Charts lycee francais charles de gaulle student population

The Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle, usually referred to as the Lycée or the French Lycée, is a French co-educational primary and secondary independent day school, situated in

South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...

in the

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is an Inner London borough with royal status. It is the smallest borough in London and the second smallest district in England; it is one of the most densely populated administrative regions in the ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. It is managed by the

Agency for French Teaching Abroad The Agency for French Education Abroad, or Agency for French Teaching Abroad, (french: Agence pour l'enseignement français à l'étranger; abbreviation: AEFE), is a national public agency under the administration of the Minister of Foreign Affairs ...

, AEFE, with its curriculum accredited by the

French National Ministry of Education French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

and overseen by the

French Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs () is the ministry of the Government of France that handles France's foreign relations. Since 1855, its headquarters have been located at 37 Quai d'Orsay, close to the National Assembly. The term Quai ...

. There is a "British Section" for English-speaking pupils in the secondary classes, preparing for

GCSEs The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

and

A-levels The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...

. In 2008 part of the school's primary classes were transferred to a site in

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

, the "Marie d'Orliac" school. There are three other primary "feeder" schools elsewhere in London, the André Malraux school in

Ealing Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Ealing was histor ...

and Wix School in

Clapham Clapham () is a suburb in south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (most notably Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Early history T ...

Site

The school occupies a substantial site in

Cromwell Road Cromwell Road is a major London road in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, designated as part of the A4. It was created in the 19th century and is said to be named after Richard Cromwell, son of Oliver Cromwell, who once owned a hou ...

, opposite the

Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, climatology, and more. ...

and backs onto Harrington Road. The school was refurbished in 2008 and again in 2011. The acquisition of a lease on the

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

former Peterborough School site in Clancarty Road,

, has enabled part of the South Kensington primary classes to transfer there and vacate space for more secondary pupils at the main site.

History

Early years

The school was founded as the French School of London, largely through the efforts of Marie d'Orliac ( fr), with backing from the

University of Lille The University of Lille (french: Université de Lille, abbreviated as ULille, UDL or univ-lille) is a French public research university based in Lille, Hauts-de-France. It has its origins in the University of Douai (1559), and resulted from the m ...

for Belgian and other francophone

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.

s in 1915 near

's Victoria station and provided a full education for 120 pupils. In 1920, the renamed Lycée Français de Londres relocated to Cromwell Gardens, opposite the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

. In the late 1930s it moved again to a Neo-Georgian style purpose-built school building (AJ Thomas, assistant to EL Lutyens), adjacent to the ''Université des lettres françaises'' (

French Institute The (; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the Académie Française. It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute ...

) in Queensberry Place – another d'Orliac project – with its own entrance in Queensberry Mews. The

aesthetics Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed thr ...

displayed in the

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

of Patrice Bonnet's 1939 French Institute were translated into small touches like the

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

designs of the termly "Tableau d'honneur" cards, (the roll of honour) given to pupils deemed to have worked hard. The designs became utilitarian in the fifties. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the Lycée pupils and their teachers were evacuated to

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

. The London buildings became offices for the

Free French Free France (french: France Libre) was a political entity that claimed to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third Republic. Led by French general , Free France was established as a government-in-exile ...

government in exile A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group that claims to be a country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Governments in exile us ...

General de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

. Bombing raids on London destroyed buildings adjacent to the Lycée.

After World War II

Post-war development of the school was overseen by M. Augustin Gaudin, the ''Proviseur'' (headmaster), supported by his wife. The school and the French Institute were initially seen as largely

synonymous A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

, and remained heavily interdependent in the post-war years, and into the 1970s. Their close relations came to an end with French administrative reforms and the introduction of modern management and accounting techniques in the 1980s. Another notable feature of the time was that

Lille University The original public university in the Lille region of France was the University of Douai established in 1559 in Douai and that was moved to Lille in 1887 and 1896 as University of Lille (french: Université de Lille). Between 1970 and 2017 the Un ...

offered a first year of their

humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the t ...

programme at the Lycée, for those completing the ''Terminales'' classes and arranged exchanges for teachers as well as pupils. The school saw steady expansion during the post-war "

baby boom A baby boom is a period marked by a significant increase of birth rate. This demographic phenomenon is usually ascribed within certain geographical bounds of defined national and cultural populations. People born during these periods are often ca ...

