Kind at heart – London Park Schools

LPS Clapham’s newly opened site in Clapham South is providing a refreshing approach to education, fostering caring and compassionate global citizens of the future. But it’s not alone; alongside it are secondary schools, LPS Mayfair, LPS Sixth (form) and the newly launched LPS Hybrid which offers a partially remote online education (available in Mayfair only).

On its latest site, Group Principal Suzie Longstaff says, “There was a real need for a new, smaller secondary school in the area with a personalised approach to learning in
a warm and caring environment.”

Susan Brooks, Head of LPS Clapham explains, “It’s very much about finding each individual child’s passion. So, we are deliberately smaller. We will always be a school of no more than 250 students so that we know each child well and can help them maximise their strengths.”

In many ways, the school offers the same scale of opportunities expected at larger independent schools but with the added benefit of smaller classes and a more bespoke education – there are only two forms and 40 students in Years 7 and 8 rising to 60 in Years 9-11, when there is a natural transition to LPS Sixth in Belgravia.

The school’s philosophy is to challenge outdated ideas and to build new and better ways to inspire and engage young people. True to its progressive nature, LPS Clapham rejects the traditional 11+ and 13+ entry exams in favour of what it calls ‘Discovery Days’. Instead of sitting an exam, applicants are invited to take part in fun, practical activities, such as an escape room. “We want to see how children work together and how they think through problems,” says Longstaff.

In the same vein, although exams are a feature of school life at LPS Clapham, they are part of the journey rather than the destination. Brooks explains, “Secondary schools have become very exam driven, and increasingly, the skill set needed for students when they leave education is much broader than what you would get in an examination.”

“Teamwork, building resilience, articulating arguments, asking questions – these are the vital skills we want to support our children with,” continues Longstaff. It is these critical thinking and problem-solving skills that LPS Clapham teaches through its unique integrated learning curriculum, connecting subjects around themes. This approach to learning combines science, technology, engineering, the arts and maths to guide student enquiry, discussion, and problem-solving. “Through problem-solving we teach the soft skills of empathy and resilience too,” explains Brooks.

There are also a host of extra-curricular activities. Students enjoy overseas travel such as a marine conservation trip on a tall ship in Spain and geographical studies in an alpine chalet in France, as well as regular drama and music performances. Students play a broad range of traditional team sports, but they can also try less conventional sports such as climbing, cycling at Herne Hill Velodrome, badminton, basketball and rowing so there is something for everyone. “The benefit of our co-curricular is that every child is involved, not just those that are excelling. It’s about finding the potential in each child,” explains Brooks.

Wellbeing is front of mind at LPS Clapham which provides peer mentoring schemes, counsellors, mental fitness programmes and vertical form groups so that children make friends from all age groups. It also has a strong Special
Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) department and because of its smaller and nurturing environment, teachers can be more flexible in how they adapt to children with differing needs.

Kindness is truly at the heart of this school, which through its personalised learning and big picture thinking is inspiring a new generation of inquisitive minds to be determined, resilient, empathetic, and of course kind.

We will always be a school of no more than 250 students so that we know each child well and can help them maximise their strengths