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Notting Hill & Ealing High School GDST (NHEHS) is an award-winning private girls school located in Ealing, West London. Our school is a member of The Girls’ Day School Trust – the UK’s leading family of independent girls’ schools. As one of London’s most successful girls’ schools, we were awarded the Senior School of the Year for 2021 at the Independent Schools Awards run by TES – the leading publication in the education sector. Earlier in the 2020/21 academic year we were delighted to be voted Girls’ School of the Year 2020 at the Independent Schools of the Year Awards, run by Independent School Parent Magazine.
The latest ISI (Independent Schools Inspectorate) report stated that “pupils’ achievement in curricular and extra-curricular activities and their learning is exceptional as is their attainment in national tests at age 11 and at A Level.” Meanwhile, The Good Schools Guide described Notting Hill & Ealing as “a forward-looking school that provides a stimulating education in a friendly and nurturing environment. Academic achievements are excellent and these energetic, exuberant girls are definitely a force to be reckoned with.”
Our Senior School site on Cleveland Road in Ealing includes excellent facilities including a 25m indoor pool, a spacious library, an assembly hall, music recital hall, recording studio, science laboratories, three art studios, a 4-court sports hall built to Sport England standards, 100-seat studio theatre with lighting and sound, a drama workshop area, dance studio with a separate area for rowing machines, plus outdoor all-weather courts and pitches. There are additional facilities for our Sixth Formers in the newly refurbished Sixth Form
Art is an extremely popular and successful subject throughout the school. The Art Department is staffed by teachers who are practising artists and supported by a full-time technician. We are uniquely placed to enable students to develop their skills, initiative and imagination through creative exploration.
Our three, purpose-built studios are a hub of energy and activity, where students are welcome to work in their free periods, at lunchtime and after school. Computers are all installed with digital scanners and digital software, including Photoshop and Final Cut Pro and the Sixth Form Studio has a printing press for etchings, monoprints and linocuts. There are facilities for colour printing and photocopying, digital cameras, camcorders and a suite of laptops.
Over the past 150 years what Michael Behe has called the “black box of Darwin's time” has changed enormously. The mysteries of ” .. the cell, or the eye, or digestion, or immunity ” and a world in which ” ..no one could explain how biological processes occurred” has gone. Many of these mysteries have been unfolded and Biology is now truly at the cutting edge of 21st Century science. It is a subject with a profound ability to beneficially impact mankind.
It is this excitement and promise which the Biology department at NHEHS loves to communicate to students throughout the school.
At the heart of any study in chemistry is practical work and at NHEHS an emphasis is placed upon the development of practical skills, whilst theoretical work builds strong foundations of study. Lessons are intellectually stimulating; students are encouraged to think logically and analytically and make links between different areas of the curriculum.
Chemistry at Notting Hill and Ealing High School is delivered by an enthusiastic team of subject specialists in an extremely well-resourced department. It is taught as a separate science from Year 7, where students regularly observe engaging and exciting demonstrations that bring the subject to life and make for a memorable learning experience. Key theoretical concepts such as the reactions of acids and states of matter are taught alongside an introduction to experimental chemistry.
All our students are encouraged and supported to extend themselves beyond the confines of the curriculum and we regularly have students taking part in regional or national competitions such as the annual Royal Society of Chemistry UK Olympiad and Top of the Bench competition. In addition the Department runs a range of clubs and activities for all year groups and is a key supporter of whole school events such as Science Week. Four Year 8 girls have the opportunity to attend the Salters Festival of Chemistry each year and this sees girls taking part of all sorts of fun experiments held at a University lab each year. In 2018, we took four girls to Imperial and in 2019 we took four girls to London Met.
Classics is a unique and engaging subject which includes the study of Latin and Classical Greek. Through these languages, which gave rise to modern languages such as French, Spanish and Italian, we are able to explore societies which have shaped the world in which we live today.
Literature, History, Science, Law, Art, Architecture and Philosophy are just some of the subjects which could not have existed without the foundations provided by the Classical World.