". In 1947 three junior classes (jardin d'enfants, 12e and 11e) had opened in adapted rented accommodation at 29

The Boltons The Boltons is a street and garden square of lens shape in the Brompton district of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England (postcode SW10). The opposing sides of the street face the communal gardens (as two non-semicircula ...

SW10, on the corner with Tregunter Road. The establishment formed a ''succursale'' (satellite) of the Lycée for a period of 15 years, and was known simply as "The Boltons". In 1952 an "English Section" for British or UK-based pupils was established: it was later renamed the "British Section". The bombed terraces directly opposite the

, which had been temporarily converted into tennis courts, were acquired by the French government, and a major development of this site was undertaken between 1955 and 1957. New facilities included modern science laboratories and multipurpose classrooms, and a spacious entrance hall at 35 Cromwell Road. The corner of Cromwell Road and Cromwell Place was occupied by the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

, but after the Royal College moved to purpose-built premises on

Kensington Gore Kensington Gore is the name of a U-shaped thoroughfare on the south side of Hyde Park in central London, England. The streets connect the Royal Albert Hall with the Royal College of Art, the Royal Geographical Society, and in Kensington Garde ...

in the 1980s, further terraced houses were gradually acquired by the French Government. Another temporary ''succursale'' in the

Swinging Sixties The Swinging Sixties was a youth-driven cultural revolution that took place in the United Kingdom during the mid-to-late 1960s, emphasising modernity and fun-loving hedonism, with Swinging London as its centre. It saw a flourishing in art, mus ...

was no. 6 Cromwell Place, SW7, home of the then "English section", watched over by Mme Thérèse Wright. Close neighbours in Cromwell Place were the French Institute's noted bi-lingual Secretarial College and the

Alliance Française An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

. In the days before IT, the Lycée library and yearly issue and collection of school textbooks – an enormous

logistical Logistics is generally the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics manages the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requirements of ...

exercise – was managed by Mme Betty

Galitzine The House of Golitsyn or Galitzine was one of the largest princely of the noble houses in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire. Among them were boyars, warlords, diplomats, generals (the Mikhailovichs), stewards, chamberlains, the richest m ...

and later by Mme Babette Willmot. For decades, the Lycée's French stationery was procured by Neilson's in Harrington Road. As the school grew, so the kitchens faced an increasing logistical challenge to produce upwards of 2000 hot meals daily on Lycée monogrammed china.

1960s

In 1962, President de Gaulle returned to the Lycée for a final visit, and was greeted by the entire school. With the lull in construction, the school increased its interest in the arts, science, sport and travel. In 1966 a Lycée excursion was led by Mme Raphael to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

to view the

Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

Retrospective exhibition A retrospective (from Latin ''retrospectare'', "look back"), generally, is a look back at events that took place, or works that were produced, in the past. As a noun, ''retrospective'' has specific meanings in medicine, software development, popu ...

at the

Grand Palais The Grand Palais des Champs-Élysées ( en, Great Palace of the Elysian Fields), commonly known as the Grand Palais (English: Great Palace), is a historic site, exhibition hall and museum complex located at the Champs-Élysées in the 8th arro ...

. There were annual organised trips to

Val d'Isère Val may refer to: Val-a Film * ''Val'' (film), an American documentary about Val Kilmer, directed by Leo Scott and Ting Poo Military equipment * Aichi D3A, a Japanese World War II dive bomber codenamed "Val" by the Allies * AS Val, a Sov ...

for skiing in spring, a Summer School in Pont Saint-Esprit, led by Jacques Iselin and tours of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

in association with Dr. Sanger of

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

. The return by rail from one such trip was briefly, though alarmingly, delayed by the Soviet led

Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia The Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia refers to the events of 20–21 August 1968, when the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was jointly invaded by four Warsaw Pact countries: the Soviet Union, the Polish People's Republic, the People's Rep ...

