St Catherine's School (commonly referred to as ''St Cath's'') is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

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 ...

Junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959 * ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009 * ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010 * ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019 Films * ''Junior'' (1994 ...

and

Senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

day A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours, 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds. In everyday life, the word "day" often refers to a solar day, which is the length between two so ...

and boarding school, located in

Waverley Waverley may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Waverley'' (novel), by Sir Walter Scott ** ''Waverley'' Overture, a work by Hector Berlioz inspired by Scott's novel * Waverley Harrison, a character in the New Zealand soap opera ''Shortland Stree ...

, an eastern suburb of

Sydney, New South Wales Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountains ...

, Australia. Established in 1856 as a school for the daughters of

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

, St Catherine's is the oldest Anglican girls' school in Australia. It is also the oldest private girls' school in Australia. It is a non-selective school, and currently caters for approximately 1,000 girls from Year K to

Year 12 Year 12 is an educational year group in schools in many countries including England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. It is sometimes the twelfth year of compulsory education, or alternatively a year of post-compulsory educa ...

, including 70 boarders. The school is affiliated with the

Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia The Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia (abbreviated as AGSA) is a non-profit organisation that promotes the education of girls in single-sex girls' schools, and promotes the image of, and support the development of, girls' schools in Australa ...

(AGSA), 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), the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA), the Australian Boarding Schools' Association (ABSA), and is a founding member of the

Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools The Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools (AHIGS), is an association for independent girls' schools, based in North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1916 as The Association of Head Mistresses of New South Wales, the ...

(AHIGS). St Catherine's has been reviewed by the ''

Good Schools Guide International ''The Good Schools Guide'' is a guide to British schools, both state and independent. Overview The guide is compiled by a team of editors which, according to the official website, "''comprises some 50 editors, writers, researchers and contri ...

''.

History

St Catherine's School traces its origins to 1855, when Jane Barker, wife of

Frederic Barker Frederic Barker (17 March 1808 – 6 April 1882) was the second Anglican bishop of Sydney. Early life Barker was born at Baslow, Derbyshire, England, fifth son of the Rev. John Barker and his wife Jane, née Whyte. He was educated at The Ki ...

, second Archbishop of Sydney, decided to establish a school for the daughters of the

. Barker and her husband had travelled throughout New South Wales, and realised that the poor stipends of the clergy in country areas meant that their daughters could not benefit from a good education. Within five months, Barker had raised enough money to secure a premises in Point Piper Road (now Jersey Road), Edgecliff, and had hired Ms Loftus to run the St Catherine's Clergy Daughters School. Barker wished for her school to be modelled on

Casterton School Casterton School was an independent boarding and day school for girls aged 3 to 18 years in the village of Casterton, Cumbria, Casterton in rural Cumbria. In its final years it also admitted boys, up to the age of 11. The school ceased to exist i ...

, the school attended by the Brontë sisters, who were themselves the daughters of a poor clergyman. The Clergy Daughters School was officially opened in its temporary location on 5 March 1856. Shortly after the school's opening, Barker was able to secure a land grant of near Waverley, and began to look towards the creation of a small

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

settlement, including the Clergy Daughters' School, a

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

parsonage A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically own ...

and a village school. In September 1857, the foundation stone of the new School was laid, and in 1859, the

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

building which remains the focus of the School today, was completed. Barker continued to be closely involved with the fledgling Clergy Daughters' school until her death in 1876. When enrolments began to decline during the depression years of 1891–1895, day girls were admitted to the school for the first time. The principal, Ms Darling, also introduced the first

school uniform A school uniform is a uniform worn by students primarily for a school or otherwise an educational institution.They are common in primary and secondary schools in various countries. An example of a uniform would be requiring button-down shir ...

during this time, in the form of an olive green dress. In 1933, the

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 ...

was introduced. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the swimming pool, a new assembly building and the junior school were added amongst other renovations. A new sports centre was opened in 2002.

Houses

Barker was named after the Bishop and Mrs Barker, Casterton House after the school on which St Catherine's was modelled, and the third House was named Bronte as

Charlotte Brontë Charlotte Brontë (, commonly ; 21 April 1816 – 31 March 1855) was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Brontë sisters who survived into adulthood and whose novels became classics of English literature. She enlisted i ...

had mentioned Casterton in ''

Jane Eyre ''Jane Eyre'' ( ; originally published as ''Jane Eyre: An Autobiography'') is a novel by the English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published under her pen name "Currer Bell" on 19 October 1847 by Smith, Elder & Co. of London. The first ...

