Exclusive Interview with Mrs Sophie Banks, headmistress of Pembridge Hall School
Introduction:
It was a great pleasure to meet Mrs Sophie Banks who was appointed as the new Headmistress in 2022. She did the tour herself and whilst strolling around with her, I became aware of how she could not hide the enthusiasm about her new position. Sophie has been in the education sector for a long time and her last post was as the Head Teacher for a co-educational school in Datchet, near Windsor, which has enabled her to adapt quickly to a new environment. The challenges of working in an all girls’ school are not new to her as she is quite used to it with her three daughters. Mrs Banks is clearly proud of the impressive reputation and positive exit results at Pembridge Hall, but mostly because the pupils are happy, thriving confident girls.
Question:
What do you envision for your tenure at Pembridge Hall? What do you hope to see in the future? Are there any short- or long-term changes you’d like to see implemented?
Answer:
I am very aware that I am extremely fortunate to have been given the headship of Pembridge Hall. It is an outstanding school with a strong reputation and therefore any changes that do occur will merely be to improve an already excellent educational provision. I would like to ensure that the school I leave behind at the end of my tenure is not girly, remains aspirational for the girls, encourages them in all areas of life and provides them with enriching opportunities. Pembridge is a school where sound mental health and wellbeing matters and that will remain a focus, in turn enabling girls to be the best they can be academically.
Question:
In London, most children face fierce competition for entrance to secondary schools where they are constantly tested and go through several different competitive selective exams like, 4+, 7+ or the Common Entrance Exam. What are your views on such testing?
Answer:
As someone who is passionate about developing a can-do attitude in girls, alongside a growth mindset approach, I am not particularly keen on the assessment route. Assessments at a young age can have a very damaging effect on a child’s self-belief and sends the message, if unsuccessful, that they are ‘not good enough’. At the age of 7 they are merely starting their learning journey and should not have negative feelings around learning. At Pembridge Hall we do not assess on entry, we work with girls of all abilities and are very proud of the progress they make. Excellent attainment in selective assessments to senior schools are achieved at Pembridge Hall as a by-product of the well-rounded education girls receive.
Question:
Some parents regularly look at school league tables, inspection reports or online parent’s forums/chats to find out what the best school options for their children are. What should parents look for when they are selecting between schools?
Answer:
I always say to parents that finding a school is like buying a house. The most important aspect is how it feels. When you visit can you imagine your child there and do the ethos, vision and values mirror what you want your child to experience?
Question:
What STEAM subjects are being offered outside of the curriculum? Does the school offer extracurricular clubs to support those subjects? How much computer literacy do you focus on?
Answer:
At Pembridge Hall, we are huge advocates of STEAM education and have developed a bespoke STEAM curriculum that instils curiosity and a passion for innovation. With a focus on immersive project based learning and current real-world applications, Pembridge girls become creative problem solvers and develop life-long learning skills, such as critical thinking and collaboration.
In Computing, girls use their Scratch and Python coding skills to program moving robots, as well as create their own games, movies and animations. STEAM connections are forged across a range of subjects, for example, girls create artwork using electrical paint and then write code to transform their paintings into interactive, multisensory pieces with sound. With specialist teachers in our state-of-the-art Science Laboratory and Innovation Space, girls are inspired to fully immerse themselves within each topic. From using Bunsen burners to exploring the science of fireworks, to concocting the perfect bath bomb or using our virtual reality headsets to journey inside the human body, pupils take a hands-on, discovery approach to learning. Year 6 girls host the annual Pembridge Hall Science Fair, showcasing their independent Science projects to the rest of the school and special science guest judges. Through following the scientific process from beginning to end, each girl achieves the CREST Award, which is a nationally recognised STEAM award from the British Science Association. Role models are championed, and the girls have the opportunity to become STEAM leaders and ambassadors themselves through our Digital Leaders and Green Girl initiatives, inspiring them to become STEAM innovators and leaders of the future.
Question:
Parents are often told that they should sign their daughters up for Pembridge Hall as soon as they are born. If they are unable to do so, do you offer in-year places at all? If so, do you have an assessment-based entrance exam?
Answer:
When places are available, applications for girls into any year group other than Reception, are subject to an age-appropriate assessment in addition to receipt of a report from the girl’s feeder school. This enables us to make a judgement as to whether or not a child would be able to access and benefit from the pace and breadth of our curriculum as they move through the school. While our pupil numbers are high, we do have occasional places, so parents should never assume there isn’t a space at Pembridge – it is always worth asking.
