Oxford High School 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 recorded ...

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

for girls in

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, England. It was founded by the Girls' Day School Trust in 1875, making it the city's oldest girls' school.

History

Oxford High School was opened on 3 November 1875, with twenty-nine girls and three teachers under headmistress Ada Benson, at the Judge's Lodgings (St Giles' House) at 16 St Giles', central Oxford.St Giles' House (Judge's Lodgings), 16 St Giles' Street, Oxford
(where OHS was founded). It was the 9th school opened by the

Girls' Public Day School Company The Girls' Day School Trust (GDST) is a group of 25 independent schools, including two academies, in England and Wales, catering for girls aged 3 to 18. It is the largest group of independent schools in the UK, and educates 20,000 girls each yea ...

. Pupils were given a holiday when the

Assize The assizes (), or courts of assize, were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes ex ...

Judge visited. The school moved to 38 St Giles' in 1879 and then to 21

Banbury Road Banbury Road is a major arterial road in Oxford, England, running from St Giles' at the south end, north towards Banbury through the leafy suburb of North Oxford and Summertown, with its local shopping centre. Parallel and to the west is the ...

at the start of 1881, in a building designed by Sir

Thomas Graham Jackson Sir Thomas Graham Jackson, 1st Baronet (21 December 1835 – 7 November 1924) was one of the most distinguished British architects of his generation. He is best remembered for his work at Oxford, including the Oxford Military College at Co ...

, just south of the location of another Jackson building, the Acland Nursing Home. By this time, the headmistress was

Matilda Ellen Bishop Matilda Ellen Bishop (12 April 1842 in Tichborne, Hampshire – 1 July 1913 in Camberwell, London) was the first Principal (academia), Principal of Royal Holloway, University of London, Royal Holloway College, University of London and was responsib ...

. Rapid expansion led to the ultimate removal of the school to Belbroughton Road in 1957. It became a

direct grant grammar school A direct grant grammar school was a type of selective secondary school in the United Kingdom that existed between 1945 and 1976. One quarter of the places in these schools were directly funded by central government, while the remainder attracted ...

in 1945 under the

Education Act 1944 The Education Act 1944 ( 7 & 8 Geo. 6. c. 31) made major changes in the provision and governance of secondary schools in England and Wales. It is also known as the Butler Act after the President of the Board of Education, R. A. Butler. Histori ...

and chose to become independent in 1976 after the scheme was abolished. It absorbed two preparatory schools, Greycotes and The Squirrel, which meant girls could now be educated at Oxford High School from age 3 to

Sixth Form In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, Northern Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Wales, and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepa ...

Academics

Oxford High School regularly ranks as one of the country's highest achieving independent schools in terms of examination results. The school was ranked first in the South East in a ''

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' survey based on exam results and "value for money". In the 2011 examinations it was ranked amongst the top 20 independent schools nationwide for

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

results and the best performing girls' school in the

A Levels The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational a ...

. In 2006, the school became the first in

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

to make

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

a compulsory subject. Pupils will study it for at least a year accompanying French and can choose to either continue Mandarin or continue French.

Facilities

The school does not have its own boarding programme.

Houses

The girls in the senior school are divided into four houses, each named after an Ancient Greek deity: *

Zeus Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Zeus is the child ...

(green) *

Ares Ares (; , ''Árēs'' ) is the List of Greek deities, Greek god of war god, war and courage. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. The Greeks were ambivalent towards him. He embodies the physical valor necessary for ...

(blue) *

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretism, syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarde ...

(yellow) *

Poseidon Poseidon (; ) is one of the twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and mythology, presiding over the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 He was the protector of seafarers and the guardian of many Hellenic cit ...

(red)

Headteachers

* Ada Benson 1875–1879 *

1879–1887 * Lucy Helen Soulsby 1887–1897 * Edith Marion Leahy 1898–1902 * Rosalind Mabel Brown 1902–1932 *Margaret Gale 1932–1936 * Violet Evelyn Stack 1937–1959 * M.E. Ann Hancock 1959–1966 *

Mary Warnock Helen Mary Warnock, Baroness Warnock, (née Wilson; 14 April 1924 – 20 March 2019) was an English philosopher of ethics, morality, philosophy of education, education, and philosophy of mind, mind, and a writer on existentialism. She is best ...

