By Sophie Grubb

THE leader of an illustrious Oxford school has looked back on a whirlwind 18 months since stepping to the helm.

Emma-Kate Henry has reflected her first full year since becoming principal of d'Overbroeck's school in North Oxford, which is currently in the midst of expansion.

During her first few months in post the school opened a new state-of-the-art Sixth Form Centre in Banbury Road, and neighbouring boarding house.

She said: "What’s been exciting for me is that rapid pace of change.

"We are in a growth phase and we are planning to grow a bit further."

The new centre includes a hall named after Mrs Henry's predecessor Sami Cohen, who led the school for more than 20 years having joined as a teacher in 1979.

Mrs Henry said she was 'lucky' to have worked alongside Mr Cohen during the transition between principals, which came after Mr Cohen retired and said the school should have 'fresh supplies of energy and vision'.

Despite the sparkling new facilities and fresh leadership, however, Mrs Henry said the ethos and quality of teaching at d'Overbroeck's has stayed constant.

She added: "As a head you can’t lead in an environment in which you do not embrace the philosophy.

"The environment and the culture of the place - the academic rigor and social informality - seems to suit people.

"Quite quickly [after joining] students feel as though they have been here for ages."

The principal enthused about the wide range of nationalities among the school's population, which allows students to learn from each other about different countries, cultures and languages.

The co-educational day and boarding school is made up of three sections on different sites in North Oxford: Years 7-11, the Sixth Form, which makes up about half of the school's population, and the International School.

There are currently about 600 pupils on the school's roll, which is set to grow further in the next few years.

Despite this, class sizes are usually kept to a maximum of 15 students up to Year 11 and up to 10 students in the Sixth Form and International School.

The school was founded in 1977 just as a sixth form, but has since extended its age range to welcome youngsters aged 11-18.

In September 2017 all sixth form teaching moved to its new site at 333 Banbury Road, and the d’Overbroeck’s International School moved into the Swan Building, previously used for sixth form teaching.

Mrs Henry said that, despite being relatively new compared to other schools in Oxford, d'Overbroeck's has built a solid reputation in the space of a few decades.

She said: "Teachers are the best thing about the school. They are completely driven with a passion for their subjects.

"Teachers here like working with young people and have an absolute desire to engage other people with their subjects."

Students are on first-name terms with staff throughout the school, do not wear uniform in the sixth form, and learn in a manner Mrs Henry describes as a 'collegiate way'.

She said: "I don’t believe respect is demanded just because you are a teacher - students see them as human beings and learn from them.

"Teaching and learning is a symbiotic experience."

She said students not only gain fantastic achievements at the school but have ‘fun and laughter’ along the way.

Mrs Henry added: “The Independent Schools Inspectorate said we are full of energy, laughter and achievement - it’s true.

“The humanity and compassion around the school mean it’s a brilliant learning environment.

"Staff enable students to be self-motivated, go to great destinations and have fun along the way."

Mrs Henry’s own son is in Year 8 at d'Overbroeck's, so she has come to understand the school as a parent as well as a staff member.

She said: “With my parent hat on, I couldn’t want anything better for him.

"He really enjoys the teaching and learning here and trusts teachers to do their best for him."

Though Mrs Henry attended St Catherine’s School in Surrey as a girl, she said she always wanted to work in a range of schools rather than just in the private sector.

After reading English Literature and African and Caribbean studies at the University of Kent, she began working in IT recruitment but admitted that 'wasn't my bag'.

She then retrained as a teacher and gained a post-graduate certificate at the Institute of Education in London.

Mrs Henry, who lives with her son and husband, a former athletics coach, said: "I secretly always knew I wanted to be a head, as it’s a good opportunity to really think about how schools can shape the lives of young people.

"I worked in Kingston in Jamaica for a year as a teacher, and worked in schools quite different from my own.

"I took a very deliberate route through different kinds of schools and had the opportunity for leadership quite early on, both pastoral and academic senior leadership."

The head worked in London schools, both state inner city and independent, then as a deputy head at an independent school in Hertfordshire.

She served several years as principal of an independent school in Hampshire, before joining d'Overbroeck's in July 2017.

Mrs Henry said: "Every school has different challenges.

"There is a misnomer that just because you are at an independent school, you have it easy.

"It doesn’t mean you are ‘fluffy’ if you lack a formal hierarchy - it’s a more modern way of approaching the needs of young people."

She said a key aim for the school is to 'instil a deep love of learning'.

Mrs Henry added: "It comes back to having those amazing staff who just love their subjects and like working with young people, who encourage self-confidence and independence.

"We want students to feel comfortable asking questions, to have a sense of curiosity, engendered by those relationships.

"We have a genuine interest in the individual - it’s that intangible effort that means students will dare to try new things."