In addition to lessons, there is a wide selection of extra-curricular options. The most popular of these is the trip to Rome and Pompeii offered to Years 9 and 10. There is also a senior trip for Years 10-13 every other year to places such as Greece and Sicily. Throughout the year girls watch classical plays, listen to visiting speakers and attend extension classes and classics clubs (such as Myths and Legends Club). Years 11-13 even get the opportunity to teach a primary school Latin Course called Minimus which they deliver to the NHEHS Junior School and North Ealing Primary.
By encompassing many different disciplines, the study of Latin and Classical Greek at all levels, is able to provide students with a range of valuable skills:
a capability to analyse the form and meaning of language;
a critical understanding of literature and culture;
an ability to observe the similarities and differences between past and present;
Most importantly, studying Latin and Classical Greek stimulates excitement and imagination through contact with the great and moving elements of classical culture.
Here at NHEHS we teach Computer Science as a separate subject from Year 7 right through to Year 13. We are among the very few GDST schools which offer Computing at A Level and we also offer the new GCSE in Computer Science. An increasing number of our girls are applying for a Computer Science or a related degree at university.
Extra-Curricular
The Department runs a range of after school and lunchtime clubs including a Game Making club open to anyone who would like to learn how to design and build a game, including making a game for a mobile device. There are also two coding clubs one for Years 7, 8 and 9 and one for girls in Years 10 and 11 who are thinking of taking Computer Science at A Level.
Our students also work with the design technology department on robotics and engineering clubs and find a warm welcome for their computing skills and expertise in many of the art, music and drama projects running in school.
The Design & Technology department offers an invigorating, challenging and high quality creative experience. Lessons are interesting and relevant to women in the increasingly technological world in which we all live, such that pupils may be motivated to solve design challenges with an emphasis on the production of functional, useful and beautiful products.
Students are taught to appreciate the importance of design, technology, and engineering in their surroundings and to appreciate the value of aesthetics in the context of industrial design.
Design & Technology as a National Curriculum subject is developing rapidly to keep up with its increasingly vital role in our children's future, with the emergence of new specifications at A-level and GCSE to commence in 2017. At NHEHS we believe that Design & Technology fosters creativity and problem-solving skills. Girls are taught to design and make products using a wide range of materials and techniques. We regularly update our design challenges, clubs and workshops to reflect the changes in technology and engineering, whilst maintaining the ‘soft' side of design through a strong emphasis on creativity, visual culture and the philosophy of design.
We have a highly investigative approach to designing by learning through product disassembly, modelling, trial and error. CAD and CAM are used widely across the curriculum. There is a strong focus on ethical and environmentally conscious design within our teaching. We aim to practice what we preach by using sustainable suppliers such as Jennor Timber, who source wood from well managed forests. Girls are expected to have significant knowledge of new technologies in the broader context of design and engineering, including commercial manufacture. They are also expected to gain skill in and understand the more traditional strands of construction and graphic communication.
The department has close links with other GDST schools, as well as Old Girls and industry professionals in the fields of design, engineering, physics and architecture.
The Drama Department is central to cultural life here at NHEHS and drama is taught as part of the curriculum in Years 7, 8 and 9 as well as being offered at GCSE and A Level.
Drama is an art form, a practical activity and an intellectual discipline; it involves imagination and feelings and helps pupils to make sense of the world. We do this through the creation of imagined characters and situations, and the relationships and events that they encounter. All girls will engage with three broad areas:
Making: this encompasses the many processes and activities employed when exploring, devising, shaping and interpreting drama.
Performing: this covers the skills and knowledge displayed when enacting, presenting and producing dramas, including the use of theatre technology.
Responding: incorporates reflecting on both emotional and intellectual reactions to the drama. This reflection is deepened as pupils gain a knowledge and understanding of how drama is created.
These three areas are taught through:
a broad range of stimuli, including artefacts, literature, non-fiction and non-literary texts such as photographs and video clips
working in groups of varying size and as a class
performing to a range of audiences
a range of genres and styles, plays and the history of theatre via different media
seeing a variety of live and recorded performances from different times and cultures
using ICT to explore and record ideas, research themes and enhance their production work
Human concerns and relationships are fundamental to the work we do; drama lessons provide a safe context to explore many issues. Whatever a girl's age, lessons involve pupils working creatively together and problem solving in groups of various sizes. The emphasis is on flexibility, empathy and risk-taking and we aim for the studio at NHEHS to be a safe place where girls can explore ideas collaboratively. At GCSE and A Level this is done via an increasing emphasis on the work of theatre practitioners enabling students to contextualise cultural trends and identify and evaluate style and convention.