. Pupils put on plays, mostly in French, at the Institute's theatre (now the Ciné Lumière) and art exhibitions in the entrance halls of the 'Institut' and 35 Cromwell Road. The languages offered through the parallel curricula were

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

and

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

. 'English Section' pupils took part in British school competitions in the recitation of

Latin verse The history of Latin poetry can be understood as the adaptation of Greek models. The verse comedies of Plautus, the earliest surviving examples of Latin literature, are estimated to have been composed around 205-184 BC. History Scholars conven ...

. Other pupils were successful in writing competitions organised by the

. With the help of former Olympic standard PE teachers, the Lycée was noted for its competitive prowess on the sports field, in the water and in the gym:

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...

, rugby, basketball, tennis, even

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

(a French invention!), rowing, swimming,

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, s ...

and horse-riding. Each year, there was a steady stream of applicants to

Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of Oxford and Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most famous universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collectively, in contrast to other British universities, and more broadly to de ...

and to the

Grandes écoles Grandes may refer to: * Agustín Muñoz Grandes, Spanish general and politician *Banksia ser. Grandes, a series of plant species native to Australia * Grandes y San Martín, a municipality located in the province of Ávila, Castile and León, Spain ...

and places taken up to study architecture, economics, engineering, medicine, music and science in France, the UK and the USA. To underscore the importance of Franco-British understanding, the

annually sponsored a special award to one pupil for "

Camaraderie The term ''comrade'' (russian: товарищ, tovarisch) generally means 'mate', 'colleague', or 'ally', and derives from the Spanish and Portuguese, term , literally meaning 'chamber mate', from Latin , meaning 'chamber' or 'room'. It may also ...

Franco-Britannique". The wave of student revolutions of 1968 brought about changes in the

French educational system Education in France is organized in a highly centralized manner, with many subdivisions. It is divided into the three stages of primary education (''enseignement primaire''), secondary education (''enseignement secondaire''), and higher educatio ...

which were also felt in South Kensington. One change was the abolition of the Lycée's annual ceremonial prize-giving (originally in the

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...

), latterly at the more convenient

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

. The ceremony used to be marked by an

organ recital An organ recital is a concert at which music specially written for the organ is played. The music played at such recitals is typically written for pipe organ, which includes church organs, theatre organs and symphonic organs (also known as concer ...

by the school's Master of Music, the former

Notre Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. The cathedral, dedicated to the ...

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

and composer Jean Dattas. This was followed by speeches from noted French academics. French ministries and businesses would sponsor generous expenditure on books which were then distributed as prizes to pupils of merit. The 1970s brought in their wake a

Counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Hou ...

with its complex attitude to drug use. Like many other teaching establishments, the Lycée had its share of problems.

Late twentieth century

The continuing expansion of the school led to further occupation of the

mews A mews is a row or courtyard of stables and carriage houses with living quarters above them, built behind large city houses before motor vehicles replaced horses in the early twentieth century. Mews are usually located in desirable residential ...

complex behind Cromwell Place. In the mid 1960s, there had still been horses stabled in the mews, and equine odours invaded classrooms on the east side of the site. The erection in 1984 of the Primary School building to Roeven Vardi's design, in the playground on Harrington Road, allowed the primary classes to be decanted out of their cramped conditions in Queensberry Place. In 1980, the school was renamed the Lycée Français

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

, for the late French President, who had established his wartime offices in the decanted Lycée buildings. Due to limited space at the South Kensington site, the Lycée opened two " feeder" primary schools, based in Clapham and

, in 1993 and 1995 respectively. Since May 1997, the Ealing "satellite" has been known as the École

André Malraux Georges André Malraux ( , ; 3 November 1901 – 23 November 1976) was a French novelist, art theorist, and minister of cultural affairs. Malraux's novel ''La Condition Humaine'' (Man's Fate) (1933) won the Prix Goncourt. He was appointed by P ...

