Even in the good old pre-recession days, ensuring that independent schools remained affordable was one of the key challenges facing the sector. 

Fees over the last decade have increased significantly above salaries, and the recession will, if nothing else, redouble the desire of schools to contain fee increases to something more in line with inflation.  
Parents recognise the value of good independent education, but equally they will expect schools to play their part in containing the increases to fees.

Paying appropriately to recruit and retain good staff, improving facilities and managing the demands of increasing regulation whilst, simultaneously, containing fee increases is the dynamic which schools have to master with even greater skill during a recession. 

Roedean has had an atypical year.  In April we merged with St Mary’s Hall, another girls’ school in Brighton, and have acquired an excellent junior school as well as the old SMH senior school site which will be leased to commercial tenants.  In the short term this has added pressure to our finances, but in the longer term it will provide for greater financial stability. 

Notwithstanding such extraordinary events, it is a confident, perhaps blasé, school that does not respect the recession and work to counter its effects. Regrettably, the recession was the final straw for St Mary’s Hall, but I anticipate that such closures/mergers will be few indeed. 

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What do bursars in other independent schools think?

My first day at Roedean was somewhat nerve-wracking, yet exciting. After all, the day I had been looking forward to all summer had finally arrived!

Everyone was very welcoming. But it was a long day, with a lot to take in, and after meeting some of my peers and my tutor, I must confess I left school with a slight headache.

However, after a refreshing night sleep, I left home the next morning, eager and positive about the day ahead, in my smart new uniform.

Today, in a much-loved Roedean tradition, we were to take part in handshaking. This tradition, which takes place at the beginning and end of each term, is the chance for each pupil and teacher to introduce themselves to one another; there were lots of hands to shake.

But just as I was really starting to enjoy school, I had my first visit to the orthodontists to have braces fitted. As you can imagine it was rather frustrating watching my friends wolfing down delicious fish and chips, while I dipped bread into tomato soup.

Feeling rather sorry for myself, I was greeted the next day with a thorough face-licking from Bree, the bouncy house dog, who seemed to realise my discomfort.

We finished the week with team-building on Saturday, where we got to know our fellow students. This fun-filled day was topped-off when we watched our paper-balloons float across the English Channel, heading for France.

All in all, I think I’m going to like Roedean. Now I just have to get used to the braces.
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Watch the senior girls at their last handshaking in July 2009 to see what Bella is describing

There has been impassioned correspondence recently for and against the publication of league tables.

This year Roedean chose not to supply our hot-off-the-press examination data to the newspapers. I took this decision in a year when we gained our best A level results for several years and succeeded in placing girls in a range of prestigious universities.

What’s wrong with league tables?
The system of leagues table is outdated. Put simply, I believe that changes to the UK examination system mean it is no longer possible to provide accurate information based on a simple summary of August results.

For a start, there is no longer just one exam.  Students could be sitting the IB, the Cambridge pre-U, a diploma or the IGCSE. 

Then there is the reliability of the results themselves - re-marks are at an all-time high this year, leading to frequent changes of grade.

Should potential parents be concerned about this?
Not at all. Our view of education - that it is far wider than statistics - is shared by many schools.

Roedean parents are discerning people with a sophisticated outlook. I believe they want a more nuanced sense of our genuinely independent education than that indicated by that bluntest of instruments - statistics.

How can the benefits of a Roedean education be measured?
I publish our full GCSE, AS and A level results on this website. I am happy to provide further detailed analysis of our pupils’ academic achievements upon request. My staff are also in regular touch with current parents to provide them with formal and informal feedback.

However, it is perhaps the creative and purposeful buzz of the campus, combined with the mature self-assurance of our pupils, which is the best indicator of a Roedean education.

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Read the recent correspondence on league tables:

The letter that started the debate - Peter Green, Ardingly School 

For – Richard Cairns, Brighton College

Against – Anthony Seldon, Wellington College 

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