Girls at NHEHS are innovative and experimental in their approach to drama, producing work of exceptional quality.
We all want to lead a full and exciting life, but unfortunately find that we do not always have the money or time to do all the things we have in mind. As individuals, we have to decide how to allocate our scarce resources to satisfy our unlimited wants and needs. A body of economic principles and concepts has been developed to explain how people and businesses react in this situation. Choices must be made and the consequences of these choices for individuals, firms and the national economy are studied in the social science of economics.
Economics at NHEHS is taught as an A Level subject and the course examines a range of economic questions including:
- What are economic resources and how should we manage them?
- Should a firm cut or raise prices to make more money?
- Are consumers truly rational?
- How can the problem of pollution be tackled using economic incentives?
- What are the benefits and costs of international trade?
- Should interest rates be raised or lowered?
- Why are some countries poor and others rich?
- Whether you are planning to study it at university or not, studying economics is valuable. It is well-regarded by many university departments as a cross-curricular subject because it combines social analysis with scientific method and it requires students to apply their understanding to form coherent arguments.
Current affairs form a large part of our discussions and students report a real satisfaction at feeling able to understand what they hear and read in the news. Since economics is a subject with many conflicting ideas, there are plenty of opportunities to form and defend personal views on economic matters – useful skills at any stage of life.
In order to bring the subject alive we have an annual trip to the City to visit various institutions, including the Bank of England, and further afield trips to China have enabled us to learn more about this economic powerhouse. In 2014, we visited New York to gain insights into this economically vital and vibrant city. We also aim to stretch our students beyond the confines of the syllabus and The Economics Society has welcomed a number of esteemed speakers, including Paul Ormerod and Steve Keen. We also participate in the Bank of England Target 2.0 challenge, Student Investor Challenge and a number of national essay competitions.
The department also runs the Young Enterprise scheme for sixth formers wishing to take part in this national competition to run and manage your own company and the related “Tenner Challenge” for younger students in Year 9.
English is an extremely popular, enjoyable, academically rigorous and exciting subject. It helps make our students more articulate; better at writing both creatively and analytically and more sensitive in their appreciation of the written word.
All students take English from Year 7 until the end of Year 11 (GCSE). Both English Language and English Literature are available as A Level subjects.
Students and teachers in the department share a deep love of reading and have diverse tastes in literature. We aim to instill a lifelong love of literature and language through the study of challenging and broad-ranging texts across all years. There are also plenty of opportunities for the pursuit of extra-curricular passions including a Lower School English Club, a Reading Group for older girls, Sixth Form Seminars, National Poetry Day competitions, participation in the Carnegie Reading Scheme and Poetry by Heart competition, and the annual highlight of the English Department calendar, World Book Day.
There are regular author visits, which in recent years have included Jamila Gavin (an NHEHS alumna) Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer; Anna McKerrow and Poet in Residence at Loughborough University, Sarah Kelly. We also undertake frequent theatre trips and have recently been to see Jacobean tragedies such as ‘'Tis Pity She's a Whore' at the Sam Wanamaker Theatre, as well as classics including ‘The Cherry Orchard', ‘Hamlet' and ‘The Crucible'. In previous years students have enjoyed a creative writing residential with Arvon during the Easter holiday, where they were tutored by leading authors.
Geography is about the interaction of people with their environment. It includes the study of physical and human processes which shape the environment, places and patterns on the earth's surface, and the people who live there. Peoples' interaction with the environment often creates change and conflict, resulting in issues, questions and problems, which are all investigated by geographers.
At NHEHS we approach this wide ranging brief with teaching that is flexible in its approach. We pride ourselves on creating a relevant, exciting and dynamic learning environment and aim to develop a wide range of transferable skills to help our students fully comprehend the world in which we exist.
We organise a wide range of field visits in Britain to support and develop curriculum work for Year 7-9. For GCSE and A Level students a series of residential and day trips are organised to fulfil learning and examination requirements and develop their love of the subject. In school holidays, the Geography Department also runs residential trips to a variety of global destinations, most recently to Iceland and India.
