In January, The Mount School York, York's only all-girl school for girls aged 3-18, welcomed a new Principal.

David Griffiths joined The Mount from Wycombe Abbey School, Changzhou, where he was Headmaster since 2015. Since joining The Mount, Mr Griffiths has been very busy. Here he tells us more about his first two terms and what lies ahead for the UK's only all-girl Quaker School.  

"I have thoroughly enjoyed my first two terms at The Mount since taking over as Principal in January 2022. It has been a great privilege to get to know the pupils, parents and members of the wider Mount family. Everyone has been so welcoming.

York Press:

The Mount has a friendly, positive and caring community atmosphere where all of our pupils feel known and experience a strong sense of belonging. This was evident from the first cold January-day, and I have seen and learned very quickly how significant it is to be able to create space for girls and women to flourish on their own terms.

I would say my biggest achievement thus far has been the introduction of our new Super-Curricular programme featuring activities and opportunities that promote academic learning and enquire beyond the confines of the classroom and the curriculum. This included the launch of The Mount's Borealis Society, a society that features a winter lecture programme fostering knowledge and understanding of matters relating to the wider world and to the northern realms of our planet.

At the epicentre of this society is the opportunity for members of the sixth form to take part in extensive, self-sufficient, mountaineering and trekking expeditions to boreal wilderness areas which will represent an exciting physical and mental challenge underscored with a strong academic focus, prior to and during, the expedition itself. 

York Press:

Along with Nigel Bidgood FRGS, The Mount’s Head of the Borealis Society, I led the society’s first expedition to Iceland in July 2022. A group of college girls and staff spent three weeks in the remotest part of Iceland, Norðurstrandir in the Vestfirðir, the isolated North-west of the country. We explored the secluded fjords and ascended the mountains centred around Iceland’s northernmost ice cap, Drangajökull. One of the many highlights included our boat being surrounded by a pod of Humpback whales.

York Press:

It was a wonderful trip described by the pupils as 'life changing!', I was immensely proud that we had managed to design and organise this expedition experience for the girls in a mere four months and that they had so palpably gained so much from their experiences. 

It has been a very exciting year for me at The Mount and that will be continuing with several upcoming initiatives and developments. 

Academic excellence is, of course, extremely important to us and following the appointment of our new Director of Studies and Academic Outreach, Head of Humanities and Deputy Head of Sixth Form College, we will be seeking to develop our curriculum further in both depth and breadth. This is my absolute priority in the year ahead. 

We are also in the process of setting up a new Foundation office to help both extend and reinforce the pastoral support and care that is so strong a feature of life within the school. The office will be dedicated to maintaining contact with our leavers throughout their lives and offering continuing support as they progress through higher education and into their careers, whilst also offering the opportunity for our old scholars to offer support and advice to our pupils as they progress through the various levels of education in school. I see this link as a vital two-way one that can evolve into one that evolves throughout a person’s life. 

It is a key part of my strategy that we continually update and refresh our facilities and provision for our girls. In the coming months, we will be investing to create a fitness and conditioning centre within our sports hall. This will provide girls with a first-rate facility for their own exercise and training needs.

I have also put an emphasis on community engagement as this truly befits our Quaker foundation. We have strengthened our partnerships with external sports clubs and formalised our partnership with the South East (S.E.) Asia Community Centre in York. We are very excited to also be the new base of York City Football Foundation for their Female-pathway programmes. YCFC Foundation will be operating from The Mount School facilities in opening a brand-new FA emerging talent centre, as well as continuing its girls-only development centres and FA regional talent club, thus providing a base for 8-16 year olds to develop their footballing skills at every level and creating the 'Lionesses' of the future".