1st July 2020 — During the second half of the Summer Term, Malvern St James Girls' School created bespoke programmes for Year 13 girls to attend to help prepare them for University and work.

For the final session of her Year 13 Product Design University Preparation course, Chloe introduced Ms Rolfe to the delights of Canwood Art Gallery & Sculpture Park.

It was a wonderful opportunity to take a stroll amongst the incredible artwork, set against the stunning Herefordshire landscape.

Canwood has strong links with the MSJ community, with Indi’s Wave being the most cherished sculpture in the park. Chloe could not have chosen a more fitting venue to reflect on her time at MSJ and contemplate her future at University and beyond.

1st July 2020 — This week Carla, Year 8 who joined Malvern St James from Spain for a year, donated her hair to Mechones Solidarios, a Spanish charity who make wigs from donated hair for patients fighting cancer.

Carla, who had very long hair, chose to donate her hair after watching a TV series about a girl with cancer. While it was being cut she felt really good as she knew she would be helping someone.

After much research, Carla and her mum found the charity Mechones Solidarios and chose to donate her hair to them as they really liked what they stood for.

23rd June 2020 — We're delighted to announce Elena, Year 12 from Malvern St James Girls' School, has been shortlisted for the New College of the Humanities London Essay Competition with her essay titled 'Which problems will economists need to solve within the next 20 years and will artificial intelligence help them?’.

Elena's essay was shortlisted from 5,000 entries the NCH received from around the globe, this in itself is a great achievement. Elena will now attend the online awards ceremony on June 26.

The NCH London Essay Competition is open to students who are currently in their penultimate year of secondary education, Year 12, and who are interested in studying humanities or social sciences at university.

The selection of essay titles students could choose from engages across a broad range of humanities and social sciences topics. NCH looked to receive entries from talented and intellectually curious Year 12 students who showed passion and academic potential in the humanities and social sciences.

13th May 2020 — Malvern St James Girls’ School will continue to move its usual school operation online as it creates its first Virtual Open Morning on Wednesday 20th May. The school offers an invitation to all local families to join us, and learn more about the significant bursary packages it offers, which help children from all backgrounds to attend the school. One in four students currently receives financial assistance and more than 27% of students join the school from the state sector. The school is proud of its friendly and welcoming atmosphere where girls are happy and excel in academic and extra-curricular interests.

MSJ’s size allows it to create a really personal experience for each and every girl. It has been widely praised by parents and pupils for the depth of its online teaching and learning since schools went into lockdown, offering a full timetable, plus Assemblies, Form Time, Clubs and pastoral support. A Level results are top in Worcestershire and girls go on to study at the most sought-after universities. 5% of the Year 13s are holding Oxbridge offers this year.

Bursary assistance of up to 40% of fee levels is available and all students are eligible to apply on a means-tested basis. Scholarships are available to students who excel in a particular subject, whether Art, Academic, Sports and a range of other disciplines. Scholarships carry a 10% fee remission and can be combined with bursaries up to a 40% maximum.

Students looking at entering in the Sixth Form are eligible for The Founders’ Award, the school’s most prestigious scholarship which carries an open fee remission. It is awarded to students who demonstrate all-round excellence and strength in leadership and community involvement. The Award began in 2016, and since then it has helped local girls who have gone on to study Engineering at Oxford and Imperial College London, Medicine at Cardiff, and Physics at Leeds. This year’s Founders’ Award scholarship holder has an offer to study Veterinary Medicine at Cambridge University.

“I couldn’t have been a MSJ pupil without this assistance” says one of our current Founders’ Award holders, whilst a previous holder comments, “Being here has made a massive difference to my educational journey. Before, the cut-off for the school day was 3.30pm, and being able to stay later here has really helped. I can access the Library and teachers when I need to.” The school offers wrap-around care for younger girls till 6pm (later still for Senior and Sixth Form girls) and day girls also get the opportunity to board three nights a term for free.