, named after the French author and politician.

Present day

2015 was the school's centenary. It symbolised the longevity of one cultural aspect of Franco-British cooperation along with its associated

, a site of remarkable architectural heritage, the ''Ciné Lumiére'', the

and the French Embassy all in close proximity in the UK's capital. The Lycée caters for some 4,000 pupils between the ages of 3 and 19. The school is an important cultural centre for London's sizeable French-speaking community and one of the most academically successful French schools outside France. In addition to serving the francophone communities in London, 9% of pupils at the Lycée are English-speaking or of British heritage, placed in the school by parents opting for a bilingual education for their children. The Lycée continues to maintain a multicultural and international mix of pupils, from over 50 different nationalities. The school charges fees that are subsidised by the French government in the case of French nationals only. The teaching medium at the Lycée is predominantly French and follows French curricula. However, when pupils reach the ''troisième'' form, (equivalent to Year Ten or first year), they can opt either to stay in the French stream, as the majority do, and study for the

Brevet Brevet may refer to: Military * Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay * Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college * Aircre ...

and the

Baccalauréat The ''baccalauréat'' (; ), often known in France colloquially as the ''bac'', is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the ''lycée'') by meeting certain ...

, or follow the modified English stream (64 students per year) and work towards

and

. The Lycée's "British Section" has tended to achieve good exam results (see Academic results below) and has enabled pupils to enter

Russell Group The Russell Group is a self-selected association of twenty-four public university, public research university, research universities in the United Kingdom. The group is headquartered in Cambridge and was established in 1994 to represent its memb ...

universities in the UK or universities abroad. The Lycée maintains a strong commitment to sport and takes part in competitions with British schools, particularly in basketball and rugby. The school has always put an accent on developing artistic talent alongside academic achievement. There is a very active art department and a school orchestra. On 15 March 2020, the Lycée announced that the school in South Kensington and all of its London satellite locations would suspend lessons due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

: this was in line with policy in France, whereas most British schools remained open for a further week.

Polling station

The Lycée's building in South Kensington has been used repeatedly as a site for expatriate French citizens to cast their vote in French elections.

Academic results

The entire school is subject to British

Ofsted The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a Non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial department of Government of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament of the U ...

inspections to assess its overall performance, governance and the development and welfare of pupils including

Safeguarding Safeguarding is a term used in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, Ireland to denote measures to protect the health, well-being and human rights of individuals, which allow people—especially children, youth, young people and vulnerable ...

. The latest inspection conducted in June 2018 found that in all areas of inspection the Lycée was assessed as "good". The inspectors did however note a spike in unjustified absences among older pupils in the examination season.

French Baccalauréat

The Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle is one of the best French schools abroad as shown by its outstanding results: Baccalauréat results 2021 * Percentage of honours "Mention Très Bien": +64% of the students. * Percentage of honours "Mention Bien": 26,5% of the students. * Percentage of honours "Mention Assez Bien": 7,7% of the students. * Percentage of total honours : 98,7% of the students.

British Section

In 2008, the English Section of the Lycée was ranked 15th in the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'' schools league table. It was ranked 16th in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' schools league table. 2021 A Level results: *100% of students received their A-levels *78.3% received A*+A (The national average being of 44.3%) *13.2% obtained a B *8.5% of students obtained their A-levels with a C or E

Heads of the British Section

*Anthony Morgan (1958–1979) *Alan Harrison (1979–1994) *Rachide Bennamar (1994–2000) *Rosalind Nichol (2000–2010) *Kelvin Zane (2010–2016) *Simon McNaught (2016–current)

Alumni Association

There is an active alumni association, "Les Anciens du Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle de Londres" which organises events throughout each year. Together with the school, it celebrated the diamond jubilee of the "British Section" in 2012 in the presence of the British

Secretary of State for Education The secretary of state for education, also referred to as the education secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department for Education. ...

and the French Ambassador.

