Samantha Price

With another year of public exams behind us, the education sector continues to navigate its way through the government’s significant programme of reform at GCSE and A-level. These changes are aimed at raising standards, a mission that few would argue with; and in pursuit of this laudable goal, the independent school heads I’ve spoken with are broadly unopposed to the considerable amount of time that we have all devoted in recent years to implementing and adjusting to these reforms successfully.

‘A Complete Education’ is the philosophy by which we live at Benenden. I am frequently asked by parents what is meant by the phrase, especially at this time of year when exams dominate the sector. Certainly, a school’s duty is to fulfil the academic potential of every student – and, as you would expect, our results reflect this very well. However, a good education is about more than just helping young people to achieve strong exam results. As my academic deputy head says: ‘It is important not to mistake a syllabus for an education.’ There is no point in a young person leaving school with straight As if they lack the skills to function effectively in the workplace.