UND UNTED
LEH Strategy 2024 - 2029
WELCOME
Our girls are some of the most academically able in the UK. We have a moral imperative to help them realise their potential and to provide an environment that gives them the confidence to feel brave and undaunted about their future achievements and impact.
LEH pupils thrive here and go on to make their mark in the world in all sorts of ways − in the research lab, on the stage, on the pitch, at the head of the boardroom table, on the trading floor, in the operating theatre, in the studio, in the home and on the racing circuit.
There’s no such thing as a typical LEH girl, we are a community that empowers girls to take their place in whatever sphere they choose. This idea sits at the heart of our new strategy, and behind the ambition we have for every single pupil at LEH to be bold in their thoughts and actions and to make a significant impact in the world.
Rowena Cole, Head Mistress
“The world is full of uncertainties and challenges, but I see hope in our pupils. This generation, our pupils, will go on to help develop a better world that we will all enjoy.”
David King Chair, LEH Governing Board
T E LEH EXPERIENCE
At LEH, we believe there is an enduring need to give girls an education that prepares them for their future success. An LEH education gives them the courage, capability and confidence to make their mark on the world, and to lead fulfilling lives with integrity, ambition and a strong sense of moral purpose. With more than 300 years of academic experience, LEH is a leading independent school for high-achieving girls. We give our pupils new opportunities and experiences that spark their imagination and ignite their ambitions. We teach and mentor them to develop their resilience and create a community of support so that they are brave enough to step out of their comfort zones and discover the outer edges of their brilliance.
Our role goes beyond the purely academic. We exist to help pupils develop their whole selves and to expand their horizons so that they see what is possible, rather than what they could settle for. We build emotional intelligence, engage pupils with relatable role models and provide opportunities for collaboration and leadership. We encourage our pupils to have a strong sense of self, so that they can go forward to make significant and meaningful impact in the societies they help shape.
The richness of an LEH education ranges across all areas − in creative and performing arts, in sport, and in giving back to the local community − and it demonstrates that academic excellence can and does co-exist with success in every sense. Most importantly, we strongly challenge the idea that excellent academic success should come at the expense of wellbeing. Every day at LEH proves that it is possible for happiness and academic achievement to positively fuel each other.
Every pupil at LEH is supported by caring teachers and staff who take pride in bringing out the best in them.
We know examination results are important, and we work tirelessly to help girls to get the grades they need to move successfully to the next stage of their education. But our role does not end there. Results are not an end in themselves, and we know they count for little without the essential skills, aptitudes and strong moral foundation that build character and an individual’s sense of self. We are preparing our girls to be the instigators of future change, and we actively help shape the character, and emotional and intellectual resilience of every pupil. With us, girls at LEH develop the knowledge and the skills they will use for the rest of their lives. We teach them to be intellectually curious, to challenge their own (and others’) opinions and views, and to bravely and respectfully engage with some of the most complex issues facing society.
Success is achieved in an environment of relaxed excellence, and we take pride in the accomplishments of one another. Our values run through our school, our staff and our pupils. We find opportunity in every moment to encourage ambition and give joy.
In line with our school motto of Hope Favours the Bold, our strategy empowers us to embolden our pupils. Through our vision, and our strategic objectives, we will give every girl at LEH the guidance to leave us equipped with the selfknowledge to go on to achieve success in their chosen fields. They will be bold, both in their thinking and in their actions.
OUR VISION
LEH provides girls with a distinctive education that prepares them to take their place at the table, in the room and in the world, in their chosen sphere.
OUR MISSION
LEH fosters a culture that supports every pupil to achieve excellence and success, both shared and individual, to be fulfilled, and to have significant impact in every way she chooses.
OUR VALUES
We choose to succeed.
We rise to challenges.
We lift those around us.
We inspire trust.
We encourage personal agency.
We embrace joy and laughter.
STRATEGIC BJECTIVES
“Girls here can be themselves. They can be anything they want to be. There’s no sense of something being out of reach.”
