North London Collegiate School (NLCS) is an independent school with a

day school A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children and adolescents are given instructions during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when comp ...

for girls in England. Founded in Camden Town, it is now located in

Edgware Edgware () is a suburban town in northern Greater London, mostly in the London Borough of Barnet but with small parts falling in the London Borough of Harrow and in the London Borough of Brent. Edgware is centred north-northwest of Charing Cros ...

, in the

London Borough of Harrow The London Borough of Harrow () is a London borough in northwest London, England; it forms part of Outer London. It borders four other London boroughs Barnet to the east of ancient Watling Street (now the A5 road), Brent to the southeast, Eal ...

. Associate schools are located in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, Jeju Island,

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics ...

and

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

; all are coeducational day and boarding schools offering the British curriculum. It is a member of the Girls' Schools Association.

Location

North London Collegiate School is located at the western edge of Edgware near the Canons Park. It is accessed by car through Canons Drive from Edgware's High Street. However both Stanmore tube station and Canons Park tube station are walking distance.

History

The North London Collegiate School was founded by

Frances Buss Frances Mary Buss (16 August 1827 – 24 December 1894) was a British headmistress and a pioneer of girls' education. Life The daughter of Robert William Buss, a painter and etcher, and his wife, Frances Fleetwood, Buss was one of six of thei ...

, a pioneer in girls' education. It is generally recognised as the first girls' school in the United Kingdom to offer girls the same educational opportunities as boys, and Miss Buss was the first person to use the term 'Headmistress'. The small school opened in 1850 at No.46 (later renumbered No.12)

Camden Camden may refer to: People * Camden (surname), a surname of English origin * Camden Joy (born 1964), American writer * Camden Toy (born 1957), American actor Places Australia * Camden, New South Wales * Camden, Rosehill, a heritage res ...

Street, London. Buss believed in the importance of home life and it remained a day school. In 1929, the school bought Canons, a modest villa built by William Hallett Esq, on the site of a palatial residence originally built in the early 18th century by the Duke of Chandos, and relocated to the property (designed by Sir Albert Richardson) in 1940. Lucinda Elizabeth Shaw, mother to

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

was a director of music at the school, followed in 1908 by Lilian Manson,

J.B. Manson James Bolivar Manson (26 June 1879 in London – 3 July 1945 in London)

's wife. Her ambitious revival of

Purcell Henry Purcell (, rare: September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer. Purcell's style of Baroque music was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Generally considered among the greatest E ...

's ''

Dido and Aeneas ''Dido and Aeneas'' (Z. 626) is an opera in a prologue and three acts, written by the English Baroque composer Henry Purcell with a libretto by Nahum Tate. The dates of the composition and first performance of the opera are uncertain. It was c ...

'' in 1910 gained coverage in ''The Times''.Buckman, David (1973), ''James Bolivar Manson'', p. 9, Maltzahn Gallery Ltd, London. The school introduced a house system in 2014, with the houses being named after noted past pupils. The houses have colours, and each house has two house captains amongst the pupils (a year 9 and a year 11), and a staff head of house. Today the school caters to girls from ages 4 to 18. It comprises a Junior School (Reception to Year 6) and Senior School (Year 7–13). Former pupils are known as ONLs, short for ''Old North Londoners''. The uniform of North London Collegiate School is light blue and dark brown in colour, however uniform is not compulsory in sixth form. The co-ed boarding North London Collegiate School Jeju opened in

Seogwipo Seogwipo () is the second-largest city on Jeju Island, settled on a rocky volcanic coastline in the southern part of Jeju Province, South Korea. In July 2006, Seogwipo's boundaries were expanded to include the entire southern half of Jeju island. ...

, South Korea in 2011. The school opened another international school in

in August 2020.

Curriculum

North London Collegiate is one of the most academically successful schools in England, having been placed in the top two in the '' Daily Telegraph'' exam league tables every year for over a decade. It has been an

International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly known as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB ...

