings. Make them feel like this will be a playdate and remind them to behave and show good manners. Ensure your child is at their best – not hungry or sleepy –and has been to the bathroom before the assessment. If they are unwell on the day, reschedule for your child’s and the school’s sake.

ABOVE 4+ assessments are increasingly common

MARY LONSDALE CEO Mentor Education

Looking AHEAD

Framlingham College in Su olk on why delivering skills to help children grow and thrive in future life is as important as academic results

As education requirements continue to evolve in response to an everchanging world, schools are rethinking not only what they teach but how they assess learning and potential in their young people. At Framlingham College – a day and boarding through school in Su olk – the focus is on developing good human beings, not just delivering stellar academic results.

Principal, Louise North says: “Academic achievement should be viewed as a byproduct of the educational experience rather than the sole measure of a successful education”. This philosophy reﬂects a broader shift in education, as schools and parents question the longstanding reliance on traditional testing systems, such as Common Entrance (CE) and GCSEs, as the best way to assess pupils.

“The role of education in the 21st century goes far beyond memorising facts and

regurgitating them in exams. In today’s fast-paced, technology-driven world, the skills, knowledge and understanding that our young people need are rapidly changing,” says Louise North.

The World Economic Forum has noted that employers are looking for a skillset that encompasses creative and analytical thinking, resilience, technological literacy, and emotional intelligence. At Framlingham, these habits are embedded into educational provision, with the focus on encouraging pupils to be ambitious, nimble and creative in their thinking, and to embrace change rather than fear it. “As educators, we must ensure that our educational provision evolves to reﬂect the future adult world of our pupils, equipping them with the skills, conﬁdence and resilience that they are going to need.”

This, adds Louise North, also impacts the whole approach to teaching. “The

traditional role of teachers as omniscient ﬁgures imparting knowledge has changed signiﬁcantly. In an era where information is readily available at the touch of a screen and AI is ever more present in all that we do, the role of educators is increasingly to teach young people how to acquire and apply knowledge, and why it is relevant to life beyond the classroom.”

One area where Framlingham College has reﬂected the changing nature of life beyond the classroom is in Years 7–9. Having abandoned Common Entrance, the curriculum has been reshaped to focus on building a love of learning and an intellectual curiosity. This means the curriculum takes a thematic approach to learning, developing skills such as collaboration and creative thinking, independent research and oral presentation skills. It also focuses on ensuring that

“The role of educators is increasingly to teach young people how to acquire and apply knowledge, and why it is relevant”

pupils make connections between their subjects – learning Music through Maths or Geography through Biology, for example.

“We understand the pressures that young people face, especially when preparing for senior school entrance testing. These are pressures that can signiﬁcantly reduce their spirit of enquiry and love of learning,” says Head of Framlingham College Prep School, Simon Roche. “As an all-through school, we are fortunate to be able to create a shared and seamless learning journey from Prep to Senior, through a curriculum that develops skills and resilience, while also ensuring that the joy that comes from deepening knowledge is kept alive.”

To assist with keeping that knowledge development alive, Framlingham College uses a combination of teaching methods, including project-based learning, experiential learning, and traditional

instruction. This supports teachers to deliver rigorous and purposeful lessons, where pupils are encouraged to see ‘a bigger picture’ and spot interrelationships between themes. “Our integrated approach to learning reduces many of the stresses of transitioning from Prep to Senior, giving pupils the conﬁdence they need to succeed without feeling overwhelmed by the process,” adds Simon Roche.

Framlingham College Principal Louise North adds that now, more than ever, schools need look to the future and prepare young people to thrive. “Education should be about more than just exam results, and pupils should not be deﬁned purely by their performance in a narrow set of assessments. Instead, the focus should be on preparing them for the world beyond school – one where creativity, resilience, and the ability to adapt to change will be essential.”

ABOVE & LEFT Building teamwork, collaboration and intellectual curiosity is a key focus of learning at Framlingham College

BRILLIANT BOOKS

Jacqui Sadler, Librarian at St Catherine’s Prep School, Bramley, on the huge value of reading – for pleasure, for understanding our world, and for success

It is no surprise to my friends and family that I ended up in a career surrounded by books. For as long as I can remember, books have always been hugely important in my life. I have fond memories of picture books being read to me every evening at bedtime and knew the words of my favourites by heart. My childhood was ﬁlled with Enid Blyton, Roald Dahl, then later Judy Blume and the Sweet Valley High series.

St Catherine’s Prep library is an incredibly special place. Not only is it a bright, comfortable space but it is also full of the latest books written by exceptional authors such as Robin Stevens, Onjali Q. Rauf and M.G. Leonard – just a few of the authors who represent the golden age of children’s literature we are fortunate to be living in today. There is something for every child’s unique interest and preference. Every class in the school, from Reception to Year 6 has a regular library session weekly where they have the

opportunity to read books, share their favourite authors and learn information skills to assist with research projects.

Throughout the school, the girls have the opportunity to shadow various book awards. Most recently, the girls have entered The Royal Society Children’s Science Book of the Year award, a crosscurricular programme which aims to encourage and inspire young readers to explore a variety of science topics – from ‘Stardust’ to ‘a Bug’s World’ and ‘Deadly and Dangerous animals’. A number of year groups review and discuss these books before voting for their favourite. A wide variety of extracurricular clubs on o er – including Poetry, Current A airs and Book Groups – explore topics and challenge the girls to address and consider new perspectives.

As part of the school’s leadership programme, girls in Year 6 can volunteer to become library monitors. And, as part of their role, the girls listen to our PrePrep girls read. They also give support

“Reading is a superpower for children – it helps them to understand the world around them, their own feelings and the feelings of others”

with the running of extracurricular clubs, participate in assemblies, and introduce and lead discussions with visiting authors. The library hosts several annual events, which are always met with great enthusiasm. These include World Book Day celebrations, Book Fairs, National Poetry Day, NonFiction November and book swaps.

We know that reading is a superpower for children’s brains. Not only are they learning new words and meanings to develop a broader vocabulary, reading helps them to understand the world around them, their own feelings and the feelings of others. Reading brings children comfort, conﬁdence, relaxation and fun, as well as increasing their concentration. The joy of reading stories is so important for knowledge and understanding, and we know it can help enormously with academic success.

It is never too early to read with your child. Not only does it develop a special bond with them, it helps their language skills, empowers their imagination and builds creativity. For some expert recommendations, the top ﬁve favourite books of the St Catherine’s Prep School girls in Year 3-6 are, in no particular order:

• Percy Jackson (series) by Rick Riordan

• Ruby Redfort (series) by Lauren Child

• Murder Most Unladylike (series) by Robin Stevens

• Wonder by R.J. Palacio

• Matilda by Roald Dahl.

ABOVE

Jacqui Sadler and a pupil at St Catherine’s Prep School, Bramley

PERFECT

WORDS

Colette Hiller taps into children’s innate gift for language in her new book by introducing them to words of substance and precision

There’s absolutely nothing sanctimonious or soporiﬁc about Colette Hiller’s Colossal Words (although these are two of the chosen ones). Each of the 75 selected for this book has substance – a satisfying word children can get their teeth into and then use to enliven conversation and writing. This is not a dictionary – far

from it – so no dry deﬁnitions. Instead, each word has its own page, and is described via an illustrated poem with an accompanying quote or fascinating fact. And these are rhymes to be read out loud to help each word stick in the memory.

So what inspired a book all about words? “Children are natural wordsmiths,” says Colette Hiller. “But despite this, adults often take pains to avoid seemingly sophisticated words – and they really

needn’t. If a child can grasp a concept, they will relish using the word itself. It may seem odd that an eight-year-old might be familiar with the word unbiased, yet what child isn’t absolutely au fait with the principle of fairness – this isn’t a stretch at all.” Then there are the precise words that describe something perfectly in the shortest possible space. “Once you know the word penultimate, you wouldn’t want to say second to last.”

ABOVE

Each of the chosen words has its own short poem, illustrated by Tor Freeman LEFT Colette Hiller

Hiller trialled ten of the words and their poems in the book with pupils at a west London school over three sessions, with satisfying results. “After this, the appetite for language had changed. They were using these words in written and spoken language. Also, you could hear the word retaliate being shouted out across the playground!” Retaliate was, as you’ll have guessed, part of the trial. “Small concept, big word – getting back at someone is something that children know instantly.”

Colette Hiller has always been involved with bringing words to life. Born to English parents in the US, she went to a performing arts high school in New York. She arrived in London as part of the cast of the original stage show Annie (working alongside the likes of Sheila Hancock) and stayed. To fans of the iconic film Aliens, she is remembered for her Corporal Ferro – the pilot who utters the phrase still treasured by gamers of a certain age: ‘We’re in the pipe, five by five’. But theatre was much more her thing,

“Children are natural wordsmiths, but adults often take great pains to avoid seemingly complicated words”

and she spent most of her acting career treading the boards with companies such as the RSC and National.

Even though Colette Hiller is still sometimes asked what it was like to appear in Aliens or Annie, she prefers to talk about what she’s done since. “It was a big part of my life, but it was also a really Eureka moment to understand you could have creative satisfaction not by acting but by creating.” She worked as a BBC producer, mainly within education. “Always on the innovation side, looking at new projects and researching new ideas.” She was also one of the clever minds behind Sing London. Those pianos that grace public spaces in London and other great cities were one brilliant creation and were inspired by the idea of small interventions that make a big place more human-scale and navigable – and more fun.

Perhaps no surprise that Hiller – as the mother of a twin boy and girl – would also turn her mind to fun interventions to help children navigate that great big landscape of language. She created Applehead, a muchloved CD of songs that describes exploring the world as a small person. “I’m interested in making anybody smart,” she says. Her own children were reading by age three –nothing unusual about that, since she was also taught to read and write very young. Colossal Words taps into this same idea of exploring and having fun. “The aim is to

“The aim is to show that you are the rightful owner of these words. This is your language –it’s yours for the taking”

spark a real love of language and to show that you are the rightful owner of these words. This is your language – it’s yours for the taking.” Hiller believes one of the problems around words is that, while we teach very young children lots of them, by the time they are settled in school some of that joy of naming and perfectly describing gets swamped by the rigours of vocabulary and spelling tests (often bunched together).

Of course, children need to learn the workaday words – she calls them “meat and potato” words – but something of the excitement of language can be lost. “We’re always telling them to be descriptive. It’s such a wrong way to do it. It’s ‘be accurate – what do you see?’” Little wonder then that brevity found a place in Colossal Words, with a suitably succinct poem. And, while Hiller has a beef about the wishy-washy descriptive, she enjoys the arrow-sharp nondescript – so that made the cut. She thinks children should learn words that capture nuance, as well as precision. “Why is it a word like dangerous is dull and yet perilous is interesting? It’s to do with shades of meaning.”

While she loves words, Colette Hiller says she is not a great speller and has long used rhymes and verbal tricks to remember tough double letter combinations (she has one for spelling colossal). And she clearly recalls those heartsink moments of childhood when you are told to look something up. “The minute you are looking up words in a dictionary it becomes a chore,” she says. “The di erence here is it’s someone sharing their delight in the word.”

Fittingly, zest is the very last of the 75 – a joyful ending to a book that explores owning your language and ﬁnding the perfect word to describe precisely what you see.

Colossal Words for Kids by Colette Hiller, with illustrations by Tor Freeman, is published by Francis Lincoln (£9.99).

“They won’t see it as work, they won’t see it as exercise, they will just see it as fun, and they’ll want to do it over and over again”

FREE MOVERS

Parkour is fun, and with a focus on individual physical and mental challenge, which is why it’s a brilliant activity for children

Mention parkour to most people and the ﬁrst thing they think of is crazy stunts across rooftops in TV adverts or the classic James Bond

chase scene that opened Casino Royale The second thing they think is: ‘That looks dangerous’. But think again.

Now recognised o cially as a sport in the UK, parkour is becoming increasingly popular for children from primary years up. And, says Dan Edwardes, founder of Parkour Generations, it has an excellent safety record. “Statistically, parkour is way down on the risk list compared to most traditional sports. In fact, injuries per 1,000 hours is lower than almost any traditional sport.”

Edwardes was a UK pioneer of parkour, which is, in simplest terms, the discipline of freely moving in and around your space. While the roots of parkour can be traced back to everything from martial arts to obstacle courses, the parkour we know now is widely acknowledged to have developed in the Paris suburbs in the 1990s. It’s still a big deal there – in fact, a parkour

torch bearer was part of the opening ceremony of this summer’s Olympics.

While the stunts on TV are undeniably cool, this is not how parkour is taught to children. It’s a logical step on from play. Watch any group of toddlers to teens in a playground and you will see an almost obsessive compulsion to clamber up, around, over and through things. “Our birthright as human beings is to be very physically literate and very adaptive movers, and so all parkour is doing is tapping into that natural desire to move and play and giving it a little bit more discipline and focus,” says Edwardes.

While Parkour Generations’ work ranges from advising on stunts and sequences in ﬁlm to training serious practitioners, its grassroots-level arm is central. It has worked with schools up and down the country and internationally since 2005, training teachers, leading sessions and also designing and supplying parkour equipment and courses for indoor and outdoor facilities.

It’s also behind the London Parkour School in Docklands, a centre speciﬁcally for the under 16 age group. This opened just after the pandemic and now hosts children from all over London. The school even runs micro parkour

LEFT Parkour is a form of free movement tbat builds body conﬁdence

sessions for tots from six months. More centres are now being planned across London and other UK cities.

Parkour is a brilliant way for children to let o steam because it combines elements of play with physical and mental challenges. “About 25% of all play is what’s called locomotor play. So, if you leave kids alone, at least a quarter of their time will be spent in very physical, very active play,” says Edwardes. “If you catch them early and you encourage them to move, and you make movement easier for them and more fun, they are much more likely to stick with it.”

So how does parkour work when you’re teaching it to a lively bunch of kids? “A lot of people might think that we get them to focus on parkour techniques but actually, especially when they are young, there’s not a lot of technical instruction. That’s not

a good way to get kids moving. The better way is the constraintled method, which is basically to give them some parameters,” he says.

This might be an obstacle course to complete as fast as possible then tag a teammate, or a task where they have to stay o the ground (a lava-style game). “They won’t see it as work, they won’t see it as exercise, they will just see it as fun, and they’ll want to do it over and over again,” says Edwardes. “As a teacher, that’s done your job for you – you don’t need to motivate them, they’re very happy to do that all day!”

It’s a style of movement that is both natural and empowering, as children test their own limits and learn to use the space presented to them. Along the way, they are developing strength, agility and coordination, but also thinking skills as they learn to judge risks, appraise situations and ﬁnd practical solutions.

One other reason parkour is so appealing to children is that it’s not about competing to win. “It’s trained in groups, and it’s got a hugely strong community base and a social aspect to it, but it’s a solo skill,” says Dan Edwardes. This gives it real advantages over traditional play-to-win sports. “About 50% of kids don’t have much interest in competitive sport. But equally, the kids that do have a competitive streak also enjoy parkour because it is so challenging.”

“Parkour develops strength, agility and coordination, but also thinking skills as children learn to judge risks and ﬁ nd practical solutions”

Schools are receptive to parkour – when you talk to any sports lead these days, they are more focused on establishing lifelong habits of activity than on trophy cabinets. That said, parkour helps with both objectives. “Sports are fantastic in their physical development, but they are quite specialised in their movement skills,” says Dan Edwardes. “It’s better to give a kid a broad based, general physical literacy when they are young. If they’ve got that they can adopt any sport they want for the rest of their life.” And the breadth of movements involved builds body resilience, something that Edwardes believes can help guard against injuries.

As to whether this will ever become an Olympic competition – probably not in the short term. Not that this matters to most children. For them, this is supercharged fun, with playful tests that build both conﬁdence and a greater understanding of their own body’s amazing capabilities. For that reason alone, parkour is a brilliant addition to the sports roster.

* parkourgenerations.com

ABOVE & BELOW

Children test their skills and learn cool moves at Parkour Generations’ Docklands centre

TR Y, TRY

Celebrated Ireland rugby international Donncha O’Callaghan was inspired by his own track record of embarrassing scrapes for the plotline of his new novel again

Well, he may be a rugby legend – part of the Six Nations Grand Slam of 2009, with four Lions caps and 17 seasons for Munster under his belt – but Donncha O’Callaghan is also celebrated among those who know him for disasters on the domestic front. So, when it came to a subject for his new novel, he had plenty of material. In fact, you could say that Disaster Dad is art imitating life.

“I’ll be honest with you,” he says. “It is more truth than ﬁction. That was probably the idea for it.” He is refreshingly frank about the fails that punctuate life o the pitch – and says his children relish that side of him. “For all of my life, I’ve managed to get into embarrassing situations. And in the adult world people tell you: ‘come on and grow up’. Since my kids have arrived, they see the absolute joy in having an embarrassing dad.

“I know it will come, the day when they turn purple and run away from it, but at the moment my own kids have probably heightened my sense that it’s OK to be a little bit silly, to get things wrong – to meet them on their level,” he says. “Embarrassing things happen, and when they see them happening to you they learn it’s OK to laugh at yourself,

to get things wrong, and we all do it.”

Disaster Dad distils that into a comic romp of a read. Narrator Finn is son of a rugby-playing father who is – to put it mildly – challenged by the practical side of life. Mum is the capable one, so when she goes on a trip to Boston and leaves dad in charge of Finn, Emma and Carl the dog for a whole seven days, it’s not a question of what can go wrong, but how much, how often, how bad. From the smudged and illegible master plan (which had everything required to make it through the next seven days in one piece) to a wild kitchen decorating plan, it’s a comedy of fails. Then there’s Operation Birthday Surprise. While Mum intervenes by text from Boston to beg Finn to ensure his dad doesn’t build the treehouse she made the mistake of saying she wished she’d had

as a child, she does return to a garden full of chickens – something she never ever yearned for. As she whispers to Finn in the airport arrivals hall: ‘You survived!’.

While the child characters are not their own brood – Donncha and Jenny O’Callaghan have three daughters and one son – that spirit of ‘in it together’ in Disaster Dad is deﬁnitely something carried over from real life. “We’re kind of run like a team,” he says. “Jenny and I call the shots, but we have their backs as well.”

While O’Callaghan’s rugby career gave him a place in Ireland’s hall of fame, and he attracted yet more fans as an RTÉ 2fm breakfast show presenter and on TV show Ireland’s Fittest Family, he believes that the really important heroes and role models for children are those closest to them.

“Of course I wanted to play for Ireland, but it wasn’t an aspiration,” he says. “I wanted to be like the boy who won the Senior Cup, who was only maybe ﬁve years older. If you’d told me I’d play for Ireland I’d have said: ‘I can’t get there’, but I thought I could make the school team.”

Similarly, his own children have been just as excited about a recent Irish schools’ hurling competition as the Olympics. “It’s not that far away – it’s the age group up.”

Of course, as children of a rugby great,

there’s sometimes the expectation that the junior O’Callaghans will be sporting standouts – but that’s never their father’s expectation or hope. “I just want them to go out and have fun and enjoy it,” he says. As to whether he’d encourage them to try for the world of elite sport, the answer is yes –but with a caveat. “Of course, if you want to make it in sport, great, but you’ve got to be a champion too at school, in your work.”

His own children are of an age where they can laugh about the things that go wrong – and now particularly enjoy setting their dad up for an embarrassing fail. That’s good – he says – it’s important for children to understand that getting it wrong is nothing to worry about. “You don’t want to shield or guard them – there’s a big bad world out there as well – but there’s also the importance of making it light and making it fun and making a brilliant childhood.”

Donncha O’Callaghan is happy to be the butt of the comedy in Disaster Dad, but he also knows that humour can help children pick themselves up and learn to try, try again. “Be resilient, always back yourself,” he says. “That’s a kind of mantra around our house. Give it a go, back yourself. If you fall short, fair enough, but we always encourage them to have a go.”

Disaster Dad, by Donncha O’Callaghan, written with Karen Owen and illustrated by Jenny Taylor, is published by Eriu, £11.99.

ABOVE

Our narrator’s dad is an epic failure in domestic life . Illustrations by Jenny Taylor BELOW Donncha O’Callaghan

DEPTH JOY STRUCTURE SPACE

Your child’s primary years are fundamental in shaping not just what they become, but who they become.

King Alfred School has over 120 years of experience of designing joyful learning experiences which give each child the space they need to discover and develop their passions, to embrace challenge and reflect on their achievements.

Our creative curriculum inspires children because they do it

through experience, through play, through genuine interest; we nurture an eagerness to know more and encourage greater depth of understanding. We have high expectations for our children and give them the freedom to explore and grow - all within a structure which lets them develop at the pace which is right for them. The results speak for themselves; happy, confident children who love to learn.

Find out more about the school, or book to attend an open event at www.kingalfred.org.uk

ART CONNECTIONS

The Head of Art at York House School on why this is a subject that helps children develop creative strengths and make important connections

Art is a rich form of visual communication which allows even very small children to express themselves in a highly personal language while also giving them the tools to interpret meaning in the artwork of others. As in all things, the earlier this skill is acquired and the broader the exposure, the more beneﬁcial it is to the individual in becoming a proﬁcient artistic ‘linguist’.

Art teaches children many life skills too, from empathy, self-expression and introspection to the celebration of di erences, critical analysis, open-mindedness and eloquence in formulating and communicating opinions. During lessons, pupils also experience the freedom of not being right or wrong in an educational setting. The practical side of the subject helps

"Encouraging self-confidence in expression develops resilience against the pressures of conformity"

children to develop observational skills, concentration, resilience, ﬁne motorskills, tenacity and proﬁciency in selfevaluation and peer assessment.

One of its strengths is that it can beneﬁt all children. Picasso’s view that ‘every child is an artist’ certainly rings true. Young children, almost without exception, enjoy being creative without fear of judgement and continue to embrace that individuality and creativity, whether in practical or intellectual terms. Art also helps pupils to connect with the world around them and my mantra in class is that to be a true artist, you need to see and not merely look. This infers a requirement for a deeper understanding of the subject visually, of course, but also intellectually. Art is a highly philosophical and academic subject, even though it is often viewed solely as a practical application or skillset. Analysis, investigation, critical rigour, innovation and communication are all key components. The inclusion of the history of art, which is imbued throughout the art curriculum, requires pupils to consider societal, historical, cultural and political issues with conceptual depth. It is

no coincidence that the art department is a relevant and easily facilitated inclusion on nearly all cross-curricular trips. Possibly the most important and personally gratifying aspect of teaching art to children is helping to develop and guide their recognition, acceptance and celebration of being an individual. Encouraging self-awareness and selfconﬁdence in expression, as well as empathy and understanding of others’ right to see things di erently, develops resilience against the pressures of conformity in these times of social media. This also helps to ensure empathetic and open-minded future adults.

The art curriculum has developed and broadened exponentially since I began teaching and has, happily, embraced a wider spectrum of artists, art genres and materials. The inclusion of art history into all aspects of the practical curriculum is integral to both the understanding of the subject and its potential within education. A more diverse and inclusive art curriculum, which includes the age-appropriate study of art and artists from a range of backgrounds, teaches the importance of equality and respect while also creating a richer base of experience.

ELAINE

FRASER Head of Art York House School

ABOVE

Art in action at York House School

TESTING SMARTER

Launched in September, Talamo is a dyslexia screening test that is a ordable, scalable and accurate – a potential gamechanger for earlier diagnosis

Jamie Wace had a patchy time in education. Then, at 15, he got a screening test and discovered he had dyslexia. He says this was a “Genesis moment” that changed his approach and educational outcome. “My motivation was really poor, so I didn’t work

very hard,” he says. But once he knew he was wired a bit di erently, all that changed. “I took charge of my own learning.”

Fast forward and Jamie Wace was in Fortune 100 companies working in technology. Then he stumbled back across dyslexia as a topic and, when he looked at the technology, he felt there was potential to do things di erently and improve outcomes.

One huge problem identiﬁed was the cost and availability of testing – waiting lists are long and assessment tests typically range from £350-£1,000. Many children don’t get checked as early as they should. There are also those who may be harder to spot – as Jamie Wace could testify from his own late diagnosis.

“One statistic jumped out at us – which is that 80 per cent of dyslexic students don’t have

“Talamo was tested on 1,400 children across 18 partner schools – including two specialist dyslexia schools –and shows a 94% accuracy rate so far”

their diagnosis before they leave school,” he says. “This was a bit of a lightbulb moment.” He and co-founders Sophie Dick and Leo Thornton then began the process of redesigning screening to be faster, cheaper, accurate and scalable.

On the way to launch, Talamo was tested on 1,400 UK children across 18 partner schools, including two specialist dyslexia schools. Results so far show a 94% accuracy rate. Schools that have been part of the pilot include Moon Hall, a dyslexia specialist school in Reigate, whose Head of SEN & Assessment Centre Lucy Pelling describes it as “a game changer”.

Talamo screening is digital and uses content adapted from formal assessments, including Riverside Insights WoodcockJohnson, with whom Talamo developed a strategic agreement. “We’ve adapted a lot of that test and included some of our material as well.” AI technology enables personalised recommendations.

The ideal is for the test to be taken in a whole-class session. With this approach, the cost of the test is typically around £12 per child. Some parents may wish to get

the screening test outside a school setting –currently, this costs £69 but Talamo aim to reduce an individual test to £50 over time.

The test is ideally taken in Year 3 or 4.

“We’d test even younger, but we wouldn’t feel confident with those results,” says Jamie Wace. Senior school entry at 11 is another obvious testing point, but the screening can be undertaken from 7-16. What’s important about the design of Talamo is that it’s easy for the children to use – clear and engaging screens and instructions, also not too long a test – and the report generated is aimed at the lay person, not specialist. “We describe it in plain English.” The aim is to make it clear for parents, as well as teachers and, while highlighting the dyslexia risk is important, the report includes learning profile information –visual reasoning, verbal reasoning, processing speed, and so on – and easy-to-follow guidance when a potential learning need is flagged.

