Leadership plays an important role in every aspect of a student’s life at our academy. Students have a huge range of opportunities that further support their life experiences beyond the academic with the aim of enriching their cultural capital, engaging them in citizenship and preparing them for employment. In our modern world, students may face numerous career changes and employment challenges. That is why leadership skills are so valuable when managing challenges, problem solving and analysing career directions.
Within our academy we offer numerous student leadership opportunities, from Year 7 to Year 13 with a focus on developing new skills and attributes, making new friends and crafting a path for the future.
The student leadership structure includes Head Girl, Deputy Head Girls for each Key Stage, Year Prefects, House captains and Form Ambassadors. This enables a chain of communication that can have a direct impact on academy life for the students.
By taking on these roles students can:
We have a vertical House System that leads on a variety of sporting activities, clubs and societies and student leadership opportunities. This enables students to meet and enjoy activities with students from other year groups. House Captains and Form Captains play a vital role in the House opportunities across the academy, which always culminates in a very competitive Sports Day.
The Extended Leadership Team Structure
We also have specific student leadership teams that focus on key areas:
Getting involved in extracurricular activities help our students to create memories that will last a lifetime. The benefits of student leadership include:
Comments from Student Leaders Past and Present
“As KS3 Deputy Head Girl, my role consists of making sure I take account of the student’s voices and concerns. As a member of SSLT, I believe it has enabled me to develop my leadership skills and communication skills so I am able to talk to people from all years. I am able to discuss matters that matter to me and others whilst ensuring I would support the continuous improvement of the school to a high standard. I want to incorporate an enthusiasm to be proud and become a role model for people to look up to. I constantly aim to perform well, as I am influenced by my peers and teachers and believe with the right motivation, anyone can succeed!
I have been able to develop my imagination with this role and be a fluent thinker. I have also portrayed being an enquiring and collaborative person to work with others. I believe I have developed numerous skills, such as time management and organisational skills, which will benefit me in the future.”
Anisha Muir – Former DHG KS3
“I wanted to be part of this team as me being here could make a difference. Not only would it make it difference for others, but it would also make a difference for me and being able to speak up.I could take in different students’ opinions and inputs which could cause a difference to not only them but to others.
I hope being part of the SSLT helps me gain more leadership and a bit more experience with these roles. I hope to gain more confidence near the end of this school year as being part of this allows me to give in my ideas and when giving ideas they are always heard. Eventually, you will realise being part of these roles, you get a big say in some decisions taking place across the school.
I can encourage others to get involved by telling them the different roles that are played as being part of the SSLT. This could get them interested. Another way is by telling them that this is a way they can express their ideas because some people are very passionate about that. This is also a great opportunity to experience because it helps with gaining confidence and develop new skills.”
Tanisha Mukith – Year 7 Prefect
“I applied for the role of the year 8 prefect to make a difference in my school, to help get students voices heard. The main benefit of being a prefect is having the ability to make the students’ voices heard and listened to. By being a part of the SSLT, I hope to develop my skills and become more open-minded. An attribute that I have had to require as a prefect is to be a team player and always be open to new suggestions and ideas. To make others interested in the SSLT I would perform my role to the best of my ability and make it known to others what action is being taken place. This will make students realise how much their opinions are being heard and what is being done to help the students. I hope students may become inspired and perhaps wish to also make a difference in the academy for the right reasons.”
Isha Zaman 8M – Year 8 Prefect
“I wanted to be a part of the SSLT because I wanted to make the school a better place by listening to the students and helping the staff to make beneficial changes to the school.
I hope that the students at this school feel like they are being listened to and that the staff are willing to listen and to make changes to aid our learning.
I will encourage people to share their thoughts and give their advice about issues that they think need to be addressed. Thank you.”
Aminah Tanveer 10E – DHG KS4
“I wanted to be a part of the student leadership team because i wanted to take a more active role in the school community. I wanted to voice the opinions of the students who might not always feel so comfortable sharing their opinions.
From being a part of SSLT I hope to gain key leadership skills and the ability to work in a team effectively. I hope to learn how to make changes, albeit small.
I would encourage other students to join by showing the change and maintenance of the school that we have done so far and showing the good rapport we have built with students and teachers.”
Syeda Samah – Head Girl
