News Category: Seniors

A 21-year-old former Benenden School student who is competing at the Winter Olympics has urged other young people to follow their dreams. Eloise King (Ma/E2023) was the flag bearer for the Hong Kong, China team in Italy, where she is competing in the Women’s Slalom next week – in what will be her final race […]

A statement from Ms Rachel Bailey, Headmistress of Benenden School: It is with enormous sadness that I announce the death of Janet Allen, who spent nine years as Benenden’s Headmistress in the 1970s and 80s. Miss Allen succeeded Elizabeth Clarke as Headmistress in 1976 and during her tenure she oversaw a period of significant transformation, […]

Congratulations to recent Benenden Senior Alice, who has begun reading Classics at Exeter College, Oxford, where she has also been awarded a Choral Scholarship. We are so pleased that, having relished all the concerts, services, recordings, trips and tours over her seven years at Benenden, Alice will be further developing her singing in such an […]

The parents of Sacha Stephen N1981 and Susannah Stephen N1977 endowed a fund in memory of their daughters which serves to assist Seniors either in their Gap Year or soon thereafter. Here recent recipient of The Sacha and Susannah Award, Bella Rennie N/O2024, describes the incredible opportunity the award gave her: As part of my […]

Recent Six Two (Year 13) leaver Olivia, whose outstanding performance in the Biology Olympiad ranked within the top four in the UK, was invited to the Philippines this summer for the International Biology Olympiad. Representing the UK against competitors from 75 different countries, she did remarkably well and came away with a bronze medal. Reflecting […]

In the latest edition of The Senior publication, Rhiannon (Jones) Holmes (Ma/L1999) writes about the impact her time at Benenden has had on her career in broadcast journalism. I didn’t know it at the time of course but the choices made in my final years at Benenden were instrumental in shaping a future career. A […]

Helen Spencer, E1993, shares her deeply personal story of pushing limits in a challenge to ski to the South Pole while facing grief, and credits the Benenden spirit of commitment and endurance in helping to overcome many challenges. The katabatic wind howls across the vast expanse of the Polar Plateau; and with no mountains to […]

Benenden students were joined by their Tonbridge School peers for an Oxbridge Taster Day this week. They had a talk from Owen Walding of Oxbridge Applications about applying to Oxford and Cambridge and what these universities are looking for, followed by Oxbridge-style tutorials or workshops in their chosen subjects. Thank you to Seniors Roya Power […]

We have the terribly sad duty today of announcing the death of Gillian duCharme, the charismatic former Headmistress who is surely one of the most important figures in Benenden School’s history.  In 1985 Mrs duCharme became the fourth Headmistress at Benenden and led the School until 2000.  She was educated at Girton College, Cambridge and […]