Notable former pupils and teachers

Annabel Astor Annabel Lucy Veronica Astor, Viscountess Astor (, formerly Sheffield; born 14 August 1948), is an English businesswoman and socialite who is the CEO of OKA (retailer), OKA, a home furnishings design company. Before co-founding OKA, she was the o ...

, (née Jones), businesswoman (mother-in-law of

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...

) *

Marie-Christine Barrault Marie-Christine Barrault (born 21 March 1944) is a French actress. She is best known for her performance in '' Cousin Cousine'' (1975) for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. In 2010, she released her autobiography, ti ...

, actress *

Jacqueline Bisset Winifred Jacqueline Fraser Bisset ( ; born 13 September 1944) is a British actress. She began her film career in 1965 and first came to prominence in 1968 with roles in '' The Detective'', ''Bullitt'', and ''The Sweet Ride'', for which she rec ...

, actress * Sir

Quentin Blake Sir Quentin Saxby Blake, (born 16 December 1932) is an English cartoonist, caricaturist, illustrator and children's writer. He has illustrated over 300 books, including 18 written by Roald Dahl, which are among his most popular works. For his ...

, English teacher, artist, cartoonist and illustrator and Chevalier dans l'Ordre de la Légion d'Honneur *

Gyles Brandreth Gyles Daubeney Brandreth (born 8 March 1948) is an English broadcaster, writer and former politician. He has worked as a television presenter, theatre producer, journalist, author and publisher. He was a presenter for TV-am's '' Good Morning ...

, former Conservative MP, TV and radio personality *

Joan Juliet Buck Joan Juliet Buck (born 1948) is an American writer and actress. She was the editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris, French ''Vogue'' from 1994 to 2001, the only American ever to have edited a French magazine. She was contributing editor to ''Vogue (maga ...

, Paris Vogue editor, writer, actor *

Jennifer Caron Hall Jennifer Caron Hall (born 21 September 1958; also known as Jenny Wilhide) is an English actress, singer-songwriter, artist and journalist. Early life Hall was born in London, the daughter of English director Sir Peter Hall and French actre ...

, actress, artist and singer-songwriter * Matthew Carrington, former Conservative MP, Peer *

Michel de Carvalho Michel Ray de Carvalho (born in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, on 21 July 1944) is a British financier, former Olympic skier and luger, and former child actor in films such as '' The Brave One'', '' The Tin Star'', and ''Lawrence of Arabia'' (u ...

, actor, Olympian and

Tycoon A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through perso ...

G. Marius Clore G. Marius Clore MAE, FRSC, FRS is a British-born, Anglo-American molecular biophysicist and structural biologist. He was born in London, U.K. and is a dual US/U.K. Citizen. He is a Member of the National Academy of Sciences, a Fellow of the ...

FRS, molecular biophysicist and

structural biologist Structural biology is a field that is many centuries old which, and as defined by the Journal of Structural Biology, deals with structural analysis of living material (formed, composed of, and/or maintained and refined by living cells) at every le ...

at the US

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...

, Member of the

United States National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...

Jasmine Cresswell Jasmine Rosemary Cresswell (born 1941 in Wales) is a best-selling author of over 50 romance novels as Jasmine Cresswell and Jasmine Craig. Biography Jasmine Rosemary Cresswell was born in Wales and educated in London. After graduating early ...

, author

Sciences Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

Tom Delay Thomas Dale DeLay (; born April 8, 1947) is an American author and retired politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1985 until 2006. He was Republic ...

CBE, climate economist *

Kay Dick Kathleen Elsie "Kay" Dick (29 July 1915 – 19 October 2001) was an English journalist, writer, novelist and autobiographer, who sometimes wrote under the name Edward LaneMichael De-la-Noy, De-la-Noy, Michael (24 October 2001)"Kay Dick"(obituary) ...