1 A BOLD VOICE IN GIRLS’ EDUCATION
We will push forward the boundaries of educational knowledge, informed by research that focuses on delivering the best possible education for girls.
WHY?
As a leading independent girls’ school, we rely on robust evidence and experience to inform our approach to teaching and learning. It is vital that we contribute to, and learn from, proven research that ensures the education we provide supports and extends highly able and ambitious girls.
We are committed to deepening our understanding of the academic, emotional and developmental needs of girls.
Through commissioning our own research, working with experts in their fields, and developing new networks, we will add to the growing body of literature that explores and reinforces the value of a single-sex education and the challenges and opportunities that relate specifically to girls.
We will continue to be a bold voice in primary and secondary school single-sex education, translating research into meaningful practice to establish insights and tools that our partnership schools and wider sector can benefit from.
• Become a centre for research on the key questions on girls’ education.
OUR HEADLINE PLANS OUR MEASURES OF SUCCESS
• Invest in staff being active in researching teaching and learning.
• Build on the work already achieved by the Coalition for Youth Mental Health in Schools.
• Bring in expert voices to deepen our existing expertise.
• Work with partners on disseminating our work.
1 2 3
Be the most innovative independent girls’ school in the country.
4
Commission new research projects by staff focused on the key academic and pastoral challenges facing girls today.
Ensure all staff are offered appropriate training in the main academic and pastoral issues facing girls today.
5
Establish a knowledge hub which will bring partner schools into our research. Share research project recommendations to the school community and publish main findings.
“My daughter looks at the world like it’s full of opportunity. She knows it’s tough out there; she sees what’s going on in the world, but she has the mindset of thinking she can do something about its problems. That’s the LEH in her.”
ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE IN EVERY AREA
We will deliver consistent academic excellence and provide an outstanding educational experience for bright girls, offering stretch and challenge in a context of kindness and care.
“LEH is far and away the best school I’ve worked in. This is what a school is meant to be – unashamed academic excellence. The girls have a sense of purpose. They are going somewhere. They are ready to learn.”
LEH Teacher
WHY?
As experts in girls’ education, we have the experience and the moral imperative to encourage, support and inspire our pupils to reach the highest standards. We believe that emotional and physical health are fundamental to academic success and excellence in every area is only possible when provided alongside high levels of pastoral care and support.
In this context, we empower and guide our pupils as they develop the curiosity, knowledge, and confidence that will enable them to have an impact in their chosen sphere. LEH pupils have been making a significant mark on the world for many years.
From world record breakers, COVID-19 vaccine developers, global radio DJs, symphony orchestra
First Chairs, motorsport engineers, authors, foster carers and space scientists – our girls have impact.
It’s the platform of an outstanding education from LEH that enables courageous and undaunted girls to go forward to take their place as inspirational women in the world.
OUR HEADLINE PLANS OUR MEASURES OF SUCCESS
• Unify our academic and pastoral approach.
• Build on GCSE and A Level result success.
• Focus on consistently high quality teaching and learning.
• Further develop data tracking; focus on Value Added.
• Develop our academic supercurricular provision.
• Focus on professional development of all staff.
• Develop Oxbridge, high-tariff university, and higher and degree apprenticeship success.
• Develop feedback through pupil voice.
1
2
A top 10 school.
3
Research informed teaching and learning practice delivered to consistently high standards every day in every classroom.
Established relationships with leading academics, professionals, thought leaders and institutions to deliver a cutting-edge curriculum.
4
Exceptional, measured, academic progress for every pupil.
6
5 Success in external competitions. Success in securing world leading university courses at renowned institutions.
7 External validation by the Independent Schools Inspectorate.
A CULTURE OF SUCCESS FOR ALL
We will enable a culture of success for all, where everyone is expected to deliver their best for themselves and for each other.
WHY?
We know that success can mean different things to different people, and that the ambitions of our pupils and staff go far beyond academic achievement alone. We believe success is defined by how we feel and how we act.