1966–1972 * Elaine Kaye 1972–1981 * Joan Townsend 1981–1996 * Felicity Lusk 1997–2010 * Judith Carlisle 2011–2016 * Philip Hills 2017–2019

Notable former pupils

Josephine Barnes Dame Alice Josephine Mary Taylor Barnes, (18 August 1912 – 28 December 1999), known professionally as Dr Josephine Barnes, was a leading English obstetrician and gynaecologist. She was the first female president of the British Medical Associ ...

(1912–1999), first woman President British Medical Association (BMA) * Ursula Bethell (1874–1945), New Zealand poet and social worker * Vicky Bowman, nee Robinson, former British diplomat * Emma Bridgewater, potter * Jacintha Buddicom, poet and childhood friend of George Orwell * Nancy Cadogan, artist * Catherine Conybeare, academic and philologist *

Charithra Chandran Charithra Surya Chandran (; born 17 January 1997) is a British actress. She is known for her roles in the Amazon spy thriller series '' Alex Rider'' (2021), the second series of the Netflix period drama ''Bridgerton'' (2022), the teen romanti ...

, actress *

Gail Davey Gail Davey OBE is a professor of epidemiology at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, University of Sussex, UK. Her work focuses on Neglected Tropical Diseases, particular podoconiosis. Career Davey specialises in neglected tropical diseases, esp ...

, professor of epidemiology * Dame Cressida Dick (b. 1960), former

Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...

of the Metropolitan Police *

Sian Edwards Sian Edwards (born 27 August 1959) is an English conductor, best known as music director of English National Opera in the 1990s. Early life Sian Edwards was born in West Chiltington, West Sussex. She studied at Oxford High School, England (and i ...

, conductor * Sos Eltis, author and academic * Rebecca Flemming, classicist *

Amelia Fletcher Amelia Fletcher (born 1 January 1966) is a British singer, songwriter, guitarist and economist. Music career Fletcher has been the frontwoman of an evolving series of pop groups from the 1980s to the present. Her bands included Talulah Gosh, ...

economist, and indie band singer *

Diana Fox Carney Diana Fox Carney (''née'' Fox; born 1965) is a British-Canadian economist and climate policy expert who is the spouse of the prime minister of Canada as the wife of Mark Carney, the 24th Prime Minister of Canada since 2025. Specializing in d ...

economist, climate policy expert and wife of

Mark Carney Mark Joseph Carney (born March 16, 1965) is a Canadian politician and economist who has served as the 24th and current Prime Minister of Canada, prime minister of Canada since 2025. He has served as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, lead ...

Martha Lane Fox Martha Lane Fox, Baroness Lane-Fox of Soho (born 10 February 1973) is a British businesswoman, philanthropist and public servant. She co-founded Last Minute during the dotcom boom of the early 2000s and has subsequently served on public servi ...

, entrepreneur lastminute.com *

Mel Giedroyc Melanie Clare Sophie Giedroyc ( , ; born 5 June 1968) is an English actress, comedian and television presenter. With Sue Perkins, she has co-hosted series including ''Light Lunch'' for Channel 4, '' The Great British Bake Off'' for the BBC an ...

, actress/comedian * Lucy Gordon, actress/model *

Emily Gowers Emily Joanna Gowers, ( Thomas; born 27 September 1963) is a British classical scholar. She is Professor of Latin Literature at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of St John's College, Cambridge. She is an expert on Horace, Augustan lite ...

, Professor of Latin literature at the University of Cambridge *

Sophie Grigson Hester Sophia Frances Grigson (born 19 June 1959) is an English cookery writer and celebrity cook. She has followed the same path and career as her mother, Jane Grigson. Her father was the poet and writer Geoffrey Grigson, and her half-brother ...

, cookery TV/writer * Dame

Pippa Harris Dame Philippa Jill Olivier Harris (born 27 March 1967) is a British film and television producer. She co-founded Neal Street Productions in 2003 with Sam Mendes and Caro Newling. Harris was a script editor at ITV and Channel Four before beco ...

, Film Producer * Ethel Hatch, British painter *

Mary Hockaday Anne Mary Hockaday (born 31 May 1962) is a British journalist and academic administrator. Since October 2022, she has been Master of Trinity Hall, Cambridge. She was previously head of the BBC Multimedia Newsroom, and controller of BBC World ...

