Shelford Girls' Grammar (previously known as Shelford Girls' School, Shelford Church of England Girls' Grammar School, and sometimes SCEGGS) was an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

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. It was located in Caulfield, a suburb of

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Victoria, Australia. The school was established in 1898, and was a member of Girls Sport Victoria (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 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 ...

. It was a non-selective entry school, with more than 600 students. Shelford had a coeducational Early Learning Centre, which educated toddlers 18 months old, as well as providing groups for 3 and 4-year-olds. Shelford offered students the

Victorian Certificate of Education The Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) is the credential available to secondary school students who successfully complete year 10, 11 and 12 in the Australian state of Victoria (state), Victoria as well as in some international schools i ...

(VCE) program, and the

Vocational Education and Training Vocational education is education that prepares people for a Skilled worker, skilled craft. Vocational education can also be seen as that type of education given to an individual to prepare that individual to be gainfully employed or self em ...

(VET) course. Shelford used a

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

through which students participated 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), Victoria, Australia, 9 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne city centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Glen Eira local government areas of Victoria ...

, 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 p ...

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. 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 Church, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denomina ...

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 homasFalls) 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 an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 8 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 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. The school will merge with Caulfield Grammar School with a formal transition of Shelford students into CGS beginning in 2025.Caulfield Grammar School and Shelford Girls’ Grammar enter into merger agreement
/ref>

Notable alumnae

* Brigitte Duclos – Television and radio presenter. * Olympia Valance – ''

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera that 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 and ...

'' actor * Krystal Weir – Olympian *Jess Connell - Television Producer

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 (state) 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