Welcome and Ethos

Please find here the Leathersellers' Federation of Schools vision and values 

• Prendergast School is a small inclusive girls’ school with a mixed Sixth Form. Young people from our diverse local community receive an exceptional education in a safe, stimulating and supportive learning environment.
• We have high aspirations for our students and believe they all have the right to succeed both academically and personally. An ambitious, inclusive curriculum equips them with the knowledge and skills to be successful in the modern world.
• We celebrate and promote creativity including exceptional opportunities in music for our young people.
• Prendergast School provides high-quality teaching through our enthusiastic and highly committed teachers. Our staff are positive role models who support and foster a love of learning in our students, enabling excellent academic outcomes.
• Prendergast School is a place where people are valued, thrive and make positive contributions. This is achieved through the strong relationships shared by all members of our community, built on the foundations of Truth, Honour, Freedom, and Courtesy.
• We are proud to be part of the Leathersellers’ Federation of Schools, and through collaboration we believe that we are stronger together.

Welcome to Prendergast School.  It is an honour and a privilege to be Prendergast School’s eleventh  Headteacher and to work with staff, students and families.  Staff here are passionate about ensuring the very best opportunities and education for all students.  Our motto and ethos is ‘Truth, Honour, Freedom and Courtesy.’  We are all on the same side, working to support all students to excel.  We take pride in building strong relationships with students and their families.

We have a long history of providing exceptional education to young people.  We were founded in 1880 as Prendergast Grammar School for Girls on a site in Catford provided by the Leathersellers’ Company, which then funded the school’s move to its current site in 1995. 

We are now part of the Leathersellers’ Federation of schools, a group of three secondary and two primary schools as well as Prendergast 6th Form.  We are very fortunate to be part of the Federation and receive a lot of support from the Leathersellers’ Company, that helps our students succeed.

We are very proud of our last Ofsted judgement of Outstanding in all areas, our third Outstanding judgement in a row. We are described in the most recent report as ‘exceptional’ and having ‘exemplary attitudes to learning’ across the school. We do achieve great academic results at Prendergast School (more information is on the website).  However, as a parent or carer you also want to know that your child is happy and safe.  This is very important to us and we pride ourselves that students feel confident in school and thrive under our care.

It is important that when students leave after their time with us that they do so as well-rounded individuals who have had many different experiences, able to overcome challenges and most importantly to learn from their mistakes.  It is important that students get involved in school life as much as possible. We have a wide range of extra-curricular activities and we do encourage all students to get involved.  We expect all students to attend school journeys.

Communication is very important to us.  We always like to know what we do well and what we can improve on further.  We ask students and families to get in contact with us if there is something that they would like to ask or raise with us. 

Entrance criteria are in the Admissions Policy and Prospectus. We are non-selective but do offer 10% of our places in year 7 to students with a particular aptitude in Music. We also have a fantastic Sixth Form and I would encourage you to spend some time looking at this provision on the website.

Kelly Lovegrove

Headteacher