Issue Number 53 23 September 2016
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Welcome to the first newsletter of the academic year, and to the first under my auspices as Headmistress. Eleanor Wyatt, the founder of Heathfield, said that she established the school in Ascot so that the ‘girls would know what it is to see the sky’. I come to the post as the fourteenth Headmistress in the school’s long history, absolutely determined to continue to raise the academic profile of the school whilst being committed to the holistic ethos. Heathfield, more than any other school I know, stretches a girl to commit to academic, musical, sporting and social activities; every girl sings in the choir, every girl plays for a team and every girl engenders a sense of fun and community spirit through raising money for charity. This is who we are, and we are so very proud of our size which enables us to treat every girl as an individual. In terms of ‘seeing the sky’ we continue to raise the bar: 60% of the UVI girls this summer have gone to a Russell Group university; two girls are studying medicine, one of whom is now at Oxford; Central St Martins for Art and Guildhall for Music continue the roll call; 9th in the small school league table based on A Level results and 175th in the large one beating quite a few of our competitors. As I said to the girls at the first school assembly of the year, a good education transforms lives and Heathfield, as demonstrated by the results in the summer, is a school where we improve the chances of the girls who pass through our doors, and yet with privilege comes responsibility. We can never forget that we are here through an accident of birth and we must help others who are not so fortunate. Speaking of being fortunate, I believe that I am incredibly lucky to lead such a dedicated, hardworking team of staff who endeavour, every day, to help our girls to ‘see the sky’. I look forward very much to seeing you at Heathfield.