Teaching & Learning

My friends at Malvern St James Prep are special because they are always there when I need them. They are always happy to play tag and hide and seek with me. There are lots of activities and I always bet we’re going to have a fun time! There are lots of lovely friendly children and very kind teachers and nice big girls who support me.

I feel happy when girls come to MSJ Prep and it’s nice to have new people in my class. I want to play with them and make friends. Lots of people can come and have fun here and when I came everyone was very kind to me. When I first started here I was worried nobody would want to play with me. I was so nervous on Sports Day but my friends were all cheering for me. It gave me strength and I thought I would probably win the race! But I didn’t, so they just gave me a hug and said “keep going and then you’ll win one day”.

There are lots of lovely friendly children and very kind teachers

 

In our playground, we have a bench we can sit on if we have nobody to play with. If I see someone on the Buddy Bench I say “Will you come and play with me?” and they do. We have all kinds of people here and the better you know a girl the better you become friends – you must always say ‘yes’ to new friends and ‘sharing is caring’. Some friends have blonde hair and some friends have dark hair and one of my friends has lots of freckles. Some friends are quiet and some are noisy like me but all my friends are really nice.

“Riding has always been a huge part of my life – I sat on a pony before I could walk and I have always dreamed of competing at a huge event like Badminton Horse Trials. Malvern St James has encouraged me to carry on aiming for my goal, giving me the opportunity to be part of our competitive riding team. The team is growing stronger each year and we continuously qualify for the national championships in lots of equestrian disciplines. Since being on the

Malvern St James Riding Team, I have learnt more about how to be encouraging, positive, kind, confident and, of course, quite competitive because being on a team teaches you how to work together and support each other, which I believe is very important.

All the girls on the team are so kind and always ready to offer help if you look like you need it. Without fail, you are always given a ‘well done’ at the end of your dressage test or round of jumps. We all want the same thing; to have a great partnership with our horses and try and win! You also create friendships across all the year groups, with people who love the same thing as you do and understand when you say, ‘my best friend in the whole world is my horse’. Sometimes you can feel quite nervous competing in all the top competitions, but walking around in our matching Malvern St James team coats and kit makes you feel positive and united.

Being a Riding Scholar and on the Riding Team is one of my favourite parts about school and makes me proud. I am so glad that our school offers it; a real bonus to all the other busy and fun-packed days we have at Malvern St James!”

Lara, achieved a clean sweep of A*s in Biology, Chemistry and English Literature and an A* in her EPQ about Down’s Syndrome and genetic screening. A bursary scholarship pupil, awarded a place at MSJ in Sixth Form, Lara proved herself academically and is an exceptionally talented chorister.

Lara achieved a Distinction in the prestigious Music Diploma, the next step up from Music Grade 8 and is head chorister at the Worcester Cathedral choir, having sung with them for the past six years. She started her Medicine degree at Cardiff University in September 2019. Lara received the The Founders’ Awards scholarship which recognises girls with exceptional academic, extra-curricular and leadership skills.

Lara joined MSJ for Sixth Form from Gloucester High School for Girls, a maintained-sector school. She feels that already she is reaping the rewards of an independent education:

“Because of my ambition to be a doctor, I wanted good support and opportunities to give myself the best possible chance. There are so many more enrichment activities here. I am a founder of FemSoc (The Feminist Society), and a member of the Medical Society, Debating and MUN.”
 
“Before, the cut-off for the school day was 3.30pm, and being here and being able to stay later has really helped. I can access the Library and teachers when I need to. There are more leadership roles here and as a keen singer, I’ve enjoyed the many opportunities for public performance, such as Evensong at Tewkesbury Abbey.”
 
“MSJ is like a smaller version of university. You are given independence to work to your own schedule and on your own initiative, but all the while knowing that the support network of teachers and House staff is there for you. I feel that I am benefiting from more personal attention and this different approach to higher learning.”

Testimonial

Ms Haw, Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead

“When asked what I like best about Malvern St James I always think of the sense of belonging we achieve in our community. Everyone, regardless of age or stage, is known personally. This sense of belonging forms the bedrock of our pastoral care offer, ensuring that pupils feel they are understood and that they can be their authentic selves, free from judgment or stuffy expectations.

As Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead, I am able to witness the inner workings of our pastoral care systems first-hand, from all perspectives.

Our strengths lie in our relationships; pupil to pupil relationships are founded on acceptance and friendship, pupil and staff relationships are built on mutual respect and we pride ourselves in working collaboratively with parents and other stakeholders.

Malvern St James is saturated with an ethos of respect, compassion and of wellbeing being a priority. Health and Wellbeing underpins all that we do at Malvern St James from strategy building and decision making to day to day operations.

Much of our pupil provision is centred around preventative work. Pupils of all ages throughout the school learn about sustaining their wellbeing in PSHEE, growing their skills and knowledge as they progress through the school. Awareness days, assemblies, Mental Health and Wellbeing Week and other events aim to raise awareness and promote discussion and openness around sometimes challenging issues.

Many of the staff, across all departments, are trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid and our Sixth Form have the opportunity to obtain this qualification in their enrichment options. Keen to role model how social media can be used for good, @msjbuzz provides information, signposting and encouragement on Instagram and Twitter.

We also have robust systems to respond to the needs of those who require additional support. Our bespoke pastoral offer is built around the pupil and their needs and includes one to one mentoring, peer support, Health and Wellbeing Centre, counselling, and supported access to external services.

