English language and literature are at the heart of the way our students see and understand the world around them. We introduce students to a range of texts, authors and ideas to challenge and stimulate debate. As they develop their appreciation of the subtleties of language and literature, our students develop the most effective communication in their everyday lives, from improving their connections with their friends to critiquing the words of politicians.
Around a core of classic and modern literature, the diversity of our curriculum is the product of the scope of personal interests of our passionate and experienced teaching team – from world myths, social linguistics, metaphysical poetry and women’s middlebrow fiction, to sci-fi, graphic novels and Medieval verse. Students are encouraged to join us in developing their own unique literary journey and to share that with each other.
SHSK Prep (Junior Department)
Lower School
Middle School
Sixth Form
95.9%
9–7 at GCSE English Literature 2025
88.8%
9–7 at GCSE English Language 2025
100%
A*–B at A level 2025
Academic enrichment
Our popular Literary Societies extend students’ experiences of literature and language. We explore all and everything – comics, Old English, crime novels, linguistics – and students learn to undertake their own literary research projects. Creative writing clubs give space and focus for students to develop their craft and share their work, either informally or to enter competitions. Our new Podcasting Club is an opportunity for students to learn the journalistic skills of scripting, hosting, interviewing and recording. Students from Years 7–10 take part in external public speaking competitions, and we hold an annual debating dinner.
Annabelle’s speech is the stand-out from an incredibly high calibre of talks that Year 9 wrote and delivered as the culmination of their Speeches and Speechwriting unit in English, in Trinity Term 2026. We look at historical and contemporary speeches, from Sojourner Truth and Abraham Lincoln, through to Donald Trump and Emma Watson. Annabelle’s beautifully crafted, timely, and powerfully delivered speech is a reminder to us all that words matter, and that rhetoric still has the power to change the world – for ill or for good.
Extracurricular
Students in Years 9 and 10 have the opportunity to join us on our biennial Literary Retreat to Bath, where we learn Regency dancing in a stunning ballroom, complete a creative writing scavenger hunt, create our own gothic stories in the style of Mary Shelley and have costumed guided tours of the city. On our A level Literary Retreat to London, we take in theatrical shows (ideally one at the Globe and one more contemporary performance at a theatre such as the National or the Bridge), develop our creative writing in response to the Treasures section of the British Library, and enjoy a literary walking tour around Bloomsbury with actors performing poetry and scenes from writers’ lives.
Our much-coveted Creative Writing Cup has been a focal point for our young writers, with the winner being invited to be the next year’s St Helen’s Laureate, charged with producing poetry or prose to mark significant school, national and global events.
