04 Mar 2026

St. Helen’s College, Hillingdon Wins Forfar Education Debating Competition

This week the St. Helen’s College team were crowned the overall winners of the inter-school Forfar Debating Competition in an extremely close final against Brackenfield School in Harrogate.

The St. Helen’s College team successfully argued against the motion ‘If children ran the world it would be a better place’ in the online debate where they clearly and coherently presented a compelling argument and carefully worked together to tackle challenging questions from the judges and the Brackenfield team.

Ten schools from the Forfar Education group across the UK participated in the competition. The final was chaired by Mrs Jo Storey, Country Director UK at Forfar Education and judged by Mrs Jessica Miles, Head of Badminton School, Mrs Caroline Wethey, a retired CoEd Preparatory School Head and Mr Alex Brough, Assistant Director of Education at Forfar Education.

Despite incredibly tough opposition, in the end the St. Helen’s College pupils pipped Brackenfield to the post and were praised by the judges for the breadth and flow of their argument, excellent listening skills, their spontaneous responses to challenging questions and for excellent teamwork.

Ms Green, Head at St. Helen’s College says, ‘This is an amazing achievement, and is a testament to the dedication of the team who worked extremely hard in preparation for the final. We were extremely impressed by their terrific performance in the final and are very proud of them all.’ The team were supported by their Year 6 peers who collaborated and worked hard with the team in rehearsals and during the early rounds of the competition, and also provided valuable support for the St. Helen’s College team on the day.

Mrs Storey from Forfar Education initiated and chaired the competition as an opportunity for pupils to connect across the Forfar community and to support ongoing collaboration. Mrs Storey says, ‘Events like the Forfar Debating Competition do far more than crown a winner, they bring our schools together and give pupils the opportunity to develop confidence, critical thinking and the ability to articulate and challenge ideas thoughtfully.’

St. Helen’s College has a proud legacy of excellence in oracy, a ‘significant strength’ recognised by the ISI in the most recent school inspection report. Pupils are introduced to public speaking from the very beginning in Nursery and as they progress through the school to Year 6 the children have many opportunities to speak and perform in class assemblies, theatrical productions, musical recitals and concerts, and to perform in the prestigious annual speech and singing competitions.

St. Helen's College is a forward-thinking, nurturing prep school and nursery for boys and girls aged 2-11 in Hillingdon with excellent all-round pupil development and academic results. A family proprietor-owned school for 100 years, St. Helen’s College joined Forfar Education Group in 2023. For more information visit the school website www.sthelenscollege.com.

News from Attain | Terms and Privacy

07 Nov 2025

St. Helen’s College Hillingdon Announces New Head

Forfar Education has appointed Ms. Sophie Green as the new Head of St. Helen’s College, Hillingdon. Ms. Green joined St. Helen’s College as interim Head in September 2025 and will become the permanent Head on 1st January 2026.

Jo Storey, Country Director – UK at Forfar Education, says, ‘Sophie has already demonstrated outstanding leadership, warmth, and a deep commitment to both academic and pastoral excellence. Her experience in Preparatory education, including her Headship at Herries Preparatory School and her leadership at Godstowe School, has equipped her with just the right insight and expertise to guide St. Helen’s College confidently into the future.’

Ms. Green says, ‘Following my appointment as interim Head of St. Helen’s College, Hillingdon, I am absolutely delighted to be offered the position on a permanent basis. The welcome I have received from pupils, parents and staff has been truly heartwarming and I very much look forward to working with the whole team to continue the school’s legacy of excellence in the exciting years to come. St. Helen’s College is an amazing school, full of purpose, energy and warmth and it is a real privilege to have been asked to lead it forward into the future.’

Ms. Green began her Headship at Herries School in Cookham Dean, a co-educational setting for pupils aged 3 – 11, before joining Godstowe, a leading Prep school for girls. During her tenure at Godstowe, she successfully guided pupils through the Buckinghamshire 11+ grammar school process and in recognition of her leadership, she was named Tatler magazine ‘Prep Head of the Year’ in her final year. After leaving Godstowe in 2022, Sophie joined her husband, Will, when he took up the Headship at Cheam School in Berkshire. Most recently, she has taken a sabbatical year to spend time with her blended family of five children. She is also a trained and experienced ISI Inspector.

St. Helen's College is a forward-thinking, nurturing prep school for boys and girls aged 2-11 in Hillingdon with excellent all-round pupil development and academic results. A family proprietor-owned school for 100 years, St. Helen’s College joined Forfar Education Group in 2023. For more information visit the school website www.sthelenscollege.com.

News from Attain | Terms and Privacy

13 Oct 2025

St. Helen’s College Hillingdon Celebrates Another Eco-Schools Green Flag Triumph

This academic year, pupils at St. Helen’s College have continued to lead the way in promoting sustainability and raising environmental awareness among their school community, including peers, staff members, and the wider local community. Their exceptional efforts have once again been recognised with the prestigious, internationally recognised Eco-Schools Green Flag accreditation.

At St. Helen’s College the curriculum is especially designed to entwine an Eco overview, with a focus on science and geography in particular, but also including literacy, drama and art. Many extracurricular activities such as 'gardening club' and ‘nature club’ promote practical environmental skills.

Sustainability and Eco awareness are championed in school by a dedicated Eco Team from Nursery to Year 6 who meet regularly to plan and implement green initiatives. The team actively promotes sustainable projects such as ‘switch off fortnight’ and ‘waste week’ across the whole school community.

The school sustainability committee meet termly to discuss actions to continually improve the education, carbon footprint and school environment. Recent projects to support this have included installation of water butts to preserve water use and weighing our food waste daily to reduce overall wastage.

Speaking about their achievements, the Head Sophie Green says, “We are extremely proud to receive the Eco-Schools Green Flag accreditation once again in recognition of our work on sustainability. The Eco Team are passionate about sustainability and are fantastic ambassadors for green projects across the school. This a something we know is incredibly important to our children, and the school community, and it is brilliant that St. Helen’s College is playing its part to improve the environment.”

The Eco-Schools programme, established in 1994, has been inspiring young environmentalists for over 30 years. It has grown into a global movement, with Eco-Schools Green Flag accreditation awarded to schools in more than 100 countries. In England alone, the programme reaches over 1 million young people each year, empowering them to make a positive impact on our planet.

St. Helen's College is a forward-thinking, nurturing prep school for boys and girls aged 2-11 in Hillingdon with excellent all-round pupil development and academic results. For more information visit the school website www.sthelenscollege.com. St. Helen’s College Ltd is part of Forfar Education Group.

News from Attain | Terms and Privacy