Co-Curricular

Opportunities

Music at Benenden is highly regarded, supported and valued and holds a privileged place at the heart of our School. Our musicians are given unique opportunities to harness their love for music and to develop their skills and interests.

The Centenary Buildings, which opened in 2022, are perhaps the most impressive musical facilities of any school in the UK. The Music School adjoins the beautiful Rose Garden and comprises 26 bespoke teaching and practice rooms, IT and recording suites and a percussion studio. The rooms are precision sound engineered according to their instrumental use and are equipped with new Yamaha grand and upright pianos.

The 100-seat Recital Hall is used for rehearsals and informal concerts, whilst the 650-seat Centenary Hall is a hugely inspiring place for music-making of all varieties. It also serves as a popular venue for public concerts, giving Benenden musicians access to performances and masterclasses by musicians of the highest calibre. Recent visitors include Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Jess Gillam, Angela Hewitt, the Britten Sinfonia, the Philharmonia Orchestra, and the Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Band.

Benenden offers opportunities for every kind of musician – from dedicated Scholars to those for whom a weekly lesson or choir practice is a welcome distraction or respite within a busy schedule, supported by a team of 26 outstanding teachers who are top class performing musicians in their own right.

Beyond individual lessons, there are countless ensembles, large and small across all seven year groups. The main instrumental ensembles – the Symphony Orchestra, Concert Orchestra and Jazz Band are supported by the clarinet, flute, percussion and brass groups, as well as numerous bands and Chamber ensembles.

There are three main choirs: the auditioned Chapel Choir, the Chamber Choir and Lower School Chamber Choir. Chamber Choir leads many School events such as the Carol Services, while the Chapel Choir regularly performs out of School, sings Evensongs in London and with leading boys’ schools, and embarks on international tours, most recently to Spain and Portugal.

The ensembles give two or three major concerts each year in School, and students also regularly perform outside Benenden. Notable UK venues in recent years have included The Savoy Hotel, the 606 Club, Canterbury Cathedral, St George’s Chapel Windsor Castle, St James’ Palace, Westminster Abbey and St Paul’s Cathedral.

We strongly encourage you to visit the School to see what makes the Benenden musical scene so special.

The Drama department at Benenden School is professional, vibrant, and innovative. A passionate staff of teachers and drama practitioners work effectively as a team to ensure the creativity and passion of the young people at Benenden is fully realised.

We are incredibly fortunate at Benenden to have both a multi-purpose Theatre and two excellent professional sound and lighting technicians. Factoring in a superbly resourced costume and props department and state of the art sound and lighting equipment, the only limit the students have in the work that they wish to create whilst studying at Benenden is their own imagination and dedication.

The Drama Department offers a wide range of Co-Curricular activities including:

· Regular theatre trips to London and surrounding venues
· Workshops with professional theatre makers/companies
· Speech and Drama teachers with industry experience who offer TRINITY and LAMDA exams
· A rigorous Drama Scholars’ Programme
· The opportunity to study Ballet or Rambert Grades – Contemporary Dance
· The chance to perform in both Senior and Junior plays

Benenden is a sporty school; students and staff embrace their love of sport – team or individual.

Once at Benenden, your daughter is encouraged to take part in a range of sports. Our main competitive sports are lacrosse, netball, tennis, swimming and athletics. We offer Performance and Development Squads in order that we provide opportunities for as many girls as possible to play competitive sport against other schools and clubs.

We are also proud to be an official Area Hub in partnership with London Pulse Netball, one of the UK’s most exciting elite Netball Superleague teams, providing students with inspiring pathways and opportunities within the sport.

In addition to these squads, we also offer external competitive opportunities in hockey, squash, football, skiing, cricket, fencing, trampolining, cross-country and equestrian. Fixtures take place on most Saturdays and also mid-week depending on the sport. Lacrosse, netball and swimming are our major sports in the Autumn and Spring Terms, and tennis, cricket and athletics are our key sports in the Summer Term.

However, we also have matches in all other sports throughout the year too, with some tennis played in the early part of the year, and hockey, squash and football featuring mainly in the Autumn and Spring Terms. We have a huge variety of fixtures for teams, particularly in the major sports of lacrosse and netball with continued development of fixtures for C and D teams in lacrosse, and E/F teams in netball.

Internal competition opportunities are also provided for the girls in badminton, swimming, tennis and squash. We also run a thriving Inter-House programme, with a plethora of sports activities and various fitness/pool-based challenges. A number of specialist activities are also offered on a paid extra basis.

We are one of the few girls’ schools in the UK to run a CCF contingent, which we offer in collaboration with The John Wallis Church of England Academy – giving students the chance to develop personal responsibility, leadership, and self-discipline through a military approach.

Dozens of girls complete the Bronze DofE Award each year and we are pleased that some progress all the way to achieve the prestigious Gold Award. Practice expeditions take place in the School grounds as well as further afield to locations including Wales and the Lake District.

Esports has typically been an area in which girls are significantly underrepresented, but the Benenden Valkyries are changing that. Founded in February 2023, with students building the gaming PCs themselves, the team went on to win the Girls’ Schools Association’s Esports pilot, the first competition of its kind. From one team and one game, Esports at Benenden has grown into a full competitive programme, fielding multiple teams across multiple titles in the Official British Esports Federation Student Championships.

Today the Valkyries train in a newly refurbished Esports Suite, wear uniform and merchandise designed by the team through a partnership with ESK Gear and play friendlies against schools nationwide, all while still competing at the top level in the official championships. More than just competitive fixtures, it has grown into its own close-knit community, and is now one of the leading names in girls’ Esports in the independent sector.

Many girls complement their sports lesson by using the Fitness Gym and taking part in our many fitness classes throughout the week. SPLASH, our sports complex, is very much like a sports centre with bookable classes, lane swims, clubs and activities that go on from 7.00am until 9.00pm most days for girls and staff.

The grounds are full of girls playing competitively, practicing independently and exploring the surrounding woodlands and making use of the outdoor trim trail.

We are fortunate at Benenden to operate on a site of 250 acres, which offers plenty of opportunities for enjoying the outdoors. For example, the firepit in the woods is a popular location for House gatherings, especially when accompanied by hot chocolate and s’mores! There are also a series of running routes through Benenden’s woodland.

Benenden is proud to play an active role in supporting local community groups and schools.

Benenden is a co-sponsor of The John Wallis Church of England Academy in Ashford and the two schools work incredibly closely together. Perhaps the most prominent partnership endeavour is the vibrant mentoring programme in which Benenden Sixth Formers offer exam and revision tips to their counterparts at John Wallis who are approaching their GCSE exams.

As part of the Volunteering Programme, Benenden sets aside dedicated time on a Tuesday afternoon for the Sixth Form to volunteer at some of our local organisations. Examples include girls helping at four local primary schools, where they help pupils with reading and assist classroom teachers; socialising with residents at Bowles Lodge in Hawkhurst; running an onsite Memory Café; helping with activities with the Tenterden Social Hub and assisting in the Benenden Pre-school.

Sixth Formers also work in Benenden’s, the village community shop, which the School bought in 2015 and is now an extremely successful local amenity.
Benenden supports the Kent Academy Network, in which teachers voluntarily run lessons during the Easter and Summer holidays as part of a university access programme for students from state schools.

In recent years, Benenden has set up the Wealden Hub of local schools, where we are able to bring together primary and secondary schools to take part in a varied programme of events, from Shakespeare performance and Early Career Teacher conferences, to Science Conventions and orchestral workshops. Benenden collaborates closely with our local network of schools and charities to provide support and opportunity for the community.