Open Day speech 2023 – Anna – Head of School

Good morning everyone and thank you for coming to our biannual Open Day event at Parsons Green Prep. My name is Anna, and I am one of the Heads of School this academic year. I have been at PGP a long time, in fact since Reception, and over the past seven years I have changed immeasurably, not just in terms of physical growth but also academically and emotionally.

Currently I am preparing to sit my 11+ examinations, something which is a little daunting for my peers and I, but one in which we are supported enormously by our teachers. There are a number of schools which I am interested in and over the next few weeks I hope to narrow my preferred choice.

To me PGP is a welcoming and nurturing environment. It feels like my second home and one in which I can make mistakes and learn from them. PGP feels like a bubble separated from the outside world by the big black gates. Each and every morning when I come into school it feels like I am stepping into a safe and warm place. I believe that this feeling is created by the school ethos of treating everyone fairly and equally, no matter what you believe or where you are from. I also feel comfortable in approaching every adult in the school as I know they will listen and respond in a caring and thoughtful way. Likewise, I enjoy socialising with my peers and as the classes are quite small, I feel it is easy to build meaningful friendships.

I understand that all of you here today have a difficult decision to make in the coming months about which school you would like to send your child to. I hope by the end of your tour today you will see that what I have said is reflected in the school. As a pupil at PGP for the past seven years, the things I enjoy here the most are the following: the varied curriculum that we learn (personally, for me it is a mix between maths, art and STEAM), I enjoy playing netball on the Astro pitch and playground at breaktimes with my friends and each year, from Year 3, we go on a residential, which is super fun.

I hope to speak to some of you during the tour and I hope you ‘feel at home’ at PGP as much as I do. Thank you for taking the time to listen to my speech.