(Seek ye first the Kingdom of God) , city = Caulfield , state = Victoria , country =

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, coordinates = , type =

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

, single-sex, day school , denomination =

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

, established = 1898 , principal = Katrina Brennan , chaplain = Ella Baldwin , staff = , years = P–12 , gender = Girls , enrolment = ~600 , slogan = Thrive , affiliation =

Girls Sport Victoria Girls' Sport Victoria (GSV) was established in 2001, and is one of the largest independent school sporting associations in Victoria, Australia, with 24 member schools from around Melbourne. GSV provides approximately 16,500 girls, from years se ...

, homepage
www.shelford.vic.edu.au
Shelford Girls' Grammar is an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

day school for girls living in Caulfield, a suburb of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Victoria, Australia. The school was established in 1898, and is a member of

(GSV),Girls Sport Victoria: Member Schools
(accessed:27-07-2007) the

Junior School Heads Association of Australia The Independent Primary School Heads of Australia (IPSHA) formerly Junior School Heads Association of Australia (JSHAA), is an incorporated body representing the heads of independent primary schools in Australia. Officially established in Septem ...

(JSHAA) and the Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia. It is a non-selective entry school, with more than 600 students. Shelford has a coeducational Early Learning Centre, which educates toddlers 18 months old, as well as providing groups for 3 and 4-year-olds. Shelford is a member of

(GSV). Shelford offers students the

Victorian Certificate of Education The Victorian Certificate of Education (often abbreviated VCE) is one credential available to secondary school students who successfully complete year 11 and 12 in the Australian state of Victoria. The VCE is the predominant choice for students ...

(VCE) program, as well as the

Vocational Education and Training Vocational education is education that prepares people to work as a technician or to take up employment in a skilled craft or trade as a tradesman, tradesperson or artisan. Vocational Education can also be seen as that type of education give ...

(VET) course. Shelford uses a

house system The house system is a traditional feature of schools in the United Kingdom. The practice has since spread to Commonwealth countries and the United States. The school is divided into subunits called "houses" and each student is allocated to o ...

through which students participate in inter-house competitions, with 4 school houses.

History

The school was established in 1898 on Glen Eira Road by Emily Dixon. The school was relocated to 77 Allison Road,

Elsternwick Elsternwick is an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Glen Eira local government area. Elsternwick recorded a population of 10,887 at the 2021 ...

, by Dora Mary Petrie Blundell, who served as the school's second principal from 1904 to 1921. Dora was supported by her sisters, Lucy Annie Blundell, Fanny Blundell, and Margaret Helen Petrie Blundell. As the

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

of St Mary's Anglican Church in Caulfield, Henry Langley had been giving the pupils of Shelford Girls' School weekly lessons in religious instruction for many years. In 1922, the Blundell sisters wished to give the school to the church, and they approached

Archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that o ...

Langley, who was responsible for its temporary move from 77 Allison Road, Elsternwick, to St Mary's Jubilee School Hall. The Argus reported on the re-opening and Archdeacon Langley's appointment of Ada Mary Thomas as the school's head mistress: ::There was a large gathering of residents of Caulfield and Elsternwick, including several of the neighbouring clergy, to witness the formal reopening of Shelford Girls' School, a long-established Elsternwick school, as a girls' school and kindergarten in connection with St. Mary's Church, Caulfield.
Bishop Green, in declaring the school open, congratulated the vicar (Canon Langley) on an initial enrolment of 60 pupils.
The mayor of Caulfield (Councillor

homas In the Vedic Hinduism, a homa (Sanskrit: होम) also known as havan, is a fire ritual performed on special occasions by a Hindu priest usually for a homeowner (" grihastha": one possessing a home). The grihasth keeps different kinds of fire ...

Falls) and the Rev. ames ValentinePatton, of Sydney, also spoke.
Canon Langley said that the school is to be called by the old name of Shelford, but will be carried on as a Church of England school, under a local council, with A. M. Thomas as principal.
It is proposed to build up-to-date school buildings at a site for a branch church near the Caulfield Town Hall St Margaret's">Henry Langley (Dean of Melbourne)#St. Margaret's, Caulfield">St Margaret's but for the present the school will meet in the existing school buildings at St. Mary's, Caulfield. — ''The Argus'', 23 February 1922. The following year, Archdeacon Langley moved the school to "Helenslea" in Hood Crescent,

Caulfield North Caulfield North is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 11 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Glen Eira local government area. Caulfield North recorded a population of 16,903 at the ...

. The school was officially opened at its new location by Archbishop Lees on 22 February 1923 adjacent to St Mary's Church as the Shelford Girls' Grammar School. Ada Mary Thomas served as Shelford's headmistress from 1922 to 1945.A photograph, "Head Mistress and Staff of Shelford Girls' School, Caulfield", including Langley (second from right) is at
Schools & Colleges: Shelford Girls' School, ''Table Talk'', 10 April 1924, p. 24.
/ref>

Notable alumnae

* Brigitte Duclos - Television and radio presenter. *

Olympia Valance Olympia Montana Valance (born 7 January 1993) is an Australian actress and model, whose roles include Paige Smith in the soap opera ''Neighbours'' (2014–2018, 2020, 2022) and Tahlia Woods in '' Playing for Keeps''. For her role as Paige, Vala ...

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...

actor *

Krystal Weir Krystal Weir (born 15 January 1985) is an Australian sailor. She finished tenth at the 2008 Summer Olympics. She was selected to represent Australia at the 2012 Summer Olympics in sailing in the Women's Laser Radial class event, where she f ...

- Olympian

References

Bibliography

Mr. F.W. Eggleston, M.L.A., Opens New Tennis Court at Shelford Girls' School, ''Table Talk'', (Thursday, 26 November 1925), p.22.

Schools & Colleges: Shelford Girls' School, ''Table Talk'', (Thursday, 26 November 1925), p.30.

The Woman's World, ''The (Melbourne) Herald'', (Tuesday, 6 September 1932), p.14.

New Wing at Shelford Girls' Grammar School, ''The Argus'', (Monday, 4 November 1935), p.10.

Mrs. Dorothea Hann, née Clutterbuck, "Shelford Girls' School", ''The Age'', (tuesday, 1 September 1942), p.2.

Little Girl Had Big Day at Shelford, ''The Age'', (Thursday, 24 September 1953), p.5.

External links

Shelford Girls' Grammar Website

Girls Sport Victoria

Shelford Girls School, Melbourne (etching, 1936) — Artist: Austin Platt (1912–2003), ''National Gallery of Australia''.
{{Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia schools Girls' schools in Victoria (Australia) Educational institutions established in 1898 Anglican secondary schools in Melbourne Anglican primary schools in Melbourne Junior School Heads Association of Australia Member Schools 1898 establishments in Australia Grammar schools in Australia Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia Buildings and structures in the City of Glen Eira

History

Notable alumnae

See also

References

Bibliography

External links