from the H ead
Welcome to this edition of the Sennockian. In the
last few days of June we all enjoyed the buzz around
the campus generated by our new-style Enrichment
Week. The Lower Sixth led Years 9 and 10 in a series
of exciting cross-curricular projects which fittingly
exemplify an overarching theme of school life this
year: connectedness.
These Enrichment Week opportunities are the
culmination of the work of our Institute of Teaching
and Learning, with its focus on cross-curricular
studies. September 2017 sees the introduction
of the Middle School Diploma for Year 9, another
initiative the Institute has overseen this year. The
Diploma will record pupils’ academic and co-curricular
achievements in creativity, action and service as well
as in the enriching Sevenoaks Core courses, Ten Ideas
That Changed the World and Critical Perspectives. This
will reinforce our students’ holistic approach to all
they do at school and prepare them to be confident
and thoughtful IB students.
The Head and senior prefects
The school has long been active in making
connections with the wider community, and this year
has built strongly on that tradition. We are excited
to see the first students from the Kent Academies
Network Access Scheme applying for university this
year with the help of our Institute of Higher Education
and Professional Insight. Sevenoaks has been a key
sponsor of this scheme, which raises the aspirations
of teenagers from under-represented backgrounds,
and we run an annual residential Easter school for the
selected pupils. Meanwhile, our Director of Innovation
and Outreach, Graeme Lawrie, has made the school a
hub for professional training for local primary school
teachers and our Head of Entrepreneurship, Julie
Redding, has connected students in all year groups
with social entrepreneurship opportunities.
On the global stage, I enjoyed leading a senior group
of teachers to Shanghai to share our IB expertise. Our
academic credentials were borne out in our best-ever
results this summer, which saw our average grade
reach 40.6 points. Our alumni network is continuing
to grow and strengthen, giving former and current
students bonds of friendship from Shoreham to
Shanghai – and beyond. We will continue to build on
this with plans well advanced for the new boarding
house for boys opening in September 2019.
Meanwhile, the construction of our new Science and
Technology Centre and Sixth Form Global Study
Centre has progressed with exhilarating speed and
by next September they will be complete. Bringing
the sciences and technology together under one
roof, and providing a space for Sixth Formers to
work collaboratively, this building will ensure that
connectedness between subjects and people will
remain at the heart of all we do.
SEVENOAKS SCHOOL 2016-2017
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