Dame Alice Owen's School - sibling policy?

[GlassMatryoshka]

Dame Alice Owen's School (DAO) is very much an anomaly in many respects. Amongst other things, it seems quite odd to me that a secondary school with such a competitive intake, with a good number of students commuting in from some distance away, would also have a sibling policy.

So if I could have the temerity to ask: Should DAO rethink its sibling policy?

Before responding, may I please ask that you put yourself in the mind of someone responsible for high-level policy making decisions and NOT from the point of view of someone with a vested interest, i.e. a parent with multiple DCs. Of course parents with more than one child would say it needs to be kept for a host of individual reasons - this should be patently obvious.

If I could ask that this question is considered in the broadest possible terms - both for the longer term view and in the greater scheme of things.

In the financial year ending 31/8/24, the worshipful company of brewers (as trustees to the DAO foundation) donated £965k to DAO; it was £895k in the previous year.

On the link above, it talks about the other stuff they do educationally with the money. There’s no other individual school supported - the other programmes are about music, science and leadership programmes for 11-18, largely in Islington.

Hmmm, I don’t think she asked the Brewers to endlessly provide - if the foundation bought land in Islington around the time of her life/death, it would probably continue to be very asset-rich. The Brewers are the Trustees, not the provider of monies.

Ah, I see, so her money/wealth effectively was the foundation which she inherited from her husband (?) Wise/fortunate investment means it lasted.

I think so - I haven’t looked beyond what I have posted.

Foundation accounts are here:

https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/312703/accounts-and-annual-returns?ukgovccewoneregcharitydetailswebportletCharityDetailsPortletorganisationNumber=312703

looks like they have just over £100m of assets. The governing document sets out what proportion of income goes to “the Potters Bar school”

ETA because the objectives are defined by this document, DAO school couldn’t just “wean itself off” the donations, as proposed in the OP’s essay.

Very interesting. Thanks for posting.

My DS won an Arkwright Scholarship , his sponsor was the Worshipful Company of Founders.

www.smallpeicetrust.org.uk/arkwright-engineering-scholarships/#:~:text=The%20Arkwright%20Engineering%20Scholarship%20programme,the%20two%20year%20scholarship%20programme.

Thank you. Amazing & interesting to learn about all this.

A statue of Dame Alice watches over the dining hall and she's still very much remembered in the school. The Worshipful Company of Brewers visit multiple times per year and are woven through the school's traditions (beer money every year) and the crest on everyone's blazers.

I asked a current student who has been there a few years and he reported that abolishing the sibling rule would completely change the vibe of the place, and he was totally opposed to the idea. He got there on an exam place (non-Islington) but his friends are a mix of exam, music, sibling, staff and catchment, which he really values.