Upper Sixth Speaker Series

Every Friday afternoon, students have the opportunity to expand their horizons at the Upper Sixth Speaker Series.

To end the week, students gather in the Waterlow Hall to hear from diverse speakers on a range of topics to spark the imagination and generate debate.

This year’s series began with Tobi Olujinmi sharing her personal story of being brought up on a local estate, before studying law and getting into the entertainment industry. Students were motivated to reflect on their own paths after Sixth Form: “The talk really helped us look to our future careers with self-confidence and a positive attitude.”

So far this term, girls have also heard from Mariel Richards from gal-dem magazine, produced by and for women and non-binary people of colour. A Sixth Former commented: “She gave great insight on what it was like to start a business and how she hopes to grow it to diversify the points of view in the journalism industry.” 

We were also delighted to welcome back Emma Cole, who was diagnosed with HIV nearly 30 years ago, and now delivers talks that aim to remove the stigma around HIV.  Emma added: “Huge thanks to the fabulous girls for responding so warmly to my story. Really appreciated all the questions.” 

Other guests have delivered inspiring sessions on law, finance and addiction. Sixth Form Speaker Captains get involved by organising, introducing and thanking the speakers, while Sixth Form PR Captains take photos and report back – just some of the dozens of leadership roles available in the Sixth Form.