Strategic Update - February 2023

From the Warden

As I sit down to write this, two themes sit alongside each other in my mind. As we survey the social, political and economic landscape, it is difficult to ignore the significant challenges that face us Our electricity bill has quadrupled Inflation is hitting us hard in core areas of College life. Some of our lowest paid members of staff are struggling and boarding numbers are in decline in the UK. We have few friends in politics, with the threat of VAT on fees not just an item on the risk register but an impending likelihood We are not immune to the lingering and lasting effects of the pandemic on generations of children. The social challenges in education are real too; it is much more difficult for schools and parents to shape minds when faced with the alternative lure of the celebrity social media influencer and the mind-rotting algorithms that narrow and cheapen information, opinion, and truth. We are in challenging times

It is important, however, to achieve a balance. We are well placed to meet those challenges. Of course, reality is important; we must avoid our heads being in the clouds or in the sand we must face those challenges head-on. But we should have optimism as we do so. We have the infrastructure, financial resilience, market share, strategic vision and talent to be both confident and bold Above all, beyond the corporate-speak, we have the people that we need: governors and staff, supportive parents, the wider Radley community and – most importantly – the boys. Independent education has faced many a challenge in the past –war, pandemic, political opposition – and emerged to tell the tale Our core business is the pursuit of excellence and that is always needed and always worthwhile. These are exciting times too.

As you read this update, structured around the four key pillars of our five-year strategic plan, please bear those themes in mind. There are challenges, but we must be optimistic.

People

We will provide opportunities for a greater number of talented and deserving boys from diverse backgrounds to enjoy a Radley College education through our funded places programme.

We are seeing unprecedented demand at all levels of entry Applications for 13+ entry are up 8% year on year and Sixth Form registrations are up by nearly a quarter. Pleasingly, we have also seen an increase of nearly 40% in the number of talented Year 8 pupils seeking entry via scholarship

We are delighted with the continued expansion of our funded places programme. In 2022/23, 103 boys are in receipt of funding with 34 boys on fully funded places £3 22m has been spent, equivalent to 10.6% of fee income. The priority for the coming year is to refine and implement a new approach to seeking out the best candidates. The rebranded awards and marketing campaign will be launched this academic year As funding continues to increase, we are committed to ensuring that it goes to candidates for whom Radley will provide the best environment and who will themselves bring a huge amount to the school.

We are in the process of an exciting restructure of the management of the school. There is a new College Management Team emphasising greater interaction between the operational and educational aspects of the College. As a result of the expansion of the school and the planned retirements of senior staff, there are now new job specifications for the Sub-Warden and four separate Deputy Head roles The aims of the restructure are three-fold: the encouragement of new ideas and fresh thinking; a greater clarity of line management for all aspects of Radley life, and a more equitable balance between the demands of each of the core elements of what we do: pastoral, academic and co-curricular The restructure, consisting of internal and external appointments, will be complete by September 2024.

Place

We will ensure that Radley provides, and is known for providing, world-class teaching within world-class facilities.

We are pleased that boys speak positively about the formal lunches each Social now has in the new Shop on a rotational basis: a significant enhancement of our catering capabilities as well a logistical necessity to ease pressure on Hall There are two further building projects in the pipeline connected to the expansion of College numbers

A small classroom and office block between the Theatre and the David Rae Smith building to ease pressure on space (to start later this year).

The planned expansion and refurbishment of the Music School (to start in June 2024)

We are encouraged by several developments in the day-to-day life of the College

To name a few: excellent A Level results, Oxbridge and US university success, the revival and extension of our Debating offer, significant improvement in Maths and Science Olympiad performances and national success in Robotics Sporting success is also strong; our major challenge is to ensure fixtures for all teams and effective competition at all levels Music continues to broaden and deepen in terms of numbers, variety, and quality; our challenge is space and time

Priorities for the coming year are to think about teaching and learning strategies, the balance of the curriculum, encouragement of genuine exchange and development of ideas, broader and more consistent use of academic data and effective professional development of staff at all levels

Purpose

We will give boys the understanding, skills, and global awareness to contribute positively to a changing world

We must continue to prepare boys for life beyond Radley. A core element of that is for them to understand and for us to model the importance of sustainable thinking in all we do. We launched the College Sustainability Strategy in June 2022 with an ambitious goal of reaching net zero status in 2030.

There are six work streams – all including boys – on Land Use and Ecology, Transport, Energy, Water, Food and Waste, and Education The two major strategic projects are the plans for a solar farm to generate 60% of our electricity and the development of a 40-acre woodland, which equates to more than 26,000 trees.

We are conscious of the need to do more than simply prepare boys through good results and all-round experience. The appointment of a new Head of Sixth Form, with a brief to think about the way in which we can encourage effective transition to life beyond Radley, will bring various strands together as we look to encourage a more enterprising mindset in Radleians and expect them to develop a broader and more distinctive set of skills and experiences.

The priority for the year ahead is to refine that structure and ensure that we work effectively with the Development Office and the Radleian Society network.

Partnership

We will take our place in the local community seriously and recognise the value of effective collaboration and communication in everything we do.

There is no doubt that the theme of Partnership is now fully embedded into Radley life. We continue to plan strategically, looking to ensure that there is exposure to partnership work for each Radleian under the ‘Awareness to Agency’ pathway over five years and that each initiative is part of a wider programme with clear and shared goals Highlights include:

Extensive encouragement and facilitation of music in primary schools across the county Countryside Centre programme to support alternative provision in local state schools

Strategic link with Active Oxfordshire to boost physical literacy in areas of disadvantage

The Respect Project with Downe House, thinking about healthy relationships

Expanding series of events and initiatives through the OX14 partnership

Targeted collaboration with Broadway Academy and Desborough College

Local project work to support Radley Primary School and the Parish Council Enrichment STEPS programme for academically talented local primary school pupils

The priorities for the coming year are to continue embedding this strategic objective in the College DNA, communicate more effectively what we are doing with the wider community, leverage our networks to maximise impact, contribute to the national debate on what partnership work can achieve through schools and place a particular emphasis on those that are scalable in terms of impact.

Politics

A 5th ‘P’... All independent schools will have high on their agendas the risk of government tax policy and, most specifically, the looming threat of VAT on school fees.

It would be foolish to deny the size of the challenge; for Radley that is a sum in excess of £6 million per annum. It will mean a reshaping of the sector more widely and, of course, there are opportunities in that It is a priority over the next year for Council to think about how best to prepare as we look at strategies to offset the threat and financial planning to manage the impact. We are confident, however, that we are in a strong position financially and have the resilience – as well as the good governance – to be as well-placed as any to weather the storm. Independent schools have faced such storms before, and the best come out stronger.

I am delighted that Politics is now the second most popular A Level at Radley (behind Maths). I hope that reflects that we are a school that encourages boys to think about the world in which they live and that they want to understand the structures of decision making and the motivations of policy. We must embrace debate, new ideas, controversy, intellectual ambition, and innovation.

As we face the challenges we do, what matters most is that we prepare young men with the qualities to lead us. If we are doing that well – and I think we are – we have grounds, however big the challenges, for real optimism For Radley now, and for the future