William Brierly, Headmaster of 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 school-going 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.
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 non-intimidating forest school at lunchtime can be invaluable for a child who might otherwise find school overwhelming.
“One school journey enables the youngest to find their feet in a myriad of opportunities that they can pursue”
When we first introduced vertical tutor groups into the senior school, people worried whether the interaction of different 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 offers a brilliant education in its own right.
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 claremontfancourt.co.uk
Further reading: Berkhamsted Schools Group on building character
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