News

I was recently asked by a prospective parent what was meant by the term "Southbank, A School Without Walls".

I explained this can be seen in the mindset of our community, being open-minded to new people, new families, new children, new approaches and new ideas. Being "A School Without Walls" is a key disposition that allows us to challenge our thinking towards improvement. 

As a community, I see how we open our hearts, minds and arms to new people each school year. Staff on professional development opportunities are challenged and made to think about improvements in their practice. We offer an open door to hear from our community about things we are doing well and things that we need to tweak and improve upon.

"A School Without Walls" also refers to how we use "London As A Classroom". Children regularly visit museums and places of interest in the city that connects to their Unit of Inquiry. We regularly invite guest speakers into school, enhancing the children's learning by extending their knowledge and understanding of a given subject. Using London in this way allows our children to make meaningful connections, to have experts speak about their subject area and so increase understanding.

By Helen O'Donoghue, Southbank Hampstead Principal