, author * Dame

Vivien Duffield Dame Vivien Louise Duffield, (née Clore; born 26 March 1946) is an English philanthropist. Life and career Vivien Louise Clore was born to Jewish parents. Her father was millionaire businessman and philanthropist Sir Charles Clore and her m ...

DBE, philanthropist *

Melissa Franklin Melissa Eve Bronwen Franklin (born September 30, 1956) is a Canadian experimental particle physicist and the Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics at Harvard University. In 1992, Franklin became the first woman to receive tenure in the Physics depar ...

, experimental

particle physicist Particle physics or high energy physics is the study of Elementary particle, fundamental particles and fundamental interaction, forces that constitute matter and radiation. The fundamental particles in the universe are classified in the Standa ...

, Professor of Physics at

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

* Professor Maurice Fraser. Academic, Special advisor and Légion d'honneur recipient. *

Adam Gatehouse Adam Gatehouse (born c. 1950) is an English conductor, radio producer and editor, and classical music administrator. He was the main conductor of the Ballet Rambert and the Dutch National Ballet before working for BBC Radio 3 (1991–2013), where ...

, conductor, founder of the New Generation Artists scheme and the

Wigmore Hall Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadin ...

lunchtime concert series, joint artistic director of the

Leeds International Piano Competition The Leeds International Piano Competition, informally known as The Leeds and formerly the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, takes place every three years in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1961 by Marion, Countess ...

Sheherazade Goldsmith Sheherazade Ventura Goldsmith (' Bentley; 14 March 1974) is a British environmentalist, jeweller and columnist. During the 1990s, Goldsmith worked in the fashion industry and, after Year 2000, 2000, engaged in environmental activism undertakin ...

(née Bentley), environmentalist and author *

Chantal Goya Chantal de Guerre (; born 10 June 1942), known as Chantal Goya (), is a French singer and actress. Goya started her career as a ''yé-yé'' girl, singing a catchy mid-1960s hybrid of girl-group pop and French ''chanson''. She also enjoyed a car ...

, singer and actress *

Dominic Grieve Dominic Charles Roberts Grieve (born 24 May 1956) is a British barrister and former politician who served as Shadow Home Secretary from 2008 to 2009 and Attorney General for England and Wales from 2010 to 2014. He served as the Member of Parl ...

, Conservative MP and Minister *

Murray Head Murray Seafield St George Head (born 5 March 1946) is an English actor and singer. Head has appeared in a number of films, including a starring role as the character Bob Elkin in the Oscar-nominated 1971 film ''Sunday Bloody Sunday''. As a mus ...

, actor, singer, documentary film writer, director and producer * Alexandre Holroyd, French politician, member of the

French National Assembly The National Assembly (french: link=no, italics=set, Assemblée nationale; ) is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known a ...

Oliver Jackson-Cohen Oliver Mansour Jackson-Cohen (born 24 October 1986) is an English actor and model. He is best known for his role as Adrian Griffin in the 2020 adaptation of ''The Invisible Man'' and for his roles as Luke Crain and Peter Quint in the Netflix ...

, actor *

Jennifer Jankel Jennifer Anne Jankel (born May 1940) is a retired British businesswoman and, since 2011, chair of the Jewish Music Institute in London. The daughter of bandleader Joe Loss and his wife Mildred, she was educated in London at St Paul's Girls' Scho ...

, businesswoman and chair of the Jewish Music Institute *

Roland Joffé Roland Joffé (born 17 November 1945) is a British director and producer of film and television, known for the Academy Award-winning films ''The Killing Fields'' and '' The Mission''. He began his career in television, his early credits includ ...

, film director *

Ben Judah Ben Judah (born 1988) is a British journalist and the author of ''This Is London'' and ''Fragile Empire''. Early life The son of author Tim Judah and Rosie Whitehouse, he was born in London. He is of Baghdadi Jewish descent. He spent a portion o ...

, journalist and writer *

Terence Judd Terence Judd (3 October 1957between 16 and 23 December 1979) was an English pianist. Career Terence Judd was born in 1957 to English- American parents, Anthony and Gloria Judd. In 1967, aged 10, he won the National Junior Pianoforte Competition, ...

(1957-1979), musical prodigy and pianist *

Fuad Kavur Fuad (Arabic: فؤَاد ''fū’ād, fou’ād'') (also spelled Fouad, Foud, Fuaad or Foad) is a masculine Arabic given name, meaning "heart" - the beating circulating heart, the concept of "mind and spirit". Its root word is the Arabic verb ' ...

Film & opera director. *

India Knight India Knight (née Gisèle Aertsens; born 14 December 1965) is a British journalist and author. She writes for British newspapers, and has written the books: ''My Life on a Plate'', ''Don't You Want Me?'', ''The Shops'', ''Neris and India's Id ...

, writer *

Dimitri Kullmann Dimitri Michael Kullmann (born 1958) is a professor of neurology at the UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London (UCL), and leads the synaptopathies initiative funded by the Wellcome Trust. Kullmann is a member of the Queen Squar ...

FRS, academic neurologist *

Francine Lacqua Francine Lacqua (born 15 December 1978) is an Italian journalist, television anchor and editor-at-large for Bloomberg Television. She is fluent in English, Italian and French. Early life Lacqua was born in Italy, of Italian parents. While she wa ...

, news presenter * Dame

Hermione Lee Dame Hermione Lee, (born 29 February 1948) is a British biographer, literary critic and academic. She is a former President of Wolfson College, Oxford, and a former Goldsmiths' Professor of English Literature in the University of Oxford and Pr ...

DBE, academic and President of Wolfson College Oxford *

Edward Leigh Sir Edward Julian Egerton Leigh (born 20 July 1950) is a British Conservative Party politician who has served as a Member of Parliament (MP) since 1983. Leigh has represented Gainsborough, Lincolnshire in the House of Commons since 1983 (repr ...

, Conservative MP *

Claude Littner Claude Littner (born 4 May 1949) is an American-born British business executive and the former chairman of Viglen, Powerleague, ASCO and Azzuri Communications. He is also the Deputy Chairman of Blacks Leisure and former chief executive of Tot ...

, businessman, star of BBC's The Apprentice *

Lady Olga Maitland Lady Helen Olga Hay (''née'' Maitland; born 23 May 1944), usually known as Lady Olga Maitland, is a British Conservative politician and journalist, formerly member of parliament for Sutton and Cheam. Family and education The daughter of Patr ...

, former Conservative MP * Catherine Meyer, Baroness Meyer, (née Laylle) * Dorothée Munyaneza, singer, dancer, actor and choreographer *

Catherine Oxenberg Catherine Oxenberg (born September 22, 1961) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Amanda Carrington on the 1980s prime time soap opera ''Dynasty''. Oxenberg is the daughter of Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia and Howard Oxe ...

, actress *

Christina Oxenberg Christina Oxenberg (born December 27, 1962) is an American writer, humorist, and fashion designer. She has written seven books, and her writing has been featured in magazines and publications like '' Allure'', ''The Sunday Times'', ''Huffington ...

, writer * Michael Holbrook Penniman Jr., singer-songwriter *

Paloma Picasso Paloma Picasso (born Anne Paloma Ruiz-Picasso y Gilot on 19 April 1949) is a French and Spanish fashion designer and businesswoman, best known for her jewelry designs for Tiffany & Co, and her signature perfumes. She is the daughter of artist P ...

, designer *

Gail Rebuck Gail Ruth Rebuck, Baroness Rebuck (born 10 February 1952) is a British publisher and chair of the international book publishing group Penguin Random House's British operations. She sits in the House of Lords as a Labour member. Early life and ...

