The Maynard School – Southwest Independent Secondary School of the Year

07 May 2020

The Maynard School, Exeter is delighted to have been awarded the Sunday Times Schools Guide 2020 Southwest Independent Secondary School of the Year. This prestigious award, being officially published in the 27th edition of Parent Power on Sunday 24 November, is triggered by our incredible A-level and GCSE results in the summer, but is also judged on the wider ethos and values within the whole school community. “In a year when all-girls’ schools have dominated the Sunday Times School of the Year awards, The Maynard has caught the wave, its students gaining stellar results in the past summer,” explained Alastair McCall, editor of The Sunday Times Schools Guide. “A caring, nurturing ethos in the school fosters success without it being the school’s sole objective. Achievement is recognised in all walks of school life, and not just in the examination hall. Girls leave as rounded individuals, ready for the next stage of their academic life and ready to take their place in the wider world beyond.” We are now the only school in the country to hold three major titles all at the same time: • The Sunday Times Southwest Independent Secondary School of the Year • One of The Telegraph’s ‘Top Ten Best Value Schools’ • The Wellbeing Award for Schools Founded in 1648, The Maynard has been the leading light for girls’ education in the South West for several centuries, but 2019 has been an exceptional year. Yet another fine set of public examination results in the summer saw 61% of Maynard students achieving A*-A at A-level, with a massive 44% achieving at least three straight A*s or As (and one girl scoring a flawless 100% in her Maths paper, putting her as one of the country’s top A-level mathematicians). Equally, 73.1% of all Maynard grades were 7-9 or A-A** at GCSE versus the national average of just 20.8%. Of particular note is our value added at GCSE that calculates how much, on average, we raised the bar for each individual student, which essentially equated this year to an uplift of half a grade per subject entry (based on the YELLIS national standardised calculation). For the second consecutive year The Maynard was voted as one of The Telegraph’s ‘Top Ten Best Value Schools’ in the country based on our academic excellence, the sheer volume of extra-curricular opportunities as well as our sporting and creative arts prowess, whilst also taking into account the “significantly more manageable price” of our fees to that of other establishments. Equally, in June we became the first, and only, school in Devon to achieve the Wellbeing Award for Schools. “Happiness matters,” says Miss Dunn, Headmistress. “And we firmly believe that our students achieve excellent results in all that they do because they are happy at school. We are delighted that the Sunday Times Schools Guide confirms the consistently outstanding academic credentials of our School as well as the clear sense of a whole school community and the incredible support networks; the encouragement to work hard and play hard, the team spirit and active engagement; the desire to make the most of the many wonderful opportunities available including the endless charitable initiatives or leadership opportunities. All this, together with kindness and being supportive to friends or colleagues is the very fizz that is the make-up of The Maynard. “To be the first in the region to achieve the Wellbeing Award for Schools at the same time as being nationally recognised as the Southwest Independent Secondary School of the Year is incredibly thrilling. Add into the mix that we are considered one of the most affordable and we have a truly successful recipe that underpins our whole ideology and vision here at The Maynard. Inclusivity, happiness and, with that, comes success!”