Government & Politics is a popular A Level course at NHEHS and is taught within the History and Government & Politics Department, by teachers who are determined to encourage an active interest in the subject beyond the curriculum. It is a completely separate subject from History, though many students take both at A Level, as the two subjects are complementary but distinct.
The course looks at how people are politically represented in Britain, and how far they participate in politics. We consider how government works – for example, how does parliament work, and how well does it represent people's interests? What exactly is the British constitution, and does it need to be reformed?
We also look at voter behaviour, constitutional history and the role of the media. We examine the key ideas and thinkers that have shaped the modern world, including conservatism, socialism and liberalism. We currently study American politics alongside British politics, which allows us to compare and contrast the two political systems. With a changing political landscape evident in the USA with the rise of populist leaders such as Donald Trump, the subject has never before been so absorbing.
History is a thriving and very popular subject at Notting Hill. Our lessons aim to fire pupils' curiosity and imagination, moving and inspiring them with the dilemmas, choices and beliefs of people in the past.
Outside of the classroom, we encourage pupils to appreciate the past through a wide range of trips. We have organised regular visits to the Tower of London for Year 7, the Museum of London for Year 8 and the Imperial War Museum for Year 9 in addition to more adventurous excursions in recent years to Berlin, Paris and the Ypres battlefields.
History of Art is a rigorous, cosmopolitan and cross-disciplinary subject which calls upon many other areas of knowledge, including philosophy, literature, history, psychology and science. In doing so it provides insights into the ways in which artworks have helped to shape us as human beings and our collective history.
Through close analysis of paintings, sculptures and buildings from a period spanning more than two millennia – as well as of more recent examples of video, performance, photography and installation art – our A Level students build up a ‘visual toolkit' with which they can question their immediate surroundings and the world at large.
At NHEHS we aim to deliver a mathematics curriculum which will enable students to develop a positive attitude to mathematical experiences and derive pleasure and enjoyment from solving mathematical problems.
We aim to provide each girl with whatever extra support she needs whether its our lunchtime Maths Surgery to assist those girls who need a little extra explanation and time to meet their potential or Maths enrichment sessions and assistance with entrance examinations for Oxbridge applicants.
We run Code Breakers Club for Year 7 and Enigma Club for Year 8 where our pupils investigate various aspects of Mathematics beyond the curriculum. Pupils in Year 10 and Year 12 attend Mathematics lectures in London, recently hearing about the rise of Bitcoin, and ‘The Human Herd' which showed how patterns in behaviour make humans surprisingly predictable. We enter all age groups in the UKMT Maths Challenges and take teams to both the Junior and Senior Team Maths Challenges. We also take part in the prestigious London-wide Hans Woyda competition which involves girls from Years 9, 11, 12 and 13.
For our students, global communication is a normal part of modern life. Being able to speak another language is important for commercial and social reasons, but true communication comes from an understanding of the culture, history and context that informs a language. Language learning provides such knowledge and also develops life-long skills; ones that we aim to promote through excellence in language teaching and learning.
All foreign languages at NHEHS are taught by graduate language specialists supported by a team of dedicated mother-tongue language assistants
At Notting Hill & Ealing, the music department, with its reputation for excellent music making, lies right at the heart of the school. Music is an academically strong department with a good number of pupils choosing to study GCSE and A Level each year. However, beyond this we offer a wide array of opportunities in performance through orchestras, choirs, ensembles and groups suitable for musicians of all abilities and a huge range of extra-curricular opportunities.
At NHEHS our strengths lie in offering all girls an opportunity to participate in a sport or activity they enjoy, yet also offering a wide range of competitive sport.
We enjoy outstanding indoor facilities with a state-of-the-art, four court sports hall, dance studio and 25m swimming pool. Together with our all-weather, astro-turf, pitch and courts these provide opportunities for all our girls to enjoy a wide breadth of activities, as well as taking part in traditional team sports such as netball and hockey.