World School since October 2003 . Girls may choose to take the traditional A Levels or the Pre-U or the IB curriculum. The girls are also encouraged to participate in non-academic pursuits. The Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme is available similarly to all independent schools. They may also take part in activities such as World Challenge Expeditions, Young Enterprise, Model United Nations and various community service projects.

Alleged malpractice in deciding teacher-assessed grades

In December 2022 the Guardian revealed that the school is the subject of investigations by A-level examination boards into the teacher-assessed grades given to pupils in 2021. These replaced the formal exams that were cancelled due to Covid. In 2021 90% of its A-level entries got A* grades - the highest in the country - whereas in 2019 the figure was only 34%. North London Collegiate School is not the only private school under investigation. In 2021, the percentage of A* grades from English private schools was 39.5%, but only 16.1% in 2019. Dr Jo Saxton, Ofqual’s chief regulator, confirmed in October 2022 that private schools were being investigated when she appeared before the education select committee.

Headmistresses

Frances Mary Buss and Sophie Bryant in 1900">Sophie_Bryant.html" ;"title="Frances Mary Buss and Sophie Bryant">Frances Mary Buss and Sophie Bryant in 1900 *Frances Mary Buss (1850 – December 1894) *Sophie Bryant (1895–1918)The book entitled ''The North London Collegiate School 1850 – 1950'' contains references in the index to this person and a black-and-white photographic plate with printed signature- See Bibliography for further detail of book *Isabella Drummond (1918–1940, previously Head of Camden School) *Eileen Harold (1941–1944)The book entitled ''The North London Collegiate School 1850 – 1950'' contains references in the index to this person. *Dame Kitty Anderson DBE (1945–1965) *Madeline McLauchlan (1965 – December 1985, previously at

Henrietta Barnett School The Henrietta Barnett School is a grammar school with academy status primarily for girls in Hampstead Garden Suburb in London. The '' Good Schools Guide'' called the school 'One of the best academic state schools in the country, providing a gen ...

) *Joan Clanchy (1986–1997) previously Head of St George's School, Edinburgh *Bernice McCabe OBE (1997–2017, previously at

Chelmsford County High School Chelmsford County High School for Girls or "CCHS", is a selective grammar school for girls aged 11–18 located in Chelmsford, Essex, England. Entrance to the school is by an academic selection test. CCHS is traditionally rated among the most co ...

) *Sarah Clark (2018–2022, previously at

Queen's School, Chester The Queen's School is an independent day school for girls aged 4–18 located in Chester, England. Founded in 1878 as "The Chester School for Girls", Queen Victoria, who was the school's first patron, issued a royal decree naming the school as " ...

)

Notable former pupils

Notable former staff

* Edith Aitken (founding head of Pretoria High School for Girls) * Peggy Angus (artist, tile and wallpaper designer), teacher 1947-70 * Edward Aveling, teacher of elementary physics and botany (1872-1876)

Bibliography

* ''The North London Collegiate School 1850–1950: A Hundred Years of Girls' Education'' Includes 'Essays in honour of the Frances Mary Buss Foundation' together with an appendix section that includes Royal Patrons, The School Prospectus, Prize Day List, Links to Girton College and the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degre ...

, and regulations concerning Prefects and Monitors. Published by OUP (

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

) in 1950 with 231 pages, including the index. (No author or Editor)Detail obtained from a copy of ''The North London Collegiate School 1850–1950'' *"And Their Works Do Follow Them" by Watson, Nigel London, James & James, 2000 *

References

External links

*
Profile
on The Good Schools Guide *

ISI ISI or Isi may refer to: Organizations * Intercollegiate Studies Institute, a classical conservative organization focusing on college students * Ice Skating Institute, a trade association for ice rinks * Indian Standards Institute, former name of ...

Inspectio
ReportsProfile
on MyDaughter
NLCS International Ltd.
{{authority control Independent girls' schools in London Independent schools in the London Borough of Harrow Educational institutions established in 1850 International Baccalaureate schools in England Member schools of the Girls' Schools Association 1850 establishments in England Edgware