West London Girls Schools Working Together in UCAS Week


St Augustine’s, Ellen Wilkinson & Sacred Heart share ideas on university applications


St Augustine's School

Three west London girls school have decided to work together to help each other out during what will be a very unusual process of university applications this year.

This week as Ealing schools St Augustine’s Priory and the Ellen Wilkinson School for Girls together with the Sacred Heart High School in Hammersmith join in a week of innovative virtual activities around the process of applying to university through UCAS, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.

The idea for this collaboration came from St Augustine’s Priory, Ealing Catholic independent school for girls, who wanted to open up to other schools their programme on university entrance so that more students will be able to benefit by working together and sharing each other’s ideas and questions.

Mrs MacLennan, Director of the St Augustine’s Priory Sixth Form commented, ‘We are very excited to have been able to get a range of speakers in to help the girls and launch the UCAS process for the year, and particularly excited to have been able to invite students from Sacred Heart and Ellen Wilkinson to join us.’

Aimed at those in Year 12, the week will give the girls at the three schools an introduction to higher education, how to choose universities and courses and life at university. Taster lectures will be available to help students make informed decisions about their next steps with contributors which include speakers from the University of Oxford and the University of Hertfordshire, whose academics are generously giving their time to this project.

Normally, students are able to visit a variety of universities but 2020 sees a new approach with remote visits taking place via Zoom.

Mrs MacLennan added, ‘We are delighted that, despite the current circumstances, we have found an innovative and exciting way to collaborate with other schools and higher education institutions in order to ensure our girls feel informed, empowered and inspired as they prepare themselves for their next steps.’

Mr Jarvis, Head of Sixth Form at Ellen Wilkinson School for Girls commented, ‘This programme will allow our students to gain a wider understanding of the UCAS process and to hear first-hand from leaders in the field’.

June 25, 2020