On the morning of Tuesday 14th November, Headmistress Lucy Elphinstone joined Vanessa Feltz on BBC Radio London to discuss the importance of girls developing grit and resilience.

Mrs Elphinstone described the ongoing and growing pressures faced by girls in the modern age, and suggested that we must ask why these issues seem to affect girls more than boys. She suggested that girls in particular are hardwired to please and be compliant and therefore have a pronounced fear of failure, whilst boys are more likely to just ‘go for it’.

Mrs Elphinstone continued, ‘It is well known that if there’s a job going in the workplace, girls will look at the criteria and will think, ‘well I can do four out of those five things, I’ll go on a course and then I’ll be ready’, whereas a boy looks at the criteria and thinks, ‘I can do three, I’m ready’ and he’ll go in and get the job. Is that blagging it, or is it just ‘doing it scared?’’

Francis Holland School, Sloane Square, places a strong focus on building up the grit and resilience needed by girls to take on the adult world, whilst also allowing them to experience failure and therefore learn to deal with it whilst in the safe, nurturing environment of school. This focus is employed throughout the curriculum, and particularly in areas such as sport, enterprise, and trips such as those with the Exploration Society.

On Wednesday 15th November, Mrs Elphinstone discussed the topic with Emma Barnett on BBC Radio 5 Live. Again Mrs Elphinstone stressed the importance of grit, resilience, and learning to take calculated risks.

Please click here to listen to the full interview on BBC Radio London