Harris Academy Bermondsey

Welcome to Harris Academy Bermondsey. Harris Academy Bermondsey is a girls' school with drive and ambition in the heart of London. Ofsted rated us as Outstanding in every one of their categories in March 2015. We are passionate about making a difference to the lives of our young women, ensuring that they have every opportunity to succeed by identifying and nurturing each one's individual talents.

HAB staff have high expectations of the girls and HAB girls have high expectations of themselves. Our ethos is one of being uncompromising but caring in everything that we do. This is how we have created a happy and safe learning environment, with firm but fair discipline.

All HAB girls know our rules and abide by them. We expect every girl to be dressed correctly, on time and prepared to work hard, always following staff instructions. Our girls always want to live up to these expectations, but on the rare occasion that one of them fails to do so, she knows that there will be clear consequences, followed by support to learn from the experience.

We offer outstanding care and guidance for every one of our girls. In Year 7 for example, as well as her Learning Family Mentor, every girl has one-to-one transition coaching from a former student, while as many girls who need it have additional reading lessons so that they can achieve their academic potential from the beginning of their time with us.

We also guarantee to every parent or carer that we will work closely with them to raise their daughter successfully, sharing the joys and challenges of this with honesty and integrity. This is summed up in the HAB staff motto, “We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen to help their daughters achieve the success they deserve.”

HAB girls work together to live up to the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs. HAB is a harmonious and supportive environment.

Key to this is our Learning Family system, in which every girl belongs to a small group of mixed years, led by a teacher. Starting every day together, the Learning Family members develop strong relationships with girls of different ages and from different backgrounds, breaking down barriers and preventing bullying. Learning Family teachers speak to parents or carers about their daughter's progress and achievements at least once a fortnight

Music is a very important part of life of HAB. All students are offered the chance to study a wide range of instruments, including violin, piano, keyboard, flute, saxophone, clarinet, trumpet, singing, drumming, guitar and bass guitar, through free one-to-one lessons.

Music Scholarships are also offered to Year 7 students who have two instrumental lessons a week, attend workshops with professional musicians as well as seeing live music every term.

Students in Year 8 are introduced to increasingly complex texts and ideas through the widened range of literature studied. Students will develop different writing styles and develop their powers of observation and description, both of people and places, and will become more equipped at understanding and analysing characters. Students will also interact with a greater range of non-fiction texts and develop their knowledge of Shakespeare as they move towards the key transition year of Year 9.

As a sixth former at Harris Academy Bermondsey, you will have the opportunity to build upon everything you have enjoyed here in the past. You will also be able to take advantage of a range of new opportunities, and new ways of learning and discovery, in an environment that you already call home.

Every term, you will be able to choose a Subject Enrichment Course. These are fully funded and provide activities which broaden your interests and experiences.

They range from Politics, Philosophy and Economics to Research Methods, Coding and Art Appreciation. In addition to your Enrichment Courses, students enrol on a student leadership course, ensuring that alongside academic success, students are equipped with the essential soft skills such as communication, collaboration and resilience to ensure their success in the wider world.

As a Harris sixth form, we also have a wide range of partnerships with universities and other organisations. These give our sixth formers meaningful opportunities and access to facilities, contacts, experiences and advice that are simply not found elsewhere.