''. Hulme-Moir and Sutherland were created in 1987.

Headmistresses

Campus

Since 1859, St Catherine's School has been situated on one suburban campus, currently in size and featuring a mix of 19th century and modern buildings, gardens and views to the

Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea (Māori: ''Te Tai-o-Rēhua'', ) is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abe ...

. Some notable facilities of the college include the Jo Karaolis Sports Centre, with facilities for

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...

, tennis, basketball and gymnastics and school functions; the Dame Joan Sutherland Centre for the Performing Arts, featuring a drama theatre,

recording studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large enoug ...

, dance studio,

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran *Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania * Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

room and music practice and teaching areas; computing facilities in the Sutherland Centre; an Independent Learning Centre and Student Meeting Room; swimming pool;

Junior School A Junior school is a type of school which provides primary education to children, often in the age range from 8 and 13, following attendance at Infant school which covers the age range 5–7. (As both Infant and Junior schools are giving Primary E ...

and library; and Year 12 common room and

Senior School A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

Library; The Boarding House,

uniform A uniform is a variety of clothing worn by members of an organization while participating in that organization's activity. Modern uniforms are most often worn by armed forces and paramilitary organizations such as police, emergency services, se ...

shop,

deli Deli may refer to: * Delicatessen, a shop selling specially prepared food, or food prepared by such a shop * Sultanate of Deli, a former sultanate in North Sumatra, Indonesia Places * Deli, Boyer-Ahmad, a village in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Pro ...

, museum and playgrounds. After school care facilities are also located on site.

Notable alumnae

Former students of St Catherine's School are known as "Old Girls" and may elect to join the schools

Alumni association An alumni association or alumnae association is an association of graduates or, more broadly, of former students (alumni). In the United Kingdom and the United States, alumni of universities, colleges, schools (especially independent schools), ...

, known as the "Old Girls' Union". The Old Girls' Union was established on 11 November 1898 by Miss Charlotte Elizabeth Fox, the

Headmistress A head master, head instructor, bureaucrat, headmistress, head, chancellor, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. In som ...

at the time. At its foundation the aim of the union was to keep past pupils in contact with the school and promote its good, whilst also encouraging younger members to continue furthering their talents after graduation. Some notable Old Girls' of St Catherine's include: ;Entertainment, media and the arts *

Eirene Mort Eirene Mort (1879–1977) was an Australian artist, art teacher, printmaker, cartoonist, fashion designer and founder of the Society of Arts and Crafts of New South Wales. Early life Eirene Mort was born on 17 November 1879 at Woollahra. Her ...

– artist *

Mouche Phillips Mouche Phillips (born 1973) is an Australian actress and theatre producer, best known for her television roles as Aviva "Viv" Newton in '' Home and Away'' (1989–90) and Eva Sykes in police procedural series '' Water Rats'' (2000–01). Ea ...

- actress. * Dame

Joan Sutherland Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, (7 November 1926 – 10 October 2010) was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano known for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s. She possessed ...

–

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

tic

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

Rachael Coopes Rachael Coopes (sometimes credited as Rachel Coopes) is an Australian actress, best known for her character ''Sigourney'' in the SBS cult parody series ''Life Support''. After starring in her first acting role as Max Cullen's daughter in the ...

- actress ;Medicine and science * Una Lucy Fielding – pioneering

neuroanatomist Neuroanatomy is the study of the structure and organization of the nervous system. In contrast to animals with radial symmetry, whose nervous system consists of a distributed network of cells, animals with bilateral symmetry have segregated, defin ...

* Tamara Davis - astrophysicist ;Sport *

Gabi Simpson Gabrielle Simpson (born 17 October 1992), also known as Gabi Simpson, is an Australia netball international. Simpson was vice-captain of the Australia team that won the silver medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Simpson was also a member of ...

- netball * Lizzie Welborn - surfing *

Amy Ridge Amy Ridge (born 15 August 1996 in Sydney) is an Australian water polo player who is a member of the Australia women's national water polo team. She was part of the team at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships, 2018 FINA World Cup, 2019 World ...

- water polo

References

External links

St. Catherine's School website

Review
by the ''

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Catherine's School, Sydney 1856 establishments in Australia Anglican secondary schools in Sydney Educational institutions established in 1856 Anglican primary schools in Sydney Boarding schools in New South Wales Girls' schools in New South Wales Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools Junior School Heads Association of Australia Member Schools Waverley, New South Wales Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia