Our Patch APRIL 2014
Our Patch APRIL 2014
Talking
heads
W
hether it is the arts,
sports, or academics,
King Street-based
Latymer Upper
School has always
excelled. Founded
by Edward Latymer in 1624, the
wealthy lawyer left part of his estate to
clothe and educate ‘eight poore boyes’
from Hammersmith. Though a private
school, the school still honours their
founder’s inclusive vision by offering
bursaries and scholarships to west
London children every year and is now
also fully inclusive of girls and boys.
You have a lot of west London
connections – good to be back?
After growing up in west London,
it’s great to be home. I was born in
Hammersmith Hospital, went to
school just down the road at Cardinal
Vaughan School in Kensington and
lived in Latimer Road as a child.
It’s definitely good to be back.
LATYMER UPPER
Hammersmith
Has the school changed at all?
Certainly over the last ten years – it
has now become fully co-educational,
and now it’s split equally between boys
and girls in every year group which is
working really well. There’s also been
a big investment with a new library, a
science building and great performing
arts facilities which include a music
recital space and a drama studio.
It encapsulates our strong belief that
the academic and the arts can go hand
in hand – pupils shouldn’t have to
choose between being great at exams or
being creative. We like to take a broader
view of education and aren’t just an
‘exams factory’.
What changes are coming to
the school in the future?
The next big thing for us is our sports
centre which we’re all very excited
Headteacher David Goodhew reflects on
his first year in charge of the prestigious
school. He tells James Beck about
what makes a Latymer pupil unique
6 / 7
y Regatta
ls win the Henle
Latymer Upper gir
Artist’s impressions of
the new sports centre
about. It’s the final piece of the puzzle,
really. We’ve increased the amount of
coaching and training we offer, as well
as giving students more opportunities
to participate. But there’s only so much
we can do with our on-site facilities
and so that’s why we’ve decided on
this major upgrade.
I’m particularly excited about
the new pool as swimming is one
of our great strengths. It also gives
us the opportunity to help the local
community in terms of swimming clubs
and providing local primary schools
with some rare pool time.
What do you think makes
Latymer Upper School and its
pupils special?
‘Diversity’ is definitely a good word
to describe the school’s population
and a lot of people feel this mix is
what makes the school special. I
think the school has got a relaxed,
modern and un-pretentious feel.
People sometimes worry with
independent schools that pupils
are going to be living within a
sort of privileged bubble but I
definitely don’t think it feels
that way here.
Maybe that’s down to our
urban location, the mix of pupils
that we’ve got, or the connection
which we’ve always retained
with Hammersmith going back to
our founder.
A great example of this is the
voluntary service with our sixth
formers. We think this keeps them
connected to the community and
shows them the world outside the
gates of an independent school.
We also make a commitment to
ensure there are students who can
be here without having to pay – they
now make up around 10 per cent of
the school. This is something which
is very important to us and, while we
have talked about the changes over
the years, this is something which
hasn’t changed.
With the Boat Race around the
corner, what can you tell us
about Latymer’s rowing success?
We’ve had a lot of success in rowing
down the years – you need only
look at An