Most of the teachers in the MFL Department are native speakers in their primary subject. The Department also employs language assistants to help the girls outside normal lesson time, particularly with oral work.

French is taught to all girls in Years 7 to 9, and is usually chosen as the one compulsory modern foreign language to be studied to GCSE. It is then an option at A Level.

German, Italian and Spanish may be sampled in Year 8, and girls may then choose one of these to study as their second European language through to Year 9. Bilingual pupils may be taught in a separate set, once their ability has been assessed. German, Italian and Spanish are all then available as options at GCSE and A Level.

In Years 7 to 9, pupils cover topics such as self, home and family, free time, school, future plans, and shopping. In doing so, they learn key linguistic concepts such as adjectives, pronouns, negatives, expressions of quantity, and regular and irregular verbs.

Pupils in Year 8 may choose to do a taster course in Mandarin, and it is then available as a subject option in Year 9 and for GCSE. Pupils follow the Edexcel course.

Other languages may be available outside the timetable, according to need. We have in the past offered courses in Modern Greek, Polish, Portuguese and Russian. These can also be taken through to GCSE.