A former Newcastle High School for Girls (NHSG) student who is now a GP and writes a weekly health page for the Mail on Sunday as well as appearing regularly on programmes such as BBC Breakfast, Sky News, Channel 5 News and Jeremy Vine on Channel 5, has received an Alumna of the Year award from the Girls Day School Trust (GDST), plus £500 to donate to charity.

“It’s a real honour, and I’m delighted that it’s given me the opportunity to highlight the brilliant education I received at NHSG,” said Ellie Cannon, who studied medicine at the University of Cambridge, then completed five years of training at the London Royal Free Medical School before joining an NHS GP practice on London’s Abbey Road. In 2019, she was named the 15th most influential GP in the UK and worked with the Cabinet Office during the pandemic. Last year she was made a Fellow of the Royal College of General Practitioners.

“I very much enjoyed my all-girls’ education in Newcastle. I think one of the reasons I was able to do so well in medicine is because of the sense of ambition that NHSG instilled in all of us – breaking down gender stereotypes and reminding us that girls can succeed in whatever we set our mind to.”

Founded in 1872, NHSG is the only north east member of the GDST which oversees 25 independent girls’ schools and two academies in the UK.

“I come from a family of medics, so that was always going to heavily influence me. Many of my peers at school went on to do medicine at university, which I think is really outstanding for a girls school,” said Cannon.

“My experience in senior school absolutely blew open the world of science to me. The teaching staff certainly knew what they were doing – and having the opportunity to take part in national science competitions was a real highlight. School definitely broadened my horizons in terms of what a role in medicine might entail. That influenced my move into public health and advocacy work, in addition to my GP practice.”

NHSG head teacher Michael Tippet praised Dr Cannon’s achievements since leaving the school. “An all-girls education improves aspiration around subjects that were formerly very male dominated. It is fair to say that medicine and the sciences were traditionally in this category, and to see Ellie achieving so much not just in terms of her career success, but also in terms of public health, reinforces her role as a truly inspirational female lead,” he said.

Cannon, who has shared a stage with Prince William to speak about her own health struggles and help de-stigmatise mental illnesses, gave her £500 donation to Beyond, a charity which works to prevent mental illness among young people.

“I gave it to them for two reasons,” she explained. “Jonny Benjamin set up the charity and is a sensational advocate for those affected by suicide and schizophrenia. Secondly, we have a crisis of mental health in the young, so it felt pertinent to give the gift towards young people.”

And Cannon’s advice for girls wanting to pursue their dreams? “You need to give yourself some space and don’t let anyone make your true-self disappear. Each of us has to learn to love ourselves, the good and the bad, the success and the failure, on good hair days and bad, and most importantly be happy and healthy.”

She said that taking part in opportunities at NHSG like voluntary work, competitions, debating and French exchange trips were an important part of her education. “The world right now is a little bit tricky. We had time to make mistakes, be bored, have terrible hairstyles that could be forgotten. Life now appears to be built on likes and followers. You have to build your own happiness and resilience based on what you alone decide is important. You will never have enough followers or A stars.”

For more information about Newcastle High School for Girls, visit its website or follow its Twitter and Instagram accounts.