Beyond WHS
A WHS alumna benefits from the support of a close-knit Wimbledonian community whilst also belonging to one of the largest female alumnae networks in the world, a GDST network of over 100,000 individuals whose shared experiences and values represent a wealth of expertise and advice.
Connect with WHS
You become an alumna as soon as you leave Wimbledon High and, along with former staff, are automatically invited to join the Wimbledon High Alumnae network.
You will receive regular e-newsletters, news and invitations by email or can keep in touch via social media via our WHS Alumnae Facebook page or joining our group on LinkedIn .
Giving Back
Wimbledonians stride out to become changemakers and innovators, experts and specialists and we are proud as well as grateful for their willingness to share their skills, experiences and life-lessons to enrich the lives of all.
Whether it’s providing career inspiration at our Futures Fair, holding a lunchtime Careers Conversation , or mentoring other generations of alumnae, Wimbledonians remain a crucial part of school life. In this way, our alumnae continue to shape the future of the school, as well as keeping in touch with peers at our regular events and reunions.
Events and Reunions
WHS Archives
We have a large collection of photographs and memorabilia, some of which is now included in our online collection of school magazines and school photos. Or come along to our Birthday Reunion to browse through the archive collection in person.
Notable Alumnae
Our alumnae go on to do incredible things; here are just a few of them:
Samira Ahmed
Writer and Journalist for the BBC (Class of 1986)
After leaving Wimbledon High School, Samira studied English at St Edmund Hall, Oxford and newspaper journalism at City University, London before beginning her career as a BBC News Trainee.
Award winning journalist and broadcaster Samira Ahmed presents Front Row on Radio 4 and Newswatch on BBC1.
She was voted British Broadcasting Press Guild audio presenter of the year in 2020, the same year she won a landmark sex discrimination employment tribunal against the BBC for equal pay on Newswatch. Her acclaimed three-part BBC4 documentary series Art of Persia (2020) was one of the first major Western tv series to be filmed in Iran for 40 years.
She was previously a news anchor and correspondent for Channel 4 News, where she won the Stonewall Broadcast of the Year award for her film about the so-called “corrective” rape of lesbian women in South Africa; and for BBC News, where she covered the OJ Simpson case while LA Correspondent. In April 2023 Samira made headlines around the world after uncovering the earliest complete concert recording of the Beatles in Britain, at Stowe School in 1963.
Samira is a trustee of the Centre for Women’s Justice and on the advisory board of the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford. She holds honorary doctorates from City, University of London and the University of East Anglia, and is an honorary fellow of St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford.
Felicity Baker
After leaving Wimbledon High in 2002, Felicity studied English at the University of Leicester and completed a MA at King’s College and RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art). She then trained as a journalist at Kingston University. Felicity joined BBC News in 2009 and currently works as a Senior Producer on the main BBC News bulletins at One, Six and Ten. During her BBC career she’s worked on many high profile news stories, including five general elections, the recent coronation of King Charles, the war in Ukraine, and overseeing news deployments for the BBC’s coverage in Westminster during Brexit. In 2020, she revealed the story of her grandmother, Hazel Hill, who helped to turn the tide of the Battle of Britain when she was a 13 year old school girl. The story was broadcast to acclaim across the world. In 2021 she spoke for the first time publicly about her stammer, in a TV news piece which was broadcast on the Six and Ten o’clock news. She went on to front a documentary about life with a stammer called ‘I Can’t Say My Name’ which was broadcast on prime time BBC One. Since the documentary was broadcast she has been contacted by people from all over the world who found her story inspiring and have shared their experience of living with a stammer. She hosted a conference for Action for Stammering Children – a charity she has now joined as a trustee. She uses her own experience to help inspire young people, regularly giving talks at the Michael Palin Centre and back at Wimbledon High. Felicity is a finalist for Alumnae of the Year 2024.
