Chrysalis
Highgate was founded as a charity. We work hard to make a difference to the lives of thousands of children across London each year.
For the last decade, Highgate’s charitable work has been channelled through our Chrysalis Partnership Programme, which started in 2008 as a Year 12 summer school for just 12 schools. Chrysalis has grown to become a year-round programme involving more than 20 Highgate teachers working on projects with over 50 partner schools across the London boroughs of Haringey, Camden, Islington, Ealing, Newham, Brent and Barnet.
All our partnership work, through Chrysalis, falls into three main categories:
- Academic enrichment
- University preparation
- Careers and employability
‘Staff now work at local state schools as part of community partnership work – outreach is not a box ticking necessity here but an essential part of what it is to grow into a valuing and valuable person’
—Good Schools Guide 2019
Our mission remains the same, whether we are working at early years, primary or secondary level:
- We believe our programme of academic enrichment inspires pupils to want to study at the next level, whether that is primary school to secondary, KS3 to KS4, KS4 to KS5 or at university.
- We hope to foster a sense amongst partner schools pupils that they belong to a wider academic community.
To deliver our robust and rewarding programme, Highgate employs a core Chrysalis team, made up of a full-time coordinator and a member of the Senior Team, and a growing team of Chrysalis Fellows. Our Chrysalis Fellows are former pupils of both Highgate and our partner schools who work as partnership teaching assistants in ‘Year 14’ or after they graduate.
‘When you have so many different diverse people in your community, it is hard to think that only certain people have access here and only certain people have access there. It’s about giving back to the community and being part of it.’
—Sarah Butterworth, Community Partnerships Director
In addition, 25 Highgate teachers from STEM, Sport and Exercise (SpEx) and Music spend 10–50% of their teaching time working on Chrysalis projects. Highgate pupils also work as mentors and participate in many Highgate-based partnership projects.
Highgate’s Chrysalis projects mean we share Highgate’s academic expertise with other schools, whilst broadening our own understanding of our community and playing a richer part in it. We can reach more children, beyond our own classrooms, and help them achieve their full potential.
Our Chrysalis work is a clear expression of Highgate’s commitment to social justice and social mobility.
Chrysalis projects
London Academy of Excellence in Tottenham (LAET)
In 2017, as an extension of our Chrysalis work, Highgate became primary educational sponsor of the London Academy of Excellence in Tottenham (LAET). LAET, is an academically rigorous sixth form in a community where such opportunities are lacking. Tottenham Hotspur Football Club is LAET’s lead business sponsor.
During 2018-19, Highgate provided LAET with the full time equivalent of 6.6 members of teaching staff in English, geography, chemistry, physics, mathematics, art, design technology and engineering, French, Spanish and learning support. Seconding teachers is the principal way Highgate supports LAET. Not only does this make LAET’s budget work, it also embeds the Highgate experience and academic DNA in the classroom itself.
In August 2019, LAET’s first cohort completed their studies and pupils achieved 70% A*-B in their A-Levels. More than half of LAET students won places at Russell Group universities, compared to the 1% of Tottenham school leavers in 2017. Luqman Liaquat achieved an outstanding 4 A* and is at Imperial University studying Computer science, and Nurgul Sahin achieved A*A*A B and is at Oxford University reading History.
In January 2020, 10 pupils from LAET received offers from Oxford or Cambridge University for courses commencing in Autumn 2020.
Chrysalis Accelerator Programme
Looked-after children will have faced many challenges and are likely to need more support than other young people as they make the transition to adulthood. Yet, in most cases, care leavers are not only making that transition at a much younger age than their peers but typically getting less support from their corporate parent than other young people get from their birth parents.
- Read more
For this reason, it is vital to provide support for looked-after children from a young age and give them opportunities to dream big, plan for their future and bridge the academic gaps that often exist between themselves and their peers.
We have a longstanding relationship with the Haringey, Camden and Islington Virtual Schools through the Chrysalis Accelerator Programme. Now in its fifth year, we provide looked-after children from these boroughs with a programme designed to raise aspirations and develop world of work skills, attainment and confidence leading to successful applications to higher education and into work.
Summer schools
After starting as a Year 12 summer school with just 12 schools, Chrysalis has grown to become a year-round programme involving thousands of pupils from over 50 partner schools across London. Below are some of our most popular summer schools:
- Read more
- Our Year 10 summer school aims to provide academic enrichment, access to A level taster material and an introduction to the various further and higher education and careers options available. Pupils who attend regularly return to Highgate for other Chrysalis projects and for our Year 12 Summer School.
- Our Voyages of Exploration Summer School is run jointly by Highgate and UCS, and aimed at Year 4 pupils. Activities complement the provision for Gifted and Talented and Pupil Premium cohorts that schools already offer. Pupils take part in a wide and varied programme, introducing them to new concepts and activities in mathematics, science, an unfamiliar modern language, music and an additional humanities subject, such as history.
In 2018, we were delighted to double the number of pupils able to access this provision, as we welcomed 130 children to Highgate.
- Our Olympic Legacy Summer School is aimed at Year 5 pupils in Year 5 and, like Voyages of Exploration Programme, run jointly with UCS. The focus is on sport and physical education.
In 2018, we doubled the number of pupils who took part, with 60 pupils from primary schools in Haringey, Camden and Islington.