Sport and PE are part of everyone's timetable from Year 7 right up to Year 13. We want every girl to find a sport or activity which she can enjoy and we encourage wide participation through offering sports such as trampolining, running, badminton, cricket and football . We also offer the chance to experience a range of fitness classes including zumba, yoga and kickboxing.
We field a large number of teams and compete against local schools in county and national GDST competitions. In recent years we have reached the finals of the Middlesex netball tournament and last year we won the inaugaral GDST Year 7 netball tournament. We also ensure that a range of competitive opportunities are given in cross country (we are currently defending our Ealing borough title), swimming, waterpolo (this year and last we reached the national finals of the ESSA competition), athletics, cricket, tennis and rounders. Many of our girls enjoy participating in school based clubs too, with over two thirds of Year 7 regularly attending our netball club!
We are very proud that we also have girls who superbly juggle their academic life with competing at the very top level. Currently NHEHS girls are members of local club, county and national squads in sports which include hockey, netball, swimming and trampolining.
Studying physics gives us the ability to begin to understand the world around us. It helps us to comprehend everything from the smallest sub-atomic structure to the farthest reaches of the universe.
Physicists are fascinated by the way in which complex processes can be modelled and predicted, and by the simplicity of the rules which govern the way our world behaves.
Physics at NHEHS is a dynamic, innovative and expanding department. Our overarching aim is to ensure that girls are excited to come to lessons, and leave buzzing with enthusiasm. We are passionate about communicating the ways in which physics is fun and interesting, and showing there are so many different facets to the subject that there is definitely something for everyone.
Physics is taught as a separate science subject in Years 7, 8 and 9 and in Years 10 and 11 we prepare girls for the IGCSE qualification. For A Level we follow the Edexcel specification.
Our teaching is fun, engaging and interactive, and we encourage students to think from first principles and develop the ability to solve problems independently. Physics fosters the ability to think logically, reason from cause to effect, and work practically as well as understand theory. It is a popular subject with universities, who value the transferable skills students bring. Physics is also an popular subject with students at Notting Hill.
Outside the classroom, we are keen to promote the girls' interest in physics beyond the curriculum. We attend lectures in central London, and also encourage students to attend UCL's Friday night lecture series. Every two years we take a group of students to visit the LHC at the CERN facility in Geneva, which really serves to provide insight into what the life of a working physicist could be like. Our Da Vinci club lectures, for Year 10 and 11 students tackle topics from nuclear fusion and fission to the eventual fate of the universe. Students regularly take part in and win engineering competitions and awards such as the EES and Faraday.
Above all, we believe that physics is for everyone, and are eager to demonstrate to our students exactly what we love about the subject.
At NHEHS Psychology is taught in the sixth form where it is an increasingly popular subject. The new OCR A Level psychology course consists of three strands: research methods, psychological themes through core studies and applied psychology.
‘Research Methods' familiarises students with the four main techniques for collecting and analysing data. ‘Psychological Themes through Core Studies' refers us to ten key themes looking at classic and contemporary studies which will help us understand the debates within psychology. Finally students will see how these techniques and research can be applied in areas such as mental health, criminal psychology and child psychology.
Students are expected to carry out their own small scale practical activities reflecting on how these experiences have furthered their understanding of psychology and as part of the examination for Unit 1 students will design their own study based on the stimulus material in the exam.
In order to help students further understand applied psychology there is a curriculum trip to the Royal Courts of Justice and to a working mental health unit. Both these visits allow students a first-hand experience of applied psychology, showing them how useful a psychological insight can be in the real-world and demonstrating the issues that are faced and overcome on day-to-day basis by these professionals.
Religious Studies at NHEHS aims to give our students an appreciation and awareness of the Six World Religions and to approach philosophical and ethical issues with critical understanding.
Throughout their studies in Religious Studies students are encouraged to grapple with fundamental questions such as the nature of good and evil and to develop strong skills of analysis and debate. In their study of the Six World Religions the department aims to introduce both the practices and principles of each religion. Each religion is introduced individually to encourage in-depth appreciation.
Overall, Religious Studies at NHEHS aims to teach above and beyond a solely academic subject and to also include the investigation of current ethical and philosophical issues. The department aims to achieve a holistic education for each student through their growing understanding of other cultures and faiths and to prepare them to approach their own views with an enquiring mind.
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