, journalist * Dame Margaret Hodge, Labour MP and minister * Verena Winifred Holmes, engineer * Harriet Hunt, chess International Master * Elizabeth Irving, actress and founder of the

Keep Britain Tidy Keep Britain Tidy is a UK-based independent environmental charity. The organisation campaigns to reduce litter, improve local places and prevent waste. It has offices in Wigan and London. History Keep Britain Tidy was originally set up by a conf ...

Campaign * Elizabeth Jennings (1926–2001), poet * Ludmilla Jordanova, Professor of Modern History at the

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

* Frances Kirwan, mathematician * Susan Lea Professor at the University of Oxford *

Anna Lapwood Anna Ruth Ella Lapwood (born 28 July 1995) is a British organist, choir director and television and radio presenter, whose recordings have reached a wide audience on social media since she was appointed as an associate artist at the Royal Alber ...

, Director of Music at

Pembroke College, Cambridge Pembroke College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college is the third-oldest college of the university and has over 700 students and fellows. It is one of the university's larger colleges, with buildings from ...

and television/radio presenter * Dame Rose Macaulay, novelist * Serena Mackesy, journalist and author *

Miriam Margolyes Miriam Margolyes ( ; born 18 May 1941) is a British and Australian actress. Known for her work as a character actor across film, television, and stage, she received the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Mrs. Mingott in Marti ...

, (b. 1941), actress *

Ghislaine Maxwell Ghislaine Noelle Marion Maxwell ( ; born 25 December 1961) is a British-French-American former socialite and convicted sex offender. She was found guilty of child sex trafficking and other offences in connection with the deceased financier and ...

, (junior section, left age 9), socialite and convicted child sex trafficker * Charlotte Mendelson (b. 1972), novelist *

Kate Ho Kate Ho is the John L. Weinberg Professor of Economics and Business Policy at Princeton University. Her research focuses on the industrial organization of the medical care market. Education Ho obtained a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) and Master of ...

, (b. 1972), economist * Anne Mills,

health economist Health economics is a branch of economics concerned with issues related to Health care efficiency, efficiency, effectiveness, value and behavior in the production and consumption of health and healthcare. Health economics is important in dete ...

Teresa Morgan Teresa Morgan is an English academic and cleric, best known as the author of ''Literate Education in the Hellenistic and Roman Worlds'' and ''Roman Faith and Christian Faith''. Early life and education Teresa Morgan attended Oxford High School ...

, academic *

Eleanor Oldroyd Eleanor Oldroyd (born in Bury, Lancashire, 2 June 1962) is a British people, British sports broadcaster with BBC Radio. Early life Oldroyd was educated at Oxford High School, Oxford, Oxford High School and Girton College at Cambridge University. ...

, BBC Radio Sport presenter * Ann Pasternak Slater, academic *

Eileen Power Eileen Edna Le Poer Power (9 January 18898 August 1940) was a British economic historian and medievalist. Early life and education Eileen Power was the eldest daughter of a stockbroker and was born at Altrincham, Cheshire (now part of Greate ...

(1889–1940), economic historian and medievalist *

Rhoda Power Rhoda Dolores Le Poer Power (29 May 1890 in Altrincham, Cheshire – 9 March 1957 in London), was a pioneer English broadcaster and children's writer. The highly regarded set of stories that make up ''Redcap Runs Away'' (1952) are set in the Mid ...

(1890–1957), broadcaster and children's writer * Liz Shore, former deputy chief medical officer * Dame Maggie Smith (1934–2024), double Oscar-winning actress, seven times BAFTA Film Awards winner, Triple Crown of Acting *

Barbara Strachey Barbara Halpern Strachey (17 July 1912 – 15 October 1999 in Oxford, England) was a British author. Barbara Strachey was born to parents Oliver Strachey, a cryptographer in World War I and World War II, and the feminist politician, writer, and ...

(1912–1999), broadcaster and writer * Catherine Tucker, American economist * Ayesha Vardag, Founder & President of Vardags, divorce lawyer * Anna Walker, British civil servant

References

External links

School Website

on the school website.
Profile
on the ISC website {{Coord, 51, 46, 24, N, 1, 15, 34, W, type:edu_region:GB, display=title Girls' schools in Oxfordshire Educational institutions established in 1875 Schools in Oxford Private schools in Oxfordshire Schools of the Girls' Day School Trust 1875 establishments in England Member schools of the Girls' Schools Association