Exciting developments reflect Wendover's growing appeal and reputation
We’re delighted to announce that Sarah Thomas is the new Principal of Wendover Online School. Sarah is well-known to our school community as our former Vice Principal.
Our school has steadily grown over the past few years, and with it, our breadth of offer. We have more year groups and more subjects, our staff has grown to reflect this, and our student body continues to diversify. We are a rich community, and all the richer for your children and your support. We hope to continue to grow and develop to bring more opportunities to our students and staff.
An exciting time for our online school
I’m thrilled to lead Wendover Online School as Principal in the next phase of its development,” says Sarah, who led staff INSET days before welcoming students to the start of the new school year on 4 September.
“Since I joined Wendover last year, I have been hugely impressed with the way our online school provides a personalised education for each child.
Our students grow in confidence and achieve well in this caring and supportive environment – it’s a great place to learn and work!”
Continuing support from Wendover Founder
Founder Sarah Bacon is delighted to have found a new Principal who shares much more than just her name!
“I’m delighted to welcome Sarah to her new role and know that she will do an outstanding job. We share a commitment to creative, innovative schooling that provides a strong and joyful foundation for living. Wendover is in warm, safe hands!”
Sarah Bacon is full of praise for her successor, who has already built strong relationships with Wendover staff, senior leadership team and students.
“Our new Principal brings an enormous amount of experience in school leadership, as well as in training and education overseas, and is exceptionally well-placed to lead and develop Wendover as it continues to grow and thrive.”
Growing demand for expert online education
Sarah Thomas’ appointment as Principal reflects the strong growth in demand for our special brand of learning. Wendover is at the leading edge of a movement towards a more student-focussed, personalised education. Established before the pandemic brought into focus the possibility of online learning, Wendover developed an online school that would allow children and families to benefit from bespoke lessons that fit around their lives.
Now, more and more families appreciate the expertise and flexibility that Wendover offers. Our small class sizes and ‘study anywhere’ approach mean that our online school suits a wide range of students seeking a British education. We are also finding a growing demand for partnership with international schools, following our successful relationship with schools such as the British International School, Ukraine.
Wendover is growing
Founded by former Principal Sarah Bacon in 2016, Wendover has grown steadily and purposefully as the right staff have joined our expert team.
- Now, we run full-time programmes for around 26 concurrent classes, providing a mix of 1:1 lessons and classes for up to six students, on top of part-time classes.
- We’ve expanded to offer Primary School, Secondary School (11-14), GCSE and A-level students a broad and interesting curriculum at every level.
- And we’re continuing to extend our extracurricular programme to ensure that students gain enrichment beyond the classroom, with a growing range of clubs, meet-ups and opportunities to explore new ideas and activities.
Founder Sarah Bacon to focus on sharing online expertise
Despite stepping down as Principal, Sarah has no intention of leaving the school she founded. She will continue to meet prospective parents and to lead collaboration with our international partners.
“We have built a strong reputation for helping both international and British schools deliver lessons when they don’t have the expert teachers available, for whatever reason. We are also frequently approached by organisations looking for help in developing their syllabuses and practice, and Local Education Authorities and schools looking for advice and guidance on providing lessons that will really spark children’s interest.”
Wendover - a happy and successful online school
Both Sarahs take enormous pride in the success of Wendover as an online school that develops students’ confidence and ensures that even elite young athletes who follow tight travel and training schedules can gain a full British education.
As the new Principal, Sarah Thomas says she will continue to build rigorous systems to maintain a safe online learning environment and support our growing school. An imminent Ofsted inspection will also be a great opportunity to demonstrate how well students learn at Wendover.
Perhaps above all, Sarah Thomas is looking forward to the ‘people’ side of her leadership role:
“I love leading and mentoring, getting the best from people. We have over 50 teachers and a cracking leadership team, all focussed on getting the best from their online students. It is a happy, creative and stimulating environment for both staff and students, which I am proud to lead as Wendover Online School continues to grow.”
If you would like to find out more about how our online school could work for your family, or about how Wendover can help your organisation, please contact us here.
