Old Palace has a fine reputation, and it is important to remember that it is linked to the fine reputation and deep pockets of the Whitgift Foundation. Trinity and Whitgift School are its brother schools and Old Palace benefits hugely from these relationships. My daughter came to Old Palace on a scholarship and a music award, and was also awarded a bursary as an alternative option to the scholarship. The school is outstanding academically: just this week a girl was given a provisional place at Oxford to study medicine. My daughter is in the 'pre-med' stream where she is under the special tutelage of a PhD biology teacher specially tasked to get OP girls into medical careers. Last year 5 girls received offers for medicine (the Sixth Form cohort was 45 girls).
Old Palace staff are happy, and have excellent reputations and long years of service. The grounds of the senior school are on a Grade I Listed historic sight, attached to Croydon Minister. It gives shivers to walk around the buildings knowing Elizabeth I slept in one of the classrooms, and the chapel was visited by a long list of royals as they progressed towards Canterbury.
The school is friendly and my daughter has never felt there to be any cliques -- she says the small class sizes and year groups means they are friends across the year group. There is a quiet pride amongst the girls at Old Palace: they are intelligent and dignified. No sloppy behaviour. Many of the girls are first generation born and raised in the UK and their parents have especially high aspirations of their children. I like that the parents are motivated for their children to get a firm educational footing towards high professional success: I have seen no complacency. They know it takes hard work to make it in our culture, and this message is transmitted to their girls.
The head is conservative but kind, and this is well received by the parents. She is always available day or night, and holds special Saturday surgeries for 'drop in'. The Sixth Form Head, Mr Talleux, is a dream. He is adored by the girls and -- he is French and dresses accordingly; he has a great sense of humour tied to being extremely organised in shepherding his girls to aim for the very best educationally with an eye towards getting the best university spots. He is a treasure.
A very special word must be reserved for a quiet reality: Old Palace has one of the finest programmes of musical training anywhere in London. There is the select Polyphonic, who performs Evensong at the Minister and around the country. Trained by Cambridge educated Mr Hemmings (probably the most beloved teacher in the school); my daughter is studying voice, piano and flute to high standard -- this is very common. There has been involvement with Glyneborne Opera in conjunction with Trinity's music programme; there are three Pan Drums groups; a Pre-Polyphonic programme treats younger girls as serious singers in training for the prestige that awaits them in the advanced choirs. There are two orchestras, an Advanced Flute Choir and many, many other ensembles. Old Palace is Whitgift's sister school of choice to join in producing exceptional drama programme. My daughter is in the chorus of the upcoming Sweeney Todd; last year girls were in the cast of Spamalot and The Crucible. Girls even have ballroom lessons at the moment with Whitgift boys! Of course there are a huge range of other activities, including sports, on offer. I am just explaining those I know.
No one who plans to educate a daughter in the Croydon area can afford to miss visiting Old Palace. If only for your finances! Whitgift Foundation gives out over £1 million in scholarships and bursaries each year: who else has those kind of deep pockets?