“Most children will get something and, even if they’ve scored really highly, they still get some metacognitive guidance,” says Jamie Wace. He believes this is really important, as many of the elements in the cognitive profile and follow-on recommendations are areas where small adaptations and more awareness may make a sizeable di erence. Just as important, children get insights into their own style as learners. Instead of feeling stupid when they can’t seem to grasp something everyone else in class gets, a child can recognise that it’s just a specific need they have as a learner –such as a working memory issue – and then they can be helped (and help themselves) to find a workaround. “I see it a lot of the time when the kids take the test. A lot of the time it’s a motivational issue, and a lot of that is tied to their self-esteem.”

Talamo is still in post launch phase, so Jamie Wace and his co-founders are looking forward to feedback from children and teachers so they can reﬁne the test. He believes it’s the scalability that’s important, and the fact that it may potentially make life a lot easier for children, parents and SENCOs.

“The main thing for us is the accessibility aspect of it. It’s taking something that was previously reserved for the few and trying to put it across as a universal right for everybody.”

talamo.co.uk

The moder n PREP

James Du eld, new Headmaster of Shropshire co-ed school Moor Park, on why a modern prep education remains as relevant as ever

With the announcement of yet more British prep school closures, one is led to question both the value and relevance of the classic British model. It may help to look back to the founding principles, and indeed the very word prep – preparatory – from the Latin, parāre, meaning ‘to make ready’. Beyond the endless marketing around small class numbers, playing ﬁelds, extracurricular enrichment and examination results, there lies a more subtle, and perhaps powerful, reason that prep schools really are the best education we can o er our young children. None of us really know what the world into which these young people will emerge might look like. What we do know is that the protection of their youth, their innocence, and their inherent love of life is of the utmost importance. Perhaps a good modern prep does as much to preserve childhood as it does to prepare a child for the future.

ABOVE Moor Park pupils have time to play

BELOW Head James Du eld

“Many beneﬁts for children are to be found in down time – the space to create their own games”

Jonathan Haidt, in his well-documented and increasingly popular book The Anxious Generation, tries to make clear the damage being caused to a generation of children who are overprotected in the real world but insu ciently protected in the virtual one. Haidt goes on to say that childhood is increasingly phone rather than play based. The loss of childhood is well documented, but the solution is a little less obvious. It lies partly in space, in every sense of the word. It means allowing children both physical and mental room to explore their world, giving them the opportunities to make mistakes, to understand that they will fail before they succeed, while providing an environment of care and compassion in which to make these discoveries. Throughout this process, children learn the skills required for an unknown world of technological advance and change – able to adapt, to slow down when necessary and to ﬁnd the capacity to solve problems.

Another vital ingredient is participation. When children are at school with their peers and without their phones they

socialise, play games and learn to appreciate their environment. The extracurricular opportunities for a child at school for 10 hours a day need no explanation. But many of the beneﬁts are to be found in down time, free time, golden time – call it what you will. This time gives children the space to create their own games, to just be with each other, to make choices and to learn away from their screens. Surely, in a screen-based world, this is as important as formal education?

An equally important facet of prep school life is the smooth transition during Key Stage 3, which a ords more time, and therefore less pressure. There are also many beneﬁts of being in an environment where the oldest pupils are 13. Children reach the top of the tree, become the big ﬁsh in the small pond – with all the responsibilities and achievements this entails. They then start anew, with all the tools gained, in the next stage of their education.

Modern preps understand that the important thing is not the ﬁnished product but supporting the progression of childhood. It is increasingly important that children be allowed to develop at their own pace, and prep school provides them with the support, protection and preparation to do just this.

JUST suppose...

Dan Schreiber’snew book for fact lovers is informative and fun in equal measure – perfect for inspiring young investigators of the weird and wonderful

When you’ve been a QI elf for as long as Dan Schreiber, you have a head full of fascinating facts, strange nuggets and unsolved mysteries just waiting for brilliant investigators to dig deeper. Impossible Things is a distillation of some of this treasure, perfectly pitched to engage super-curious young minds. When Schreiber started scoping the book, he knew there was vital ground to cover. “I wanted to go for the biggies: ghosts and UFOs and cryptids – Big Foot, and so on,” he says. “And then it was thinking, ‘what are the conversations I loved having as a kid?’” Time travel was one obvious one, so too were bizarre happenings. “Experiences that people have where often other people will say, ‘oh grow up, stop thinking about that’.” So, if Impossible Things can be distilled down to one thing, it’s a call out to young readers to keep that ungrown-up thinking going.

Becoming an ‘Impossible Investigator’ requires an open mind and the right tools –and that’s where the Yogibogeybook comes in. The name was inspired by the Yogi Bogey Box Schreiber read about in James Joyce’s Ulysses (there, it’s a box of kit used by ghost hunters). He loved the name so much he repurposed it – so the Yogibogeybook

is the place where strange ﬁndings and o beat investigations can be noted down.

“It’s a very Fortean idea logging these things,” he says. “The reason I’m really happy with that conceit is that it allowed me not to encourage an absolute belief in absolute facts about ghosts or UFOs, but to say: ‘we don’t know, but that doesn’t mean it’s not important to write it down’. It’s a good way of not dismissing – a middle ground to say that you’re allowed to be curious about this, you’re allowed to be interested.”

Chapters start with an adventure he has been on or a mystery that has intrigued him. Notably, this includes a story about a ghostly glass levitation the young Dan Schreiber and family experienced in a Tibetan hotel. He says he’s not what you’d call a ghost believer, but then again... “It’s what I call the soft rock, the impossible thing that has happened to you that you can’t explain.”

There were other strange childhood happenings, not recounted in the book, that prepared the young Dan Schreiber for tuning into the weirder aspects of life. Growing up in Hong Kong, there was a regular babysitter who would tell tales of epic proportions. She claimed to have a stick that could stop tornados and typhoons and said she had been kidnapped by aliens as a child.

“Not one told us it wasn’t true,” he says.

But the open-minded approach served him well. Thanks to what he calls “so many random relevant coincidences”, when Schreiber arrived in the UK, aged 19, to stay with his aunt in Oxford for three weeks he had the career opening of a lifetime. His aunt had shown one John Lloyd round BBC Radio Oxford (she was only co-opted at the last minute because her boss had gone out on a lunch). She worked on local programmes at the time and had no real idea who John Lloyd was. In passing, she told him her nephew heading over from Australia was looking to break into comedy, then asked if he had any tips. Lloyd passed on his phone number.

BELOW

Dan Schreiber. Photo Matt Crockett

“It’s a very Fortean idea logging these things – a middle ground to say that you’re allowed to be curious about this, you’re allowed to be interested”

There was an extraordinary run of happy coincidences when Schreiber met Lloyd that sealed his destiny as a QI elf. Schreiber had just ﬁnished at a Rudolph Steiner school in Sydney and Lloyd was thinking of sending his son to a Steiner school so wanted to know all about the teaching approach. Schreiber had been living in the very suburb of Palmy (Palm Beach, Sydney) where Lloyd had collaborated with Douglas Adams on The Meaning of Li . Schreiber happened to have this same book in his bag because it was his favourite read – he’d brought it along for Lloyd to sign.

“And then the last thing was, he said, ‘so what do you want to do in life?’. I said: ‘I grew up in Hong Kong and I speak Mandarin. I want to move over to China and be a standup comedian in Mandarin’. He almost fell o his chair because he’d literally just come from a meeting where he was talking about pitching a show looking at Chinese stand-up and he was trying to ﬁnd a Westerner who spoke Mandarin well enough to present the show over there. He said: ‘Well, clearly the universe has said we should work together’. That’s not how he does general QI hires, by the way. It’s a rigorous process of seeing if you know facts and all that stu !”

Dan Schreiber has been involved in successful fact-sharing shows ever since. Alongside QI, there’s the podcast No Such Thing As A Fish – now in its tenth year and on tour in the UK before a sell-out date at Sydney Opera House in November. More recently, there’s We Can Be Weirdos, exploring the wilder beliefs of those who have inﬂuenced the course of human history. There is also the Radio 4 show The Museum of Curiosity. That’s a particularly satisfying happenstance. On the day John Lloyd met Dan Schreiber’s aunt at BBC Radio Oxford, he was pitching QI as a radio show. That never happened – it was destined

for TV. Eight years on, Lloyd and Schreiber went back in together and – with Richard Turner at the BBC – ﬁnally brought what they consider to be its rightful heir, The Museum of Curiosity, to our airwaves.

Coincidences get a look in in Impossible Things – within a chapter called ‘Are we all actually living in a giant video simulation?’

These and other crazy-but-fascinating trains of thought are perfect open-ended debates to stimulate discussion and investigation. As Dan Schreiber sees it, these ‘what ifs’ are the ideas we need around the dinner table. “It’s a much better conversation than something boring about a bill that’s come in. It just reminds you, ‘isn’t it good to be alive – it’s exciting’.”

In the epilogue of Impossible Things, there’s a quote from the experimental British actor, writer and producer Ken Campbell. He liked to counsel his young daughter Daisy never to believe in something, but rather to suppose that something could exist.

“Suppose is a much better way of approaching things,” says Schreiber. “That’s what the book is – it’s how to be a supposer.”

Impossible Things, by Dan Schreiber, illustrated by Kristyna Baczynski, is published by Hachette Children’s Group, £12.99.

Inspiring young minds to write their own stories.

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Senior

SUPER SCIENCE

Curricular, cross-curricular o campus or o beat, what are the innovative approaches schools use to engage students with science – for both study and future careers? Absolutely Education speaks to four schools that use clever approaches to bring these subjects to life

Tonbridge School

If we’re not reaching for real-world examples of science in our lessons, then we are missing half the fun”, says Nick Waite, Head of Science at Tonbridge School. “It’s the hands-on experiments and relatable examples that make science stand out, sparking curiosity in ways that other subjects can’t match.”

The goal here is to ensure every lesson includes an exciting experiment or memorable demonstration to “anchor” theory in life. “Whether it’s exploring diseases in biology, thrilling explosions in chemistry, or the highspeed world of Formula 1 in physics, these real-world connections transform abstract concepts into something tangible.” The school’s superb Science Centre is designed to ignite curiosity, featuring displays, challenging questions and posters about past projects.

Students here are often on their feet, collaborating, problem-solving, and presenting solutions on the whiteboards spanning the walls of labs. “By integrating technology – whether it’s using ChatGPT as a virtual study companion, tackling online question banks, or exploring YouTube – we empower our students to dive deeper, expanding their understanding and making learning an adventure,” says Nick Waite.

Tonbridge became the first school to earn ‘Employer Champion’ status from the Science Council, in recognition of its commitment to sta training and professional development. And in September, the school’s Senior Chemistry Technician received the Hauksbee Award from the Royal Society for her contribution to sparking scientific curiosity and driving collaboration across schools. “Our educators are not only experts in their fields but also pioneers in delivering cutting-edge, engaging STEM experiences for our students.”

Cross-curricular approaches are a big part of bringing science to life. From constructing model rockets to learning about the iterative design improvements required in engineering, there are multiple real-world opportunities. External speakers are a big part of the mix and students also deliver presentations to their peers, as well as producing a school science magazine. The school’s annual science conference – now in its 20th year – brings together over 20 di erent schools. Visitors from Japan and California have been among participants in recent years. There’s a science communication competition, now in its third year, that Nick Waite says is proving to be an excellent platform for young people across

London and the south-east to articulate big ideas persuasively and coherently.

‘These activities not only deepen scientiﬁc knowledge but also cultivate essential skills.”

Many students here choose STEM subjects at university, and careers-related activities are designed to showcase their versatility. “They highlight the value of studying STEM subjects, not just for those pursuing science-based careers but also as a foundation for critical thinking, problemsolving, and innovation,” adds Nick Waite.

Stephen Perse Cambridge

Head of Science and Biology

Alexander Van Dijk says Stephen Perse’s Cambridge location – surrounded by innovative companies – is a real boon for selling science’s real-world applications. The school makes good use of local resources by taking students to events around the city.

Recent examples include a ‘Physics at Work’ educational outreach event at the Cavendish Laboratory, trips to the city’s Museum of Zoology and to the school’s own nature reserve. There, students get involved with ‘live’ science.

“We have set up semi-permanent quadrats to allow the tracking of species diversity over time and analysis of the impact of mowing on the sedge,” says Alexander Van Dijk.

Extracurricular activities are encouraged – helping to build problem-solving and critical thinking skills as well as make science enjoyable. “Our TeenTech club has inspired students to achieve incredible things, including one student who designed

a new music curation model and a team that investigated how we can use AI to help with garden design and maintenance.”

Science Extension sessions enable students to meet weekly to discuss a wide range of topics – from de-extinction to the science of tanning. “One particularly engaging cross-curricular activity saw our science students visit RAF Henlow in collaboration with the languages

department, where our budding engineers were able to design a space station in one of three modern foreign languages.” Students participate in Olympiad competitions and use IsaacPhysics to reinforce their studies – one student even earned a place at a University of Cambridge summer school as one of the top 50 school physics students in the country.

Thanks to the school’s science-centric location, there are regular talks from the

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Live science is prioritised at Tonbridge School

parent body. “The majority of our students studying science at A level go on to study related university courses, but even those who don’t will have developed key critical thinking skills that will stand them in good stead,” says Alexander Van Dijk.

They also consider career possibilities beyond the obvious. “Students recently heard from scientiﬁc organisation Costello Medical, which highlighted the science and medicine careers available for arts and humanities students, such as medical communications and compliance.”

Concord College

With a superb science building at the heart of its Shropshire campus, Concord College is focused on future opportunities for its student cohort from the moment they arrive. “Part of our vision for science at Concord College is to inspire students to become the scientists

“One student designed a new music curation model, and a team investigated how we can use AI in garden design and maintenance”

of the future,” says Head of Science Barry Brown. When they ﬁrst arrive at Concord, Year 9 (F3) students complete a sevenweek neuroscience of learning course. The aim is to use science to become a more e ective learner.

“They experience a wealth of practical investigations leading to two opportunities to complete a British Science Association CREST Award, working in collaborative groups to solve a real-world problem,” adds Barry Brown.

There are 30 science teachers at Concord, and the school also invites scientists from academia and industry in to speak. Students experience higher-level study by attending university lectures, and with insights via industry links, too. “For example, we are forging a link with Ricoh 3-D with our aspiring engineers.” The Extended Project Qualiﬁcation (EPQ) that

is a feature of sixth form life here is also a great forum for science investigation. Many students opt for a practical science-led investigation and the College’s research lab is open every Monday night for four hours speciﬁcally for this purpose. Students are mentored by experienced teachers and have access to equipment such as 3-D printers, spectrometers and a muon detector.

The EPQ successes bear out the value of the facilities and support given to students. But they also pass on their wisdom and have both research and communication of ﬁndings tested in a ‘live’ situation. “Sixth Form students present their EPQ work and younger students are able to ask questions and learn about the breadth of applications of scientiﬁc research,” says Assistant Principal (Student Futures) Diane Van Dongen.

Homegrown and student-led academic societies hold formal and informal meetings every week, supported by

ABOVE Insights into medical sciences and (left) collaboration on an experiment at The Duke of York’s Royal Military School in Kent

sta . There are also areas where STEM comes together with humanities – for instance, in discussions on medical ethics or the economics of high-tech engineering companies. “Seeing the place that science plays in society and understanding that the society around us can a ect the science we do are important for aspiring STEM students,” says Diane Van Dongen.

The annual medical conference hosted at Concord College is now open to all aspiring medics in the region, with some elements available online. “It features visiting speakers, hands-on workshops and the chance to meet one-to-one with practicing doctors and sta from university medical schools,” says Barry Brown.

The Engineering Society has followed suit, with an increasingly ambitious programme of lectures, visits, discussions and masterclasses, and there are also active groups for biochemistry and physics.

The buzz around science rubs o on everyone here. “With such student enthusiasm we are also able to involve many students studying non-STEM subjects in the wider discussion around science,” says Diane Van Dongen.

“With so many careers even in apparently non-STEM ﬁelds making use of technologies such as IT or smart materials, it is important that science is part of everyone’s knowledge landscape.”

Duke Of York’s Royal Military School

At DOYRMS in Kent, the science department is committed to building engagement with science through innovative programmes, state-of-the-art facilities, and hands-on learning experiences. One of the school’s most prestigious initiatives is its participation in the Independent Research in Schools (IRIS) project. This enables students to undertake novel research projects and present their ﬁndings at academic conferences, mirroring processes that postgraduate researchers follow.

Students are also given the chance to compete in various STEM competitions, both locally and nationally. These include the Top of the Bench competition, organised by the Royal Society of Chemistry, which challenges young chemists to showcase their skills. The team here say that these opportunities not only boost students’ scientiﬁc knowledge but also help them build conﬁdence and experience in public speaking and presenting research to mixedage audience – all useful stu for future university and job interviews.

The school’s team of science teachers includes many who previously held positions in industry and DOYRMS says this realworld experience brings a lived perspective to the classroom, ensuring that students are always thinking in terms of the latest advancements and their real-world value.

Collaboration is a key aspect of the science approach, helping to boost engagement. Teachers from di erent disciplines regularly share best practice and work together on cross-curricular projects – particularly with the maths department – to develop common approaches across the school.

Extracurricular activities play a signiﬁcant role here, especially when it comes to building interest and knowledge in science. There are 60 diverse activities to choose from at the school, including VR and ecology clubs, as well as clubs related to the physics and chemistry Olympiads. The addition of regular laboratory days at a nearby science park’s community lab, gives students practical and hands-on experience using industrial-grade equipment.

The DOYRMS team know that science engagement, both in and out of the classroom, throughout school days pays dividends when it comes to inspiring future STEM-related careers. Triple sciences are common through to A level here, and with many students heading o to university to study science and maths-related courses.

ABOVE Lab work at Concord College in Shropshire

At Malvern College we create a safe space to take risks, where self-assured, grounded, and resilient young adults develop their skills to work with anyone, anywhere. We fuel our pupils’ curiosity, equipping them to explore and challenge the status quo, enabling them to set an example to current and future generations.

Musical Theatre Scholar Beth

National Youth Music Theatre

Sergeant Marine Section (CCF)

College Prefect

Chamber Choir

Talking HEAD

Braggin g rights

The Principal of Queen’s Gate on why we need to teach girls to talk up their achievements, not talk themselves down

Go on, I dare you.”

The 11+ interview candidate pauses, and then breaks into a smile. In her hands are the gymnastics medals she has brought to show me – our standard starting point to o er our young visitors the chance to begin on familiar ground. I’ve just asked her if she’s good at gymnastics, and she’s given a shy little shrug. Her Head has warned me just how anxious she is – unnecessarily so as the girl is visibly terriﬁed.

“You see,” I’ve just explained, “at Queen’s Gate, we take pride in our successes. We own our achievements. So, if you are good at gymnastics, you should say so”. The girl breaks into a grin and concedes that yes, actually, she is an accomplished gymnast. Nerves dissipate, and the rest of our conversation passes like a dream –smiling, laughing, articulate, conﬁdent.

Thanks to writers like Sheryl Sandberg and Mary Ann Sieghart, we are no longer oblivious to the mindsets and behaviours that women unwittingly deploy – to our own detriment. We are familiar with the oft-quoted statistic that a man will apply for a role when he has 60% of the required characteristics, while women hold o until they have 100%. We know how easily women slip into grindstone adjectives (hardworking, committed, diligent) to describe themselves. That is at least a small improvement on ‘I had great mentors’ or, worse still, ‘I was very fortunate’ when complimented on an achievement.

It’s a hard thing to ﬁx. Owning one’s success, declaring one’s capability, is but a small step away from bragging, a behaviour we are taught from childhood is undesirable. Though by ‘we’, once again I mean the female of the species. To quote Sieghart: ‘They [men] have been socialised from childhood to blag, to boast, to speak up and self-promote, while girls have been penalised for exactly the same behaviour’. It’s true that unfettered selfaggrandisement is unappealing. Timing, context, tone, balance – all are crucial. But

“Owning one’s success is but a small step away from bragging, a behaviour we are taught is undesirable”

if we don’t start teaching young women of the future to start railing against excessive modesty, how can we ever expect them to go o into the world ready to e ect the change we wish we had already seen. At Queen’s Gate, we are tackling this head on by encouraging our girls to take pride in their achievements and to feel safe in stating their successes. We talk about this in assembly, referencing moments like Miley Cyrus standing on stage at the Grammies, deﬁantly challenging the audience with the question “why are you acting like you don’t know this song?”

AMY WALLACE Principal Queen’s Gate School

We apply the same thinking when pupils reflect on their own progress, asking them to identify the steps that have brought about a positive outcome. We discuss it when speaking with the girls one-on-one, such as with a recent Oxbridge candidate who had listed that her application process would include an interview if she was lucky, rather than because of her own success in the admissions test and her strong academic profile. We do, of course, remind our girls to apply this principle with caution. As exam papers are returned, we ask them to be mindful of those who may not be feeling as buoyant. We insist on being able to laugh at ourselves. We take responsibility for our mistakes. Our hope is that by promoting these behaviours when our girls are young, they will carry them on into their adult life and continue the fight against the gender inequality that remains so persistent –and so pernicious. So, to the women reading this, if you are good at something, please say it. Go on, I dare you.

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Queen’s Gate students

Talking HEAD

Embracing change

Suzie Longsta , Principal of London Park Schools, says we must move beyond Victorian-era education to embrace 21st-century learning

For far too long, our education system has remained rooted in the ideals of the Victorian age – a time when schools were designed to churn out workers to feed the needs of the industrial revolution. It’s a model that prizes conformity, rote memorisation, and the rigid segregation of subjects into neat, individual boxes. But long gone are William Blake’s ‘dark Satanic mills’, and in their place are service companies, where creativity, adaptability, and critical thinking are far more valuable than standardised skills.

Success is still measured by how well students can recall information in a highpressure exam setting, with little regard for creativity, collaboration, or emotional intelligence. Fortunately, forward-thinking schools are already leading the way, showing us that change is not only possible but essential. One of the most innovative approaches is the rise of hybrid learning models. The pandemic accelerated the need for remote learning, but this shift highlighted the immense potential for hybrid education – a blend of in-person and online learning.

“Encouraging students to think across subjects prepares them to tackle complex issues in their future careers”

Students learn at their own pace, access resources beyond the physical classroom and collaborate with peers without geographical restraints. Hybrid learning is a powerful tool that can transform education by tailoring it to individual needs and promoting independence and self-discipline.Another exciting development is the emergence of biophilic classrooms – learning environments designed to reconnect students with nature while they learn, not just in their breaks and outdoor activities. This is more than just an aesthetic trend, since biophilic design has been proven to reduce stress, improve cognitive function, and enhance creativity. In a world where students are increasingly facing mental health challenges, creating calming, nature-inspired spaces can support wellbeing in profound ways. Schools are moving away from sterile classrooms to create spaces ﬁlled with natural light, plants, and outdoor-learning opportunities.

Interdisciplinary learning is another step in the right direction. Traditional subject boundaries are breaking down,

with schools recognising that real-world problems do not ﬁt neatly into a single academic discipline. By encouraging students to think across subjects, blending science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM), we foster innovative thinking and problem-solving skills. This approach better reﬂects the modern world, preparing students to tackle complex issues in their future careers.

We must also acknowledge the urgent need to rethink assessment. The highstakes, exam-centric system is under scrutiny, not least because it fails to capture the full range of a student’s abilities. Continuous assessment, projectbased learning, and portfolio reviews, allow students to demonstrate mastery in diverse and meaningful ways.

Education must continue to evolve. Schools need to be spaces of ﬂexibility, creativity, and support – where students are nurtured as individuals. By embracing hybrid learning, biophilic environments, interdisciplinary curricula and innovative assessments, we can not only prepare students for exams but also equip them with the skills they will need to thrive in the world of tomorrow.

RIGHT Learning at London Park Schools

BELOW Suzie Longsta

Find out more about the inspiring,enlightened & intellectually rigorous education offered by Streatham & Clapham High School for girls aged 3-18

ARTS and beyond

With

its centenary in 2025, Frensham Heights

maintains its founding focus – with a broad and enriching arts grounding

Frensham Heights will celebrate its centenary in 2025, marking a forward-looking approach to education that is arguably even more relevant today than it was in 1925. The creative thread that the school’s founders embedded into the early curriculum is still part of the Surrey school’s makeup. The founders championed creative and performing arts in developing the whole child and this legacy continues. Every child experiences Dance, Music, Drama, Art, Ceramics and Design Technology from the earliest years through to the end of Year 9. From the school’s perspective, the arts are critical to a child’s development

and are essential to their ability to contribute to the world we live in today.

Sixth Form Arts Awards recognise the talented students that choose Frensham through their A-level years. These attract students who excel in either the Creative or Performing Arts and want to pursue their passion alongside their chosen A-level subjects. As part of the Arts Awards o er, they are prepared for their next steps with enrichment relevant to their ﬁeld of study. This includes visiting industry professionals, audition training, workshops and trips to theatres, galleries and concerts. Facilities at the school include a Design and Technology workshop and bespoke areas for A-level art students – graphic design, photography and ceramics studios (the latter with throwing wheels

“The arts are critical to a child’s ability to contribute to the world we live in today”

and kilns). For the performing arts, there are two dance studios, two drama studios and the Aldridge Theatre, which lies at the heart of Frensham life.

The Aldridge has staged countless musicals, plays, concerts and dance shows. It has also hosted many a visiting speaker and even a TEDx or two. This ﬂexible space transforms into the setting for art exhibitions and a social hub when parents and students gather. Activities for the wider community also happen here – including charity events and community festivals, such as the Farnham Literary Festival.

The overriding Frensham ambition is to allow students to follow their passion, be it to pursue a full-time career in drama, dance, art or music or as a study alongside their academic subjects. The school supports and champions all those who aim for the highly competitive entry to drama schools, conservatoires or ﬁlm industry openings. Equally, it celebrates those who become lawyers who can really sing, mathematicians who paint brilliantly and actors who are also passionate historians.