At LEH, pastoral care is at the centre of everything we do. We value the kindness and care of our community: the friendship, joy, laughter, respect and inclusivity that is found in every area of the school. We provide a happy and relaxed environment for all, where pupils and all staff lift each other to enable and support those around them. We gain fulfilment from seeing others succeed.
We empower our pupils to realise their ambitions, encouraging and supporting them to explore their passions and interests, helping to develop their social awareness and promoting fulfilment in their studies and beyond. Our pupils are supported to take risks, to sometimes fail and to know that’s OK because this is an opportunity to grow and learn, and from those experiences go on to excel.
We embrace and celebrate the traditions of LEH and will ensure that our light-hearted spirit and sense of fun continue to define the personality of our school. We value friendships across year groups, departments, parents, alumnae, governors and other partners, and we see each as important contributors to the future prosperity of LEH.
• Identify key metrics that represent success in its broadest sense.
OUR HEADLINE PLANS OUR MEASURES OF SUCCESS
• Embed a shared culture of championing and supporting personal and academic success.
• Continue to develop our relationship with parents, working collaboratively to support pupil outcomes.
• Create opportunities to realise personal ambitions. Encourage and support all to explore passions and interests, develop social awareness and to promote fulfilment within and beyond academia.
• Prioritise the power and value of relationships between all our intersecting communities.
• Embrace and celebrate the traditions of LEH and ensure that our light-hearted spirit and sense of fun continue to define the personality of our school.
1 2 3
Positive outcomes in pupil, parent and staff surveys with measurable improvements in areas including pride, confidence and happiness.
4
Increased participation and success in local, national and international opportunities and competitions in academia, sport, drama, music and art.
5
To be known as a positive and rewarding place to work and study. Measured by increased applications from potential staff and pupils. Greater number of pupils and staff contributing to activities which benefit the local and wider community.
Our alumnae achieving success in a wide scope of areas both personally and professionally.
“The pupils are partners in learning. They’re joyful and want to learn. They’re motivated. The relationships are very positive, and girls thrive here. It makes it very satisfying for teachers.”
LEH Teacher
Strategic Objective
4 A ONE-SCHOOL APPROACH
We will harness the strength of being one school, delivering an outstanding joined-up education.
WHY?
Whenever a girl joins LEH, be it Year 3, Year 7 or Year 12, she needs an education that is grounded in a consistent ambition for every pupil. A whole school ethos that produces the best joined-up learning across and through each year is critical to harnessing the value of our one-school approach. Our strong, strategic framework and joined-up curriculum will enable us to deliver specific teaching and learning experiences, tailored to different year groups, but always providing stretch and challenge in an environment of care, encouragement and support.
By championing a one-school approach, we can operate more effectively and efficiently.
From sharing our expertise across year groups, to commissioning new research into girls’ education, to older girls acting as role models for the younger girls, to discussing approaches to teaching and learning that are specific to our context − when we lean into a holistic and integrated way of working and playing, it makes us stronger, together.
OUR HEADLINE PLANS OUR MEASURES OF SUCCESS
• Review our academic curriculum for Years 5 to 8 and make recommendations for a new, bespoke programme which will stretch our pupils and prepare them for GCSE and beyond.
• Review our ways of working across all Key Stages to make sure we are providing enough opportunities for collaboration between the Junior and Senior Schools.
• Ensure equal sharing of facilities and professional expertise across year groups, including subject specialists.
• Ensure our extra-curricular activities are engaging across all year groups, offering pupils opportunities to become peers and role models.
• Endeavour to plan procedural changes, including timetabling, digital systems and platforms, and data together, to ensure that, where appropriate, both Junior and Seniors are aligned.
1
Increased applications across all key arrival points and 100% retention at transition points.
4
2 3
A joined-up learning approach with collaboration across subject leads to further strengthen practice.
5
Greater interaction and collaboration between Junior and Senior pupils and staff.
An increased number of whole-school initiatives to inform evidence-based approaches to teaching and learning at LEH.
Positive pupil, staff and parent feedback.
“We do think it’s different from other schools. We feel really lucky to be here. I don’t think many other schools would ask pupils to sit down to discuss the future school strategy.”
