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The Ladies' College, Guernsey

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Coordinates: 49°27′25″N 2°32′56″W / 49.457°N 2.549°W / 49.457; -2.549
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The Ladies' College
Address
Map
Les Gravees

Saint Peter Port
,
GY1 1RW

Guernsey
Coordinates49°27′25″N 2°32′56″W / 49.457°N 2.549°W / 49.457; -2.549
Information
TypePrivate day school
MottoFrench: Fais ce que dois advienne que pourra[1]
(Do what is right come what may)
Religious affiliation(s)Non-denominational Christian[2]
Established1872; 152 years ago (1872)
Local authorityGuernsey Offshore Establishments
Department for Education URN132526 Tables
PrincipalDaniele Harford-Fox
GenderGirls
Age range11–18[2]
Enrolment395 (2016)[2]
Houses
  • Brock
  • Carey
  • Durand
  • de Sausmarez
Colour(s)Green and navy   
PublicationIlex
School fees£4,670 per term (2023/2024)[3]
AffiliationGirls' Schools Association
Websitewww.ladiescollege.com

The Ladies' College is an independent day school for girls in Saint Peter Port, Guernsey. The school was founded on 10 October 1872 in order to provide academic education to girls on the island and was modelled after Cheltenham Ladies' College.[4] As a member of the Girls' Schools Association (GSA), it is a public school in the British sense of the term.[5]

The school has around 400 girls aged 11 to 18, and provides a coeducational sixth form in partnership with the nearby Elizabeth College.[2] An associated preparatory school, Melrose, was opened in 1949 on the same site as the school. As a selective school, prospective pupils must pass an entrance exam to be offered a place, although the school accepts pupils from a wide ability range. The school charges £4,670 per term, with three terms per academic year, as of 2023/2024.

History

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The school was founded on 10 October 1872, with the aim of providing acamedic education to girls on the island.[4][2] The school was established in order to emulate Cheltenham Ladies' College,[6][7] by the two joint-secretaries of the Guernsey Ladies' Educational Guild who issued two hundred shares of five pounds each; fittingly, the school's first principal was a former member of staff at Cheltenham College.[7] By the end of the school's first academic year the number of pupils reached 70.[7]

Ahead of the Second World War, 1939 saw a large increase in enrollment at the school as many parents sent their children to the island for their safety, with many believing the Channel Islands to be the safest place in the British Isles.[8] However, following the occupation of the Channel Islands by German forces in June 1940, an evacuation scheme was quickly assembled and 100 pupils, accompanied by school staff, were evacuated to England before eventually settling in Denbigh, Wales, following an invitation from the headmistress of the local Howell's School who offered to receive the school.[7]

In 1949, following the school's return to the island, Melrose, a listed Georgian building adjacent to the school site was acquired and converted into a preparatory school.[6][9] Following damage to the school building following a fire in 1962, the school was formally taken over in 1963 by the States of Guernsey, who approved the development of a new school building on the Grange. The foundation stone for the building was laid by Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, who declared, "the modern woman needs to have the highest education available to her if she is to take her place in the modern world" and wished the school a successful future.[7]

The entrance to The Ladies' College site from the Grange

School structure

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The school uses its own nomenclature in naming its year groups, different to that of the English National Curriculum. The school refers to what would commonly be named years 7 to 13 in English education as follows: remove, lower and upper 4, lower and upper 5, and lower and upper sixth.[2]

Governance

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Governance is delivered by a board of six members appointed by the States of Deliberation, one of whom must be a sitting member of the States. A 2016 report by the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) described the governance as "excellent", noting that "[g]overnors have an excellent insight into the working of the school, and provide an effective blend of support and challenge to the leadership".[2]

The school operates in a sixth form partnership group with Elizabeth College, and is also a member of the Three Colleges Group along with Elizabeth College and Blanchelande to ensure unity between Guernsey's three independent schools.[10]

The school is a member of the Girls' Schools Association (GSA) and is therefore considered a public school in the British sense of the term.[5]

Admissions

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The school has grant-aided status, meaning around a third of places at the school are allocated by the States of Guernsey, based on the eleven-plus assessment. As of 2016, 395 girls are enrolled at the school, 83 of those being in the sixth form, with most coming from white skilled and professional families. In 2016, two-thirds of pupils were Guernsey-born and the remainder were of UK origin, with a small portion being from overseas.[2]

Girls can proceed directly from Melrose (the associated preparatory school) or if coming from another school must sit the school's own entrance examination. Similar to Elizabeth College and Blanchelande, the school accepts pupils with a wide ability range, revealing in 2017 that only three pupils in total had been denied entry to all three Colleges in the last two years out of the 375 pupils that sat entrance assessments.[11]

As of 2023/2024, the school charges £4,670 per term with three terms per academic year.[3]

Curriculum

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Students in upper 5 are entered for a combination of GCSE and IGCSE examinations. In the sixth form, some teaching is shared with Elizabeth College, and pupils are entered for A-level examinations.[2]

Alumnae

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Alumnae of the school are known as 'Old Girls' and are eligible to join the Ladies' College Guild, formed in 1905 as an association for former pupils.[12] The school has educated the following notable alumnae:

References

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  1. ^ "Our Aims". Retrieved 13 July 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Inspection report on The Ladies' College, 2016" (PDF). ladiescollege.com. Independent Schools Inspectorate. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  3. ^ a b "Fees 2023/24". ladiescollege.com. The Ladies' College. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  4. ^ a b Backhurst, Marie-Louise (2011). Tracing Your Channel Islands Ancestors: A Guide for Family Historians. Pen and Sword. ISBN 9781783373215.
  5. ^ a b "GSA - The Ladies' College". gsa.uk.com. Girls' Schools Association (GSA). Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  6. ^ a b "The Ladies' College - Our History". ladiescollege.com. The Ladies' College. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  7. ^ a b c d e Buckfield, J.E. (1965). History of the Guernsey Ladies College 1872-1963. Guernsey Press Co Ltd.
  8. ^ Collenette, V.G. Elizabeth College in Exile – 1940–1945. Guernsey: Guernsey Press Co. Ltd. p. 7. Archived from the original on 31 January 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  9. ^ "Inspection report on The Ladies' College, Melrose, 2013" (PDF). ladiescollege.com. Independent Schools Inspectorate. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  10. ^ "Independent Schools Inspection Report on Elizabeth College" (PDF). elizabethcollege.gg. ISI. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 May 2016. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  11. ^ "The Role of the Colleges and States Funding for Assisted Places" (PDF). elizabethcollege.gg. The Three Colleges. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 January 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  12. ^ "The Ladies' College Guild". ladiescollege.com. The Ladies' College Guild. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  13. ^ "Marie Randall MBE - Guernsey's first female deputy - awarded a blue plaque". gov.gg. States of Guernsey. 21 November 2023. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
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