“The chemists are a strange class of mortals, impelled by an almost maniacal impulse to seek their pleasures amongst smoke and vapour, soot and flames, poisons and poverty - yet amongst all these evils I seem to live so sweetly that I would rather die than change places with the King of Persia.” Becher, Physica Subterranea, 1667
Becher perfectly describes the energy and enthusiasm that the College Chemistry staff direct towards their subject. Girls are exposed to the amazing variety of substances that make up our world. They appreciate why they are the way they are, why they behave as they do and how they can be adapted and exploited in modern life.
Girls will explore a body of chemical theories and facts, which enable them to identify patterns and themes fundamental to chemistry. The subject puts emphasis on the importance of the scientific method, helping girls to design, carry out and evaluate experiments. Through this, pupils develop chemical knowledge, skills and understanding that teaches them to problem-solve in a wider context.
At the same time, they develop virtues of scholarship, a love of independent thinking, problem-solving and creativity. In addition, girls will develop an appreciation for how Chemistry has a social, industrial, technological, environmental and economic consequence for the world around them.
The department has seven dedicated and well-equipped Chemistry laboratories, enabling pupils to explore the subject via a hands-on approach. All year groups are taught by dedicated subject specialists.
The Chemistry co-curricular programme includes the Harry Potter Potions Club for LC students, Chemistry Challenge and Alchemy Club for UC, and both Chemistry and Biochemistry Clubs for SFC. Visits to university departments and industrial settings are undertaken, and students also compete in in-house, regional and national competitions – the RSC Chemistry Olympiad, C3LC Cambridge Chemistry Challenge, The Chemistry Race, Top of the Bench and the CLC Olympiad.
Pupils are introduced to the foundations of Chemistry and explore ideas that simply spark curiosity for the subject. This is complemented by a comprehensive practical programme allowing pupils to develop investigative skills and to enjoy some ‘hands on science’.
The Edexcel GCSE syllabus is followed.
SFC girls can opt to take either Higher or Standard Level Chemistry as part of the IB Diploma, or girls follow the Edexcel syllabus for A Level. At A Level, all students are expected to achieve the practical endorsement, as practical skills lie at the heart of studying Chemistry at College.
Head of Chemistry: Dr Thomas Leonard MChem
Dr Ann Evans BSc
Dr Elizabeth Anscombe MChem
Mrs Katrina Bailey BSc
Miss Kitty Bailey MChem
Mr David Crawford BSc
Dr David Gamblin MChem MRSC
Mr Matthew Gill BSc
Mrs Wendy Mackenzie BSc
Mrs Helen Morgan MA
Dr Ian Starkey BSc PhD
Dr Robert Bagley BSc MSc
Mrs Sara Fletcher BSc MSc
Miss Ayesha Hesketh BSc
Mrs Monika Jaskula
We'd like to set cookies to understand how you use this site. We use services such as YouTube, Flockler and Hireroad that may also use third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our Cookies Policy.
We use these for core functionality, such as storing this cookie consent preference. These are loaded automatically and cannot be disabled by the user.
We use Google Analytics to track visits to our website and how users interact with our website. This helps us improve the way our website works.
We use Google Ads Conversions & Facebook Pixel to measure how you use and interact with our website and with our advertisements.
These cookies may be set by third party websites and do things like measure how you view videos or other content that is embedded on our site.
