Opening Doors Dinner

We kicked off the fundraising for our 150th Anniversary Campaign with a spectacular gala dinner.

The biennial event showcases the strength of the South Hampstead community, with dozens of volunteers giving up their time and energy to make it such a success. Whilst being serenaded by the wonderful vocals of Mini in Year 11, 200 guests were guided by lamplight into Waterlow Hall, which was magically turned into a forest glade by our parent committee helpers. Our school catering team presented a sumptuous forest-themed feast before two of our bursary students – Alisha (Class of 2019) and Sahar (Class of 2026) – shared their own very personal stories about the transformative impact of their bursary support.

Our MC Mr Hansford, Head of Maths, encouraged everyone to get involved as our brilliant auctioneers capitalised on the warmth and emotion in the room. Through the auction and raffle, a record-breaking total of £415,000 was raised for our bursary programme on the night; this has been matched by a gift of £200,000 towards our 150th Anniversary Campaign wellbeing projects, as we aim to create spaces where our pupils can flourish physically, mentally and emotionally. Beyond this extraordinary generosity, the overwhelming triumph of the evening was the support and belief that everyone demonstrated in South Hampstead’s vision. Our Head, Mrs Paul, praised the inimitable warmth and kindness of the whole community.

The community here is a precious and rare thing in terms of its unity, strength and commitment to the school.

Our thanks go to everyone who contributed and joined us on the night, helping us to make significant progress in our mission to support bursaries. We have already raised over £1 million towards our £1.5 million target for our 150th Anniversary Campaign, securing three new full-fee bursaries for our anniversary year in 2026/27; the challenge is now on to reach our target by the summer.  To find out how you can get involved and support the campaign, visit our Support Us pages.