Seeing how our Year 11 and Year 13 girls have approached their public exams over the past few weeks has been impressive. Determined, brave, prepared, excited—these are just some of the words that come to mind as they enter the exam hall.

They have been remarkably well supported by Dr. Lindfield, representing the academic departments, and Mrs. Moore, representing our examination teams. I am so grateful to all my staff who have helped our girls reach this stage. The support from clinics, pastoral care, exceptional teaching and learning, and practice mock exams have all prepared the girls for the intense exam season ahead.

Our Year 6 pupils have also been undertaking their end of Key Stage assessments, and I know that Key Stage 3 pupils are preparing for their class exams after half term. Teachers will be working extremely hard to mark the papers in time to provide feedback and celebrate the year’s successes.

In recognition of the commitment our exam groups are showing, I wanted to share the story of Mercedes Gleitze, a professional swimmer and the first British woman to swim the English Channel. Her story is one of resilience and triumph over failure, relevant to our community and our girls undertaking GCSEs and A Levels. It is about ambition and self-belief, achieving things others may deem beyond reach, and turning passion into a career.

Mercedes Gleitze, born in 1900 in Brighton, became a stenographer in central London after her education, where she began swimming in the River Thames in her spare time. Swimming quickly became her passion. In 1923, she set her first significant record by swimming for 10 hours and 45 minutes in the Thames, the longest time recorded for a female swimmer.

During her career, she achieved numerous firsts, including being the first person to swim the Straits of Gibraltar and the 100 miles around the Isle of Man. She also swam to Robben Island and back to Cape Town and staged endurance swimming feats, pushing the continuous swimming record from 26 hours to 46 hours.

The most remarkable part of her story concerns her numerous attempts to swim the English Channel. After eight attempts between 1922 and 1927, she finally succeeded on October 7, 1927, becoming the first British woman to swim the Channel. However, two days later, Dr. Dorothy Cochrane Logan falsely claimed to have swum the Channel faster. Although Logan admitted her hoax, it cast doubt on Gleitze’s achievement. Gleitze agreed to a “vindication swim,” which she did not complete due to the cold, but her effort convinced all that her original record should stand.

Gleitze’s determination and resilience are lessons for us all. She found a way to monetise her passion, much like today’s influencers, and used her success to help others, opening the first Mercedes Gleitze Home in 1933. After retiring from swimming, she devoted herself to her family, showing the same commitment and determination.

Good luck to all our girls in their endeavours.


Mrs Emily Codling, Headmistress