Almost 100 years on, the aim remains the same. The school wants every Frenshamian to leave well-rounded and fully prepared for the world of work they are entering, and with the resources to draw on to continue their association with, and pleasure in, the arts.

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The arts are central to life at Frensham Heights

Discover the Tudor Hall di erence

The phrase ‘so Tudor’ is used to describe something so quintessentially integral to Tudor Hall that there’s no other way to explain it. From the challenging, fun and wide-ranging opportunities our girls have to explore their talents or to lead - and be seen to lead - across school life, to the quiet acts of everyday kindness, empathy and generosity our girls demonstrate in everything they do, we catch ourselves so often commenting that it is ‘so Tudor’.

Achieving a place to study Classics at Oxford? So Tudor. Girls in the same cohort choosing to study at prestigious and competitive destinations such as the London School of Economics, or the Jimmy Choo Academy? Also so Tudor. Choosing from more than 200 activities on o er each week to join the Rubiks Cube club, VR & Drone

club or Dance activities (or all of these)? Yes, so Tudor.

Embracing the academic ambition and ‘no limits to learning’ approach of the High Performance Learning pathway to become a World Class School? No question, so Tudor.

Find out why our all-girls boarding and day school o ers the best possible experience and outcomes for young women, and why girls seek to join us from schools across the UK and beyond at 11+, 13+ and Sixth Form.

New for 2025!

New school minibus routes are planned for September 2025, for day girls from the Oxford area, in addition to the current routes serving Chipping Norton, Deddington, Kings Sutton and Helmdon.

Come and visit us to see for yourself the spark that is ‘so Tudor’

We warmly invite families to experience Tudor life by attending one of our regular Open Fridays or on an individual visit; simply contact our Registrar, Elspeth Dyer, on 01295 756259 or email admissions@tudorhallschool.com

WHY choose IB?

Southbank International School on how the IB Diploma delivers a rounded education with a global focus

With over 5,000 schools teaching the International Baccalaureate, the IB o ers many beneﬁts. It is comprehensive – comprising six subjects from broad curriculum groups rather than the usual three at A level. It also o ers student-centred learning and teaching. Diploma students study at least three subjects at higher and three at standard level. These include languages and literature, language acquisition, sciences, maths, the arts, and individuals and societies. Students receive an overall score to a maximum of 45. They also write an extended essay on an area that

inspires them, complete the creativity, activity and service (CAS) element and explore the theory of knowledge – how they know what they know. So, what type of student does the IB suit? The answer is most students, but particularly those who are keen for a broader perspective and an inquiry-based approach. The subject courses are rigorous, teaching students to think critically, and become thoughtful, empathetic individuals.

One concern parents sometimes express is that the IB is too broad. It’s true that if you study sciences at A level, for example, you may go into these individual subjects in greater depth. But age 16 can be too soon for students to restrict themselves. What students learn during the Diploma is far more than content.

“Students focus on approaches to learning, preparing them for university and beyond”

The focus on approaches to learning prepares them for university and beyond.

Students don’t just complete assignments, take a test and move on. They take ownership and explore how they learn best – designing their own experiments and research in science, for instance, and independently setting and meeting milestones. They learn skills for research that they can use throughout life.

“The long-term nature of these projects is good practice for university,” says Duncan Blair, who teaches Biology to Diploma students at Southbank International School. “Some kids know they want to be scientists or doctors, but many don’t – and the fact they’ve been forced to have a universitylevel experience in secondary school gives them a leg up.” Blair believes this can ensure better students, well equipped for that important ﬁrst year at university.

UK universities are familiar with the breadth and depth of the IB. Its core elements allow students to demonstrate much more than their academic achievement. This plays to the UK university pre-qualiﬁcation application system. UK universities are increasingly knowledgeable about international qualiﬁcations and all of them accept the IB, with more selective institutions specifying a total score and also higher-level grades.

* Southbank International School is currently taking applications for the IB Diploma Programme Milton Toubkin Scholarship. Applications close on Friday 6th December 2024.

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IB learning at Southbank International

ASPIRATIONAL GIRLS’ BOARDING & DAY SCHOOL 11-18, GODALMING, SURREY

Full, weekly and flexi boarding options available. 11+, 13+, 16+ entry Nestled in 42 acres of rural Surrey countryside 40 minutes from London

“Academic results are strong” Muddy Stilettos Good Schools Guide 2024 “The arts and extracurricular are simply outstanding” The Good Schools Guide 2024 “The value-added is exceptional” Talk Education Review 2024

Meet our new Head, Ms Zoe Ireland Arrange an individual tour or visit us at one of our Open Events admissions@priorsfieldschool.com I 01483 810551 I www.priorsfieldschool.com

Talking HEAD

FUTURE reimagined

The Head of Lord Wandsworth College in Dorset on how students are rising to the challenge of building a better and greener future

It was before dawn. An uncomfortable night, in an uncomfortable tent, on an uncomfortable slope in coastal Dorset had woken me early. I pulled on a dewy outﬁt, navigated around the guy ropes and found myself on the coastal path.

The wind whispered through the branches as I climbed to a rocky platform, overlooking the vast Atlantic Ocean. I nestled into a small, sheltered nook, folded my arms and witnessed the dawn ﬂowing over the rippling waves towards Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove.

As I watched from my perch, the ﬁrst boats chugged towards their ﬁshing grounds, while the cries of gannets and gulls echoed from the shoreline. This period of stillness was stirring – a life-a rming experience that ignited a desire to seek out genuine tranquillity in every moment.

Today, the threat to our coastal existence is palpable. One-in-one-hundred-year storms occur with greater frequency, exacerbating the gradual rise in sea levels. If all landbased ice were to melt, projections indicate that sea levels could rise by an alarming 70 metres. This scenario serves as a chilling reminder of the future we could face.

However, change is on the horizon and driven largely by our younger generations. Recent research suggests that Millennials, Generation Z, and Generation Alpha are increasingly concerned about climate change. They are passionate about pushing for solutions and educational institutions are responding.

“Our students are ready to lead on environmental challenges and continue to shape the landscape that we share”

At Lord Wandsworth College, we are embracing the urgency of sustainability within our hilltop setting. LWC students have a love of big skies, windswept landscapes and woodland adventures. Their voice has seen an explosion of action. We no longer plough or coppice and our community recycling centre is remarkable. We also read the stars from outside our boarding houses.

Our pupils have helped to drive outdoor learning initiatives, the creation of wildﬂower meadows, environmental stewardship margins, our 5k park run and the integration of renewable energy sources. We intend to be o grid in 12 years. The 35,000 bees who join us in a few weeks will love it.

We have appointed a remarkable Head of Outdoor Learning, transformed our Saturday morning activity programme and had pupils develop a satellite for tracking forest ﬁres. Our collective response to climate change

draws on innovation and environmental stewardship, building design and the greening and pedestrianising of the urban school landscape (complete with electric charging points and solar panels, of course). Oh, and good luck spotting a mobile phone. By fostering curiosity, creativity, collaboration and innovation in this inspirational setting of 1,200 acres, our students are ready to lead on environmental challenges and continue to shape the remarkable landscape that we share with so many. Access to outdoor space provides truly limitless opportunities. Fast forward to the future...

As I settle back into that chalky nook overlooking the Jurassic Coast, in my (still somewhat distant) retirement, I am sure the next generation of sleek and hyper-e cient wind turbines will glint beautifully in the setting sun to the west of Durdle Door. They may even have been designed by some of our LWC pupils.

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Lord Wandsworth College in Dorset

ADAM WILLIAMS Headmaster Lord Wandsworth College

SPINNING CLASS

Priya Hira, Sustainability Lead at James Allen’s Girls’ School, on why student engagement is the key to unlocking a sustainable future

In recent years a tradition has emerged each September at James Allen’s Girls’ School (JAGS). As our new Year 7s get acquainted with their surroundings and life at senior school, they pay a visit to our Composting Station for their Sustainability Induction.

The Composting Station is exactly what it sounds like; there’s a hulking 200-litre composter (which, in the true spirit of sustainability, was acquired for free secondhand), food waste caddies (from our kitchen), a tonne bag of wood chips (chipped from trees on our site) and large maturation boxes to store the compost produced. You would be excused for assuming the chance to turn the handle of a composter may not be cause for much excitement. However, the enthusiasm each induction creates among our students means we are constantly left wanting more food waste to satisfy their composting appetite.

Since its installation three years ago, the composter has become emblematic of the sweeping changes we have been able to implement at JAGS. It helps us succinctly illustrate the principles of a circular economy. Food waste is taken

from the dining hall, transformed into compost, and spread on our botany garden to help grow food which is then harvested and used by our kitchen. And, importantly, the whole process runs on girl power rather than electricity.

Just as the students are determined to keep spinning the composter, once they understand they have the power to make tangible improvements and changes, there’s no stopping them. Never has a generation been so conscious of sustainability and student engagement has been pivotal in allowing us to beckon in such a rapid sea-change across the school. Students recognise that their voices are heard and this acts as a driving force.

There are over 50 designated Eco Champions across our Junior and Senior schools. They have been responsible for changes which range from the food on our lunch menu to the material used to manufacture our uniforms. Our Art Scholars have produced shows with work made entirely from recycled materials, while our Drama Department produced costumes and sets using only recycled materials for a recent production.

“Once they understand they have the power to make tangible improvements and changes, there’s no stopping them”

Students have been given the freedom to start co-curricular clubs exploring these interests; The Incredible Edibles club works with our Botany Team to grow healthy foods for our kitchen, and students in The Repair Club breathe new life into damaged or worn items. The tenacity of our students is mirrored by our sta who, behind the scenes, are implementing important (if perhaps less glamorous) changes to our structures and processes.

If the start of the academic year is deﬁned by an introduction to sustainability, the end serves as a celebration of it. In the Summer Term, sta and students who have been particularly devoted to the eco cause are commended in front of the entire school community through our Sustainability Awards.

On top of giving students the power to make a di erence, we have seen that celebrating those achievements plants the seeds of inspiration for further change. And so, our own circular economy begins to spin again at JAGS.

PRIYA HIRA Sustainability Lead

James Allen’s Girls’ School

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JAGS students doing their bit for the circular economy

Inspiring ECOLOGY

Jenn

Harris, Managing Director of British

Council-recognised BSC Education, on the importance of ecology training for young people

According to gov.uk over 80 per cent of young people are eager to take action to help the environment. As educators, it is our role to engage with young learners and inspire them to protect the natural world around them. This means developing a sound understanding of ecology, as well as providing a platform for discussion and open dialogue in a way that helps young people make informed decisions and build conﬁdence around taking future action.

Much classroom-based learning is centred on equipping young people with the right skills for future careers. Many careers revolving around preserving our natural world are in emerging ﬁelds. This makes it important that we foster an environment where future roles are discussed and where the right skillsets are nurtured. It’s

impossible to overstress the importance of 21st-century skills in supporting young learners to analyse complex environmental problems and identify creative solutions.

It is also vital that we place increased emphasis on how learners interact with one another when advocating change – the language they use and the consideration they show to others. Promoting this kind of learning setting gives young people the ability to work collaboratively, while allowing space for numerous perspectives to be heard in a non-judgemental way.

Ultimately, we should be teaching young people the skills that enable them to explore and question the role we play as humans in ecology, as well as how we are connected to other living things. Skills that empower learners as changemakers and future leaders include a growth mindset, ﬂexibility, adaptability, and empathy. Yet educators must also nurture passion, focus and resilience to develop well-rounded young people. But how can we ensure ecological learning has a direct impact on the everyday lives of students in the real world?

The UN Sustainable Development Goals are a great starting point in providing a solid foundation within which to learn, action and implement change. For example, it can be useful to reﬂect on real-life scenarios where employers are acting on climate change and where they have seen successes and failures. Educators can invite businesses and

BELOW It’s important to teach learners how to collaborate and hear other perspectives

environmental organisations into the classroom to deliver inspiring talks and practical workshops to students.

Access to hands-on experiences and ‘live learning’ – not just theoretical inclass teaching, or videos – helps students to feel more connected to issues and potential solutions, whether at home or further aﬁeld. Likewise, balancing activities that deliver immediate results (such as local litter picks) with those that take longer (sowing and planting seeds), will help students to understand short-term and long-term environmental planning. Delivering immersive lessons, such as poster presentations on creating sustainable cities, visits to local botanical

“Ultimately, we should be teaching young people the skills to explore and question the role we play as humans in ecology”

gardens or collecting and donating to food banks, inspire conversations that give students positive experiences of making a di erence and honing collaboration, negotiation and leadership skills.

Careers education for young learners has been given greater emphasis in schools over

recent years, but how can educators ensure that learning inspires them to consider a future career in the environmental or outdoor sector, especially when many of these careers did not exist in their parents’ generation? Providing exposure to diverse career pathways, ﬁeld trips, guest lectures and mentor programmes are all important aspects of careers education, but being inspired by someone who is actively engaged in the environmental sector is always the best way to ensure early engagement.

Educators must focus on the value and impact of these careers and how fulﬁlling the work can be – also factoring in the opportunities to travel, explore and work in a wide range of settings with diverse groups of people. There is a belief among Millennials and Gen Z that future education will directly empower people to solve the world’s biggest issues. With that in mind, schools and educators have a duty to encourage curiosity, and to help young people ﬁnd their voice in a world that needs our protection.

ABOVE Practical learning experiences empower young people

READY TO THRIVE

Murray Lindo of Wellington College on an approach that is preparing students to thrive in their lives beyond education

Today, schools need to prepare students for more rapid economic and social change than ever before, for jobs that have not yet been created, to use technologies that have not yet been invented, and to solve social problems that we don’t yet know will arise.”

This quote on ‘Education for the 21st century’ by OECD Education and Skills Today spells it out. Pupils today need to acquire more than just an education. They need the skills to thrive in a rapidly changing world, manage their own wellbeing and help solve society’s biggest problems.

Private schools need to be sharper and more forward focused when it comes to actively engaging pupils with the real-world. The next evolution of education should o er more than just good exam results, some pastoral care, co-curricular and a bit of a careers programme. It’s time to be overt and deliberate, instead of preparing pupils for the next stage by osmosis.

At Wellington, we’re committed to doing things by design, not by default, and that means equipping pupils to ﬂourish in their lives ahead and make the best decisions for their futures through ‘Life Beyond Wellington’. The programme, which is increasingly integrated into the timetable, blends the best of academic and co-curricular with real-world application. Our responsibility to our students is life-long but the programme, which runs from Third Form to Upper Sixth, o ers particularly robust support in the Sixth Form and during the early years after pupils graduate from Wellington. This includes our University Ambassadors

“‘Life Beyond Wellington’ blends the best of academic and co-curricular with real-world application”

initiative, where Old Wellingtonians (OWs) at popular universities share support and guidance to current pupils throughout the visiting and application process. The Ambassadors welcome students when they arrive on campus and are on hand to help them navigate a new environment.

All pupils beneﬁt from psychometric assessments in class and are invited to our termly Career Speed Networking events, where they can hone their networking, information gathering and communication skills with parents and alumni who work in a wide range of sectors.

We also o er a new Life Beyond Fifth Form programme, speciﬁcally designed to prepare pupils for Sixth Form and the career choices that arise at this next stage. One of the most valuable aspects of Life Beyond Wellington is Wellington Global Connect, our LinkedIn-style bridge to the real world. This takes the form of a networking platform with nearly 30,000 members, made up of parents and alumni. It can be accessed by all pupils from Fifth Form and beyond to

get advice on CVs, insights into di erent sectors and to network and request work shadowing and internship opportunities.

As Life Beyond Wellington continues to evolve it will be even more seamlessly integrated into the curriculum, with a focus on life skills like ﬁnancial literacy, as well as careers support. Wellbeing is the building block on which the programme is built. Our overarching purpose is to teach our pupils how to look after themselves physically and emotionally for the rest of their lives, and to forge positive relationships with others. That means developing the self-knowledge, self-worth and selfregulation to pursue the right goals and contribute meaningfully to society.

ABOVE

Student life at Wellington College

MURRAY LINDO Head

Wellington College Community

Inclusive boarding

The Head of Boarding at Gordon's School in Surrey on the many beneﬁts of state boarding for young people and their families

Often described as education’s best kept secret, many state boarding schools o er all the facilities, pastoral care and academic excellence a orded by their independent counterparts but at a greatly reduced cost. Few have heard about them, yet there are around 30 state boarding schools in the UK. The state funds the tuition fees for these schools, parents the boarding aspect. This means full boarding, an excellent education and pastoral care, excellent facilities, and a fantastic range of co-curricular activities. Added to which, state boarding schools o er the traditions, history and House structures championed by their independent counterparts.

They are subject to the rigorous demands of Ofsted for both their day and boarding aspects and also reflect the mix in society, with children from di erent and diverse backgrounds and cultures. Alongside the financial benefits, state boarding schools are a popular choice for many families due to the school sta ’s familiarity, expertise and experience in dealing with children from a range of backgrounds and cultures – including those in Service families. They o er a

home from home and a place of consistency and stability. Demand for places at state boarding schools is high. Gordon’s School, for instance, is non-selective but gives priority to children with a clear need to board –such as those from military families.

Boarders are kept busy. The extended school day for both day and boarding students at Gordon’s means a co-curricular activity every weekday and Saturday mornings, with supper and prep for all. We o er a choice of over 128 co-curricular activities, from chess or board games to mock trials to Model United Nations.

Every student has the opportunity to join the Combined Cadet Force (CCF), in either Army, Navy or Air Force. As well as providing an insight into the Services and more adventurous activities, becoming a cadet promotes soft skills such as leadership, discipline and being part of a team.

A rich seam of heritage and tradition runs through our school. As the National Memorial to General Gordon, with an unbroken line of Sovereign Patrons,

students at the school are proud of the history here and the part they play in it. The tradition of marching, started in 1885 when the school ﬁrst opened as a home for ‘necessitous boys’, is continued with drill every Friday. There are regular whole-school parades and an annual parade, led by the school’s Pipes and Drums through Whitehall to General Gordon’s statue on the Thames. Drills, marches and parades not only instil discipline in the students but strengthen bonds between older and younger students. Marching is just one of the many ways that young people are encouraged to be the best they can be, for something bigger than themselves. Further unity comes with the opportunity to take part in Ten Tors and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE) expeditions. These activities are seen as vital – not only for physical wellbeing but also for improving our students' transferable skills and, ultimately, their opportunities in whatever they decide to do after leaving school.

The ties and memories made during their school days here are reﬂected in the number of former Gordon's students who return to teach, o er careers advice or deliver talks to current students – even play for the alumni’s sports teams.

SAM COOPER Head of Boarding

ABOVE Gordon's School students

Gordon’s School

CREATIVE perspectives

Alexandra Haydon, Head of Francis Holland, Sloane Square, on an exciting year-long initiative exploring creative responses to climate change

As a Head, I consider curriculum to describe the what, the why, and the how students should learn in an intentional way. It goes far beyond the subjects that are on the timetable or the qualifications that the girls work so hard for at key points. At FHS, curriculum thinking is taken very seriously. We are striving for a curriculum that is dynamic, innovative, responsive – a curriculum that reflects the changing world around us and that gives the girls the skills to think in ways that will set them apart in the future. Life beyond school is never neatly divided into maths, history or biology – it is really important to us that the girls are given the opportunity to work and link across the disciplines. So, at FHS, we are doing something di erent this year. We have launched the first of our Perspective projects – Creative Perspectives on Climate Change – in collaboration with a charity called Cape Farewell. The charity was founded by

artist David Buckland and works in the intersection of the arts and climate science. In the last 20 years, he has organised voyages to places such as the Arctic and the Paciﬁc Islands, each time taking with him leading artists, writers, scientists, and young people who have then produced work in response to the e ects of climate change that they have witnessed.

For the whole of this academic year, FHS is hosting the exhibition of this work. The pieces will be woven throughout the tapestry of school life –going up the stairs, outside in the playground, in our beautiful Sixth Form centre, the Old School House, and more. Pieces by renowned contributors, including Anthony Gormley, Dame Siobhan Davies, Jools Holland and Ian McEwan, will inspire students and sta , every day.

Real-world problem solving requires deep understanding of the problem at hand. The

“The purpose of the project is to get all the girls involved and thinking – really thinking deeply – and producing their own work in response”

challenge to understand climate change, to educate ourselves, is not just a political problem or a scientiﬁc problem – it cuts across every subject that we study at FHS. Girls are engaging with the exhibition formally through their lessons, di erent year groups through di erent subjects, alongside participation in workshops from the key contributors to Cape Farewell.

The purpose of the project is to get all the girls involved and thinking – really thinking deeply – and producing their own work in response. This builds upon the foundations of a long-held emphasis on creative thinking, problem-solving and innovation at Francis Holland. The ﬂagship programme TIPS Week (Thinking Innovatively and ProblemSolving) is now entering its eighth year.

In the ﬁrst half of the Summer Term, the Creative Perspectives project will culminate in a combined exhibition, curated by the girls, of the interdisciplinary work that our pupils and visiting students from other schools have produced in response to the project. It will sit alongside the professional work from the core exhibition.

This is about creative thinking, storytelling, oracy and social inﬂuence – all key skills identiﬁed by the World Economic Forum as essential for the 2030s workforce. These are all skills that will empower our pupils to become the leaders, thinkers, innovators, designers, entrepreneurs and game-changers of tomorrow.

ALEXANDRA HAYDON Head

Francis Holland, Sloane Square

ABOVE

Francis Holland, Sloane Square students

HUMAN-AI PARTNERSHIP

Cavendish Education, a family of schools for neurodiverse young people, on harnessing AI

The educational landscape is undergoing rapid transformation and Artiﬁcial Intelligence (AI) is fast emerging as a powerful tool for enhancing learning experiences. However, it is crucial to recognise that while AI can augment education, it cannot substitute the irreplaceable value of human interaction.

Within specialist schools like ours, we believe in an approach that leverages the strengths of both AI and human educators to create an optimal learning environment for our students, many of whom have struggled to thrive in the mainstream education system and so join our schools with the need to learn di erently.

As such, we look to present education in a tailored way to appeal to and work for the unique minds of our students. Harnessing AI brings a wealth of potential beneﬁts. AI-driven platforms can tailor learning activities to suit the individual needs and pace of our students. It can also provide immediate feedback, helping students to understand and improve their skills in real-time.

Technologies like text-to-speech, speech-to-text, and other accessibility tools that help our students to participate fully in learning activities can incorporate AI, beneﬁting both accessibility and inclusivity. For dyslexic learners, for example, AI can build conﬁdence in a safe, controlled environment, adjusting the pace and di culty of content based

“The most e ective educational models will embrace the potential of AI while preserving human interaction”

on an individual’s needs. It can also o er continuous assessment, tracking progress in real-time and adjusting learning paths. Some neurodiverse students require support with developing other skills – for instance, support for planning, sequencing, boosting working memory and executive functioning skills. In addition, and perhaps more importantly, these students beneﬁt from help with social interaction, communication skills and emotional support.

While AI can create environments where students practise social interactions, –helping them to develop skills such as turntaking, active listening and appropriate responses – it is here where the human touch is so important. Human educators possess the unique ability to inspire, motivate and create a supportive learning community. They can provide the empathy, encouragement and guidance that all students need to develop their full potential.

Soft skills such as appropriate and e ective communication, collaboration, emotional intelligence and wellbeing, which are essential for success in the modern world and in the world

of work, are best developed through consistent human interaction.

As educators, we can model these skills, provide opportunities for practice, and o er tools, strategies and constructive feedback to help students build conﬁdence, competence, creativity and character.

As we look to the future, it is clear that the most e ective educational models will be those that embrace the amazing potential of AI while preserving the essential role of human interaction. This collaborative approach will ensure that our students receive the comprehensive support they need to succeed in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.

RIGHT A Cavendish Education student

KOEN CLAEYS

Character forming

Jo Vila of Berkhamsted Schools Group on why extracurricular activities are an important safe space to take on fresh challenges

Our understanding of what constitutes a ‘good education’ no longer relies purely on academic results. Schools are spaces for personal development, where learning teamwork, leadership and selfreﬂection is just as important as studying maths, English or science. Many of these so-called soft skills are fostered during a school’s extracurricular provisions, through clubs and societies or sports teams. This is an essential and rewarding aspect of school life that forms lifelong memories for many pupils, also helping to develop life skills and shape character.

While, by deﬁnition, extracurricular refers to the opportunities available beyond the realm of the classroom, this can sometimes feel like a vague, ﬂoating space outside of timetabled lessons. There is sometimes a sense that these opportunities simply fall into pupils’ laps or that they take the initiative to seek them out themselves. In reality, many of the incredible opportunities available can get lost in the bustle of school life, which is why schools need to spotlight the opportunities available to every pupil.

Giving departments the space and time to highlight their extracurricular o erings within the workings of the school day can inspire pupils to imagine themselves in the shoes of their peers. This might entail recruiting pupils in music or drama clubs across all year groups to perform during break or including a CCF parade at a commemorative event. Exposing pupils to activities undertaken

“Extracurricular activities give pupils the space to fail, so they go on to face challenges head-on”

ABOVE Extracurricular activities

are vital to personal

development

by a mixture of age groups showcases the beneﬁts of joining a cross-cohort club or society. Interacting with pupils from all year groups is vital for developing wellrounded and adaptable individuals, and it is often during extracurricular activities that these relationships are formed.

Pupils’ natural instinct directs them towards the path of least resistance. Often, the activities they choose reinforce a preestablished skillset, rather than opening up new avenues for development. So, to truly develop as people, they need to experience as wide a range of activities as possible. Particularly in Years 7-9, participating in a broad spectrum of activities – sport, music, drama, CCF – equips them with the knowledge to ﬁnd their passions in order to follow a more tailored path later down the line. A willingness to try anything, even in an unfamiliar environment, builds conﬁdence and resilience. Extracurricular activities give pupils the space to fail within a safe environment, so they go on to face challenges head-on.

