Here at Benenden we have forged many links within the education sector through a variety of methods, including:
Languages
- Annual Modern Languages days (French, German, Italian, Spanish) held at Benenden for local primary schools, including taster lessons, ordering lunch in French, role plays and with a diploma awarded;
- Outreach teaching of French and Chinese to local primary schools;
- Free-after school Mandarin Club to young linguists in Year 5 and Year 6 in our local primary schools held at Benenden School. If the parents have difficulty with taking their children to Benenden School, we can help with the transport;
- Mandarin Department partnership with Dulwich Prep to host after-school Mandarin Club to pupils in Years 6, 7 and 8. It is free of charge and offered to pupils attending other schools in our local community. Weekly one-hour session during term time every Monday.
Sixth Form and Higher Education
- Careers and Higher Education events are open to local schools to attend;
- Joint Oxbridge preparation of students with Cranbrook School;
- Regular participation by Sixth Form students from Cranbrook School in the Headmistress's Discussion Society;
- Sponsorship and staging of the annual Kent and Sussex Sixth Form Debating Championships and Schools Mace debating. Twenty teams from state and independent schools take part each February. Over 50 schools in Kent and East Sussex are invited.
Other Academic
- Hosting Women in Science and Engineering Conference with state school involvement;
- Hosting Chemistry at Work Day with state school involvement;
- Classics - On Wednesday afternoons Year 13 Latin students from Cranbrook School come over and join us for a joint lesson, to provide them with some additional support.
Kent Academies Network – Universities Access Scheme
In 2013 Benenden joined the Kent Academies Network.
Each year, two students from each participating school are chosen to begin a four year programme of support. The scheme is open to any student currently in Year 9 at one of the Kent Academies who the school identifies as being capable of achieving a very strong set of GCSE results (5 A*s or better) and who has the ambition to apply to a top university.
This support will help these students get into top universities in the UK. In each of the four years of the programme, the group of students will spend one week at Easter and one week in the summer away from their own school on a residential course in Kent. These weeks away will provide an opportunity to strengthen knowledge of core subjects and also provide the chance to experience a range of subjects and activities that will help them develop in other ways – activities in art, music, literature and science for example. As students move into the Sixth Form they will also be given specific help in making an application to university. Additionally, they will be provided with on-going mentoring from undergraduates and teachers and opportunities to work collaboratively on projects over the four years.
There is no cost to the student on the scheme throughout the four year programme. Funding has kindly been provided by The Sutton Trust, an educational organisation committed to the idea of promoting social mobility through education. Educational support will also be provided by Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge University.