DBE, Labour Peer, publisher *

Alix Wilton Regan Alix Sophie Wilton Regan (born 26 January 1986) is an English actress known for her roles as Samantha Traynor in ''Mass Effect 3'' and Aya in ''Assassin's Creed Origins''. Early life Born in London, Wilton Regan attended L'Ile Aux Enfants prima ...

, actor *

Natasha Richardson Natasha Jane Richardson (11 May 1963 – 18 March 2009) was an English actress of stage and screen. A member of the Redgrave family, Richardson was the daughter of actress Vanessa Redgrave and director/producer Tony Richardson and the granddaugh ...

, actress * Gavin Salam FRS, Physicist at CERN *

Bill Tchato Bill Jackson Tchato Mbiayi (born 14 May 1975) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as a defender. He played for Caen, Valence, Nice, Montpellier, 1. FC Kaiserslautern, Qatar SC, Al-Khor and Strasbourg and Sapins. Tch ...

, professional footballer *

Daniel Topolski Daniel "Dan" Topolski (4 June 1945 – 21 February 2015) was a British author, rower, rowing coach and commentator on BBC television. He studied at the University of Oxford where he represented the Blue boat twice, in 1967 and 1968. In 1977, he w ...

(1945-2015), rowing coach and commentator, writer *

Frances de la Tour Frances J. de Lautour (born 30 July 1944), better known as Frances de la Tour, is an English actress. She is known for her role as Miss Ruth Jones in the television sitcom ''Rising Damp'' from 1974 until 1978. She is a Tony Award winner and thr ...

, actress *

Arabella Weir Arabella Weir (born 6 December 1957) is a Scottish comedian, actress and writer. She played roles in the comedy series ''The Fast Show'' and ''Posh Nosh'', and has written several books, including ''Does My Bum Look Big in This?'' Weir has also ...

, comedian, actress and writer *

Christian Wolmar Christian Tage Forter Wolmar (born 3 August 1949) is a British journalist, author, railway historian and Labour Party politician.Anthony Yadgaroff Anthony H Yadgaroff (born 1949) is the founder of Allenbridge Group PLC, which is based in Old Jewry, London. Allenbridge was acquired by MJ Hudson, the asset management consultancy, and constitutes its investment advisory arm. Its CEO is Odi La ...

, entrepreneur, Plc chairman, community activist

In popular culture

* The

BBC's #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

first TV adaptation in 1963 of Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, featured Nicole Church, Lycée pupil and daughter of Mme Church, Latin and French teacher, as the child heroine. ''Jane Eyre'', a BBC series starring

Richard Leech Richard Leeper McClelland (24 November 1922 – 24 March 2004), known professionally as Richard Leech, was an Irish actor. Richard Leeper McClelland was born in Dublin, Ireland, the son of Isabella Frances (Leeper) and Herbert Saunderson McCl ...

and

Ann Bell Ann Forrest Bell (born 29 April 1938) is a British actress, best known for playing war internee Marion Jefferson in the BBC Second World War drama series '' Tenko'' (1981–84). She was born in Wallasey, Cheshire, the daughter of John Forrest B ...

References

External links

Official website

Association des Parents Lycée français Charles de Gaulle – Londres

Association des Anciens du Lycée Français de Londres
(alumni website)
Profile
at the

Good Schools Guide International ''The Good Schools Guide'' is a guide to British schools, both state and independent. Overview The guide is compiled by a team of editors which, according to the official website, "''comprises some 50 editors, writers, researchers and contri ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lycee Francais Charles de Gaulle 1915 establishments in England 1915 establishments in France AEFE managed schools Educational institutions established in 1915 French international schools in the United Kingdom Independent co-educational schools in London Independent schools in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Independent schools in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham International schools in London South Kensington

Site

History

Early years

After World War II

1960s

Late twentieth century

Present day

Polling station

Academic results

French Baccalauréat

British Section

Heads of the British Section

Alumni Association

Notable former pupils and teachers

In popular culture

References

Further reading

External links