Dr Celia Caulcott
Recently retired as Vice-Provost (Enterprise) at University College, London, Dr Caulcott (Class of 1976) is an independent research and innovation strategist helping bioscience research to make a difference. With many years as a distinguished leader in UK research and innovation, higher education and the bio-pharmaceutical and agri-food industries, she is currently engaged in pro bono roles that support the translation of research into application and impact, focussing on bioscience and our recovering economy, in particular food, crop production and health. She is Chair of The Quadram Institute Board of Trustees, which brings together researchers, academics and NHS clinicians to address global challenges in human health, food and disease; Vice Chair of John Innes Centre Governing Council (March 2022), an independent, international centre of excellence in plant science, genetics and microbiology and a Trustee at East Malling Trust whose objective is the advancement of science for public benefit, particularly in the fields of horticultural. At UCL, Celia was responsible for the university’s innovation and enterprise strategy, developing UCL’s strategic approach to working with business and industry & supporting the employability of all students and staff, through entrepreneurship. Prior to this, as the Executive Director, Innovation and Skills at the UK government’s Biotechnology and Biological Science Research Council, she was responsible for national strategy to support innovation and impact from bioscience research. Her latest appointment is as Chair of the Lake District National Park Partnership.
Photograph copyright by Milton Haworth.
Claire Cohen
After Wimbledon High, Claire (Class of 1984) went on to study English Literature at the University of Birmingham, while at the same time beginning her career as a writer and editor on national newspapers.
Claire is formerly Women’s Editor of The Telegraph, where she wrote and commissioned digital articles that were designed to reach a largely female audience and offer a platform to women from all walks of life. She was also Features Editor, part of a team that oversaw daily print and online articles and columnists. Claire currently works as a freelance writer.
Her book, ‘BFF? The Truth About Female Friendship’, which looks at important relationships in women’s lives, was published in 2022.
Sally Emerson
After leaving Wimbledon High School in 1970, Sally Emerson ( nee Stothard) studied English at the University of Oxford. Following university, she worked on a literary paper then went into editing magazines before publishing her first novel.
Sally has written six novels and a collection of short stories Perfect, Stories of the Impossible, published June 22, 2022 by Quadrant. Her novels including bestsellers Fire Child and Heat were reissued by Quartet in their Rediscovered Classics series in 2017.
She has written a number of children’s books and three anthologies of poetry and prose published by Little,brown on the great themes of life, Birth, Love and Grief (New Life, Be Mine and In Loving Memory). Sally has been a regular travel writer for the Times and the Sunday Times and a journalist on a number of papers.
Professor Baroness Ilora Finlay
After leaving Wimbledon High School, Ilora (Class of 1967) studied Medicine at St Mary’s.
Professor Ilora Baroness Finlay of Llandaff FRCP, FRCGP, FMedSci, FHEA, FLSW is an independent Crossbench Peer in the House of Lords, and a Deputy Speaker. She is a member of the House of Lords Special Inquiry Committee on the Integration of Primary and Community Care.
She has pushed legislation on many health issues, securing the Chief Coroner, banning smoking in public places, recently ensuring that the Health and Care Act now includes palliative care is a core NHS service and high-street cosmetic procedures become regulated. She was a Member of the House of Lords Select Committee on the Assisted Dying Bill and chaired the Select committee of Science and Technology inquiry into Allergy. She co-chairs several All-Party Parliamentary Groups, including Global Health. Her current Private Members Bill concerns internet safety.
She chairs the Commission on Alcohol Harms; CO Research Trust; Co-Chairs the Bevan Commission in Wales and was Vice-chair of NICE’s ME/CFS guideline. She established Living & Dying Well, a think-tank around end-of-life issues, and has spoken and written extensively on the subject, including co-authoring the book ’Death by Appointment’. She is a member of current The Times Commission on Health and Social Care.
At Cardiff University, she established the Palliative Care Diploma/MSc in 1989 and led Palliative Care service development across Wales, implementing a national strategy that provided 24/7 advice, 7 day specialist palliative care services across Wales and fair funding of services through a funding formula based on estimated needs. She previously held a visiting professorship, The Johanna Bijtel chair, at Groningen University, supported development of palliative care services and teaching in the region and also in Caen’s Baclesse Cancer Centre. She is currently on the International Scientific Expert Committee of the Cicely Saunders Institute, Kings College London and the Health and Care Research Wales Advisory Board.
Chairing the National Mental Capacity Forum for 6 years, she ran rapid-response webinars on mental capacity during Covid. She holds an Honorary Professorship at Cardiff University, has taught and lectured widely and has over 230 papers in peer-reviewed journals. She was named Welsh Woman of the year in 1996, Dod’s Peer of the Year in 2008, given the Livery Company of Wales’ lifetime achievement award 2014, and was a Founding Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales in 2010. She was listed in the 100 most influential Women in Westminster by Politics Home in 2022 and in 2023. She is President of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, a past-President of the Royal Society of Medicine, BMA, Medical Women’s Federation and the Association for Palliative Medicine, and Vice-President of several charities, including City Hospice, Hospice UK and Marie Curie.
