Alumna December 2025 • Brighton Girls

Alexandra Noble

1. When you were at Brighton & Hove High School, and what is your fondest memory of school?

I was at the school between 1995-2005. I loved playing rounders in the summer on the vicarage lawn as well as benchball in the sports hall on rainy PE days!

2. Who was your favourite teacher and why?
Can I have two? I really enjoyed the energy Madame Burnett Smith brought to French lessons and the encouragement and enthusiasm of Ms Guthrie during Art classes. I have loved Art Nouveau ever since it was a topic one year and recently visited Brussels to see inside villas such as Maison Horta, Maison Hannon and Hôtel Solvay.

3. What were the benefits of being in an all-girls school?
The school instilled a strong sense of self-discipline and independence; both qualities which still prove to be invaluable today.

4. What did you want to be when you ‘grew-up’?
During my school years, I initially aspired to be a fashion designer or artist; however, my interests gradually shifted toward sculpture and eventually to architecture.

5. What do you do now, and what are the most rewarding and challenging parts of your job?
I moved into Landscape Architecture after studying Architecture at Bath University and a subsequent RHS Horticulture qualification. I now mostly work on the design of high-end residential gardens across London and the UK.

The most rewarding part of my work is seeing the tangible benefits the gardens provide for both people and nature. Each design typically prioritises a high proportion of planting, and where the client brief allows, I aim to include many nectar- and pollen-rich plants to support pollinators throughout the year. Hearing clients describe how the garden has enhanced their wellbeing is also heartening.

In the early days of the business, one of the main challenges was attracting new clients without an established portfolio or project examples. Currently, I find maintaining a consistent presence on social media whilst running the business full-time a challenge.

6. What are you most proud of so far?
Winning RHS People’s Choice for a Show Garden at Hampton Court Palace Flower Show 2018. It was incredibly rewarding to see how deeply the garden resonated with visitors.

7. What was the best piece of advice you were given whilst at Brighton?
The best piece of advice I was given is that “girls can do anything” and it has completely shaped how I approach challenges and opportunities. I believe our mindset often defines what we see as possible and that confidence, consistency and determination can take you far.

8. What advice would you give to your 18 year old self?
Run your own race.

9. What book, film or piece of music would you recommend to your younger self and to your fellow alumnae?
I’d recommend The Garden Jungle by Dave Goulson who is Professor of Biology at Sussex University. The book champions the importance of gardening in an ecologically beneficial way through practices such as avoiding the use of peat-based compost as well as chemical fertilisers and pesticides.

10. How would you like to be remembered?
For being a kind and positive person who lived life on my own terms.