Question:
What ‘type’ of children do you look for when you have the chance to meet them? Which character traits would be the right fit for the school?
Answer:
One of the joys of Pembridge is that there is no one type of girl. All our girls are individuals, and we embrace that. Whatever their character, interests, strengths, quirks, cultural backgrounds, passions or needs we encourage them and only ask that they be thoughtful, humble, open to a wide range of experiences and love learning.
Question:
Does Pembridge have an inclusive and supportive policy with regards to SEND? Could you outline your policy on children who have special needs? Is there any support for more gifted students? Do you have a permanent SENDCO?
Answer:
Our curriculum is designed to ‘lift the lid’ on learning and there is no ceiling to what our girls can achieve. All girls are provided with enriching opportunities to deepen their learning and gifted pupils will often extend their learning outside of the classroom. Extra-curricular clubs, competitions, leadership opportunities and project-based learning are just some of the ways in which gifted pupils are supported at Pembridge Hall. Pembridge does not select on entry and accept applications from parents of neurodiverse children. The support offered depends on the nature of the girl’s needs. We pride ourselves on quality first teaching and supporting neurodiverse children alongside their peers through scaffolding the learning, using additional resources and assisted technology to allow the access to set tasks. When appropriate, girls are provided with specific, targeted support either in class, where two teachers team teach to support the child or out of class in small group sessions. When a girl needs more specialist support, they can be seen by either a Speech and Language therapist or an Occupational therapist on-site once a week. The Learning Support department is led by an experienced Head of Learning Support who has developed links with a range of external providers who can be called upon should the child require more specialist support.
Question:
It is rumoured that Pembridge has a policy of allocating classes and grouping girls together based on surnames which in turn is based on certain specific criteria like connections to the school, alumni, social networks etc. Would you be able to clarify please?
Answer:
This is all completely inaccurate – there is no such policy!
Question:
What can you tell us about what measures the school has in place to support the mental health of the students?
Answer:
The welfare and wellbeing of our girls lies at the heart of all we do. Mental health and emotional wellbeing are intrinsically linked to our pastoral care systems, helping to build self-esteem and enable self-regulation. We focus on the holistic development of every girl’s character: curiosity, collaboration, resilience and perseverance, alongside emotional intelligence and empathy. Adopting a growth mindset is critical and girls are encouraged to thrive on challenges and willingly step out of their comfort zone. Mental Health education is taught as part of our PSHE curriculum, the aim being to foster the girls’ emotional language development, encourage conversations and help them to regulate their own mental health and wellbeing. We do not have a counsellor on site, but our Head of Pastoral Care meets regularly with parents to suggest highly skilled, recommended, professionals where necessary. Our Wellbeing Team, formed of staff who are Senior Mental Health Leads and Mental Health First Aiders, meet regularly to implement strategies to encourage positive mental health across the school. The happiness of the girls is every member of staff’s responsibility (from lunchtime supervisors, specialist teachers to the Head) and we track and speak regularly about girls’ pastoral needs and how best to support each individual. Consequently, girls can, and do, go to any member of staff to seek support if required. To further support girls with their wellbeing, our Head of Pastoral Care holds weekly Pembridge Pulse sessions – an opportunity for girls to drop in, either individually or with a friend. These sessions support friendships, worries and any other pastoral concerns the girls may have. Additionally, we are a ‘Tooled Up’ school – a programme that aims to give every parent and teacher the tools they need to develop children into young adults who are: self-confident, self-sufficient and full of self-worth; curious about the world and passionate about learning; digitally skilled and digitally resilient.
Question:
How much collaboration, if any, do you have with state schools? How do you ensure it is sustainable? How do you think schools should do it and avoid it being tokenistic?
Answer:
We don’t have any at present but we hope to work on this in the future.
Question:
When your girls leave the school and it has gone well, what does that look like?
Answer:
When girls leave Pembridge Hall, we want them to be confident and self-assured and fully prepared for life in the 21st century. Ensuring our girls are resilient and curious with emotional intelligence and the ability to collaborate means they can take on whatever the future holds for them. Pembridge girls are happy girls, who are mentally strong, and we hope that our traditional values, alongside an innovative education, prepare them for life in an ever-evolving world. All of our Year 6 girls move onto a variety of outstanding Day and Boarding Senior Schools. We are extremely proud of our 11+ results, including the number of scholarships awarded each year, which showcases how our dynamic and broad curriculum offering positively impacts the learning experiences of the girls.
Question:
How have you found adapting from a co-ed school to a girls’ school?