Afua Hirsch
After leaving Wimbledon High School in 1999, Afua studied PPE at the University of Oxford.
Afua Hirsch is an award-winning writer, journalist, former barrister and filmmaker, known for storytelling on culture, identity and social justice. She co-presented Enslaved, a 6-part series about the transatlantic slave trade with Samuel L Jackson, a podcast series for Audible We Need To Talk About the British Empire, and African Renaissance, an ongoing flagship series about art and culture for the BBC, through her production company Born in Me.
A journalist for more than twenty years, Afua is the author of the bestselling book Brit(ish): On Race, Identity and Belonging, winner of the Royal Society of Literature Jerwood Prize, and three other books including Equal To Everything, a bestselling book about the UK Supreme Court, Empire: Look Again published by Tate, and the forthcoming Decolonising My Body, published by Penguin this October. Afua is a professor of Journalism at the University of Southern California, and holds a degree from Oxford University, and honorary doctorates from London’s South Bank University and The University of Oxford Brookes.
www.afuahirsch.com
Sheila Kanani MBE
Sheila (Class of 2001) is a British astronomer and the Education, Outreach and Diversity Officer at the Royal Astronomical Society.
She is dedicated to improving the representation of girls and women in physics. In 2017, she wrote an astronomy guide with Elle Magazine. She is identifying new ways to take astronomy and physics to underrepresented communities.
Her children’s book, ‘How to Be an Astronaut and Other Space Jobs’, was published in 2019 and was shortlisted for the Blue Peter Book Award. Her most recent book “Can You Get Rainbows in Space?” was published in March 2023.
Sheila was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to astronomy and diversity in physics.
Sara Nathan OBE
Sara is Co-founder of ‘Refugees at Home’ and former TV Producer.
After leaving Wimbledon High School in 1974, Sara studied History at Cambridge and Broadcast Communication at Stanford University.
Sara is a co-founder of Refugees at Home and volunteers with other refugee charities.
She is a journalist by background, mostly in broadcasting, mostly at the BBC. She was Editor of Channel 4 News rather a long time ago.
Since then, she has had a portfolio of public appointments including on the Ofcom board, Judicial Appointments Commission, as a Public Appointments Assessor and is now a tribunal chair at Social Work England and on the panel appointing King’s Counsel.
Bridget Rosewell CBE
Bridget Rosewell CBE, MA, MPhil, FICE, FACSS, FSPE is an experienced director, policy maker and economist, with a track record in advising public and private sector clients on key strategic issues. She chairs Atom Bank and the M6 Toll Company and is a non-executive for the UK Infrastructure Bank and Northumbrian Water Group. Among other roles, she has been a Commissioner for the National Infrastructure Commission, chaired DVSA, been Senior Independent Director for Network Rail and Chief Economic Adviser to the Greater London Authority. She was appointed CBE in December 2018 and is also a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Academy of Social Science and the Society of Professional Economists. She writes on finance, risk and uncertainty as well as infrastructure and modelling validation. She has worked extensively on cities, infrastructure and finance, advising on projects in road and rail and on major property developments and regeneration. She has advised on changes to planning regulation and TfL’s finances and has appeared at planning Inquiries.
Rachel Wang
Rachel Wang (Class of 1990) is a cultural leader and multi-award winning producer and entrepreneur and Co-Founder of social enterprise and film production company, Chocolate Films. After leaving Wimbledon High School, Rachel studied Theology and History of Art at the University of Bristol.
Rachel specialises in video production for the arts and heritage industries, creating content for the likes of HBO, Disney, BBC, Royal Collection, and the National Gallery.
Rachel is a public figure, holding a trusteeship at the National Portrait Gallery, the Advisory board at the Museum of London Docklands and Film London’s Film Hub. A graduate in Art, History of Art and Theology from Bristol University, Rachel also holds two Honorary Doctorates in Law and Business. She is a Freeman of the City of London and Member of the Company of Entrepreneurs.
“All the experiences I had at Wimbledon High have definitely shaped me into the person I am today.”
Alumna Orla (Class of 2019) explains what her time at Wimbledon High, from the age of 4 to 18, means to her.