
3THE GREY COAT HOSPITAL |
BEST PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE
within ourselves. This is the foundation
on which we are able to build a
community where we work extremely
hard while having a lot of fun.
Head girl Elena’s commentary
I have been a part of the school
community for nearly seven years
now, and I can honestly say that The
Grey Coat Hospital is definitely not
any old regular school. Excellence here
is more than just expected; rather, it
is a natural and inherent part of our
culture. I see this on a regular basis in
our sixth-form common room, where
we tell one another about our hopes
and dreams for the future – of going
to Oxford, UCL, the Royal Academy
of Music, or even to southeast Asia to
do humanitarian work. These are only
a few of the plans some of us have
for ourselves, and I truly believe these
aspirations stem from the environment
that has been cultivated here.
This summer, I was fortunate enough to
visit India through my church to support
women and young people within the
red-light district. As a sixth former, I
was offered financial aid through an
initiative called The Grey Coat Hospital
Adventure Trust: a fund set aside to
support students who choose to go on
an adventure. The grant I was awarded
really made a difference to my being
able to participate in the trip. The trip
itself was incredible, and so I am very
thankful. Through this opportunity, I
gained an understanding of the joys
that can come from simplicity. I was
humbled by the individuals I met, who
lived a very different kind of life to
mine, and grew in compassion.
This is an environment in which you
learn that not even the sky is your
limit. As students at Grey Coat, we
ourselves like to say that there is a bit
of a bubble. Not the negative kind that
leaves you ignorant of events in the real
world – most certainly not. We love to
get involved in all sorts, whether that
be raising awareness and donating
to our local charities, often raising
over £1,000, or discussing politics,
listening to external speakers talk about
their amazing experiences, or being
competitive against other schools in
national competitions. No. Rather, in this
bubble you truly believe that nothing
can stop you from achieving what you
want, and the things that try to do so
need only be moved out of your way.
Personally, it had never occurred to me
that I might be discriminated against
in the working world as a woman.
This remained the case until only
a few years ago, because that had
never been relevant to my life. This is
because, here in our school, we build
more than just women of the 21st
century. We build, first of all, leaders,
scientists, philosophers, philanthropists,
debaters, creatives and so much more.
School life can be challenging, and it
is true to say that as students, you do
not always love it. At The Grey Coat
Hospital, you are pushed to be the
best version of yourself, and that can
sometimes mean being faced with
tough love. However, I do know that
my peers and I look back and realise
the extent to which our respective
journeys at Grey Coat have defined so
much of who we are and who we strive
to be. In the future, we will proudly
We want the
students to be
reflective and
active in their
learning
journey,
consciously
thinking about
the impact they
want to have on
the world, and
to think big
“
“
The Grey Coat Hospital
headteacher, head girl
and deputies
» SPECIALISING
IN LANGUAGES
»Progress 8 in 2018
(consistent with
previous years) +0.74
»Progress 8 for
disadvantaged
students +0.47