At Berkhamsted, we ensure these opportunities for continuous selfdevelopment do not get overlooked. Through a highly speciﬁc tutor system, we invest in our pupils’ growth by celebrating achievements, while encouraging each

individual to seek out new challenges and unexplored paths. With their tutor as their champion, pupils feel inspired to push themselves beyond their own comfort zone, developing transferable skills for success both at school and beyond.

Many of our Year 13 students will look back on their journey through school and highlight a moment that marked a turning point in their conﬁdence. This won’t be excelling at the sport they already knew they were good at or achieving top grades in their favourite subject. Rather, it will be the time they took on the lead in the school play despite their stage fright, or stepped into a leadership role they didn’t quite feel ready for. These moments, more than anything, are what shape the individual they become.

JO VILA Deputy Head of Co-Curricular Berkhamsted Schools Group

Choosing CONTINUITY

Streatham & Clapham High School on the beneﬁts of all-through schools – especially for girls

When choosing a school, parents face many decisions, including the type of educational structure that best supports their child’s growth. One model that has gained recognition for its holistic approach is the all-through school, where children progress seamlessly from early years to senior school within the same supportive environment.

This continuity o ers numerous beneﬁts, particularly for girls. In an allthrough setting, the transition between educational stages becomes a less daunting prospect. Children remain within a familiar community, where teachers, peers and learning styles are consistent. This stability allows students to build strong, trusting relationships, fostering a secure environment where they can focus on personal and academic growth.

In addition to providing continuity, singlesex and all-through schools such as ours o er an environment tailored to the needs of girls. Research indicates that in singlesex settings, girls are less constrained by traditional gender stereotypes and are more likely to pursue subjects typically viewed as masculine, such as mathematics, physics and engineering. They feel empowered to take

risks, innovate and develop a broader range of skills without the social pressures often present in co-educational environments.

Single-sex schools can provide more opportunities for leadership and personal development. In co-ed settings, girls often face subtle pressures to conform to gender roles and may not step into leadership positions or engage in open discussions. By contrast, the single-sex model is designed to maximise these opportunities.

At Streatham & Clapham Prep School, our curriculum is crafted to support continuous intellectual and personal development. Emphasis is placed not just on what pupils learn, but on how they learn, ensuring they are equipped with skills that go beyond the classroom. This includes exposure to a wide range of subjects and activities, from the creative and scientiﬁc to the social and technological.

Our thematic approach to teaching encourages girls to draw connections between their studies and the wider world, cultivating critical thinking and problem-solving skills from an early age. As pupils progress, they are gradually introduced to specialist subject teaching, ensuring they are well-prepared for the rigorous and focused learning that senior education demands. This step-bystep increase in complexity helps to smooth

the transition between di erent stages, reducing anxiety and boosting conﬁdence.

All-through schools provide a unique opportunity to foster long-term personal development. Being part of a cohesive community throughout their formative years helps girls to develop a strong sense of identity and belonging. They grow up in an environment that values them as individuals and supports their growth.

Ultimately, the choice of an all-through school, particularly one that is single sex, o ers parents the assurance that their daughters will be nurtured in an environment designed to challenge and inspire them. It’s not just about academic success – it’s about creating future leaders well-equipped to navigate the complexities of the world with conﬁdence and integrity.

ZARA SIMPSON

Deputy Head of Prep (Academic)

Streatham & Clapham Prep School

Streatham & Clapham High School pupils

Let’s talk

Helping young people to recognise and avoid unhealthy relationships is a challenge but we need to start the awkward conversations early, says domestic abuse expert Paula DeVaux

LIBBY NORMAN

Domestic violence accounts for what percentage of violent crime? Answer: 41%.

This, along with 11 other hard-hitting questions, is part of a multiple-choice quiz designed by the teenage relationship education programme Escape the TRAP. Other quiz questions focus on behaviour young people are more aware of. For instance: ‘One in three teens say they are text messaged how many times an hour by a partner inquiring where they are?’. The answer: 30 times an hour. While the ﬁrst statistic is obviously shocking, the second is also a loud alarm bell. “Coercive control is the bookend of domestic abuse. You’ve got coercive control within the relationship and then, post break up, the risk of stalking,” says Paula DeVaux. “If people are waiting for that ﬁrst incident of violence, we are missing all those incidents of coercive control.” She says we need to let young people know how such obsessive behaviours work. “There is always a pattern, and the pattern is always coercive control. Extreme jealousy and checking up on

someone are some of the warning signs, for our young people to recognise.”

Paula DeVaux knows a lot about relationships that turn dangerous. She is a former probation o cer who specialised in helping to rehabilitate domestic abuse perpetrators. During her career, she also supported victims and children and was seconded to Children’s Services to train front-line professionals across Norfolk. These days, she delivers training in the public and private sectors, and that includes workshops and talks within independent and state schools. She’s also a facilitator for specialist programmes, including Escape the TRAP, the eightweek course designed by psychotherapist Cathy Press (TRAP stands for Teenage Relationship Abuse Programme).

Working to support young people has become a big part of DeVaux’s professional life, but she also has personal motivation as witness to domestic abuse throughout her childhood. This was not something she revealed during her earlier career, but now she sees it as something of a superpower, especially when it comes to reaching young people. She is particularly exercised by the

mixed messages children and teenagers face – both in popular culture and on social media – alongside the negative impact of the Andrew Tates of this world. “Our young people are saturated with this. He’s just one of many when we look at all the unhealthy and harmful inﬂuences. It’s important that we explore this with our children and give them the opportunity to talk about it.”

As well as the risk of modelling the bad inﬂuences they see there is, of course, the perennial issue that many young people will, at some point, gravitate to the loudest voice in the room – often the bad inﬂuence. “Children are attracted to someone who’s a someone. We need them to know that being respected isn’t being feared.” Then there’s understanding the di erences between care and control in relationships – especially romantic ones. “There’s a massive confusion between jealousy and love which our young people have – a ‘well, you can’t love me enough if you’re not jealous’.” So, the 30 texts in one hour question from that Escape the TRAP quiz is really pertinent to this age group.

Just as young people confuse jealousy and love, they are (like adults) often

Fast facts

Sources of support

* Your Best Friend – advice for young people supporting friends yourbestfriend.org.uk and #friendscantell

* The Mix – charity and 24/7 helpline giving under 25s advice themix.org.uk

* Childline – charity and 24/7 helpline, plus website with useful friendship/relationship advice childline.org.uk

* SafeLives – charity working to end domestic abuse safelives.org.uk

25% OF GIRLS AGED 13-17, and 17% OF BOYS , have experienced physical force in a teen relationship. 72% of girls and 51% of boys have experienced emotional violence, including constantly being ‘checked up on’. University of Bristol and NSPCC 2009 research

1 IN 5 WOMEN and 1 IN 10 MEN have been victims of stalking. The London Stalking Review 2024

1.6m %

In the year end March 2023, there were 1.6M VICTIMS OF STALKING Suzy Lamplugh Trust

37%

* Police-recorded cases of violence against women and girls increased by 37% BETWEEN 2018-23. National Police Chiefs’ Council and College of Policing joint report

quick to victim blame while excusing the perpetrator. “It’s important that we support young people to recognise that it’s not about mental health, substance misuse, ADHD – it’s not caused by those things. Those things might make it worse, but the only thing that causes domestic abuse is power and control,” says DeVaux. “If we collude with that then we are doing a real disservice to all of those people that are dealing with those issues on a regular basis. There are loads of people that have had those experiences and have never been abusive or violent in their relationships.”

Explaining that there’s never a justiﬁcation for abuse is vital. So too is clearing up the misconception about what an abuser is like. In her sessions, she often explodes the preconceptions by pulling up a slide showing baddies from famous ﬁlms. She then goes on to explain that perpetrators are individuals who look and sound like us. They come from all walks of life, and they may be male or female. What they have in common is this set of controlling behaviours we can spot.

While DeVaux’ sessions are often with the teenage plus age groups, she delivers age-appropriate advice to all ages. For younger children, this focuses on friendships. “When I go into primary age schools – and I talk to children as young as Reception age – I talk to them about what being a lovely friend means. What does that look like and what does that feel like? If we get that foundation right, that paves the way for all those other relationships to come,” she says.

“If anyone in your life makes you feel sad or bad, they’re not your person – and that’s what I teach. The people in your

“Young people are more likely to be talking to each other – we need them to be really good advice givers”

life that are your go-tos, they are your biggest cheerleaders.” The importance of these conversations is in teaching young people to recognise their own worth – their right to be who they are – and also to help each other recognise toxic situations.

“Peer acceptance is a huge deal, and young people are more likely to be talking to each other before they talk to an adult about any of these issues, so we need them to be really good advice givers to each other.”

While young people may not understand the complexities of coercive control, they are well able to understand the principle

that no friend should tell them what to wear, eat, say or do. “I let them know that if you’re ever doing anything because you think you should or you have to, not because you want to but because you’re worried if you don’t there’s a consequence and you’re scared of that consequence, then that is not OK. That’s the moment where often they’ll be looking at each other or looking down – you can see those lightbulb moments.” An early intervention may help both potential future victims and perpetrators change course. Di cult though it may feel, especially when we want to protect children and stop

them growing up too fast, Paula DeVaux bellieves it’s vital to start the conversation early, and to keep it going. “Don’t avoid those awkward conversations and think they are too young for it. They are not. And if we don’t talk about it, they’ll go to social media or Google.” Meanwhile, she believes every school should provide a speciﬁc programme to help children navigate those ﬁrst romantic relationships in safety and with their selfesteem intact. “It’s a life skill – I’d argue it’s as essential as learning how to swim.”

pauladevaux.co.uk

Healthy relationships

Jason Tait of TASIS England on the ways in which schools can teach children and young people how to have healthy relationships, for life

In 2021, a sixth of children had a probable mental health disorder, and referrals to NHS mental health services rose by 33%. This, alongside recent anonymous testimonies of sexual harassment culture and school exclusions – mainly due to bullying –highlight major issues facing children and teens. Some 90% of children have a smartphone by senior school, according to Ofcom, increasing their risk of harm.

The statistics show systemic issues and also a signiﬁcant communication gap between young people and adults in accessing early help and support. One critical issue is to understand that child-on-child relationship issues often occur beyond adult supervision, frequently involving their online and social lives outside the school setting.

Within the new inspection framework developed by the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI), Section 23 emphasizes pupil voice and wellbeing. This includes encouraging schools to adopt a comprehensive and contextual approach to safeguarding, based on an understanding of the relationships that children have within peer groups – at school, online, and in their community.

The work of social researcher Dr Carlene Firmin MBE highlights how safeguarding systems should best respond when young people come to harm. This framework advocates a shared culture of safety for everyone outside of the family involved in the child’s wellbeing. There’s a strong focus on prevention of future harm by helping young people form healthy relationships.

Child-on-child relationship issues that occur in social settings, both online and o ine, are often perpetuated by a ‘snitch culture’, where bystanders either support the harmer or remain silent to avoid becoming targets themselves.

TASIS empowers students with skills to manage peer relationships and to dismantle both fear and unhealthy power dynamics – within or beyond school. Our Values In Action Program works to foster independence and personal

“Teaching students to be advocates, active bystanders, and restorative practitioners creates a safer community”

growth in relationships by promoting principled thinking, compassion, and openmindedness. It focuses on three main areas. Compassionate Through Advocacy This means speaking up for others and making your voice heard on important issues. TASIS encourages students to advocate for themselves, their peers, and their values.

• Principled Through Active Bystanding Students are taught the ‘four Ds’ (Direct, Distract, Delegate, Delay) to safely intervene as Active Bystanders.

• Open-Minded Through Restoration By bringing together those harmed and those who caused the harm, the incident can be discussed and addressed.

This approach emphasizes respect, responsibility and repair within a culture of accountability and healing.

Teaching students to be advocates, active bystanders, and restorative practitioners creates a safer and more inclusive community. This is vitally important because the relationships that our young people make during their formative years inﬂuence what they expect from relationships as they grow into adulthood. By modelling and teaching this positive approach – and showing what healthy relationships look like – we have the opportunity to reduce the risk of future harm for children and young people.

JASON TAIT Director of Pastoral Care & Designated Safeguarding

Lead TASIS England

ABOVE TASIS England students

S tate boarding BENEFITS

Dale McMorran of Wymondham College

on why state boarding brings many beneﬁts beyond price

State Boarding is a gem that is being discovered by a growing number of families.

With costs signiﬁcantly lower than the independent sector, strong academic results and excellent facilities, there are many incredible opportunities it o ers to young people and their families. The common question asked is how are fees so much lower than the independent sector? Put simply it is because education provided is free and only boarding fees are payable. Many families are surprised to hear the breadth of experiences children are o ered. Highlights across a year could typically include trips to New York, Florida Disneyland, Iceland, skiing in Austria, safaris in Kenya as well as students learning to scuba dive in an onsite pool and achieving the PADI open water qualiﬁcation overseas. Weekly activities may include the Combined Cadet Force (CCF), Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE),

paddle boarding, kayaking, horse riding, water polo, debating, baking and coding.

Sports is also just as competitive and prestigious in the state sector. With a high calibre of sporty children, many state boarding schools compete against independent schools. For example, the UK’s No1 U17 3000m runner attends a state boarding school, as do the regional champions in U13 Football. State Boarding School students hold the Norfolk-hosted Twickenham Rugby Touch 2 Cup and are also recipients of 100 Ball Girls Cup and T20 tournaments in cricket. Sports is celebrated at a recreational as well as a competitive level, but with plenty of access to elite sporting opportunities.

State boarding prides itself on being a home from home, with specialist sta and a culture that is conducive to the family dynamic. There are two Prep boarding schools in the UK and a variety of Senior and Sixth Form state boarding options.

“State boarding prides itself on being a home from home, with specialist staff and a culture that is conducive to the family dynamic”

Some are located in cities, others nestled in the English countryside. Wymondham College, for example, is located in the heart of Norfolk, with easy access to Norwich, London and the beautiful East Anglian coast.

Boarding houses range in size too, from those that are among the largest in Europe, to those that are more intimate. Whether it is ensuring children remain with their boarding family through to Year 13 or o ering separate prep and senior houses with a Sixth Form akin to a small university campus, there’s an option to suit every child and their family.

State boarding schools also adhere to National Boarding Standards and are rigorously inspected every three years by Ofsted. Two state boarding schools were recently graded ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted in all nine categories – no mean feat. This demonstrates the high academic standards and achievements, which are among the best in the country. And many state boarding school students go on to study at Oxford and Cambridge.

With so many families recognising that state boarding can o er experiences, opportunities, facilities and outcomes on par with the independent sector, and at a very di erent price point, the sector is one that will continue to shine.

DALE MCMORRAN Head of School Wymondham College

ABOVE Boarding at Wymondham College

Education.

TOMORROW’S Entrepreneurs

Sam Baldock of Bedford School on the importance of teaching entrepreneurship alongside traditional academic skills

There can be no doubt that AI continues to change the world we live in. In schools, the ways we make use of AI to leverage student learning are growing by the week. But there’s still much that it can’t do. And in those gaps lie some of the most important areas to focus on if we’re to fully prepare all our young people for this challenging and changing world they’re emerging into every year.

Yes, the world is a digital one now. But equally, in this AI-driven domain, it has never been more important to accentuate the wonders of being human. A backwards-looking algorithm cannot replicate the imagination, empathy, courage, and persuasive verve required to lead in the future – and we’re adding emphasis to this at Bedford School.

A while ago, we called our governors together for a strategy awayday. We needed their advice, drawing from their experiences as business leaders and professionals. We

asked them to help us identify the skills and attributes our boys needed to have by the time they completed their education. And from there we extrapolated backwards to create three areas of strategic focus that would sit alongside academic success to ensure our students were ‘future-ready’.

The ﬁrst was obvious and can’t be ignored – digital technology – but the other two were ‘human’. Like many schools, we recognise the importance of service and so our second area of focus centres on our Community Partnership Programme. But it’s the third strategic area focus I’d like to elaborate on here: Entrepreneurship.

Gone are the days of a ‘job for life’. Young people leaving schools such as ours are likely to have several careers, self-started and perhaps running concurrently. Our Entrepreneurship Programme combines elements of leadership training (both self-

“Our Entrepreneurship Programme combines leadership training with initiatives to help students devise ideas and drive them forward”

leadership and leading others) with practical initiatives to help students to devise ideas and drive them forward to fruition.

It’s a hugely popular part of the curriculum, stretching all the way from a Dragons’ Den-style initiative for our sevenyear-olds to mentoring workshops for recent leavers. This year 30 boys stayed on for a week after GCSEs to take part in StartUp!, a ﬁve-day course where they hatch an idea, work with external mentors and drive it through to launch. Some were focused on making money, others on the social beneﬁts.

Our alumni community of Old Bedfordians and parents are wonderfully supportive and lend the programme its authenticity – real-life entrepreneurs are regularly involved. And this year we introduced a BTEC qualiﬁcation to the Sixth Form in Enterprise and Entrepreneurship, weaving the thread more ﬁrmly into the examined academic curriculum of our school. Anyone choosing a school these days has many dimensions to consider, but a parent looking to give their child the best chance of a successful career in tomorrow’s world would do well to consider a school that puts entrepreneurship near the top of the list.

SAM BALDOCK Acting Head Master Bedford School

ABOVE Bedford School students

* James Hodgson, Bedford School Head Master, is on sabbatical until January 2025.

Rachael Burford The M AKING of Me

The women’s rugby great on mixed school days in Kent, her childhood passion for rugby and why she still remembers two sports teachers with gratitude

Where did you go to school and when?

I went to school in Chatham and Rochester – ﬁrst Lordswood and then The Thomas Aveling School – between 1992-2002.

What were your schools like?

At infant and junior, all I remember is playing a lot in the playground. And I remember sports days so well. I loved them! Secondary school was a di erent animal – friendship groups, what was cool and what was not. This is where I noticed that I didn’t learn or understand things like my peers. I didn’t enjoy secondary years. Sport wasn’t top of the agenda anymore and women in sport weren’t pushed or celebrated.

Did you love school, or hate it?

I loved earlier years. There was no judgement – it was just being curious and playing and having fun was encouraged. If I could go back, I would. But I did not like or enjoy my secondary years, and I tried to get out of going as much as I could. I wasn’t academic at all – I just didn’t learn the traditional way. This meant I went through school believing I wasn’t smart,

that I was stupid. I didn’t do much sport at school because it wasn’t really available to me. Although I enjoyed being around my friends, I struggled with learning.

What were your favourite subjects at school?

Anything practical – so technology and PE and English – I enjoyed writing stories and being creative. I

disliked pretty much everything else. Double Geography was a killer...

Who were your favourite teachers and how did they inﬂuence you?

My PE teachers, Mrs Wellman and Mr Cleave, hands down. If it wasn’t for them I would have been in more trouble. I would have struggled to get through school.

Where was your favourite place at school and what did you do there?

Haha! I’m not sure I can say. We used to call it ‘the corner’. We would all meet there during breaks. And in the winter, we would hang around in the corridors trying to keep warm

What beliefs did your time at school give you?

That I wasn’t good at school and not smart, that I was deemed a troublemaker. My PE teachers were the only ones who saw past my classroom results and helped me believe in myself in sport.

What was your proudest school moment?

Being given sporting colours. I was

“I FIRST PLAYED RUGBY WHEN I WAS SIX, MY MUM, DAD AND SISTER ALL PLAYED – I WAS SO HAPPY DOING WHAT THEY DID”

the highest-achieving pupil. Even so, school didn’t give me a PE GCSE.

What was the most trouble you ever got into at school?

This was generally being sent out of class for refusing to do the work or read out loud or answer a question in front of everyone. My head of year put me on report a lot – I don’t think this made a di erence.

Were you ever ‘too cool for school’?

I think some might say I was because I didn’t really listen to teachers, however I was my own person. I played rugby, which made me stand out. That made me di erent anyway, but I was never bothered what other people thought.

What is your most vivid memory, looking back?

It was the friendships I made, the

long walks home with close friends – probably talking rubbish.

When and how did your love of rugby begin?

My love of rugby started very young, I would say around four or ﬁve years old. I ﬁrst played when I was six and I loved it from then onwards. My mum, dad and sister all played and I was so happy doing what they did.

What other key inﬂuences shaped you growing up?

My mum is a massive inﬂuence on me, she worked so hard. Whatever the job was she did it to her very best. This deﬁnitely shaped my work ethic.

What projects and challenges are coming up for you next?

There’s lots going on at the moment.

I’m currently taking on a new role with the English Rugby Players’ Association as Head of Women’s Rugby – which is looking after the Women’s PWR league. I also have a fair bit of travel coming up for work and some play. Festival of Sport with my family is one of the greatest highlights coming up next year – I can’t wait for this one.

How would you sum up your school days in three words?

LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP.

Rachael Burford will be among the sporting legends coaching at the Festival of Sport 2025 – a family weekend of sports to try, plus camping and evening entertainment – at Packington Estate, Warwickshire from 1-4 August. Tickets on sale now.

festivalofsportuk.com

ABOVE

Rachael Burford

ONLINE WINNERS

Sarah Bacon of Wendover Online School on the beneﬁts of taking education to the student when they are pursuing a talent beyond school

Should young people’s lives revolve entirely around their education? What if we could free them up to follow their passions – and work school around this, so that they get the best of both worlds?

Freedom from physical classrooms can be a game changer for students, especially elite young athletes. With busy training schedules, competitions and travel, young sportsmen and women ﬁnd it hard to keep on top of their academic studies, which can su er as a result. By rethinking the way we deliver education, we can help elite athletes and their families build a more sustainable lifestyle that breeds success in both education and sport.

Young people today are digital natives, conﬁdent using technology and keen to explore beyond the conﬁnes of large group lessons. Teachers have a wealth of online resources with which to guide and inspire, plus the ability to reach students anywhere, at any time, through the magic of modern communications. Online schools established before the pandemic had a head start on working out the best way to tailor online education to individual students,

and schools like Wendover are now experienced in delivering personalised education programmes for all ages.

For young athletes, the move to online learning can be transformational. Free to train with their coaches and their teams when needed, they can then be available for school at times when they are in the right frame of mind to learn. In either one-to-one or small group classes, lessons can be scheduled to fit the students’ time zone, wherever in the world they may be. Our students come online from training centres, from their homes or even while travelling. They and their families are delighted to find a school that works around their lives and are excited to reap the benefits. Online learning gives children the flexibility to choose what and how they study. A full-time programme can be fitted into mornings, holidays and weekends. Part-time study might be helpful for key exams and scholarships, or to boost performance. For elite athletes, this range of options can help them stay on track for crucial exams while simultaneously finding sporting success.

“For young athletes, online learning can be transformational – they can be be available for school when they are in the right frame of mind to learn”

We know that online education was unsuccessful for many during the pandemic, largely because schools were unprepared. But we shouldn’t let this cloud our view of the benefits of online learning delivered by expert subject teachers skilled in nurturing and inspiring students. With small class sizes, teachers get to know their pupils well and can quickly spot any di culties. Lessons can be paced to suit the individual student, and we find that this quickly builds the confidence that will help them in every aspect of their lives.

On top of all this, we know that elite athletes face added pressures on their time –and on mind and body. Away from the friction and practical challenges of bricks-and-mortar schools, our online students quickly learn to manage their time, set goals and build resilience within a supportive learning environment. With the right approach, online schools like ours build lifelong skills that improve emotional wellbeing – with happiness and better performance, both on and o the course, pitch, court or track.

SARAH

BACON Founder Wendover Online School

ABOVE Freedom from physical classrooms can be a game changer, says Sarah Bacon

MEETING NEEDS

Minerva’s Virtual Academy on why online education could help alleviate the high number of children with SEN who are missing from state schools

The plight of children with special education needs (SEN) has been thrust into the spotlight recently. This is largely down to a report from Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza (Children Missing Education, September 2024), which revealed that many SEN children are missing from the education system. In England alone, children with special needs make up 22% of the 2,900 children not enrolled in school or being suitably educated somewhere else. This, the report says, is disproportionately high because 16% of children in state education have SEN.

The report notes that provision for children with SEN is ‘the number one thing that needs sorting out, alongside attendance to make sure our kids can go to school’. But, in 2024, what does going to school look like?

“Online schooling is well placed to plug this gap – a more bespoke, ﬂexible approach may be what these children need to be able to thrive”

We believe online schooling could provide a solution for schools struggling to accommodate children with additional needs. Earlier this year, research by the BBC revealed that half of state-funded schools in England for children with SEN and disabilities were oversubscribed. The report detailed how some pupils were being taught in converted cabins and cupboards due to lack of appropriate teaching space.

We know from our own conversations with parents of children with additional needs that the lack of school places, and spiralling waiting lists, are preventing children from accessing the education that they need. Online schooling is well placed to plug this gap. Not only does it require no physical facilities, but a more bespoke, ﬂexible approach may be what these children need to be able to thrive.

At Minerva’s Virtual Academy, we are already teaching pupils with a broad range of needs and have seen ﬁrsthand what a transformational e ect online schooling can have. We know that we have a formula that works, but to be able to help more children, providers such as MVA need to work together with government, local

education authorities and schools to ﬁnd a solution that works for everyone.

Every week we have enquiries from parents who are trying to wade through the red tape and barriers that are put in their place as they try to ﬁnd a school place for their child, or those who have seen their child struggle in a school system that is under too much pressure to properly support them. Every child should be given the opportunity to learn in an environment that is suited to them, and the wider education community needs to get on board with alternative options, such as online learning, to stop more children being failed by our education provision.

SUZANNE LINDLEY Principal

Where every pupil

aspires

At Framlingham College we celebrate every individual. Our size, structure and ethos mean that our entire focus is on understanding, guiding and inspiring each child individually – so they can find their self-belief, discover their own talents and challenge themselves to achieve more than they thought possible.

