Introduced in September 2025, Camden lessons are a new initiative designed to promote interdisciplinary understanding across the humanities and arts subjects at Westminster. Pupils in the Fifth Form (Year 9) have one or two lessons weekly, depending on the term, and these are taught in half forms by two teachers of different disciplines. The hope is that we instill a long-term interest in the connections between different subject specialisms, in a way that promotes pupils’ literacy, analytical skills, and oracy.
Curriculum
Fifth Form (Year 9)
Named after the Elizabethan scholar and former Head Master of Westminster, William Camden, lessons draw on his spirit of curiosity and rigorous scholarship. In a world of digital distraction and developing artificial intelligence, pupils need protected time to think for themselves. By asking them to consider a wide range of interdisciplinary perspectives, Camden cultivates habits essential for interpreting the past and understanding the future.
Topics are ever‑changing. So far, the focus has been on our close neighbour, Westminster Abbey, where pupils attend services on Monday and Friday mornings. Pupils have been encouraged to reflect on and appreciate the significance of a building so integral to school life by exploring its history, the individuals commemorated there, and the events that take place within it; they have also studied Parliament Square and its surrounding area, identifying and reflecting on the many statues situated nearby.
Teaching Staff
^ Acting Head of Department; † Housemaster; ~ Acting Housemaster
Dr Tasos Aidonis (AA)
— Deputy Head (Boarding and Upper School)
Mr Alex Bishop (AJSB)
— Upper School Expeditions
Mr Matthew Bunning (MCB)
— Head of Art
Mr Tom Edlin, OW (TPJE)
†
Mr Joseph Fenton (JMF)
— Head of Theology and Philosophy
Miss Lucy Freeland (LJF)
— Head of English
Mr Solomon Hardwick (SAH)
— Director of Platform and Widening Access
Mr Michael Heighway (MKJH)
— Assistant Director of Music; Head of Academic Music
Dr Vivienne Horsfield (VEH)
— Deputy Head (Co-Curriculum, Events and Planning)
Ms Julia Hughes (JJH)
— Head of Geography
Mrs Alice King (AS)
— Deputy Librarian; Co‑director of Phab
Mr Nick Massey (NPM)
— Head of Remove; Head of Russian
Mr Peter Olive (PREO)
Mr Harry Petty (HPFP)
— Head of Sixth Form
Mr Benjamin Walton (BDW)
^
Mr Chris Whyld (CJW)
— Director of Drama
Enrichment
The ethos behind Camden Liberal Arts is enrichment, to broaden pupils’ horizons, deepen understanding, and develop critical thinking. The year culminates in the Camden Award, which recognises sustained engagement and independent work across the programme.
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“Camden is distinctly Westminster. It reaches beyond the confines of traditional academic structures and asks pupils to develop their voice by thinking broadly and making connections across subjects, movements and time periods. The programme is founded on the belief that no single discipline offers a complete understanding of the world; instead, intellectual depth is enriched by range. Camden encourages pupils to deepen their specialisms by situating them within wider traditions of thought, culture and creativity, and to see ideas not in isolation, but in conversation with one another across time.”
— Mr Harry Petty, Head of Sixth Form
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