Friday 18th September 2020

This morning we ‘welcomed’ over two hundred to our webinar Open Morning, and felt glad to be able to talk about how positive and cheerful our School community has been in these past three weeks of the new term.  With gloom and anxiety all around, it continues to be remarkable that the girls come into School each morning with such energy. As an example, one hundred new Year 7 girls travelled to Wimbledon Common today, full of excitement at the prospect of a day of team-building through the Exploration Society outdoor adventure programme.  For some this will have been quite daunting but I think by the end of it new friendships had been formed and all the girls understood the ethos of FHS – to build brave and resilient young woman whose creativity and compassion change the world around them for the better.  

Meanwhile our Upper Sixth have been in exams all week, consolidating the learning they have gained during the months of lockdown.  All our senior pupils have been noticeably focused and serious in their approach to their learning, in fact.  Time is of the essence and we don’t want to waste a single day when we don’t know what the future holds.  I am in the process of meeting with all the Year 11 students in small groups, and it is clear that quite a weight hangs on their shoulders as they face their mocks after Christmas.  Having said that, they are displaying an unusual maturity which shows that the pandemic has given them a rare perspective on their lives.  The teenage years are difficult enough anyway, but this health crisis has put them under pressure we can barely imagine.  Our girls are particularly resilient in the main, but some are struggling.  I have been reading Caitlin Moran’s new book ‘More than a Woman’ and I highly recommend it to you for its insight into where we can go wrong as parents of teenagers.  We are either not giving them enough attention or we are giving them too much (of the wrong sort).  ‘All I want is for you to be happy, darling,’ we say, as we shower them with treats, activities and presents which we think will lift their sadness.  We love them so much and we think that by giving them nice things we will take away their anxiety.  But we can’t ‘fix’ our children.  We can’t ‘buy them cheerful’. What we don’t realise is that on top of fearing that animals are going to be extinct, the oceans are full of plastic, the sea levels are going to drown them, the forests are burning and we are all going to be killed by a pandemic, our children now feel they are responsible for our happiness too.  And we are the ones who have screwed up.  We were gifted so much of this world’s wonderful resources and we have squandered it.  What have we left the next generation? No wonder our children become anxious and depressed.  No surprise they become angry and rebellious.  Instead of trying to jolly them out of their sadness, perhaps we need to be still and just listen?  Maybe time and humility are what our children need from us?
 
But let me concentrate on the positive.  The girls have been loving this beautiful weather and have been happily walking down to Battersea Park for their PE, gaining more than their usual physical exercise.  Our co-curricular clubs have started and an astonishing 289 girls in the Senior School have already signed up for clubs and activities, including 114 for Speech and Drama, 60 for debating, 29 for Cricket Club and 59 for Art Club – and let’s not even start on Animal Club….  Music lessons and choir have also commenced with special measures in place.  The fact that we are keeping the creative side of the School going with such enthusiasm is a credit to our staff and to the girls’ wonderful ability to ‘seize the day’.  Whilst we can, we are packing in the learning and the growing.  Subject clinics are in full flow. 
 
So far we have been very fortunate that we have had no confirmed cases of Covid-19 and therefore your child is very unlikely to be at risk in this environment at the moment.  Of the schools which have had an outbreak, it has originated in parents who have infected their children.  There is, however, a cold virus going round the School and many children and a few staff have succumbed.  It’s good to remind ourselves that a sore throat and runny nose are not symptoms of Covid, so unless your child is particularly unwell she should continue to come to school and does not need to isolate or be tested.  A high temperature out of the blue is a concern and needs action if it doesn’t abate quickly, but children often run a slight temperature with a cold.  Covid19 is apparent in a persistent (for up to an hour) dry cough not the chesty cough which often accompanies a cold.  The advice we have been given is to wait two or three days before seeking a test if your child has the usual cold symptoms.  A sore throat usually turns into a cold and then it is simply a question of applying the usual remedies.  We are desperate to keep the children learning as long and as much as we can.  The situation with test and trace is appalling, and all heads are incredulous at the poor preparation for the return to school.  We are all trying to keep our schools going and provide the vital education for our children.  That we have to do this with so little apparent support is more than disappointing.  Still, we battle on, doing out best to maintain morale and keep everything calm.  It is remarkable, given the circumstances, how much fun and laughter there is in the School.   
 
I mentioned last week that we are intending to install air filtration units which remove 99.999% of coronavirus from the air and have been deeply grateful to the generosity of a parent for supporting this plan.  A global report on the system we hope to use is due in the next day or two, and we are putting in the first units next Wednesday 23rd.  Meanwhile, it is our intention to support the installation of this system in St Barnabas Primary School whom we partner, and, again, I am deeply grateful for those parents who have indicated they would like to support this initiative.  Please do get in touch with me if you would like to be part of this programme. 
 
I also mentioned in my last newsletter the bus service which some enterprising parents have set up for the Lower School pupils.  We have just had a presentation from the company which provides the services for all the GDST schools and we are exploring the introduction of a school-wide service.  To assess demand and need, we will be conducting a survey and analysis shortly.  We certainly wish to keep our children safe, whilst also cutting down on air pollution caused by car traffic.   I have been concerned by the apparent rise in pupils arriving to school in private cars this term, but I fully understand the conundrum for parents.  Many of our staff are now cycling to school but we simply don’t have the space to provide more bike racks.  There are racks in Orange Square, of course, at the bottom of Bourne Street, and there is a Santander bike rack there, only 50 metres from the School.  Meanwhile, please be careful as you drop your children in the morning.  Although there is a big KEEP CLEAR sign on the road, please ignore it in the morning and park close to the kerb.  For those of you who are new, do note that the Office can give you a ten-minute parking permit on any yellow lines around the School.
 
Finally, next Wednesday we have our Sixth Form Information event for external candidates at 6pm and on Wednesday morning we will be speaking to our current Year 11s about the exciting transition to Sixth Form. We are seeing a big surge in interest for our Sixth Form which is unsurprising given the amazing new building they will occupy from January, our continued excellent exam results, and the social impact our girls have as they volunteer locally.  The refurbishment of the Old School House is going really well and the space is going to be very exciting.  It allows us to roll out our vision for ‘more than a school’, a bridge to the community, to the world of work and to enterprise.  If you have any friends interested in the Sixth Form for their daughters, do tell them to register for a wonderful (online) insight into our new centre.
 
As we look ahead, the immediate future concerning Covid restrictions is looking increasingly bleak.  It is likely that further measures will be announced and I will be writing accordingly.  We are keeping things going as long as we can.  Thank you, as ever, for your trust and support. 

Mrs Lucy Elphinstone
Headmistress