Answer:
The move from co-ed to all-girls has been an easy one. I was educated in an all-girls’ school myself and have three daughters of my own – so have plenty of experience. What has been most noticeable to me is the way teaching has to be adapted to accommodate different learning styles in a co-ed classroom. Our girls are more focused, more engaged, more excited about learning and able to be stretched more quickly due to the single sex environment.
Question:
How do you deal with the challenge of minimal outdoor space? Especially when it is wet and cold?
Answer
We are extremely lucky to have a number of different outdoor spaces to use. Both our buildings have playgrounds, which have been adapted to suit the age of the girls that use them. Alongside this, the girls are able to play in Pembridge Square Gardens throughout the week. We use an array of different sports venues to ensure the girls have the best opportunities available and with Hyde Park just around the corner, outdoor learning is an important part of our curriculum. London is our classroom, and we embrace it!
Question:
Your school has been described as deeply international, how many languages are spoken and how do you use this as an asset in enhancing the educational experience?
Answer:
While we are a very international school, with more than twenty languages spoken, our families tend to be long-term Londoners. Our school community is widely diverse and consequently the girls are immersed in a culturally rich environment daily. They embrace differences and recognise that everyone is not the same. The Pembridge Values encourage respect for diversity and girls are inclusive of those from different backgrounds, which is evident in the fluidity with which they work and interact with one another, whether in the classroom or on the playground. Consequently, the celebration of diversity is very much embedded in school life. Girls frequently share information about their own cultures and thus are provided opportunities to learn about others’ experiences. European Day of Languages is an annual event, along with International Day – wearing traditional costume and sharing food from around the globe to demonstrate pride in their rich, varied cultural heritages. Our team of ‘Parent Champions’ further galvanise support from the parent body – celebrating the diversity within our community by marking the many religious and cultural traditions celebrated by Pembridge families. While we are a very international school, with more than 20 languages spoken, our families tend to be long-term Londoners with the girls attending UK nurseries and going on to UK senior schools.
Question:
How do you set yourself apart from other local all-girls preps like Bute? What do you feel stands out?
Answer:
Pembridge Hall is proof that despite a broad range of abilities we are academically ambitious for every girl, and our senior school results demonstrate their exceptional progress over seven years. No girl is made to feel there is a ceiling to her ability and the aspirational and enriching academic offering, which develops the girls across a wide range of subject areas, encourages enquiring minds and enables every girl to flourish and succeed as an individual.
Conclusion
Part of the Alpha Plus Group (Now Inspire), Pembridge Hall is an independent girls’ preparatory school set in a residential square in Notting Hill. The school is spread across two impressively large villas located in a beautiful yet elegant area surrounded by stunning architecture. In order to compensate for the restricted parking, the school provides two sets of staff to welcome the pupils at the front door every morning which also benefits the neighbouring Wetherby Pre-Prep, a boys’ only school which also belongs to the Alpha Plus Group. The buildings have enough rooms to easily accommodate all the 450 girls for lessons and extracurricular indoor activities, including an inspiring Science lab, a great music hall, sports hall and a smart canteen. They also have a fantastic drama studio which is in constant use given the fact that the school ensures that the girls are deeply involved in the drama activities and plays from Reception until Year 6. The girls look smart and happy in their stylishly red-ribboned straw boaters as well as the blazer, which must be worn when arriving at the school and whenever the pupils leave the school grounds.
The sports ground is limited and the girls take turns to use it unless they go to Pembridge Square located just in front of the building, which they also share with Wetherby. If there is a major event like Sports Day or other larger fixtures, then they head to a bigger field such as the Paddington Recreation Ground. When this interview took place, a team of netball players had just been to Dubai for an international tournament. The school is very much sports driven and offers clubs like cricket, martial art as well as netball, tennis, and rounders. They have a strong active PTA that manages events, such as bake sales, charity balls, second hand sales and a percentage of this money goes to a fund to help families whose situation has changed and can no longer fully afford the fees. They have been having great exit results for the past few years with girls receiving offers for St. Paul’s, Godolphin and Latymer and South Hampstead School. The best advice to get a place at Pembridge Hall for your daughter is to sign up as soon as possible for a 4+ assessment to start in Reception as they are limited to a three form entry. Even though there is a non-selective test for a 4+ process, any chance place for upper years must be carried out following an English and Maths assessment.
It’s not only Mrs Banks that came across well, all of the staff I met were also very warm and welcoming. It’s definitely a school to check out and have on your list for your daughter.