Ask the EXPERTS

Our experts answer questions on e-learning tools versus tutoring and helping a child build up resilience and self-esteem

Nathaniel McCullagh

Managing Director, Simply Learning Tuition

QMy son’s school uses an e-learning platform in class and for homework. A lot of his friends are using it to prepare for the 11+. Should I get my son a subscription and is there anything a traditional tutor can do that software can’t?

AOver the last ﬁve years, we have seen the rapid proliferation of e-learning platforms. These companies have deployed a smart sales strategy which begins with selling their products into

schools. The software saves timepressed teachers from having to set and mark work themselves and provides instant and standardised feedback on each child’s performance. Once the platform is integrated, parents are encouraged to buy a subscription for home use.

Some senior schools even use the software to set their 11+ assessments, as they are easier to manage than traditional tests. This in turn allows the platform to market o cial test prep materials to parents and prep schools alike. In truth, there are several benefits to e-learning tools. They are designed to be engaging, with gamified assessments. Compared with scheduling lessons with a tutor, e-learning is convenient and flexible – lessons can be accessed anytime, anywhere, fitting into tight schedules.

traditional tutoring has the upper hand. Children can certainly practise on an e-learning platform, but are they learning as they would with a tutor? A skilled tutor observes how their tutee thinks, knowing from experience whether they have learned the right answer by rote, or whether they have a deep understanding of every step of the solution.

“E-learning platforms cannot diagnose why a child is struggling –this is where tutoring has the upper hand”

Many platforms o er speciﬁc 11+ prep programmes which simulate the exam environment with timed papers and realistic questions. If your son is applying to a school which uses a computerised assessment, practising on the same platform will help familiarise him with the exam format, reducing anxiety on the day.

However, while e-learning platforms are excellent tools, they are not a panacea. They can identify where a child is struggling but they cannot diagnose why. This is where

Tutors also o er encouragement and moral support, which can be crucial for a child facing the pressure of exams. A tutor can also be a mentor, inspiring a love for learning and a deeper understanding of subjects which surpasses rote memorisation. Naturally, many parents keep their eyes on the prize of passing the 11+, but a good tutor will set your son up with the personal and academic skills to thrive at senior school and many years into the future. We recommend that parents take advantage of the beneﬁts that e-learning o ers, but do not rely on it entirely. The subscription could be a worthwhile investment for practice and exam-format familiarisation, but it cannot replace the bespoke attention and expertise o ered by a traditional tutor. A combination of both might be the key to unlocking your son’s potential as he prepares for the 11+.

simplylearningtuition.co.uk

Alicia Drummond

BACP Accredited Therapist and Founder of The Wellbeing Hub

QMy daughter is going through a di cult patch. School is supportive, but what can we do at home to help build up her self-esteem and resilience?

AResilience is the ability to recover quickly from di culties, to adapt well to change, and to keep going in the face of adversity. Self-esteem is our core sense of having value – of being ok. There are things every parent can do to help children cope with life’s challenges. Here are ways to help your daughter.

Love her for who she is Every child deserves to be loved just because they exist. If we focus on what our child does, the message they may internalise is that they are only ok when they behave in a certain way or bring home the prizes and wins.

Believe in her So often we do things for our children that they can do themselves. When we underestimate a child’s capabilities, the message they get is, ‘I don’t think you can do this’. Encourage your daughter to become self-reliant. Show her how to do things, give praise for having a go and be gentle when she gets things wrong. Ask her what you are currently doing for her that she could do for herself.

she is calm encourage her to come up with her own solutions. If she has no ideas, rather than o ering lots of suggestions, ask if she would like your opinion.

Let her experience consequences

All children get into trouble from time to time. How we react determines whether these incidents become opportunities for growth and learning. If your daughter gets into trouble, don’t try to rescue her from the consequences. Instead, empathise, ask her what she can do to make amends, what she has learnt and what she might do di erently next time. Then encourage her to put the incident behind her and move on.

Allow her to feel her feelings

“Once children have named a feeling once, they are more able to handle it when it pops up again –and this builds emotional intelligence”

Nurture her inner coach. Whenever you hear your daughter putting herself down, or underestimating her ability, ask what she would say to her best friend and then encourage her to apply the same messages to herself. Help her learn that what she does inﬂuences how she feels. For example, if she is following people on social media who make her feel inferior, encourage her to follow at least four positive role models.

Don’t rescue her It is so hard to watch a child struggle, but rescuing them does not help in the longer term. Instead, empathise and when

Children need to learn that all emotions change, and that all have value. Suppressing them can have negative consequences. For instance, suppressed fear can manifest as anxiety. If your daughter is experiencing strong emotions, soothe her by establishing a connection with a hug or a sympathetic gesture. Then use your empathy skills to guess what she is feeling and give her the word to describe the feeling. Once children have named a feeling once, they are more able to handle it when it pops up again – and this builds emotional intelligence.

teentips.co.uk

PLAYING TO STRENGTHS

James Barton of MPW Group on the recent challenges facing UK education and the importance of playing to our demonstrable strengths

There’s no doubt that the UK’s educational landscape has undergone a seismic shift in the past decade with Brexit, and now 20% VAT on school fees. This is making a notable impact as schools juggle policy changes, ﬁnancial challenges and the need to showcase the best of British education without losing their balance.

Brexit threw a spanner in the works for UK international student recruitment. EU students, once enticed by domestic tuition rates and financial support, are now classed as international. This has meant higher fees and more complex visa requirements. Unsurprisingly, this led to a decline in EU student applications, and while this has slowly been recovering, it has a ected universities and schools that historically relied on this cohort for both diversity and financial stability. For independent boarding schools, that shift was particularly troubling. Institutions that once thrived on a steady influx of EU students were left to fill the recruitment gaps, struggling under the weight of additional visa restrictions and spiralling costs. In response, some schools turned away from Europe, refocusing their recruitment e orts on other markets – sometimes with little previous experience or strategy to guide them.

As if Brexit wasn’t enough, the imposition of a 20% VAT tax on school fees has thrown another wrench into the works. For many UK families, the increased cost makes

“Schools require a renewed focus on lasting relationships – they can, justiﬁably, talk about the unique strengths of a UK education”

private education less appealing and less a ordable. Even independent schools that previously relied on local students are exploring international markets – some have even launched aggressive marketing strategies abroad. The last thing parents or schools want is a ‘race to the bottom’, where UK institutions compete primarily on price, rather than quality. Established schools now ﬁnd themselves up against newcomers – some wielding unrealistic o ers.

This lack of regulation could also open the door to misunderstandings and mistrust among international families, who might ﬁnd that too-good-to-be-true o ers are exactly that. A hard-won reputation of UK education as a premium o ering is too valuable to put at risk, and if a trajectory of chaos and confusion is allowed to develop, the UK could see its standing as a top global destination for international students tarnished.

To secure a future in international recruitment, UK schools need to continue to prioritise sustainable and transparent practices. This requires a renewed focus

on building lasting relationships with both domestic and international families. Schools can, justiﬁably, talk about the unique strengths of a UK education.

Clearer regulations around recruitment would also be a welcome move in ensuring fairness that preserves the sector’s high reputation. By adopting a strategic, qualityfocused approach, UK institutions can navigate current challenges – whatever seismic shifts may happen in the future – and maintain their appeal and our education system’s reputation for excellence on the global stage.

ABOVE Learning at MPW

JAMES BARTON Global Director

MPW Group

Day in the life

Marymount International School London pupils Alexandra, Grade 8, and Ally, Grade 12, share a day in their busy lives

Alexandra

6:45 – Wake up, get dressed and make breakfast. Check my schedule and read through any notices and emails before heading for the school bus. Hopefully not late!

8:00 – Arrive at school nice and early to spend time with friends and catch up on reading and homework. Quick catch up with my Head of Year and then straight o to year group yoga.

9:00 – Heading to the science labs to continue the kiwi DNA extraction. Curious to ﬁnd out if we can see it. Then, English – my favourite subject. I can’t wait to dig deeper into the dazzling speeches of adolescent activists. Will it be Emma Gonzalez or Gretta Thunberg?

10:45 – Break time. Grab a samosa then have a nice stroll in the gardens – ﬁnally, the sun is out.

11:00 – Core is up next (Philosophy). What moral quandary is our teacher going to crack on about this time?

12:00 – Finally, a welldeserved break – lunchtime. Wonder what’s for lunch, hopefully the mouthwatering tacos. I am sure it will be great, like always.

1:00 – O to French to learn new tenses and practice speaking. Also recap more of the important but extremely hard and tiring passé composé. Then, ﬁnally, a break from constant writing as sport is up next. I am extremely glad we are doing volleyball and can’t wait to play a few matches and learn new serving techniques.

3:00 – Maths and then ﬁnish o with Design – learning how to use the 3D printer to print o our ﬁnal keychain designs created online.

5:00 – Model United Nations before heading home on the bus to get ready for dinner with my family. Then it's homework time.

9:30 – Pack my bag for the next day and get ready for bed. Then ﬁnish my day by spending 15 minutes reading my book.

Ally

7:00 – Wake up in my boarding room. Shower, get ready and then head down to breakfast. Then I pack my bags (making sure all school stu is ready) and tidy my room before heading out of boarding to my Advisor room.

8:30 – Advisor time and then catching up with friends – we're either reading or having a chat.

9:00 – First lesson and it's o to ESS in the science labs (to learn about soil systems). Then it’s Psychology time – this is one of my favourite subjects and today we're learning about hormones and genetics. Fun!

10:45 – Snack time then it's o to learn some Español (Spanish) in the Our Lady’s Building.

12:00 – Free period, and this gives me the perfect opportunity to catch up with assignments and homework. Then it's lunch – the best time to catch up with friends and enjoy the good food in the dining hall.

2:00 – Rush to Economics – one of my HLs of the day as I enjoy the classes very much. Then I'm pushing through the last period, which is free. I’m using this time to set out what I need to do after school, using the Diploma Lounge as my workspace.

4:00 – Rest time so return to boarding, call my family at home and wind down before dinner.

6:20 – Boarding Council meeting. As the Boarding Council President, I discuss upcoming events/dinners and work out our goals for this academic year with the rest of our Council and our houseparents.

7:15 – Homework and then SNACK time with boarders! Taking this time to talk, connecting with other grades and socialising. Then it's shower and usual night routine – with a bit of light work (mostly reading).

10:00 – Get ready for bed – I take out my uniform and wind down before lights out about 45 minutes later.

Sixth Form

TALKING CAREERS

Students

“There is a strong interest in traditional UK institutions, but also an increasing awareness of less traditional routes – including apprenticeships”

Careers and HE fair at Whitgift School

Careers COUNSEL

With so much change going on in the higher education and jobs landscape, how do we guide young people to make the right choices for them? We get insights from careers specialists at three leading independents

We hear: ‘educating for careers that haven’t been invented yet’ a lot and – like all great clichés –it’s making an important point. What world are young people full of ambition, skills and talent heading into? We can be pretty certain that side ventures and career changes are increasingly likely – the job for life is so 20th century. Then we have a degree of uncertainty in the higher-education landscape (with more to come). Also, young people’s perceptions of the value of committing to a chunk of debt before they even join the world of work come into play. These and other tough questions are facing careers advisors tasked with giving guidance. Here’s what they say.

WHITGIFT SCHOOL

At Whitgift we’ve moved away from the whole notion of ‘career advice’ –which conjures associations for me of the ‘expert’ telling a young person how to map out their life, with little regard for the seismic changes in the world of work that are now underway, and

little respect for the young person’s autonomy,” says Kate Goldberg, Assistant Head (Student Futures).

She says a whole di erent mindset is required. “We’re committed to a coaching ethos, which centralises an ongoing discussion about the young person’s values, strengths and interests and gives the students the tools to match these to potential careers and higher education options.” In Whitgift’s approach, there’s also recognition that young people may well change course as their interests and strengths evolve. The aim, says Kate Goldberg, is to give them the tools to carry on with the coaching on what they want long after they’ve left school. There’s plenty of in-school inspiration though. “We have an extensive programme of employer encounters – which starts from Year 6 – and ensures our students are exposed to a wide range of professionals from di erent sectors and industries.”

Kate Goldberg believes we may be behind the times in understanding young people’s viewpoint and knowledge of what a good job is. “The stereotype is still that they want a job as a doctor, lawyer or investment

banker – and they feel they need to study Biology, Latin or Maths to open certain doors. But we’ve now embedded our Student Futures programme into our PSHE curriculum,” she says. “Throughout their time at school students develop their understanding of growing and shrinking industries, the changing workforce and how key skills are used.” Useful intel, as is Whitgift’s inclusion of topics such as entrepreneurship, global citizenship, digital literacy and critical thinking within the Junior Year Curriculum (ages 10-12), and with a focus on their importance to future employability. Students are also up to speed on shifts in higher education so, while most students still focus on Russell Group universities, there’s increased interest in international universities and degree apprenticeships. “It’s interesting that we see some of our brightest and most aspirational students choosing degree apprenticeships now. They suit students who are self-starters and already focused on a particular professional pathway,” says Kate Goldberg. Whitgift is doing more in the space around evolving options – notably degree apprenticeships – as it watches the landscape of funding for UK

universities. Kate Goldberg notes that students are certainly attracted to the idea of zero student debt, a salary as they develop their professional skills – and also notching up three years’ career experience when peers are still on the jobs starting block.

With so much to consider, it’s certainly an increasingly tough decision-making process. “I tell students not to worry at all of they don’t know what to do by the time they leave school,” says Kate Goldberg. “Studying a subject you love is always going to be better than forcing yourself to do something you have zero interest in, just because you think it leads to a better career.” Ultimately, the jobs may change but some things will always stay the same. “Most workplaces want passion, people-skills and raw talent; they’ll teach you the speciﬁcs on the job.”

OAKHAM SCHOOL

Careers advice starts early at Oakham School, paced to be appropriate to age and stage. “We include information on careers in the pastoral curriculum for all year groups, including those in the youngest year. Events and one-to-one guidance then increase as students make GCSE choices and move through study at GCSE and post-16 level,” says Dr Rachael Pearson, Head of Careers and Progression. Getting the right blend is important, so Oakham o ers a mixture of talks, workshops and individual support. Students are pretty well informed at

a general level but may want a bit more support on the speciﬁcs. “Our students are engaged and aware of the world – they have heard of potential pathways in many cases but may not have access to information on the details or planned changes to application systems, for example,” says Rachael Pearson.

The careers team suggest bespoke areas for students to investigate, also o ering access to platforms, such as Morrisby and Unifrog, that help students consider their aptitudes and interests and check out choices in higher education and careers. Oakham students are increasingly open to the variety of options. “There is a strong interest in traditional UK institutions but also an increasing awareness of overseas options and less traditional routes – including apprenticeships and also interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary degrees.”

Oakham gets critical advice started early – GCSE students get advice sessions on producing a CV, and are also o ered follow-up meetings. “We stress the signiﬁcance of transferable skills and competencies, especially in relation to co-curricular activities, so students become accustomed to understanding these through the lens of recruitment. The school is active in organising and supporting placements, also helping with that key non-school reference for onward destinations.

Interest in apprenticeships is growing all the time and there’s a dedicated Work Experience and Apprenticeships O cer at Oakham. “Demand can outstrip supply though – it is a competitive route.” Inevitably, money is part of the choice equation, and Rachael Pearson ﬁnds that students thinking about university are inﬂuenced by factors such as outlay versus time to recoup. “They also express concern about the cost of living being higher in some cities, especially in London.”

Oakham o ers a full suite of study options – A level, BTEC and IB – so part of the advice process is to encourage students to think about how they want to learn, as well as what they want to learn. But Rachael Pearson says the team are also on hand to advise on ensuring subject combinations to keep options open. “We do point out that some career and higher education pathways have prerequisites – and we also encourage students to explore how subjects become broader at higher levels, so can lead to routes they may not have considered.”

THE LEYS SCHOOL

At The Leys in Cambridge, careers education starts early. “Starting in Year 7, we deliver a focused and impartial careers curriculum,” says Head of Sixth Form and Careers Robin Gri ths. This gears up as children grow, with some sessions delivered across year groups, others to interested groups. Often the advice is one-to-one, and a critical aim is to build emotional intelligence so students think broadly and make informed choices.

While some pupils are very well informed, others can be uncertain about where their future lies, so narrowing down happens organically, not just in careers sessions.

“Curriculum learning is linked to careers, and we encourage pupils to investigate a broad range of opportunities and career options to help them make informed choices appropriate to their personalities, interests and aptitudes.”

The Leys gives access to Unifrog, so young people can do their own research, and also provides expertise with the mechanics of UCAS, Oxbridge and international university applications. There are lots of events throughout the year, from industry-

ABOVE

Careers insights are delivered in multiple ways at The Leys School

speciﬁc workshops to careers forums.

A Cambridge location means a great range of visiting speakers. “Recent guest speakers have included an RAF ﬁghter pilot, a co ee entrepreneur, the General Counsel for Adidas, a leading author and ﬁlm director, a computer gaming artist, a Fellow of The Institution of Mechanical Engineers and the Head of Microsoft’s Talent Sourcing Team,” says Robin Gri ths. The Old Leysian network also proves to be able and willing, with speakers, careers advice and work experience all being o ered in support of current pupils – and, says Robin Gri ths, these can be the most inspiring insights and connections. Higher education talks are a big feature of careers support during Year 11 and Sixth Form, and the Careers

O ce has drop-in guidance sessions. There’s also advice on CV building and writing, as well as support with work shadowing and work placements.

Russell Group universities are still very popular, but the school, like the city of Cambridge, is cosmopolitan, so there’s also plenty of interest in international destinations. “We had university applications to the USA, Canada, Europe and Asia last year,” says Robin Gri ths. “Those pupils are looking for di erent types of educational opportunities, particularly with those applying to the US where the emphasis is on breadth of curriculum.”

While the degree versus apprenticeship debate is not new, says Robin Gri ths, interest has certainly grown. “They are now recognised as a high-status alternative to university.

“Students develop their understanding of growing and shrinking industries, the changing workforce and how key skills are used”

Those degree apprenticeships that combine employment with a wellrespected ﬁrm and a high-quality degree course are seen as a very attractive option, although they are highly competitive as a result.”

He believes ﬁnancial considerations are inﬂuencing students’ decisions on onward destinations – as is the current state of the university sector.

“Fear of debt and concerns over the rising costs will deter some young people,” says Robin Gri ths. “For others, it will inﬂuence choices over what and where to study, with living expenses often a deciding factor in more young people choosing to stay living at home while studying nearby. The value for money of investing in a degree is also under scrutiny.”

Robin Gri ths believes that the old rule of doing what you love is still a good one, with the usual proviso of choosing wisely if you have a speciﬁc course or university in mind. “Passion and natural aptitude can certainly help towards getting better grades.” he says. “It is also perfectly normal not to know what you want to do for a career, or what you want to study at university – and many graduates go on to work in ﬁelds completely unrelated to their chosen degree.”

ABOVE Investigating onward destination options at Oakham School in Rutland

BRIGHT FUTURES

Francis Holland, Regent's Park Head of Sixth Form Emma Williams on supporting students on the path from school to bright futures

At Francis Holland, Regent’s Park, our Sixth Form vision is guided by our four core pillars of knowledge, compassion, perseverance and spirit. We aim to inspire students to pursue their academic and co-curricular passions, and to leave us as young adults equipped with resilience, courage and empathy.

Our curriculum o ers academic rigour, as well as choice and ﬂexibility. Dynamic and inspirational teaching brings subjects to life, enabling pupils to truly connect what they learn in the classroom to the wider world. As one former student who went on to study Natural Sciences at Cambridge put it: "Thanks to Francis Holland, I developed a love of science. They really broke the mould of what I had assumed a ‘sciencey-type’ of person was, discovering that I loved being able to understand principles and apply them".

Our students are based in Linhope House, a dedicated Sixth Form space combining an elegant, Georgian exterior with a cutting-edge interior. Only a two-minute walk from our main school building at Ivor Place, it features collaborative and individual learning and study spaces, such as soundproofed study booths, a Think

Lab with integrated technology and a spacious Common Room. Sixth formers are connected to the rest of the school as they travel between buildings for their lessons, o ering a ‘college feel' – the perfect transition between school life and higher education.

Sixth form education is about so much more than academic achievement. The working world is changing, and the speed of this change is accelerating. It is our job as educators to encourage and empower our students to take risks, learn from failures and embrace the challenges, as well as the opportunities, of tomorrow. Skills such as creativity, curiosity, compassion, perseverance, storytelling, emotional intelligence and fostering a lifelong love of learning are key.

These skills are fostered through a broad co-curricular o ering and a vast array of academic enrichment opportunities. A weekly lecture programme and Life Skills lessons take place, on topics including life at university, AI, law in practice and public speaking. We also have an elective programme to provide additional breadth and foster intellectual curiosity.

Our Hale Lecture Series, a student-led interactive interview series, goes from strength to strength. Our Sixth Formers orchestrate these visits from start to ﬁnish, developing their conﬁdence and building soft skills. Encouraged to take on various leadership responsibilities, all students can apply to be on the Head Girl’s Team – with positions including Deputy Head Girl, Senior Prefect, President of the Help Fund, Sixth Form Delegate, Equality, Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging Ambassador and Environmental Captain. The team meets weekly with the Head of Sixth Form, and liaises regularly with younger students, acting as their role models. We value student voice – at the regular year group forum suggestions for improvement are heard and often acted upon.

With a committed tutor team, each student is supported on her unique journey in order to achieve her potential. Our higher education provision o ers bespoke support and advice, whether the chosen pathway is university in the UK or abroad, a degree apprenticeship, drama or art school.

The two years of Sixth Form are demanding yet empowering – our goal is to be to the bridge that leads our students from school to bright futures.

ABOVE

FHS Regent's Park Sixth Form students

EMMA WILLIAMS Head of Sixth Form

Francis Holland, Regent's Park

Right levels A

A surprising number of students choose their A levels unaware of the long-term impact on future study and career if they get it wrong, says Quintessentially Education’s Jess Harris

Lily is doing the wrong

A levels. A Year 13 student at a leading London girls’ school, she has realised that the subjects she has chosen aren’t right for what she wants to study at university.

When she took her GCSEs, she was keen on humanities and textiles and opted for History, Psychology and Fine Art for A level. But she now realises she wants to study something to do with Life Sciences and she can’t do that without Biology A level.

She is not alone. Which, the UK consumer choices group, reported that 28% of more than 1,000 university applicants aged 18–19-years-old said, when surveyed, that they wished they had chosen di erent subjects. And only half of students surveyed felt well enough informed about how the subjects they had studied could a ect their choice of degree and university. At Quintessentially Education, we are often asked to support young people who have chosen A levels without realising the full implications for their future studies.

“It would be really helpful if our education system started with the desired university

degree and worked backwards,” says Amelia Buckworth, Education Manager at Quintessentially Education. “If we started with where students want to end up, we could ensure they have clear academic pathways. Instead, students narrow their subjects in Year 9 when they choose their GCSEs and again at A level.”

Of course, some students know early what they want to study at university, but many others are unsure. Even for students who have a clear idea of where they are heading, Buckworth advises doing the research.

“Di erent universities and courses have distinct subject requirements. Being aware

“28% of university applicants aged 18–19 said they wished they had chosen di erent A-level subjects”

of these di erences early on will help ensure that students’ chosen GCSE and A-level subjects do not become a barrier to pursuing a certain academic interest, or a particular university.” For example, a BSc in Economics at LSE requires an A* in Maths, but a BA in Economics at SOAS does not.

By far the largest number of A-level students we support are those who dropped maths after GCSE without realising they needed an A level in the subject to go on to apply to their desired STEM course at university. Buckworth says: “What may take you by surprise are the courses that you won’t study at school, such as Aerospace Engineering”.

For those who are unsure when they embark on choosing GCSEs and A levels, Buckworth suggests keeping options open. It helps to research a selection of subjects to gauge the entry requirements. It might also be wise to choose one or two ‘facilitating subjects’ – academic A levels that top universities prefer (see Do... panel, right).

For those students who have started A levels and realised they aren’t the right

“Universities and courses have distinct subject requirements – a BSc in Economics at LSE requires an A* in Maths, but a BA at SOAS does not”

subjects, it’s important not to panic. If you’re only a term in, think about switching just after the winter break. This is school dependent, but we have supported students who have changed an A-level subject after one term. Alternatively, if you have your heart set on a particular course at a particular university, you could explore taking on another A level. “We only advise students to take four A levels in particular circumstances,” says Buckworth. “But if

picking up a fourth helps you get on to the course you want to do, then it makes sense.”

It can also be a good idea to broaden your university horizons – there are so many courses to choose from, all with di erent entry requirements. Another option is foundation courses, which take up to one-year to complete, typically have lower entrance thresholds and may help get you to your destination point. These can be studied at a university or sometimes at another location (for instance, a further education college) and are designed to help access university. Buckworth doesn’t recommend banking on this route, but adds that successful completion enables many students to access their chosen course. Most important of all is to do your research. “It doesn’t matter if you don’t know what you want to do at university, but make sure you get good advice,” says Buckworth. “Ask your school for advice on how to keep every pathway open, and there is always secondary expert support available, too.”

Jess Harris is the Director of Quintessentially Education

DO...

• Get honest teacher feedback on how you’re likely to perform before choosing A levels.

• Bear in mind those ‘facilitating subjects’ that keep more HE options open (History, Geography, English, Modern and Classical Languages, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Maths and Further Maths).

• Be wary of A levels with overlapping curricula – for instance Business Studies and Economics – if you are taking three A-level subjects.

• Consider Art or Music as a fourth subject, rather than one of your three subjects, if you are unsure of your course direction.

DON’T...

• Assume you will like a subject at A level just because you liked it at GCSE –research the syllabus.

• Narrow your options by choosing subjects considered ‘so ’ by some universities. Examples may include General Studies and Global Perspectives.

• Take all new subjects – three, or even two, entirely new areas of study might become overwhelming.

