18th November 2024
Introductory letter from the Chair of Governors, Sophie Jenkins
I hope this letter finds you well. My name is Sophie Jenkins, and I am writing to introduce myself as the new Chair of Governors at William Ellis School. It is an honour to take up this role, and I commit to supporting our school community and the continued success and well-being of our students and staff. I became chair in September, and it’s been an exciting time at school.
As you know, we had a team of Ofsted visitors in school in October, and we need to wait until they have issued their final report before we communicate the outcome of their inspection, which we expect to be this month. What I can do now is congratulate Izzy Jones, her leadership team and all of the staff in the work they have done in improving the quality of education and the focus on learning behaviours, and it was extremely gratifying to hear recognition of this work from the inspection team based on what they had seen during their visit.
Thank you to the many parents who completed the Ofsted survey and included comments about the positive environment WES provides for their sons in years 7-11, and young people in the Sixth Form. These made an impression on the lead inspector, who spoke about it when we met with him. Thank you too to the WESPA team specifically for their staff-room cakes during the Ofsted visit, and more broadly, for their ongoing and enthusiastic support of the school community.
There have been some changes to our governing body. I thank our outgoing Chair, Selina Skipworth. Under Selina’s leadership, we have refreshed our governing body and how we work, and we are stronger and better for it. Selina and I have swapped roles so Selina is now Vice Chair, and I’m delighted that we continue to benefit from her wisdom and experience working with William Ellis School and LaSWAP. We have welcomed two new governors to our board this term. They are Ian Stanlake who brings a depth of governance and strategic experience and Josh Levitt has been elected Staff Governor. What we do as governors is not always visible, and if you’d like to know more about it, or to be involved, please be in touch.
As part of governance, we review the outcomes for our students and compare them to external data, which we do to understand where the school is doing well and where we need to improve. Exam results are only one outcome of a successful school experience, but it’s usually the one that gets measured and reported, and so here are two examples.
Nationally, the proportion of boys who were awarded a standard GCSE pass* in English and in maths was 63% in 2023. In Camden, it was 62% and for the boys at William Ellis School it was significantly higher, at 71%. It is also remarkable that our boys outperform the national picture for achievement of the rigorous EBacc** curriculum, which includes learning a modern foreign language, by a long way. Over half our boys achieved the EBacc in 2023 when, nationally, fewer than a quarter of boys did so.
These numbers demonstrate that we can be confident when we say William Ellis School is a centre of excellence for boys’ education, and we work together to bring out the best in all our students.
The most touching moment for me this term was attending Mr. Keeshan’s retirement party, recognising his 35 years in school. Listening to the many people who spoke so warmly of his impact on students and the adults in school was inspiring, particularly his dedication to remembering everyone’s name and making a point of acknowledging every student so they feel valued and seen. There were stories too, including pausing a rugby session on the Heath, so that a helicopter could land and offload its royal passengers into their darkened cars.
Five Heads of PE came to the party, which by itself is a demonstration of the magic of WES, and the relationships that grow in this school, between colleagues as well as within the student friendship groups.
As we look ahead, I am excited about the future of our school. We will continue to build on our strengths, and focus on our mission for William Ellis School to deliver leading education for boys in London. We are an ambitious, kind and inclusive school, delivering progress for all.
Thank you for your support, and with ongoing collaboration with families and school, we will continue to make WES a place where boys and sixth form girls can be successful students, build strong relationships and enjoy school.
Best wishes,
Sophie Jenkins
Chair of Governors
William Ellis School
*a standard pass is grade 4 or above in GCSE
**EBAcc stands for English Baccalaureate. The EBacc is a set of subjects at GCSE that keeps young people’s options open for further study and future careers. The EBacc set of GCSEs includes
