On Saturday 10th July, Tower Hamlets will be running a walk-in clinic for Pfizer vaccinations at Mulberry School for Girls. We are delighted to support our local community with this initiative.
The clinic is for Pfizer first jabs only for anyone 18+ years.
Simply walk-in or call 020 7364 3030 to book.
More information can be found here: www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/vaccine
On Tuesday 6th July, we organised yet another fabulous trip for our parents/carers. We visited the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew. It was an excellent opportunity for parents/carers to experience and see some of the unique species available at the gardens. It was also an opportunity for our parents/carers to meet one another and have a relaxed day out together.
“The trip to Kew Gardens With Sabina and the parents has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Travelled back in time to my childhood and also round the world experiencing the many beautiful differences the world has to offer.”
Bushra Sultana, parent/carer
“It was an amazing day out, though the weather was terrible! My memory goes back to thousands of miles away to my countryside house. While I was walking through the glass house door I was seeing myself, as a child, playing with wild flowers, collecting different pattern of leaves, eating native fruits. Thank you so much in helping me relive my childhood memories and also many thanks of organising such a wonderful trip.”
Farhana Akhter
On Wednesday 31st March 2021, current and former students from Mulberry School for Girls and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School were excited and overjoyed as they joined Mrs Michelle Obama for a 60 minute conversation on Zoom, to celebrate the publication of the paperback and younger reader editions of her bestselling memoir BECOMING.
BBC One’s The One Show aired a package about the event on Thursday 1st April, which was followed by the full release of the event by Penguin on their YouTube channel. Watch the full recording below.
Credit: Michelle Obama/Penguin Random House UK.
“This whole experience is overwhelming. I will take all that I have learnt and use my resilience to continue to push myself out of my comfort zone, so that I am the best I can be, right now!” Synicia, Year 7
Commenting on the event, Dr Vanessa Ogden, CEO and Headteacher of Mulberry School for Girls, said: “At Mulberry School for Girls, students past and present are so excited about the launch of Michelle Obama’s book ‘Becoming’, especially adapted for young readers. Childhood and adolescence are such a formative period. Learning from Mrs Obama – one of the greatest, most inspiring women of our time – could not be more important. Her use of her platform to drive change for girls is critical, breaking down barriers to education and building a sisterhood of young women advocating for each other. Mulberry is deeply grateful to Mrs Obama for her generosity and support for our girls, providing many opportunities for them to have a voice and inspiring them to found Global Girl Leading as a legacy of her relationship with us.”
We will commemorate this significant occasion after the Easter holidays. A special celebration event is planned that will involve all of our students, parents/carers and our local community.
We do hope you will join us in marking yet another momentous moment in Mulberry School for Girls’ ongoing relationship with Mrs Obama.
Download the full press release
Mulberry Schools Trust and Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix host first Mulberry STEM Academy event for its 2021 scholars.
In November 2020, the Mulberry Schools Trust announced an innovative partnership with Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd and the creation of the Mulberry STEM Academy, a Saturday/holiday provision offering an inspirational programme in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) for students aged 7-18 within the Mulberry family of schools and beyond.
Launched by Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff through a virtual event from the team’s headquarters to students from Mulberry Academy Shoreditch, Mulberry School for Girls and Mulberry UTC, the Mulberry STEM Academy provides a specialised programme for young people who have talent, passion and aptitude in STEM subjects, providing them with extracurricular learning and inspirational experiences through vocational training, study and masterclasses.
Over 100 applications were received from students across the three schools for the 20 places available in Years 10 and 12. A rigorous selection process, with interviews conducted remotely adding to the challenge for the young students, resulted in the selection of the first cohort of STEM scholars to win a place on this year’s programme.
On Saturday 27 February, the first exciting event in this year’s programme was launched to provoke excitement, curiosity and a sense of community. The 40 successful STEM scholars, along with CEO, Dr Vanessa Ogden, joined the Mercedes F1 team through a virtual event for an inspirational Careers Talk with Technical Director James Allison, Chief People Officer Paul Mills and four of the team’s Graduates, who volunteered to be part of the stimulating STEM programme. Several former Mulberry Schools Trust students who are studying Science, Computer Science and Engineering at university also joined the event, alongside members of the Mulberry Schools Trust Board.
Designed to introduce the Mulberry students to the team and inspire them as they set out making decisions on their future education and careers, the groups heard from the team’s Graduates about their roles, how their education choices influenced their career paths, and what it is like to work for a World Championship winning Formula One team, taking the opportunity to ask many insightful questions.
The majority of students at the Mulberry Schools Trust are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic and disadvantaged backgrounds, groups which are very under-represented in skilled areas of STEM industries*. Mercedes F1 and Mulberry hope that the establishment of the Mulberry STEM Academy will give students the knowledge, skills, experiences and confidence to move forward into careers in engineering, design and science-based industries, and in turn become the role models of the future for their peers and younger students at the Mulberry Schools Trust.
Dr Vanessa Ogden, CEO of the Mulberry Schools Trust and Headteacher of Mulberry School for Girls continued: “I am delighted with the success of our first event with Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix. Our Mulberry STEM Academy scholars were thrilled to meet the employee graduates, who were all highly aspirational. Imaginations were sparked and ambitions raised, as our students listened to the different educational routes that can lead to a flourishing career in STEM. Our young people deserve the best and we know that exposure to high quality, stimulating events like this will propel them more quickly into exciting futures and desired destinations. We look forward to seeing our students grow in confidence as they progress through the programme over the coming months.”
Paul Mills, Chief People Officer at Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd concluded: “The first event of our Mulberry STEM Academy programme has been eagerly anticipated and meeting this year’s cohort of students on Saturday was the moment that I most looked forward to since we created the concept last year. I am very grateful to the team at Mulberry who have worked so hard and with such determination, on top of the significant challenges faced by all schools over the past year, to enable us to reach this point so quickly; their efforts have been truly remarkable. Together, we have developed a uniquely exciting curriculum for our scholars, designed to ignite their passion for STEM and build confidence and aspirations for their future education and careers. Although we were not able to meet in person, the enthusiasm and ability of the group shone through, and we were also delighted to be joined by several former Mulberry Schools Trust students who are now studying STEM subjects at university, providing further insight and encouragement. On behalf of everyone at Mercedes F1, we are delighted to have begun our programme and look forward to welcoming and supporting the students over the course of this year. Thank you to all involved in the event from the teachers to the students, our team employees and the Mulberry Schools Trust board for their efforts.”
James Allison, Technical Director commented: “I was honoured to be asked to take part in the first Mulberry STEM Academy event this weekend. Having heard from Toto and Lewis about the eagerness and inquisitive nature of the Mulberry students at the November launch, I was very interested to meet the group for myself and find out what has inspired them to dedicate their Saturdays and holidays to further study. I was not disappointed; the commitment and enthusiasm shown and the insightful questions asked, were inspirational. I have little doubt that all of the students we met on Saturday have bright futures ahead of them, but I hope that today’s presentation will have offered them further encouragement to go on to study STEM subjects at university. I look forward to seeing how the STEM Academy programme develops over the next few months and the progress that the students make as they work alongside and within our team.”
*Engineering UK 2018:
9% are of Black, Asian and minority ethnic background; 12% are women; 24% are from low socio-economic background
Download the full press release here.
To keep up to date on all things related to the Mulberry STEM Academy visit the website: www.mulberryschoolstrust.org/stemacademy
Mulberry School for Girls, founding school of the Mulberry Schools Trust, is excited to announce that it has been selected by the Department for Education to become one of 87 Teaching School Hubs in the country.
Launching in September 2021, the Teaching School Hub will be collaboratively responsible for ensuring that teachers from all 173 schools in Hackney and Tower Hamlets have access to world-class teacher development programmes.
The Teaching School Hub will offer training programmes for trainee teachers, newly qualified teachers, early career teachers and leaders. At all levels, teachers will be able to access high quality, cutting edge professional development that is so vital to delivering exceptional outcomes for pupils across Tower Hamlets and Hackney.
Collegiality, transparency and inclusion will be at the heart of the collaboration and innovative programmes on offer. Content will be suitable for every stage, phase and age within the education system. Our colleagues in Early Years, Primary, Secondary, Post-16, Alternative Provision and SEND will all benefit from pioneering, evidence based professional development that will positively impact outcomes in the classroom.
Over the coming months, Mulberry School for Girls will work with school leaders and key strategic partners to build a comprehensive network of teacher development excellence. We will bring together new and existing local expertise, so that we can collectively determine key priorities and implement evidence based outcomes that lead to system-wide improvement.
Dr Vanessa Ogden, CEO of the Mulberry Schools Trust and Headteacher of Mulberry School for Girls said: “The announcement today is fantastic news. Central to the Teaching School Hub’s ethos is professional collaboration to deliver high quality programmes and training. We know pupils achieve better when the staff around them are motivated and highly qualified. We will work together with our strategic partners and colleagues in local schools to ensure that this new provision delivers outstanding programmes that increase teacher motivation, confidence and commitment. We want to attract the best educators to our region and support them to stay. We want them to enjoy their careers and these aims will underpin our offer.”
Ruth Smith, Director of Education at Mulberry Schools Trust, said: “Today’s announcement is a tribute to all of the local schools and strategic partners who supported our application to become a Teaching School Hub. Together, we have the passion, expertise and capacity to deliver outstanding teacher development to teachers and leaders at every stage of their career. Hackney and Tower Hamlets is a fantastic place to teach and we are committed to recruiting, retaining and developing the very best teachers. Our collective ambition is to deliver outstanding educational outcomes for our young people as they deserve the best.”
Ends
For further information, please contact:
Ruth Smith, Director of Education
Mulberry Schools Trust | Email: rusmith@mulberryschoolstrust.org
The latest issue of the Mulberry Schools Trust newsletter is out now!
The feature story is, of course, the amazing November launch of the Mulberry STEM Academy in partnership with Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd. It also includes a summary of the summer 2020 examination results for each of our schools and is packed full of stories and useful links.
We feel privileged to be able to share with you all that our students are doing.
Happy reading!
Richard Street
Commercial Road
London E1 2JP