• Study a Modern Foreign Language (for instance, French, Mandarin or Spanish) as one of your three core A levels if you are already a native speaker – it may be viewed as a ‘light’ option by universities.

HIGH NOTES

Richard Saxel, Director of Music at CranleighSchool, on teaching music through a di erent lens to give opportunities to aim higher

Most professional musicians enjoy a portfolio career, and I am fortunate to have combined 25 years in independent music education with performing internationally as a concert pianist. The symbiotic relationship between these two career strands is typical of the approach we take at Cranleigh School, where all our Music Department sta are professional performing musicians. Our experiences as professional musicians allow us to view music education through a di erent lens. Preparing a concert programme to performance standard requires total immersion in the repertoire. This process begins many months beforehand, with a period of research designed to inform the choice of repertoire. This involves listening to recordings of great musicians, understanding the social, historical and cultural context, forensic study of

“Preparing a concert programme requires total immersion – the EPQ requires these exact skills”

musical scores, and consideration of potential themes and relationships between pieces in a recital programme.

The EPQ (Extended Project Qualiﬁcation) requires these exact skills in its Assessment Objectives, and the initial phase of gathering information and reviewing authenticity and relevance is directly comparable. Students develop skills in assimilating research material and learn how to use this to inform their objective –whether that be in writing a dissertation, creating an artefact, running an experiment or, indeed, preparing a performance.

Musicians then begin the process of learning how to execute the physical demands of the music. In other words, they practise! There is a constant desire to improve the execution of each and every note, phrase, detail, and –ultimately – the whole performance. Fine motor skills are reﬁned, a vast amount of material is synthesised, with critical evaluation of each and every aspect.

Educational project work demands much the same kind of process and embraces many of the same skills. Dissertations, artefacts, experiments and performances

are reﬁned, leading to more persuasive arguments, more imaginative works of art, more accurate and meaningful experiments, and more creative performances, with constant questioning from supervisors or teachers illuminating the way.

Music performance demands a rare combination of skills; the ability to combine intellectual research with highly reﬁned physical skills, plus an ability to connect and portray abstract emotion through one’s performance, often under extreme pressure. Careful study of the score, control over its physical realisation, and capacity to become one with the work of another musician lead to a deeply fulﬁlling experience as a performer. There are other creative art forms where this is also true, but perhaps none where the moment of creation is quite so public and immediate.

As educational theory develops, project work is increasingly valued for the range, depth and variety of skills it develops. It encourages extended immersion in a topic, and intellectual and creative curiosity – skills that musicians have relied on for decades, and which are ingrained in the principles of learning a musical instrument.

ABOVE & BELOW Cranleigh musicians and Richard Saxel with music students

OXBRIDGE PRIMER

Oxford

International College (OIC) Brighton’s Deputy Principal and Head of Sixth Form give pointers on the Oxbridge application process

Both Cambridge and Oxford are internationally renowned, so it is no surprise that the application process is competitive. Last year, for instance, some 23,000 students applied for one of just 3,300 undergraduate places at Oxford. So how do you develop a strong application?

Although both universities seek academic excellence, an ideal candidate demonstrates that they make a conscious e ort to expand on what they have learned in the classroom. An excellent way to do this is by pursuing opportunities to engage in extracurricular activities relevant to chosen subject. Attending lectures, exhibitions and networking events provides ideal opportunities to develop knowledge and demonstrate a curiosity about new perspectives on taught subject material.

At school, students should engage with societies and clubs. Better still, they can beneﬁt from forming societies of their own, demonstrating initiative, intellectual curiosity and an enthusiasm for learning.

“Encouraging students to discuss what they have learned enhances their ability to engage in intellectual conversations and interviews”

At OIC Brighton, extracurricular activities are something we encourage through our Super Curricular Programme. This o ers a diverse range of activities, clubs and societies, which help to develop understanding across a chosen ﬁeld.

Building a strong application requires several months of hard work. While the format of the personal statement is changing, the application will remain an opportunity to create a lasting impression on the admissions team. It must portray a genuine passion and enthusiasm for your chosen subject.

Admissions tests play an important role in the process and early preparation improves outcomes. Researching the format of the test and identifying areas that require additional support enables e ective revision, helping students approach the tests with increased conﬁdence.

The admissions interview is an opportunity to articulate passion for your chosen subject through an intellectual and reﬂective conversation. It is important to be able to conﬁdently discuss this in detail. Interviewers will be seeking a high level of oracy, in addition to a knowledge

of the subject that goes beyond classroom learning. At OIC Brighton, we support oracy skills by encouraging students to discuss and reﬂect on what they have learned, enhancing their ability to ﬂuently engage in conversations and interviews.

With over 60 Oxford and Cambridge colleges to choose from between the two universities, selecting where to study can be a daunting decision. If a student does not have a preferred destination, it can be worth considering the number of applications that each college receives annually and thinking strategically about the best choice. Our students beneﬁt from the insights of individually appointed strategy tutors, who use their admissions experience to assist with decisions during the application process. This ensures a choice that is both suitable and optimises the chances of success.

STATESIDE Looking

Applications to American universities are rising in popularity, so what do students need to know?

We talk to Crimson Education to ﬁnd out

No one ever said applying to university was easy, but for UK students looking Stateside, the application process is so di erent that it’s important to prepare ahead. Crimson Education helps students do just that. The company was founded just over a decade ago by three New Zealanders who had aced the applications. In fact, CEO Jamie Beaton had applied for 25 of the world’s best. He was accepted by a good number, including Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia and Cambridge. Today the company supports students around the world to gain entry to top-tier universities. The team in the UK supporting US applicants is led by Country Manager Rebecca Pretorius. She says this really is a “di erent playing ﬁeld” for UK students used to a system with a single application point and narrower criteria. Crucially, there’s a di erent approach to selection.

“One of the positives, thinking as a parent, is that US universities are looking holistically – young people are more than just the sum of their marks,” she says. It’s this Liberal Arts approach that is proving appealing to many UK students right now. “Whereas in the UK

top universities are looking for a scholar, in the US they are looking for an impactful student – there’s a real focus on their impact and their intellectual curiosity, personality and initiative,” she adds.

The structure of degrees in the US supports all-rounders. Degree courses take place over four years, and students typically don’t have to narrow down to a major (main subject) until well into the second year. This is great news for those who want to keep options open. It’s an approach also helpful when it comes to the jobs market, says Rebecca Pretorius – and there’s no doubt that a US degree can open doors. “Networking opportunities in the US are vast. Your di erence can help you get a job. Any graduate from an Ivy League university would be employed by an investment bank, for instance, which you wouldn’t

“US universities are looking holistically – young people are more than just the sum of their marks”

see anywhere else. I’m not talking about a maths student, but someone who studied what we’d call a BA in the UK.”

Job prospects for graduates are a deﬁnite plus, but heading to an American university is an investment – around $80,000 a year at some top institutions, plus travel and living costs. Also note that athletic and merit scholarships aren’t a feature of Ivy League colleges and a lot of other top locations – the focus is on widening access.

TIME INVESTMENT

Another consideration is the considerable time required for applications. That’s where Crimson comes in, and why it has a Rise programme for students aged 11+, alongside its 14-18 programme for applicants.

It sounds incredibly early, but there’s a good reason for this starting point. “Students are going to be submitting their academics –their grades – across their high-school career, not just predicted ﬁnal scores,” says Rebecca Pretorius. If that sounds terrifying, she has reassurance. A student who has had a rough spell academically and then picks themself back up is showing evidence of a trajectory of growth, both in academic terms and in maturity. In other words, it’s OK not to be a grade-A student across your whole senior

ABOVE

school career, although grades will be a vital part of the judgement process.

Perhaps most critically, universities are looking for evidence of lots of activities beyond school. That could be tests or programmes taken out of school (music, for instance) but also commitments such as volunteering, community action, and so on. With applications requiring evidence of activities and awards, plus academics (grades), recommendations and a personal statement, this is a broad assessment. “So that’s where you hear that term ‘spikiness’ about US applications. It’s about developing

the steps in one or more area,” says Rebecca Pretorius. “It speaks about going beyond the classroom.”

Extra qualities are also required when it comes to impressing admissions o cers with your understanding of why you’ve applied. While Common or Coalition Applications are now quite widely accepted, a lot of US colleges require a direct (and bespoke) application. So, if you were to apply for ten universities, that could, in theory, mean 40 pieces of writing –which is why you need to start early.

While those ﬁnal grades are critical,

there are deﬁnitely plenty of other opportunities to sell your merits as an applicant. “The more you can give them in a really succinct, clear way, and with a clear narrative, the easier it is for them to get to know you in the few minutes that they are looking at your application,” says Rebecca Pretorius. Crimson runs free webinars and events, as well as hosting a blog with information and useful insights about getting started, processes involved and di erent academic ﬁelds and universities. There is also one-to-one support and mentoring via its local teams of academic advisors.

Heading to college in the US is a dream for many – but requires time investment

Redeﬁning Education

PERFECT UNIVERSITY PREPARATION BESPOKE STUDY PLANS

TRULY INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENT

ENDLESS OPPORTUNITIES

Kings London Sixth Form College

Talking HEAD

Alumnae NETWORKS

The Head of Downe House on the career and life inspiration that comes when former students get together with the current cohort

Alumnae can be a wonderful inspiration to existing students. Because they have shared a similar educational journey, they are able to relate to current students and show them what is possible by sharing experiences. Essentially, students gain a window into the outside world and, because of the common connection, will often feel able to ask questions and seek advice in a more relaxed manner. Likewise, alumnae are often delighted to help students and o er advice. What is also very special is the trust that exists amongst alumnae, which means more candid experiences can be shared. For example, revealing what has not gone so well, as well as where they have experienced success, delivers a level of transparency

“Revealing what has not gone so well shows that bumps in the road do not need to be a bar to achievement and happiness”

which shows pupils that bumps in the road or unexpected challenges do not need to be a bar to achievement and happiness. By networking with alumnae, students also gain insight into a vast range of careers. They will hear, and sometimes even see, what certain job roles entail. They also gain advice on how to progress in di erent industries, while learning about the rich diversity of career opportunities. This is particularly important as new careers are emerging all of the time. Another invaluable beneﬁt is that students will often meet alumnae who are at varying stages of their careers, giving insights into the paths that exist within one ﬁeld.

Students are often surprised at how friendly and supportive alumnae are. Sometimes students can feel their goals are unattainable or too aspirational, and then they meet people who are just like them and who want to help them. What can also be enlightening is discovering that everyone experiences challenging times. It can be inspiring to see ﬁrsthand how others have turned these hurdles into opportunities.

Networking events in general are great motivators. Students make connections and foster a greater understanding of sectors they are interested in. As a result, they are more informed about the skills and experience necessary for speciﬁc roles. Alumnae are often generous in mentoring too, giving interview practice and other practical help.

Developing conﬁdence in an unfamiliar setting is key to future success and attending a networking event helps students to practice how to introduce themselves, how to ask questions, present themselves and

follow up after a connection has been made. They learn about preparation and the importance of researching delegates attending, so that conversations can be more fruitful.

At Downe House, our networking events are arranged in a number of ways. Sometimes we invite groups of alumnae in the same field to visit and showcase the variety of careers through short presentations followed by Q&A panel sessions. Sometimes one alumna shares their own journey or runs a workshop. We have also been lucky enough to have alumnae hosting events at their o ces for students to experience what the workplace is like. It can be particularly helpful for our students to hear how young women are encouraged and empowered in the workplace. Every networking opportunity brings benefits, but they are all extremely valuable in the quest for nurturing confidence, ambition and resilience in a fast-paced modern world.

EMMA MCKENDRICK Headmistress Downe House School

ABOVE Downe House students

Talking HEAD

Transition TIME

Keith Metcalfe, Head of Malvern College, on the important transitions that happen in sixth form, and how schools nurture this growing independence

For most pupils, sixth form is when they take a signiﬁcant step forward, from being the dependent pupil towards the world of independent adulthood. Good schools make the move as smooth as possible, but it is still undeniably di erent to what has come before. Study becomes more focused on areas of individual interest, work becomes harder and relies increasingly on independent initiative, while teachers look to treat pupils more like the adults they are becoming. Pupils,

meanwhile, take on responsibility for their own decisions, their own priorities and, ultimately, their own success.

At Malvern College, we’ve embraced that sense of transition. Indeed, we recently won an award for ‘Support for Life Beyond School’ with our life skills programme. This is designed in partnership with the pupils themselves to prepare them for the world of work, further study and the challenges they are likely to encounter along the way. Pupils wanted to learn from and about a series of activities and experts, including ﬁnancial skills (banking, taxes, pensions, ISAs,

savings, mortgages, etc), car maintenance, stress management, university life, ﬁrst aid, cooking and nutrition – even barista training to set them up for a summer job.

We’ve also embraced the sense of transition in the school itself, refurbishing a former sta common room, returning it to its original purpose as a dedicated Sixth Form Centre. This has a collection of versatile spaces that can be used for independent, self-directed study as well as group work and collaboration. The centre is modelled on the learning spaces found throughout universities and modern working environments, bridging the gap and preparing our pupils for life after Malvern. We want pupils to be able to access di erent environments and experiment within them, so that they can ﬁnd the ways of working that best suit them.

Increasing independence and individual choice are crucial elements of moving into sixth form education. Being able to o er alternative courses alongside A levels – in Malvern’s case the International Baccalaureate (IB) and selected BTEC courses – means pupils can begin to deﬁne their own pathway, not only in choosing the subjects but also the approach to learning that best suits them.

The IB Philosophy, and its focus on developing ‘inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world’ aligns to our set of values, which we call the Malvern Qualities. We particularly like the

Theory of Knowledge element of the IB, which develops pupils’ critical thinking skills and teaches them to interrogate how they know what they know. But for those pupils who choose A levels, adding an EPQ or studying the additional Global Perspectives course o ers many of the same outcomes, just in a di erent package.

Much of the sixth form programme focuses on preparing young adults for life beyond sixth form, where the opportunity to individualise and diversify choices grows even further. It used to be that the two ‘big’ universities – Oxford

and Cambridge – were the benchmark for academic achievement, the goal that everyone aimed for. But times are changing. Universities continue to widen their intake requirements, and it has never been more competitive to secure a place at a top-ranking UK university.

We have seen increasing numbers of applications to US universities, so much so that we now have a member of sta dedicated to supporting pupils through the American application process (as well as the process for Europe). While elite UK universities may focus on relatively narrow academic credentials, Ivy League institutions like Yale, Harvard and Princeton combine this with a desire to see broader skills – for example, sporting excellence. This makes them the ideal environment for our top performing sportspeople, with enhanced support on o er for our Sixth Form students who may be eligible for scholarships.

We also encourage our pupils to explore opportunities outside of university. Prestigious graduate programmes are available in every sector, from ﬁnance to aviation, o ering a myriad of options for pupils to enter

“Pupils can begin to deﬁne their own pathway, not only in choosing the subjects but also the approach to learning that best suits them”

straight into the world of work without missing out on the opportunity to gain professional qualiﬁcations.

KEITH

METCALFE Headmaster Malvern College

Sixth form is a gateway: it is the transition zone between school and the ‘real world’. As educators, we want to create an environment which reflects the world, but within which our young adults can experience, adapt and gain confidence. This is a place where it is safe to take risks and try things; where they can learn to build a support network around them, so that ultimately they are ready to flourish and make a positive di erence in their next stage of life.

ABOVE

Sixth Form Centre at Malvern College

Independent Senior Day School

Boys 11–18 years Girls 16–18 years

Visitor Mornings

Thursday 7th November 2024 9am-11am

Tuesday 12th November 2024 9am-11am

Personal Tours

Available throughout the year

•Extensive coach service

•Short walk from Shepperton Station

•Shuttle service from Walton-on-Thames Station

Talking HEAD

FRESH START

The Principal of Kings London on the fresh start of a new academic year in a new place, and what diverse students ﬁnd they have in common

Let me take you back to the ﬁrst day of the new academic year here at Kings London. Students have arrived from all over the world – this year 80 new learners, representing a wonderfully diverse 28 nationalities. Among the many international students coming through our doors for the ﬁrst time are a small number of UK students, many of whom are here to retake GCSEs or A levels. Everyone appears eager to get going, if a little apprehensive about what the year ahead has in store.

Having been welcomed by their personal tutors, Course Directors and members of the Welfare Team, our students are now gathering in The Link, our central meeting space, for a more formal introduction to the school community. As I make my way to the front of the space, there is a palpable sense of nervous excitement and a low hum of chatter among the gathered students. I begin: “Hello, everyone; welcome to Kings London. This is now your school and your community. Please look to your right and to your left. Now, look in front of you and behind you. Please put your hand up if you see anyone who you knew before this morning”.

No hands are raised. Some students are standing on tiptoes, straining to see if they recognise anyone, maybe someone from their local area – even, maybe, from their

previous school. Still, no hands are raised. “You will notice that you all have something very special in common, whether you have travelled from the other side of the world or a short walk away. Kings London is a place of new beginnings and new adventures – this is your opportunity to decide who you want to be over the coming year.”

“The students begin to realise, as they do every year, that they are free to start afresh – the future starts now”

And so the students begin to realise, as they do every year, that they are free to start afresh. Whether they will be studying on our one-year intensive GCSE, Advanced Level Foundation or UAL Art Foundation courses or the two-year A level programme, the future starts now.

For me, this is one of the most vitalising aspects of the start of the new school year at Kings London. I know that over the coming days and weeks, students will tell me how free they feel,

how relieved they are to have left behind the politics and drama of their previous school. As a team, we know that this feeling will carry into the classrooms, where our teachers will encourage students to focus this energy into their studies. We also know that, at some stage, they will start to miss certain aspects of their previous lives, and it will be then that the broad array of welfare support we o er will smooth their journeys. Fast forward to the second week and the school is recognisably a collective endeavour, with clubs and societies in full swing, outreach project planning close to completion and preparations for celebrations of all sorts underway. Beginnings have already grown into new journeys and all of us, who were strangers, are quickly becoming a close community. Onwards.

DANNY CARROLL Principal Kings London

ABOVE Kings London students

Canford Sixth Form is a development to give students a smart new place of their own. There are two opening phases, in February 2025 and September 2026, but this is more than a construction project. The Dorset day and boarding school has used the opportunity to rethink how this critical phase of school life should be structured.

The needs of 17-18-year-olds are very di erent to those of younger pupils – as is their mindset and outlook. The new College structure will allow stage-speciﬁc guidance, enabling them to prepare for the pressures of life beyond school within a supportive environment.

The educational experience will be overseen by a new Assistant Head College, Julia Bird, who will work closely with the pastoral team and the wider pastoral sta across the school. Specialist tutors will

WINNING 6

A new Sixth Form taking shape at Canford already has a student-designed logo and looks set to score full marks

guide and support tutees through the two sixth form years, ensuring continuity of care and connections with key academic and pastoral sta and parents.

Facilities will include areas for the whole Sixth Form, as well as those dedicated to the Upper Sixth only. The Hub and two single-sex residential wings form three sides of a new quad, close to the Library, Layard Theatre, Music School, Sports Centre, Manor House and academic teaching areas.

The College Hub will be an educational and social space for the whole Sixth Form, with seminar rooms, a Future Pathways careers and networking centre, and life skills spaces – teaching kitchen and private dining area included. The design has been carefully thought out to be similar to modern workspaces. That means opportunities for hot desking, conference facilities for webinars and lectures, plus dedicated areas for social and down time.

To prepare for the transition to life in higher education and the working world,

Upper Sixth pupils will move as a year group into their own accommodation, with boarding boys and girls living in separate wings in ensuite bedrooms – Canford’s day pupils will have dedicated day workspaces. Who better to persuade young people of the beneﬁts of the new Sixth Form than students? New branding has been created in a project involving pupils across the Canford year groups. The result is a new ‘6’ logo and teal colourway, which will be incorporated into the interior design of the building.

Chair of Governors Sir Gary Coward says this ambitious rethink has been designed to create: “An inspirational, innovative, integrated Sixth Form experience at the heart of the School”. These smart new buildings will not sit in splendid isolation – the goal is to ensure an aspirational, dynamic setting that pupils will look forward to joining. To build that sense of integration, younger pupils will have access for some aspects of their education – so they, too, can look towards life in 6.

BELOW Canford in Dorset has rethought sixth form life with 6 –opening from 2025

4 LIFE fo r SKILLS

Qualiﬁcations are vital, but what other elements can boost your career prospects? Absolutely

Education lines up four really useful life skills to work on

The degree or higher qualification is still a gold-standard to indicate you know how to learn and have knowledge in a specific field, but academic study is unlikely to hold much sway in the competitive working world if you don’t have other assets to mark you out as savvy, useful and good to work with. Three out of four of these don’t cost money, and all of them will improve your prospects, in life as well as work.

LEARN TO DRIVE

There was a time when ‘full clean driving licence’ was a standard CV entry under ‘other qualiﬁcations’. The cost of driving and the absence of lessons and tests during

the pandemic have slowed down the pipeline of young drivers – making driving skills a distinct asset. Passing your test is expensive – around £1,700 including lessons and test fees is not unusual. Then there’s the sky-high cost of insurance in the ﬁrst few years, so the investment can easily run to £4,000 plus to get on the road. But consider this against the cost of a degree (around £28,000 excluding living costs) and it doesn’t sound so bad. A driving licence is a qualiﬁcation that opens up an array of stopgap job possibilities, and more options in choosing where to live.

Most critical is the value of a driving licence to your chosen ﬁeld. There are many skilled roles – from conservation work in rural areas to engineering around urban centres – where driving may be an essential. As one engineer in the construction

industry says: “I get so many great CVs from engineers in their mid 20s who don’t drive. Our work includes site visits for monitoring, often in inaccessible locations and carrying complex and expensive testing equipment. Without a driving licence, engineers can’t get there – it’s not as if they can catch a bus”.

PICK UP THE PHONE

Nothing shows up the divide between Gen Z and oldsters like talking on the phone. There’s a suspicion that Gen Z think it’s better to send 20 texts or emails than make one single two-minute call. Oldsters have a point, since a widely reported Sky Mobile poll

“A quarter of 18–24-year-olds don’t pick up the phone and almost a fifth would only make a call in an absolute emergency”

published in May found that over a quarter of 18–24-year-olds don’t pick up the phone and almost a ﬁfth would only make a call in an emergency. Almost half (47%) prefer a text to warn them of an incoming call.

In the working world, where time is money and many older colleagues still like the directness and speed of a quick chat, being phone shy won’t mark you out as boardroom material. Conﬁdence on the phone also helps with life – better deals on everything from holidays to loans can often be negotiated verbally. Business conducted by phone can be intimidating, but planning what you need to convey, then keeping it short – also remembering to speak slowly, pause and listen – are skills that can be learnt and then improved. Answering calls adds extra pressure to think on your feet but, ‘let me ﬁnd out and get back to you’ is a time-honoured response to cover o most eventualities.

BECOME A PLANNER

A recent survey among US managers highlighted lack of preparation as one of the top ﬁve reasons why candidates don’t get the job. If you’ve aced the interview

“Arriving late for that group lunch or signing in to an external Teams meeting in your t-shirt to find everyone else in suits are avoidable workplace fails”

by being the one who did prepare, don’t blow it when you join. Failing to research train times and arriving late for that group lunch or logging in to an external Teams meeting in your t-shirt to ﬁnd everyone in suits because they read that ‘smart dress’ memo are avoidable workplace fails. You may be forgiven, but don’t be surprised if you’re not invited next time. Pretty much every workplace scenario is improved if you’ve come prepared. It is time consuming and dull, but it pays dividends in reducing feelings of being out of your depth and is almost certain to increase respect and trust from colleagues. Asking questions is all part of planning, but no colleague should be expected to hold your hand, so don’t ask a thousand questions that a bit of simple research can answer. Also observe what others are doing and listen to what they say – it’s the best way to learn.

MAKE SMALL TALK

For some reason, online networking is considered cool, while face-to-face small talk is not. But don’t underestimate its importance in working life. If you can chat with the team at the front desk and share friendly words with colleagues over the water cooler, you are raising your proﬁle in a ‘soft power’ way and people will appreciate the fact you make the e ort.

A piece on LinkedIn by Tchiki Davis at the start of the year highlighted the science behind small talk and pointed to the fact that it’s a way of establishing a bond and feelings of solidarity. Be it the weather, sporting ﬁxtures or weekend plans, it’s not what you talk about but the way you go about it. These chats are empathetic, which means making eye contact, letting others talk, remembering details previously shared with you and showing kindness when someone is having a hard day. Small talk is also useful. When you need to ask about a salary review or request extra holiday, it is usually better to open with something light. Asking after your line manager’s dog or discussing how their team did can ease the tension of an awkward conversation and, who knows, it may even mean they agree to your request.

AutumnBooks

FINDING SUNSHINE P 178 COME THE REVOLUTIONARY P 186 STORIES SHARED P 189 BOOKS TO EXPLORE

Illustration: Erin K. Robinson Page 180

Finding sunshine

Maryam Hassan’s debut picture book about a little girl ﬁnding her way back to light was inspired by teaching children in new lands

Until You Find the Sun was inspired by a chill reality – Maryam Hassan was teaching in cold and grey Chicago in midwinter when a little girl joined her Montessori elementary school. A recent arrival from South India, she was having trouble adjusting. “If you come from there to Chicago, with a polar vortex winter, that is a very large seasonal di erence,” she says. “And the points where she was having a hard time adjusting were when she had to go outside to play.”

To Maryam Hassan, this little girl’s sensory bewilderment was completely understandable – how could she process such a huge change at such a young age? She wrote the very ﬁrst draft of Until You Find the Sun sitting parked up in her car – it just came to her, and she had to write it down. It’s a poignant tale about Aminah, a little girl whose life is full of “sparkles”, living in a close-knit community

full of gold and yellow – from sunshine and kindly salaams to sweet mangoes.

Then her family prepare her for the journey to a new land, but her beloved grandfather, Da, who has always told her tales of epic adventures in far o lands, will not be coming with them. On arrival in the new place – a cold and wintery city that could be Chicago – Aminah loses her sparkle, overwhelmed by the greyness of it all. That is, until she spots a bright yellow du e coat in a shop and her Mama buys it for her. This new sparklingly yellow coat gives her hope and the next morning she awakens to a clear blue sky with sun reﬂecting o the white snow and goes out to play. Then she is able to call her Da and tell him of her own adventures in this far-o land.

The text is evocatively illustrated by Anna Wilson, capturing the journey through dark to light. While Hassan is a photographer and painter, as well as a teacher, she knew her story was in safe hands as soon as she saw the wonderful sample illustrations

from Wilson. “I do paint, but I do not think I could illustrate a book ever in my life,” she says. “The only input I had given was how I wanted the family members, to look. What I ﬁnd in media is that when South Asians are represented, they are very light skinned and, in our families, we are all a mix of di erent kinds of skin tones.”

As a ﬁrst-generation child of Pakistani immigrants in London, and someone who has taught many children who have joined her classes unable to speak English, Maryam Hassan is really inspired by the idea of helping with transitions. “I was thinking about struggles that children face, especially young children, when they move countries,” she says. “We have this assumption that when children are young they kind of forget about things because they move on very quickly, but I don’t think that’s true. I really wanted to be able to write picture books that help children ﬁnd comfort in their new surroundings.”

She recalls that in her own ‘90s childhood in London she couldn’t ﬁnd any media

that represented what she looked like or what she was going through – she found her outlet in Western culture, including punk. (She still loves punk.) These days, she reads a lot of fiction, including Young Adult fiction, that reflects a diverse world, but feels there’s still a way to go. “It’s always the hardship of growing up if you’re Muslim and Pakistani, when I want to write about the joy of it,” she says. “Ultimately, terrific

books give young people joy and make them love the cultures that they are from.”

Blending and marrying di erent cultural inﬂuences is, of course, a journey many children will go through. But, as far as Maryam Hassan is concerned, whether it be Chicago, Tokyo or London, every child responds to picture books.

“I’ve taught in three di erent countries now, and in di erent kinds of schools, and the thing that is similar in all these schools is that children love books. If there is a story time children will come and just sit.

“When I ﬁrst moved to Japan, I taught in a Japanese elementary school and any time I brought out a book – it was usually Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? or The Very Hungry Caterpillar or Dear Zoo – the children would just sit, and they would all stare at me. The First Graders didn’t really know what I was saying – it was still very early on – but loved to just listen and look at the pictures.

“Books universally bring children together, so when you have new children starting in a classroom story time is a really great way to have them feel secure in your classroom

and be able to share something they can feel connected to right away.”

That is one of the things that inspires Maryam Hassan to keep on writing for young children. Her second book about food (also illustrated by Anna Wilson) is in production, and there’s another in progress about language acquisition – a ﬁendishly di cult subject to write about for such a young age group, as she admits, but she is enjoying the challenge. This is a chance to distil some of the observations and experiences garnered teaching across three continents.

While they may not share a common language or culture, Maryam Hassan ﬁnds that all young children share one very big thing. “They are very open to new people, and they want to know all about you,” she says. “It is so wonderful to teach and learn about them and watch them grow – it’s such a wonderful thing to watch.”

Until You Find the Sun is by Maryam Hassan, with illustrations by Anna Wilson (Hachette Children’s Group, £12.99).

ABOVE Until You Find the Sun is illustrated by Anna Wilson BELOW Maryam Hassan

TOP AUTUMN

MUST READ

There's No Such Thing as a Silly Question

by Mike Rampton

illustrated by Guilherme Karsten

UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE & NOSY CROW, £18.99

Written with input from the boffins at University of Cambridge, this factpacked read delivers burning questions – 213 of them – all answered by experts. From finding out if dinosaurs could sneeze and why fizzy drinks go flat to learning who first invented underpants and how we decide what time it is. Also, intriguingly, the scientific verdicts on the worst smell in the world and why dogs spin around before going to the toilet. Big and important mysteries one and all, packed into a lavishly illustrated, fun and really useful hardback manual for young knowledge hunters.

From a journey across the African Diaspora and a backstage pass to Kew to drawing dinos like a pro and exploring the world of sport, great books for autumn

by Steve Roberts & Joel Stewart

HACHETTE CHILDREN'S, £7.99

Peggy the detective dog and Stu her shrew sidekick return for the second in this graphic novel series designed to appeal to young readers who love stories told through pictures. In the ﬁrst of a double mystery, the residents of Tangletree are getting ready for their spring dance when the trumpet player's instrument develops a life of its own and runs away into Tangletree Woods. The second story, Cake Crimes, involves a pop-up bakery selling irresistible cakes that cause terrible toothache. Enter one mysterious pop-up dentist...

THERE IS A SEASON

by Kerri Cunningham UCLAN PUBLISHING, £9.99

The Lancashire-based writer and artist has created her first children's book of illustrated poems. Divided into the four seasons, it celebrates all the special things the year brings us, from kite flying, Bonfire Night and crisp walks to spring lambs, Easter eggs and picnics when the earth warms again. Lovely illustrations bring each short poem to life, and 'things to do’ and 'joys of' spreads make this a great inspiration to keep on the shelf and return to again and again.

Invitation to the Botanic Gardens

by Charlotte Guillain

illustrated by Helen Shoesmith HACHETTE CHILDREN'S, £16.99

This access-all-areas book explores the work of Kew Gardens. It takes in the glories we know in the Temperate, Palm, Waterlily and Carnivorous Houses, but also the specialisms of the lab, Herbarium, Fungarium and Seed Bank. There's even a spread dedicated to Kew's Compost Centre. Helen Shoesmith's illustrations include three stunning gatefolds. It is also information rich, answering key questions on areas such as pollination, germination and plant DNA.

Nora and the Map of Mayhem

by Joseph Elliott illustrated by Nici Gregory PICCADILLY PRESS, £7.99

The Nora of this new adventure is a great-grandmother of style (retired ﬂorist) and more than a few secrets. So, when Autumn and Atticus are dropped o for the weekend, they don't get a sedate time with the GG. Instead, there's a threatening note pinned to the front door, followed by a mad dash to the coast. Then they and GG get embroiled in a series of adventures with revolting sea monsters and one extremely persistent goose.

Adventure

This large-format picture book for young readers describes the extraordinary journey of a young boy, Ayo, across the African Diaspora – an A-Z of people, cultures and events. Succinctly described, and with standout illustrations by Erin K. Robinson, Ayo ﬁnds out more about everything from Afro hair, carnival and kente cloth to Brazil's Quilombo community, soul food and Ethiopian empress Taitu (Taytu) Betul. There's a world map at the back so you can plot his journey. You'll also ﬁnd out extra details about each element in a useful glossary. by Ain Heath Drew illustratedby Erin K. Robinson BAREFOOT BOOKS, £12.99

SEAWITCH

by Skye McKenna

illustrated by Tomislav Tomic HACHETTE CHILDREN'S, £12.99

The third in the Hedgewitch fantasy series is perfectly timed for Halloween and dark nights. Cassie Morgan is working towards her full Witch's Licence. But her latest task involves training a rookie to the coven who is not at all what she was expecting. There's danger, too, as the evil Erl King is tempting witches across the land to join him with promises of power – standing against him means danger. When she goes to help a cousin in Porthmorven solve a mystery, it turns into a battle to save its people.

THE BOY, THE TROLL & THE CHALK

by Anne Booth

illustrated by David

Litchfield

TEMPLAR BOOKS, £12.99

There's a mysterious troll in a cave in the park. He shouts to go away, and everyone does – except for one boy. He goes right up to the cave and draws a flower in chalk, colouring every petal but one and leaving a blue chalk behind. When he returns, the last petal is blue. The relationship develops day by day through drawings, and finally the troll emerges – and he's just a lonely boy David Litchfield's vivid illustrations bring this delightful story about kindness and friendship to life.

LIGHTHOUSE AND THE LITTLE BOAT

by Katie Frawley

illustrated by Ben Mantle

QUILL TREE BOOKS, £12.99

This picture book centres on the relationship between strong, tall Lighthouse and a little boat called Brightness. Lighthouse prides herself on keeping everything in her radius safe and o ers to watch out for Brightness. But then the little boat gets curious and strays too far into the Dark Waters, getting caught up in a huge storm. With evocative illustrations, this is a compelling tale about a love that is strong enough to guide those in danger back to safety.

Doodle with Duddle: How to Draw Dinosaurs

by Jonny Duddle

TEMPLAR BOOKS, £8.99

Jonny Duddle once taught art in the Kalahari Desert and has too many awards and credits in computer games and books to mention. And now he turns his talents to a clever book that will appeal to dino fans and artists alike. The book is pitch perfect on fascinating facts about a range of dinosaurs, their fossils and eggs. Visual and written information sits alongside easy-to-follow doodle guides, encouraging close observation skills. There's also a draw-yourown story section to inspire dino-creativity. It's a book to keep them busy for hours.

Hannah Messenger and the Gods of Hockwold

by Bryony Pearce

UCLAN PUBLISHING, £7.99

With mustread YA novels under her belt, Bryony Pearce has now written a fantasy for middlegrade readers. Where do the gods of Olympus and their descendants retire?

Not a glorious Greek island, it turns out, but the sleepy English village of Hockwold cum Wilton. Busy with parish council, cricket pitch and pub, they have forgotten they are gods. Only Hannah Messenger, Zeus' greatgranddaughter, and friends know who they are, and they must come to the rescue when the gods' objects of power start to go missing.

TIME RUNS LIKE A RIVER

by Emma Carlisle

BIG

PICTURE PRESS, £12.99

The author-illustrator of What Do You See When You Look At a Tree? has returned with another painterly picture book to delight young children and parents. Again, she tackles big themes through nature. Rivers can be fast-flowing, raging or calm, just like people. The nature seen in and around water is also described, from glittering kingfishers to short-lived mayflies. With themes of mindfulness and embracing change, there are also nature projects to try.

World of Sport

by Lawrence Alexander

illustrated by Violeta Noy TEMPLAR BOOKS, £14.99

Children may know about hockey, football and cricket, but what about Japan's kemari, the Basque game of pilota or wana, a sport played by the Noongar women of Australia? Lawrence Alexander has gathered these and many more fascinating ways to play to win. Alongside ball games, you'll ﬁnd extreme sports, water and mountain pastimes and cool competitions on horseback. There's a good section on key disciplines, including track and ﬁeld, and the long history of sports is also described.

7+ by Aya Watanabe

Paper Adventures

TEMPLAR BOOKS, £7.99

We don't normally encourage children to rip up reading matter, but Aya Watanabe's engaging collage activity book does just that. There's a simple story at the front with plenty of space around the illustrations, and then pages and pages of colourful and patterned paper to rip out and glue back in to develop colourful artworks. It's a lovely approach to getting children reading – and creating pictures to tell a story in a unique way. There's a second book – Paper Stories –making this a delightful collectable series.

revolutionary the COME

We have a feisty hero to get behind in How To Be A Revolutionary, a story about family dynamics, ﬁnding your passion and rats – lots of rats

LIBBY NORMAN

Panic not, How To Be A Revolutionary is not a book encouraging middle-grade readers to go on strike. But it was inspired by Lucy Ann Unwin’s election campaign experience back in 2019. She went into a home being used as a makeshift HQ, one of many volunteers “stomping in and out of the house” to refuel while on the campaign trail. There were hand-drawn signs on all the doors to direct volunteers. And in the downstairs cloakroom, she saw a child’s loo seat stowed neatly near the door. “I had no idea children were even there,” she says. “Their home was being taken over, so was it exciting or was it scary?”

This set her thinking about the child’seye view of adult politicking, but also what it feels like to have your home overrun with strangers. The day after the election, she had a book title and the seeds of an idea.

Home life is certainly ba ing for How To Be A Revolutionary’s central characters

Nat and her little sister Lily. Their father is busy campaigning, while their mother is staying away from home. Getting parents o the scene is a recurring dilemma for children’s authors. “It is the classic challenge,” says Lucy Ann Unwin. “To write a story you need your main characters to have agency. You need them to make decisions and to direct their own course of action.” Here, parent removal is done deftly, and in a way that feels very real. These parents are not entirely absent, but they are preoccupied –indeed, you could say a bit ﬂaky.

That leaves Nat, 11, looking after Lily, aged just seven, for a lot of the time – with

“For a lot of child readers this is everyday life – to not see it within fiction would be a disservice”

the only comfort and companionship coming from her beloved pet rat Captain Furry. “We really try hard as parents,” says Unwin. “But life throws curve balls and parenting can be really hard. I think a lot of kids out there have slightly rubbish parents sometimes. If children are constantly

BELOW

Lucy Ann Unwin

“One of the reasons Nat can get away with a lot is because she loves her sister so much”

reading books about all these parents that are completely absent or totally perfect they might like to see a reﬂection of reality and know that it’s still OK – we can still ﬁnd ways to muddle through together.”

Muddling through is Nat and Lily’s day-today routine. Not only is Mum at Grandma’s house without them, but there’s this lady from the campaign group, Kali, who is at their house a lot. We see the complexities of adult relationships through a child’s eyes and, while it’s not the full picture, it’s troubling.

“The need for routine and certainty and reassurance is hardwired into a kid’s brain, and I think in a lot of children’s ﬁction we try to shore that up and give them reassurance. But life doesn’t play by those rules,” says Unwin. “For a lot of child readers this is their everyday life so to not see it within ﬁction would be a disservice.”

It’s against this backdrop of muddling along that Nat decides she wants to ‘change the world’. She enlists advice from one of the campaigners, the kind and wise Bernard (a character Unwin envisaged as a Gandalflike ﬁgure). He responds to Nat’s request by drawing up The Revolutionary Code. His laudable set of guidelines on how to change the world range from wearing big boots whenever you can to standing up for what’s right and listening to others.

Point 9 on the code – Make mistakes: but take responsibility for them – is central to the plot. Inspired partly by a school project but also by her own passion for rats, Nat requires money to complete her delightfully dotty scheme to help people love rodents, one furry at a time. It’s a well-meaning plan to distribute pet rats to the people, but she gets carried away and ‘borrows’ her father’s credit card. She compounds this by implicating his friend Kali in the cash disappearance (thereby breaking Point 2, Always tell the truth). All ends well, after Nat confesses. And even the chaos that occurs when the rodents multiply unexpectedly – a very funny side story – is resolved.

While Nat’s actions over the credit card move her into the plot slot generally reserved for baddies, it’s impossible to do anything but warm to her e orts to hold family together. “One of the reasons Nat can get away with a lot is because she loves her sister so much,” says Unwin. “You already know that she’s good because of Lily.”

Another reason we know she is sound is that she has rock-solid friends in Annalise and Kali’s son Avinash.

Without delivering too big a plot spoiler, there is no fairytale ‘back to normal’ ending. “I really don’t want to underplay the impact on Nat and Lily,” says Unwin. At the end, home is a calmer and happier place and Nat’s progress through The Revolutionary Code has helped her to recognise something important. “She wants to change the world,

but she can’t face change at home. And she has to accept it – that was really central.”

Unwin says she had no idea of the huge attachment some children have to certain stories until she had two daughters and watched them read books they love again and again – that has deﬁnitely informed her approach to writing. “Books need to have lots of layers to them for rereading.”

While it’s too soon to know if How To Be A Revolutionary will pass that test and join the well-thumbed favourites on her wider readership’s shelves, it has passed the ﬁrst (and harshest) test. Her nine-year-old daughter has devoured it three times so far.

How To Be A Revolutionary by Lucy Ann Unwin, is published in November (UCLan Publishing, £8.99).

Beyond Above

Families and their children who could go to any school they wish, choose to come to Cheltenham College. Why is that? Why does Cheltenham become their first choice? Perhaps it is, quite simply, that we look to astonish – whether that’s our top academic performance, our fabulous track record for sport of all kinds, our House system and exceptional pastoral care, or our vast range of co-curricular opportunities. And yet, it’s more than that. Come and see.

Stories SHARED

Passing on books to Children’s Book Project is a great gift from one child to another –and the impact can be transformational

We live in a golden age of children’s books – with a huge variety of brilliant works of ﬁction and fact to ﬁre up imagination and transport children to other times and places. While many children enjoy a wonderful range of reading matter, via school and public library, plus gifts at birthday and Christmas, there are too many who don’t.

The statistics on book poverty are stark. One in ten disadvantaged children in the UK has no books at home, and one in three owns less than ten books. Sometimes families don’t prioritise books at home because there have been negative experiences around reading for a child’s parents. Or there may be other priorities or needs that have to come before books. One important aspect of this is that owning (rather than borrowing) books has a direct inﬂuence on children’s wellbeing and life outcomes – helping them progress

“All you need to do is find your nearest dropoff point and arrange a time to hand over your literary treasures”

in school and presenting a portable opportunity to escape from life into a great story. And, as we all know, sometimes a favourite book can be reread time and again and treasured for years afterwards. Enter a brilliant scheme to help share the love of reading. Children can get involved in gifting the books they’ve read, didn’t get on with or have outgrown. Children’s Book Project works to redistribute these to children who need them – aiming to ‘change their story’. Books donated are gifted to partner schools, prisons, women’s groups and food banks. It’s brilliantly simple to gift a good read and give a book a new life. Over 300 schools and community groups have registered as drop-o points on Children’s Book Project’s map, so all you need to do is input your postcode, ﬁnd your nearest collection point and arrange a time to hand over your literary treasures.

Asda has also got behind the book drive for Children’s Book Project, so you can now drop o books at 388 of its stores across the UK. It stepped up its support of the scheme having piloted it in Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds and London earlier this year. That pilot gathered some 6,000 books and the supermarket is aiming to make it to 20,000 books with these extra drop-o points.

Children’s Book Project also welcomes other community-based action – either within schools or organisations. Perhaps the easiest way to do this is to organise a book drive that encourages everyone to go through their bookshelves and then hand over unwanted or outgrown reading matter.

Both fiction and non-fiction for every age and stage of childhood are required – gently used rather than dog-eared are requested to give recipients the best reading experience. It’s a great way to save good reads from gathering dust or ending their days at a recycling centre or landfill. More importantly, gifting a beautiful book to another child gives someone else the same opportunity to enjoy the pleasures of owning and reading it as many times as they choose.

childrensbookproject.co.uk

Villa Supranu, The Valinco, Corsica

School’s Out

Fright nights

The quest to make us carry on screaming for a whole Halloween month is deadly serious. We head to PrimEvil to discover what goes into a great fright night

LIBBY NORMAN

By day, the sleepy village of Lenwade is home to dinosaur adventure park ROARR! But come October, the Jurassic vibe turns spooky. Light Halloween stu for the little ones up to 4:30pm, but once the sun sets all hell breaks loose for PrimEvil.

The fact that this Halloween attraction lies in the ancient Norfolk parish of Great Witchingham is pure coincidence. The fact that owner Martin Goymour is a lifelong Hammer House of Horror fan is not. He had the space on site, and some great experiences visiting scare attractions in the US, where Halloween is a very big deal. These two facts convinced him there could be an audience right here at his adventure park. It started small in 2010 and has grown year on year, with many return visitors.

These days, alongside all the regular sta , it employs some 130 scare actors for the production. Paid roles are also available to local college students keen to further professional stage makeup skills, and there's a hardworking professional head of wardrobe brought in for scare season. Martin Goymour maintains his

stake in the underworld goings on, appearing on his Segway in the master of ceremonies role of Skullmore. The park manager and his co-lead on PrimEvil Ben Francis is Lofty the clown –an occasional role these days as he's too busy supervising the action.

Ben Francis is an interesting case study of the lure of PrimEvil. He came here as a visitor in the year it opened, returning the following year as a scare actor. "I did this alongside a quite intense community charity position," he says. He found it a brilliant foil to his day job. "I couldn't really do any anger management with the community, so I'd come to PrimEvil, dress up as a clown and shout. It really is the best therapy." He became more involved as each year passed. "After a particularly bad board meeting, I came to PrimEvil and Martin said: 'you're obviously not happy so come and work for me'."

It's impossible to know how many of the cast of 130 or so scare actors sign up for the stress release beneﬁts, but su ce it to say there are teachers, police o cers, doctors, paramedics and even an elected council o cer among them – also a full mix of ages. "We have one lady who has done it for years who is in her late 70s and is an amazing storyteller. She's always on the

LEFT

PrimEvil's cast of scare actors includes students, teachers and doctors RIGHT

In role for a satisfying night of scaring

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door of an attraction setting the scene with people and is on her feet all night, giving the same energy, but in a di erent way, as those running around." It is clearly addictive. Around 60% of scare actors return every year. It would be higher but for the high number of teenage scare actors. They add a talking-point paid job to their CVs before heading on to university.

Auditions are serious, but also inclusive. "There is a place for everyone," says Ben Francis. The ﬁrst test is physical acting –watching people move. "We compare that to Goal Defence or Goal Attack in netball. It's that kind of attacker role in a sport where someone changes direction but always knows where they are going and what's around them – is aware of their space."

Then they test for speaking parts, getting people to recite something random (a recipe or pop lyrics) in PrimEvil style. "That will then show to us who are the conﬁdent speakers, the conﬁdent storytellers." These are the scare actors able to answer back to guests and weave a spooky tale or two. They also audition for group leaders and for those people who excel at making a lot of noise –the potential scary clowns. So what about the shy types? "We can dress you as a ghostly child and put you in a corridor. You don't make eye contact, you just shu e along next to people," says Ben Francis. "You don't have to do anything – that will scare some people."

It certainly does, and a lot of training surrounds the art of 'safe scaring'. While you might assume that's protecting guests from your scariness, it's actually more about protecting yourself from ﬁght rather than ﬂight responses when someone is seriously startled. For the scare actors, there's always a small risk of someone overreacting or inadvertently lashing out. "It's about training our actors to be able to step back, to not get in people's faces, to recognise when a guest has had enough and to then focus somewhere

else," says Ben Francis. What's important is ensuring that guests' haunting experiences are always positive and fun.

Unlike many big scare attractions, PrimEvil has a family friendly focus –welcoming guests from 12+ if they are accompanied by an adult. This makes it especially important that terror is pitched at the right level. That is down to training for scare actors – who work in teams of two, with experienced hands paired with rookies – and clever design of the attractions.

"The quote we have on my o ce wall that we work to is: 'The oldest and strongest

emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown'," says Ben Francis. "With all of our cues, they are in the strategic places –you can hear what's happening ahead of you in the maze, but you can't see anything. Then you'll have the circus cue. You do see that you are going to be chased by two clowns with chainsaws because you've seen everyone run out being chased. But then you've got that anticipation of when it's going to happen to you." Classic Hitchcock tactics remain as e ective as ever. In fact, Ben Francis says every year they get some guests who manage just one haunt before heading for sanctuary in the well-lit food and entertainment area. We can't all be Ghostbusters.

Ben Francis says the team ﬁnd teenage girls are not the biggest screamers and not the easiest to scare. Usually, a female group will have a real mix of responses – often there's one who makes it clear she just can't be bothered. But teenage boys are a di erent proposition entirely. "As soon as one screams, they all scream because it has been allowed in their group. Teenage boys are the best!"

PrimEvil runs at ROARR!, Lenwade, Norfolk until 2nd November. 12+ and adult tickets from £28. primevil-scare.com

RIGHT PrimEvil cast selﬁe before the fun begins

ABOVE There are roles for everybody – from noisemakers and storytellers to the silent but sinister

Halloween HOTSPOTS

From

ghouls and spooky trails

to pumpkin patches and wizarding lairs, haunting activities for all the family around Halloween

TULLEYS SHOCKTOBER FEST

Grandaddy of UK Halloween attractions and a must-see for ghoul lovers, Tulleys Farm near Crawley, West Sussex describes itself as the largest scream park in Europe. Expect a full complement of zombies, terror clowns, maniacs and spooks in the attractions, and with a Haunted Hayride round the farm for those who prefer to view ghosts at a distance. The Fest is unveiling three new scare attractions for 2024.

Dates: Until 2nd November

Entry: 16+ recommended and must be accompanied by an adult Tickets: From £39.95 shocktoberfest.co.uk

LEGOLAND BRICK OR TREAT

Legoland Windsor Resort is marking the Halloween season with a whole army of pumpkins, along with a Monster Street party suitable for the very youngest ghost watchers. There's a Monster Jam Show at Heartlake City Harbour, plus the usual array of fun rides and a good selection of spooky themed shows. Overnight stays and golf passes also available.

Dates: Until 3rd November

Entry: All ages; children under 90cm tall free Tickets: From £29 legoland.co.uk

CAMMAS HALL FARM PUMPKIN PATCH

A PYO institution near Hatﬁeld Broad Oak, Hertfordshire, Cammas Hall Farm o ers more pumpkin and squash varieties than you can imagine. Extra attractions in the daytime include an erupting 'pump-cano', Halloween characters and a family-friendly Wicked Walkway. You can also buy tickets for the maize maze. By night, it transforms into Cammas Hall Farm Resurrected, with 'Dead Legends' tribute acts – BYO torch.

Dates: Until 31st October

Entry: All ages; under 2s free

Tickets: From £5 daytime; £8.50 child, £10.50 adult nighttime cammashall.co.uk

DISCOVER THE DARK ARTS, WARNER BROS STUDIO TOUR

There's year-round wizardry at Hogwarts, but with extra features for Harry Potter fans around Halloween. Film sets are dressed for the occasion, with spooky hand-carved pumpkins decorating the Great Hall. Expect a procession of Death Eaters and the chance to learn duelling techniques in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. New for this year are Dementors, who will be found lurking in the Forbidden Forest.

Dates: Until 9th November

Entry: All ages; under 4s free Tickets: From £53.50 wbstudiotour.co.uk

HALLOWEEN AT THE TOWER OF LONDON

There’s a spooky vibe at the Tower year round, but for Halloween there's a focus on notorious ﬁgures imprisoned here. Watch a haunted chess game on the South Lawn or explore the Tower’s astronomical past. Menacing decorations deck the grounds.

