FROM THE HEADMASTER
IN JUNE 2024, the Chair of Governors challenged me to define a Sevenoaks education. Many of the governors at our annual away day that summer reflected that there is a ‘fairy dust’ to Sevenoaks. In countless experiences and conversations this year across our school community, I reflected on this challenge from our Chair: what makes a Sevenoaks education so special? And in our Open Days and Group Visits, which take place most Saturdays, this year I attempted to describe a Sevenoaks education, which has been an enjoyable yet elusive challenge.
One Trustee and Old Sennockian suggested that a Sevenoaks education is quite a simple equation: you just have to look at our exceptional results, amazing co-curricular offering, strong pastoral care and convenient location – near London and the airports. This is an interesting start, but many schools could be described in a similar manner. Sevenoaks is much more than this.
What is unique about Sevenoaks is that we are one of the largest and highest achieving International Baccalaureate Diploma schools in the world. And because of this exceptional reputation and track record, we attract students from around the globe: this year we have more than 75 different passports in our student body.
This leads to a healthy tension for me: in some ways we are a traditional English independent school with nearly 600 years of history, and 800 local day students, who will always keep us grounded in the local community. We also have 450 boarders across eight boarding houses. And yet many of our day students have an overseas passport, have lived in a different country and speak another language; and many of our boarders only have a British passport, have never lived aboard and are learning a second language as part of the curriculum. So we are not the typical, traditional English public school that’s been around for centuries – even though we have been around longer than many of these schools. Nor are we an international school... and yet one local day parent recently said to me – as her third child left the school – that she had come to appreciate Sevenoaks as ‘the world on their doorstep’.
A Sevenoaks education is also a broad education – and for many of our students they learn as much outside of the classroom. They enjoy exceptional opportunities in art, drama, music, sport and a wide range of clubs and societies, as well as the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and the Combined Cadet Force. And there are few schools in the country that can boast that all of their students in the GCSE and Sixth Form years are engaged in service and partnership work every week. The connections that we enjoy with the local community – and many global charities – are remarkable. I’m grateful to the principled staff and students who work each week to make the world a better place through earnest charitable work. Our school has committed to voluntary service for decades because it is important that our students learn to be responsible citizens.
Our commitment to wellbeing and pastoral care remains paramount, and of course this is a foundational aspect of a Sevenoaks education. Following the successful banning of phones on campus in Years 7 and 8 in recent years, this year we banned phones on campus across year groups, with just a few exceptions for Sixth Formers in their common rooms or when asked in lessons. Many teachers, myself included, have enjoyed reverting to a campus where students are looking up and out, and engaging IRL (in real life, as the students say). Outside my office, Claridge lawn has been just plain noisy, as students have taken up spontaneous badminton, football and games of tag. Galvanised by the research of Jonathan Haidt and his book we have asked all students joining in Year 7 not to have a smartphone. There are many aspects of wellbeing, and we continue to engage with research from Professor Laurie Santos at Yale and the Harvard Human Flourishing Program. Yet I’m confident that one of the most important things we can do is end this disastrous 15-year experiment of allowing teenagers unrestricted access to smartphones. In conclusion, a Sevenoaks education is a unique and holistic education: a local and global curriculum; a local and global student body; exceptional opportunities in the arts, drama, music, sport and a myriad of other co-curricular opportunities; a school community committed to service and partnership work; and an organisation that prioritises wellbeing and pastoral care, including following the latest research to allow young people to look after themselves and live their best lives.
This year we saw many highlights of the Sevenoaks education, many of which are featured in these pages. I’m so grateful to all students and staff who have contributed to this important publication. Thanks for reading this introduction and this edition of the Sennockian. If you think I’ve missed any important aspect of a Sevenoaks education, then I would love to hear from you. A highlight of this year has been discussing what makes this community special – and doing so with so many members of our community. It’s a privilege to be Headmaster of this thriving school and thank you for your support.
To close, a huge thank you to all contributors to this Sennockian. This document becomes an essential aspect of the archives of this special school, as soon as the editor signs it off.
Jesse Elzinga, July 2025