Strong case for new Swiss Cottage school to be CoE

I am writing with regard to the proposed new secondary school for Camden borough and would like to express my support for the new school to be a Church of England school. The key reason behind my support is my own school experience. As a child I attended

I am writing with regard to the proposed new secondary school for Camden borough and would like to express my support for the new school to be a Church of England school. The key reason behind my support is my own school experience.

As a child I attended Hampstead Parochial CoE Primary for three years. These were some of the happiest of my school life as I felt like I really belonged in the small school community.

Much of this was due to the Christian ethos the school adopted. I was provided with a superb education and achieved very good results at Key Stage 2. Now having successfully trained as a Key Stage 2 and 3 teacher I have gone back to work at the school that gave me the best start in life - Hampstead Parochial.

The fact that 13 CoE primary schools are popular with both Christian and non-Christian parents within Camden is testament to the successes of CoE schools. Two have received 'outstanding' reports from Ofsted in the last month.

Although Camden currently has the highest number of CoE primary schools in London it is the only borough that has no CoE secondary school. This I feel shows a real need for a CoE secondary school in Camden.

I believe that it is important for children to feel as if they belong in a community within the school environment and I believe that a CoE school can provide this inclusive environment for all. Finally, I feel that it is important to remember that a CoE secondary can be representive of the diversity of the borough of Camden through its intake of children from both multi-ethnic and multi-faith backgrounds.

This in turn will allow children to understand and appreciate other cultures and religious traditions.

Danielle Wilson

Oakhill Park, NW3