Dates: 26 October-3rd November

Entry: Halloween activities included Tickets: From £34.80; child from £17.40; under 5s free hrp.org.uk

ABOVE

Avon Valley Scream Park

FEARLESS AT AVON VALLEY SCREAM PARK

While FEAR is renowned for scaring adults, Avon Valley Scream Park has added in a family-friendly daytime event this year so under 16s can enjoy fun minus fear overload. It includes four of its most notorious scare attractions –lightened up for a mixed audience – along with fairground rides, ﬁre shows, street performers and street food.

Dates: 26 October and 31st October

Entry: Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult

Tickets: from £12.50 fearscreampark.co.uk

SCAREFEST AT ALTON TOWERS

There's something for all age groups at Alton Towers' annual Scarefest celebration, from Trick O' Treat Town and the interactive Amigos in the Afterlife for families to Altonville Mine Tours and a new live-action scare maze, Compound, for the 12+ age

group. Daz Games: Panic Reloaded is a major draw for teens, as is the chance to enjoy rides in total darkness.

Dates: Until 3rd November

Entry: All ages; free for children under 90cm tall

Tickets: from £37 altontowers.com

HALLOWEEN AT HAMPTON COURT PALACE

Once an o cial residence of Henry VIII, Hampton Court Palace is steeped in legends about ghostly goings on – most notably the Grey Lady (Tudor servant Sybil Penn) who is said to haunt the halls, along with a couple of hapless royal wives. You can visit The Alchemist’s Apothecary to see a brew of sinister potions and venture into the cobwebridden Spider’s Lair, deep in the palace’s wine cellar. Expect Halloween-inspired installations and eerie sound e ects as you travel back through history.

Dates: 26th October-3rd November

Entry: All ages; Halloween activities included in price

Tickets: from £27.20; children from £13.60; under 5s free hrp.org.uk

HALLOWTWEEN AT YORK MAZE

York claims the mantle of Europe's most haunted city, so takes spooks extremely seriously. The Yorkshire Halloween Festival – including market, craft activities and talks – is taking place on Parliament Street from 24 October to 1st November. There are activities right across the city, but for serious scare action head to York Maze. Hallowscream is strictly for adults, while Hallowtween is designed for families with children too old for trick or treating and features four scare houses, plus live stage shows and funfair-style attractions.

Dates: 26th October-31st October

Entry: 10+; must be accompanied by an adult Tickets: from £17.95 yorkmaze.com and visityork.org

LEFT & RIGHT Terror at the Tower and spooky fun at Legoland

LEFT Tulleys Shocktober Fest

BELOW

Daz Games: Panic Reloaded at Alton Towers

WORLDS WATER

With history, geography, nature and engineering combined, these six London locations o er an immersion into our landscape built around water

“Highlight of Tower Bridge Museum is undoubtedly the Glass Floors walkway, a dizzying 42m above the River Thames”

London is a city built around rivers, and this has played a key role in its growth and fortune. This provides an endless stream of stories covering the history, engineering and geography of the place – not to mention the importance and sheer power of water. Our six locations take you around the capital and into surprising territory – perfect for captivating young explorers on a great (and not too expensive) day out.

TOWER BRIDGE MUSEUM

It may be one of the most famous landmarks to tourists, but it’s surprising how Londoners take Tower Bridge for granted. Tower Bridge Museum will change your mind and – provided you don’t become overwhelmed by vertigo – o ers

one of the top viewing points in the capital. Highlight is undoubtedly the Glass Floors walkway, a dizzying 42m above the Thames itself (top spot for selfies). You can explore the Bridge and then follow the Blue Line to the magnificent Victorian Engine Rooms. These tell the story of the steam engines that once powered the Bridge, and you’ll also find plenty of detail about the history of a design that always seems much older than it is. The museum is very family friendly –o ering drop-in activities such as bridgebuilding challenges, art sessions and trails, as well as relaxed openings for neurodiverse visitors. Book ahead and you can schedule your visit around a bridge lift, but even without that, you’ll find lots to see and do at this museum.

Entry: Adults from £13.40, child from £6.70 Good to know: Guided tours, BSL guided tours and relaxed openings towerbridge.org.uk

Boat to Barrier

The Thames Barrier remains a great engineering wonder four decades since it officially opened to protect the London flood plain – threatened by high tides and storm surges since Roman times. It’s a fiendishly clever rotating design, inspired by the taps of a domestic gas cooker. There are expensive ways to visit, but a trip to/from Woolwich (Royal Arsenal) and Barking Riverside piers on Uber Boat by Thames Clippers (adult ticket, around £11.20) takes you right through the Barrier unless it’s shut for flood or maintenance reasons. thamesclippers.com

CREEKSIDE DISCOVERY CENTRE

This charity o ers one of the most unique experiences in London – the opportunity to wade in the tidal riverbed in Deptford Creek, equipped with waders, walking stick and waterproof coat. Since it opened in 2002, up to 7,000 people a year have done just that.

As well as o ering a glimpse into the river’s industrial heritage, there’s a strong conservation angle – and some wonderful nature on show. Thanks to a 2002 installation of sloping banks that were once a feature along much of the tidal Thames (and sensitive restoration) this riverbank and garden site is one of the most biodiverse for its size in London. Volunteers are always needed on the conservation side, and with regular birdwatching and other nature events.

Many visits are by school groups, and the children have a fabulous time with activities such as mud pie making and mud splatter painting – there’s a strong community programme. Regular low tide walks and other events are posted in advance on social media.

Entry: Varies by event, with some free – low tide walks usually £10-£15

Good to know: Waders and walking sticks are supplied creeksidecentre.org.uk

THE LONDON MUSEUM OF WATER & STEAM

Formerly the Kew Bridge Steam Museum, and before that a waterworks, this fascinating heritage centre tells the story of the capital’s water supply. It is perfect

for even very young children, with lots of hands-on and whizz-bang water engineering, as well as more complex exhibitions and events for teenagers, and occasional fun after-hours tours.

One highlight is the regular STEAM! events, where the museum’s spectacular collection of stationery steam engines – Cornish, Rotative, Allen among them – are brought back to life. This is the largest collection of its type in the world (also two of the largest machines of their type in the world) and a fascinating insight into our history and the engineering that powered the industrial revolution. There’s a narrow-gauge railway to delight young visitors – you can ride around the site on it on event days.

Local community are behind their museum, making it fun and inclusive for families. And, for parents, Pump & Grind Co ee Shop is a treasure, with its excellent co ees, cakes and light meals – picnics are also welcome in the garden. The Splash Zone is great fun for children – they get to turn wheels, push pumps and make water ﬂow.

Entry: From £11.50, child £4, under 5s free

Good to know: Book ahead for STEAM! and other special events waterandsteam.org.uk

RIGHT The Horniman Museum Aquarium. Photo: Joel Knight

HORNIMAN MUSEUM AQUARIUM

The Horniman Museum & Gardens needs no introduction and you can happily while away days exploring its eclectic treasures. But the aquarium is not so well known, and it o ers a calmer and more mindful alternative to the bigticket with big-ﬁsh destinations.

Here, there are 15 exhibits that showcase aquatic environments from around the world. There’s the British pond (not so humble when you get up close) and from there you can travel to warmer climes, getting up close to coral gardens, reef ﬁsh, moon jellyﬁsh and other glorious marine life.

It’s a fascinating underwater world to explore, and with lots of background information about the habitats you are viewing and the symbiotic relationships developed between species. You can also ﬁnd out more about the Horniman’s fascinating coral conservation research.

Entry: Adult from £6, child from £3, under 3s free Good to know: Book in advance to guarantee entry horniman.ac.uk

Dam it!

One of the most exciting water engineering projects in London is happening right now, thanks to Ealing Wildlife Group's Beaver Project. These native mammals were hunted to extinction 400 years ago but are slowly returning in a managed way. This wonderful project sees them back in the capital in an area known as Paradise Fields, where it's hoped the 'ecosystems engineers' will use their genius to reduce local ﬂooding, improve water quality and increase biodiversity. While you are unlikely to see shy beavers, you will see their progress if you join an Ealing Beaver Project guided walk. Tickets (usually £27.80) sell out fast, so book ahead. ealingwildlifegroup.com

ABOVE Hands-on fun at London Museum of Water & Steam

culture SOFT

How do you get a reluctant teenager into museums? Pick a perfect small exhibition and then add in some sweeteners. Here’s our gameplan

The V&A’s Enthoven Unboxed is probably the perfect starting point to help a museum-averse teenager to view our great repositories as something other than places full of ancient and boring stu .

WHAT IS IT?

The free display highlights star pieces from the Gabrielle Enthoven Theatrical Collection, a treasure trove of theatre and performance objects. This mini exhibition works for adults too. So, while you can admire over a century of playbills and tickets and get misty eyed about original backstage passes to Tears for Fears, Kraftwerk and Bob Marley concerts, they can gaze in awe at a Dua Lipa costume from the Future Nostalgia tour of 2022 and check out the set model for Stormzy’s 2019 headlining set at Glastonbury. The

fact that, in miniature, this wonderful set looks vaguely reminiscent of the infamous pyramid design for This is Spinal Tap will be a joke wasted on them, but they can chuckle at Elton John’s crazy but cool semi-quaver specs and the original (and still deliciously lewd) tongue and lips artwork designed for the Rolling Stones by John Pasche.

HOW TO PERSUADE

The golden rule for any museum visit with a teenager is to ‘sidesell’. It’s a bit like upselling, only requires you to talk up everything but the thing you are going to see. There are four key sales tactics.

The in and out promise – Reassure them you won’t try the ‘while we’re here’ tactic, and stick to that promise. It’s always good to keep timings short – one hour is perfect – thereby demonstrating that not every museum visit drains body and soul.

The photo moment – Be patient on the photo/video. It might take a while for them to ﬁnd the right spot and

appropriate expression. It will, though, transform a museum visit into a shareable, and therefore more exciting, event. The V&A is selﬁe heaven, thanks to its abundance of grand staircases, arches, columns and corridors.

The co ee break – This may be a starting point or end point but do mention that co ee time gets included – it’s a clincher. Since museums have very good cafés, the approval rating of the whole experience will rise.

The shop stop – As above, you are guaranteed a decent shopping experience at larger museums and galleries these days. Prestigious designer partnerships sit alongside more humble o erings. The arty postcard, notebook or other small trophy will set the seal on a satisfying visit.

If the tactics work, then perhaps it’s time to make a regular soft culture date. To appeal to scientists and bling lovers alike, we recommend the jewels in The Vault at the Natural History

ABOVE

Elton John’s semiquaver specs are among the treasures

RIGHT

1911 portrait of Gabrielle Enthoven by Ethel Wright

“GABRIELLE ENTHOVEN’S OBSESSION STARTED YOUNG – SHE ESCAPED THROUGH HER BEDROOM WINDOW AND TOOK HERSELF OFF TO A SHOW AT THE GAIETY THEATRE ”

Museum – including a nugget of the Winchcombe Meteorite and diamond dazzlers in the Aurora Pyramid of Hope. You can’t go wrong with Making the Modern World’s 20th-century portraits at the National Portrait Gallery, while the Materials and Objects display at Tate Modern – including work by Marcel Duchamp and Anna Boghiguian – delivers the wow factor against a stunning backdrop.

Enthoven Unboxed: 100 Years of Collecting Performance runs until 4 January 2026 at Galleries 103-106, V&A. vam.ac.uk

Enthoven crib notes

Gabrielle Enthoven was an original by anyone’s lights. She was born into privilege but, due to her peripatetic childhood, did not learn to read and write until she was 15. She spoke at least seven languages fluently though, including Egyptian, Italian and two Hindustani dialects. Her theatre obsession started young – as a small child she escaped through her bedroom window clutching a shilling and took herself off to a show at the Gaiety Theatre. She became a veteran at first nights and began her collection after reading a theatre account she considered inaccurate. In 1924, she persuaded the V&A to take her collection – by now running to over 80,000 playbills, programmes and ephemera. She visited the V&A daily over many years to catalogue and record everything herself. Awarded an OBE for war work (she had volunteered in both WW1 and WWII) she died in 1950. Her will stipulated the cheapest possible cremation with no service or mourners, but she left a large legacy to safeguard and continue this dazzling collection of theatre and performance history.

“SIDESELLING IS A BIT LIKE UPSELLING, EXCEPT THAT IT REQUIRES YOU TO TALK UP EVERYTHING BUT THE THING YOU ARE GOING TO SEE”

They can admire a Dua Lipa costume from the Future Nostalgia tour

THE WONDERS OF

WATAMU

A stay at Hemingways Watamu warms the heart and feeds both body and soul

SANDY CADIZ-SMITH

We’ve found a beach in Africa. A stunning beach, where the sparkle of azure sea and the powdery white sands promise days of splendid views and the ultimate in peace and relaxation. Where dolphins play and the sun rises and sets take your breath away. It’s in a heavenly place called Hemingways Watamu in the beautiful African country of Kenya, just 300 km south of the equator. And of course, it’s more than just a beach and also just a

short plane hop from the country’s capital. Feeling a bit like Margot Robbie in Barbie (I wish) we jump on a little pink-propellored plane (Jambo Jet) from Nairobi to Malindi. A brief and somewhat bumpy ride to the cutest of rustic airport terminals. From there it’s a short drive through rural villages with colourful shops and market stalls, smiling children, and lush tropical vegetation to our destinationHemingway’s Watamu, our hotel on the sea. Watamu means “home of the sweet people” in Swahili (a beautifully melodic language that captivates us and inspires us to learn as much as we can). Never has a meaning been so apt. It’s impossible to imagine a warmer

welcome or better service. Beaming faces greet us and lead us down the thatched pathway towards the sea which draws us like a magnet.

Hemingways Watamu sits proudly overlooking the dazzling Indian Ocean in its shades of blue. It’s surrounded by the lushest of tropical gardens and palm trees line the pristine beach. It’s breathtaking. But nothing can prepare us for our magniﬁcent, luxurious room, all decorated beach-house style with a vast verandah. It’s the verandah of dreams where we spend many relaxing hours taking in the vistas, even waking at dawn to watch the sunrise and the day awaken over the sparkle of the ocean.

Watamu days begin with breakfast alfresco overlooking the beach - a spread to get any day o to a good start and plenty of that superb Kenyan co ee. And then it’s time to explore. We take a boat excursion for some swimming and snorkeling in the balmy waters of the National Marine Park and encounter pods of dolphins serenely passing by. Always an enchanting experience. We board a majestic dhow for a magical sunset cruise on nearby Mida Creek, complete with all the cocktails, wine, and tasty snacks we could possibly desire. We visit the lively Papa Remo restaurant nearby for a foot-in-the-sand Italian dinner.

There’s also plenty of history and natural beauty to absorb. We discover the fascinating Gede ruins just a 10-minute drive away - once an ancient Arab town dating back to the late 13th century. We visit the nearby Watamu village and the Arabuko Sokoke Swamp home to over 300 elephants and myriad birdlife.

“We encounter pods of dolphins serenely passing by”

It’s charming and fascinating and we fall in love with the people and their stories. And the country they so clearly adore. With full hearts, we return to the embrace of our haven by the sea. We complete our days by sampling exotic cocktails in the colonial-style bar lined with giant trophy ﬁsh, Hemingway-style, before enjoying plates piled high with delectable local rock lobster and giant prawns under starry skies. Hemingways Watamu feeds both body and soul. And as the great writer Ernest Hemingway (appropriately) said: “I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke up that I was not happy.” Well, except for the morning you leave, of course.

hemingways

There are three Hemingways properties in Kenya, in Watamu, Nairobi and the Masai Mara. hemingways-collection.com/watamu/ hemingways-collection.com/nairobi/ hemingways-collection.com/mara/

INTELLIGENCE: ARTIFICIAL & OTHERWISE

From solving planetary problems with game-changing apps, to building sustainable start-ups, Putney will give you the skills to channel your ideas into a reality that takes you far beyond the school gates. Innovate with robotics and AI. Reach for the stars in Physics Futures, or jet off on a travel scholarship – the only way is up.

MAGIC M

OUNTAIN

Skiing with small children is stress-free at Alpenrose in the Tirol

What’s the best way to go skiing with your kids? If your answer is “don’t” then I salute your strength of character to resist. If your answer is “there is no best way, it’s always exhausting” then, my friend, I have the hotel for you.

Alpenrose, one of ﬁve Familux Resort group hotels, is set in the Austrian Tyrol and it is the answer for a stress-free family winter holiday, and, frankly, at any other time of year.

We recently visited as a family of four, with our daughters aged nine and two. After only three days, none of us wanted to leave. Alpenrose has everything that each family member could want or need and they deliver it with joy.

We arrive to an e cient and warm welcome – they know exactly who we are – a glass of ﬁzz for the adults and a personalised water

bottle and gummy bears for the kids. There’s a step at reception so that small children can see over the desk, and this is just a hint of the thoughtful touches to come.

Elsewhere, I’m usually apologetically asking for highchairs or a microwave, but Alpenrose has everything geared up for families. And I mean everything. Changing mats, nappies, wipes, bibs, colouring pencils at the table, rocking horses and games tables in the bar, cutlery and crockery, potties, buggies, baby monitor system, toys in the room, built-in bed guards. You name it (or forget it) and they’ve got it covered.

The room is huge, with a mini sink in the bathroom perfect for child-friendly cleanups, and the girls are exploring for at least 20 minutes before the usual snack demands. I call that a win. The room is spacious (the kids have their own room within the room) and has the comﬁest beds we’ve slept in for a while.

We spend the ﬁrst afternoon exploring the hotel – it’s worth taking your time over this. As

CLIO WOOD

well as a beautifully equipped kids club (from six weeks to 10 years) there are the two pools (one with slides, naturally), gym, spa, a craft room, teen room, climbing wall, soft play, bouncy castle, basketball court, theatre… not to mention the indoor golf, go-karting and much more besides. In summer, there are incredible outdoor playgrounds, too.

Venturing outside, the main ski lift is just over the road – and while there’s a baby slope in the hotel itself (perfect for our two-year old) the nursery slope for lessons is about a 10-minute walk away. If you’re signed up to ski school (which you can do very easily at the hotel, naturally) they shuttle the kids in hotel minibuses. The ski shop is just next to the lobby too – so there’s no hassle over getting equipment – or where to stow it.

And while you still might not get a chance to ski alone with your partner, you’re going to have a better chance here than in most places. We only had trouble because our youngest (a nursery old-timer) refused kids club. And that’s ok – it is a family holiday after all.

Mealtimes at Alpenrose are a dream – laden bu ets for breakfast and lunch, with kids' options (sandwiches with smiley faces and a pancake machine) at all times, plus gourmet dinner for parents in the evenings. They provide bags to take snacks away and a snack and drinks station is there throughout the day. So, as with most ski holidays, you’ll probably leave feeling a touch fuller than when you arrived.

INNSBRUCK ADD ON

If you haven’t been to Innsbruck, tag on a night or two there too. This fascinating city is small enough to walk around and charming enough to satisfy

“THE MAIN SKI LIFT IS JUST OVER THE ROAD AND THERE’S A BABY SLOPE AT THE HOTEL ITSELF”

fairytale fantasies. We took advantage of the Innsbruck card which included all our transport and entry to Lumagica and the Hofberg Palace, and if we’d had more time we could have entered any of 20 plus attractions, including the famous ski jump, the Swarovski museum experience, and cable cars (one of which was designed by Zaha Hadid) getting you right to the peaks in minutes. There’s so much to see that we’ll deﬁnitely return.

THE LOWDOWN

In Innsbruck we had an XL Room, with space for all of us – urban-inn.com. We explored city attractions with the Innsbruck card innsbruck. info/en/sightseeing/innsbruck-card.html At Alpenrose prices start from EU650 per night for a family of four, for all-inclusive (that's breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack and dinner from the 4-course gourmet menu and non-alcoholic drinks). There is a 7-day kids' club from 8:30am to 9pm – separate for each age group, and with age-speciﬁc indoor and outdoor programmes. The hotel facilities include a wellness centre plus indoor and outdoor pools, children's pool with slides, pirate ship and toddler pool, extensive family activities and equipment, plus gym.

hotelalpenrose.at

and

Outstanding facilities, an all-round education and endless opportunities await you at The Duke of York’s Royal Military School; students thrive and make outstanding progress academically. 85% of students achieved A* – C grades at A Level, and 95% of students progressed to university - 40% of which were Oxbridge and Russell Group. Students benefit from excellent teaching, a comprehensive curriculum, and a vast breadth of opportunities beyond the classroom. Our boarding school, open to 11-18-year-olds, offers highly

boarding fees. We pride ourselves on offering outstanding pastoral care, ensuring students feel relaxed and happy in their home away from home.

Trains from Charing Cross to Tonbridge run frequently. The trip takes only 40 minutes and is followed by a

down the High Street to the School. Once there, you will see some of the finest school buildings and facilities in the land and you may even spot our boys romping home from the inter-house cross country across our huge expanse of fields. More importantly, you will come face to face with some of the most accomplished teaching talent in the country.

Stormont School

Sibford Ferris, Banbury, OX15 5QL

Second boarding house opening in January 2025.

Sibford School in Oxfordshire offers inspiring education to pupils aged 3-18. Day, full, weekly and fixed night boarding places are available.

Leading Independent School for Girls aged 11-18

Senior School Open Evening Wednesday 9th October

Scholarships available and bursaries up to 100%

To book open events, please scan here:

registrar@fhs-sw1.org.uk 020 7730 2971 www.fhs-sw1.org.uk

Leading Independent School for Girls aged 11-18

Senior School Open Day Thursday 10th October

Scholarships available and bursaries up to 100%

To book open events, please scan here:

registrar@fhs-nw1.org.uk 020 7723 0176 www.fhs-nw1.org.uk

FRANCIS HOLLAND REGENT’S PARK

FRANCIS HOLLAND SLOANE SQUARE

School Beyond Limitations

NURTURING POTENTIAL

At Sarum Hall School we believe that the spirit of every child should be nurtured; that happiness gets results; and that success is ensuring every girl achieves their personal best.

We are a modern, independent girls prep school in London’s Belsize Park. We focus on each girl as an individual, and inspire them to fulfil their potential and encourage them to achieve excellence.

Individual talents are nurtured, and we instil a strong sense of purpose to every girl, allowing them to explore our wonderful world with confidence.

The foundations set at Sarum Hall School will

Sarum Hall School Portrait 90x134mm.indd

Character Matters

seconds with 60

Joanna Wright

The Head of King Edward’s, Witley on her background and educational philosophy

What is your background?

I love learning and as a pupil I enjoyed the whole school experience. As my adoptive family were teachers or vicars, I always thought that I would never teach. However, I have now worked in schools for nearly 30 years, and I am married to a School Chaplain, so thankfully I was proved wrong. In my career, I have been privileged to work in amazing schools teaching drama, French, PSHE, English and RS. My understanding of holistic education really developed as a Housemistress at St Edward’s, Oxford before taking up the role of Deputy Principal, Pastoral, at Queenswood. This, in turn, led to me moving north to become Deputy Head at St Peter’s, York. I am now beginning my sixth year of headship here at King Edward’s, Witley.

What excites you most about your role?

Everything – the art of being with people, the art of the possible. My role is multifaceted, ever shifting. It demands mental agility, stamina, and creativity. Everyone has their own expectation of their Head, so I am always learning. Each day is di erent – sometimes familiar, but never dull or predictable. As Head of a Senior School, there is always the opportunity of seeing the positive, looking for the potential and making it happen.

What is your academic philosophy?

Education is transformative not just for the here and now in school, but for the future. We work hard to enable our pupils to be excellent learners, but we are also mindful that we are equipping them for the possibility of being kind and responsible parents, employees, entrepreneurs, inventors or leaders. Every child has the potential for doing great and good things. As schools, we must aim to ignite ambition and inspire hope.

Can you tell us about one pivotal moment in your career?

Directing a play at a prep school early in my career conﬁrmed to me that working

with children was exciting, creative and worthwhile. Seeing the pupils’ joy on their ﬁrst night, and their sense of achievement, was pivotal in my thinking with regards to my future path.

What is your school’s approach and what sets it apart?

This is a unique school – every Head will say that, I am sure. We belong to the royal, ancient and religious Bridewell Royal Hospital Foundation, of which I am Principal, with deep-rooted compassion, and a commitment to inclusion and diversity at its core. Our strong historical link with the City of London combines with our location in the beautiful Surrey Hills and demonstrates the span of our character. It holds so much breadth in one space as a brilliant community of grounded, caring all-rounders.

What makes a great student?

Enthusiasm, curiosity, kindness and a willingness to think well.

From your experience, what makes a great school environment?

Teamwork – the people, sta , pupils, parents – who share values and a common approach to being child-centred. The ability to be creative and agile in thinking combining with the opportunity to be authentic in caring and communication.

Great schools are able to laugh together as well as learn together. People who know themselves well, and can be reﬂective, are often the most progressive teachers. For me, a strong foundation, high ambitions and deep care for the individual pupil experience make the best school environment.

“Every child has the potential for doing great and good things – as schools we must aim to ignite ambition and inspire hope”

ABOVE

Joanna Wright with King Edward’s, Witley pupils

Tailored not uniform

When it comes to a good education, one size does not necessarily t all. At MPW, one of the UK’s best-known names in fth and sixth-form education, we have been offering a distinctive alternative to traditional schools for 50 years.

A levels and GCSEs in over 40 subjects, plus retakes and Year 12 transfers

Personal tutors providing individual academic and pastoral support

Oxbridge-style tutorial groups with nine students or fewer

Excellent results and progression to top tier universities

Best in class inspection reports from the ISI and Ofsted

Students make rapid progress from their various starting points in small-sized classes, due to highly e ective specialist teaching and closely focused pastoral support.

MPW London Independent Schools Inspectorate Report February 2022