There is no one ‘type’ of girl who gets the Award – this year’s girls are reading various subjects at A Level and they have a range of interests outside of school. “It’s given us confidence” says one; “it’s brought out our potential and nurtured our abilities and skills”, says another of the three current holders.

MSJ is now the only all-through all-girls school remaining in Worcestershire. Applying for The Founders’ Award is a straight-forward process, and we welcome applications from girls currently in other schools. Please get in touch with the school if you would like to attend the Open Morning on admissions@malvernstjames.co.uk

7th May 2020 — We are delighted to welcome families considering an independent school for their daughter to find out all about life at Malvern St James at our first Virtual Open Morning on Wednesday 20 May, starting at 9:30.

The event allows families to get a real feel for the School from the comfort of their own home. As part of the online Open Morning, you will hear from our Headmistress Mrs Olivera Raraty, Head Girl, Director of Teaching and Learning and Director of Pastoral Care. In addition, there will be a Q&A at the end of the session.

After the group Virtual Open Morning, you will have the opportunity to book one-to-one meetings with Heads of Years and Departments who can answer more of your questions.

While Schools across the UK have closed their doors, the virtual School doors are open at Malvern St James and we are adapting to the "new normal". We continue to deliver outstanding education, and pastoral care through our interactive online learning platform which has been in place since School closures in March.

To register simply fill out the Virtual Open Morning Registration Form on the link below and a member of the Admissions team will be in touch with you shortly.

https://www.malvernstjames.co.uk/admissions/visits-and-open-days/virtual-open-morning

24th April 2020 — Malvern St James, an all-girls day and boarding school in Malvern, Worcestershire, has completed an audit of students’ reaction to the new world of online teaching and learning. The School moved to lessons via Microsoft Teams as soon as school closures were announced in March and has used the Easter break to find out what improvements could be made for the start of the Summer Term.

Some pupils – and teachers – have taken to online learning like ducks to water. One pupil commented, “it’s much more relaxed than normal and in some ways less stressful.” Perhaps not surprisingly amongst the teenagers polled, not having to wake up so early was cited as a plus, as was being able to wear comfy clothes. On a more serious note, other positives about schooling from home include the ability to work at their own pace, being able to access recorded lessons again for revision, and less distractions than being at school. A shorter school day was also a plus (in real life, the school day is from 8.30am to 6pm, including Prep time). Overall students at the all-girls school were positive about being able to learn from home.

Of course, there are some things that are harder to replicate in the virtual classroom. Students are missing being able to do practicals in labs for Sciences (though teachers are working on solutions to this), and technology has been hard to grapple with, even for the digital native generation. WiFi glitches, printer issues and multiple people speaking at the same time on video conferencing: things that most WFH adults will relate to.

Geography, Biology, PE and English in particular have received the thumbs-up with pupils saying that they can hold discussions on topics and follow presentations and activities just as well as in a classroom. Some pupils even claim it is better because they don’t feel self-conscious about speaking. Music and Drama have also received praise, with pupils appreciating a break from their screens and a creative outlet. Cooking in Food and Nutrition was popular for the same reason. In response to the clear need to do something away from academics, Headmistress Mrs Olivera Raraty has introduced ‘Lockdown Boredom Creativity’ which encourages student to do something completely different every day – find something extraordinary in the ordinary - and share it with the school community. After-school and lunch-time clubs will also resume next week with everything from yoga to debating and STEM on offer.

Students have come up with their own ‘to-do’ list of what will help them through the remainder of the lockdown. This includes creating a designated study space, being organised and ready for every lesson, turning up on time, having a planner for each day, and enjoying proper breaks. The Head of Pastoral Care operates a ‘wellbeing tracker’ where pupils log on to say how they’re feeling each week, and are offered the opportunity of help, advice or just a friendly chat about worries.

Teachers, too, have used the Easter holidays to hone their IT skills. They have been working through the survey’s findings, improving and refining the best way to present resources online, sharing ‘how to’s’ with each other and keeping each other buoyant about the term ahead.