We were proud to have our work recognised with a Gold Award for School Mental Health which is delivered by the Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools.

Not the sort to rest on our laurels, our efforts don’t stop there. We are constantly exploring new ways and initiatives to build on our established systems and are really excited about launching The Hive, our dedicated wellbeing space at school. Supported by the Friends of MSJ, we are creating a safe-haven where pupils can take time out of busy break areas, attend workshops and run peer support groups.

One of our greatest success stories is our outgoing Pastoral Prefect, Molly.

Molly has navigated all the challenges of growing up, from prep to young adulthood under the wing of MSJ. In her final year, she has given back, providing first class pastoral care and mentorship to her peers. Read on to see how she reflects on the role.”

Molly, Pastoral Prefect

“In Year 12, I applied to be the School’s Pastoral Prefect, aiming to raise the status of the role and of mental health

I set out to offer girls what would have been helpful for me.

I introduced self-care challenges and ran assemblies, even though standing up in front of the entire school was terrifying. I helped to run a Wellbeing week, mentored younger girls and have reshaped the role of Pastoral Prefect, making it a true bridge between staff and pupils.

In turn, staff helped and supported me through the associated challenges, such as being approached with complex situations, maintaining healthy boundaries and balancing the role with my studies and my own wellbeing.

For my Level 3 EPQ I wrote a book about mental health for pupils, outlining warning signs, how to help yourself, how to help a friend and also touching on personal experience. I hope this will leave a lasting legacy, reflecting the pastoral care I both received and contributed to providing as I progress to university to study Mental Health Nursing.”

“Welcome to Malvern St James (MSJ). My name is Hajer and I am delighted to welcome you as an Old Girl and Head Girl of MSJ 2018-2019.

There really is nowhere else where girls are so wonderfully themselves. At MSJ, girls are encouraged to pursue whatever interests they have, whether that’s in Art, Drama, Sport, Music, Riding, Pottery, Coding etc. The list is endless, there is such a large range of opportunities that you can take up, all of which will help to enrich your school experience. That’s just the spirit of the school – Malvern St James is not just a school but a community.

Every experience is one of growth that will contribute to the girl that you become when you leave. While here I can say that there is easy access to different challenges and opportunities, for example, MUN and Drama have really given me essential skills. At A Level, I studied French, Economics, English Literature and Drama. I loved all my subjects but I don’t think I would have loved them so much if I wasn’t studying them at MSJ. All my teachers provided the necessary support and stimulation in order to help me through my studies, as well as helping me to cultivate a deeper interest in my subjects. But even outside the classroom, I never stopped learning. The wide range of different activities and societies are on offer for anyone to try their hand at something new.

Boarding at MSJ was definitely one of my highlights of being at MSJ. It is a great way to connect with different people and understand them better. I would definitely say it awakened my sense of curiosity about different cultures and improved my people skills. The friends you make when you board practically become your family and it’s definitely been one of the best aspects of my school experience, and I just love knowing that I have friends for life as a result of being here.”

Mr and Mrs Williams – Daughters Year 8 and Year 9

“Upon reaching a decision point for an extended ‘second’ career in the Army, as a family we recognised that opting for boarding school for our two daughters would be a critical enabler. A future move was inconveniently forecast to coincide with our eldest starting GCSE’s. My wife has also worked in defence, so her employment can usually synchronise with mine.

Due to a previous overseas posting we were unable to visit potential schools and rationalise our choices when selecting a ‘forever’ school. Our eldest daughter started at an extremely large local comprehensive school in Year 7 on our return to UK. Our collective experience of this setting has since, only galvanised our decision of why we opted for boarding in the independent school sector, specifically MSJ.

We chose MSJ primarily due to a glowing recommendation from family friends who are also a fellow military family.

If it was dealing with those early homesickness woes, to managing the inevitable occasional fallout between girls amicably, right through to the outstanding level of tuition that also continued faultlessly during the pandemic. The latter saw a full MS Teams timetable of education executed within days of the first lockdown utilised both at home and centralised in a boarding house ‘bubble’. The girls dipped in and out of boarding as my operational commitments dictated if I was unable to work from home, all only possible with the support of MSJ.

Opportunities at MSJ? Well, I don’t even know where to begin and just too varied and wide in scope to list here, the MSJ ethos of developing young women in all areas not just academically is certainly evident

Moreover, the single setting at MSJ suited our girls, where other schools we shortlisted had geographically separate prep and secondary settings, which for our eldest felt like a step back having already completed Year 7 in a regular secondary. Additionally, separation of the sisters was something else that would only add unnecessary worry.

Our daughters are both soon to complete their second year boarding at MSJ, 7 & 8, 8 & 9 respectively, and we highly commend the entire team for making the girls feel at home!

Even during the pandemic with MSJ participating in numerous extra-curricular digital events too, some globally. Our youngest daughter was a nationalist finalist in TeenTech awards with the project and prizegiving all completed virtually.

Both girls now view MSJ as their home, as we are inevitably about to be assigned somewhere new again, for us with wider family support nearby, it really completes the package.

The sporting opportunities, extra-curricular activity and the caring, loving nature of the boarding houses all set in the fantastic surroundings of the Malvern Hills really makes MSJ the independent boarding school of choice. In summary, the academic and boarding provision at MSJ completely alleviates most if not all of the concerns and worries of what it is to be a military family!”