North London Collegiate School is an independent day school for girls founded in 1850 in Camden Town, and now in the
London Borough of Harrow.
The Good Schools Guide called the school an "Academically stunning outer London school in a glorious setting, which has demonstrated its refusal to rest on its laurels by introducing the IB. Ideal for girls confident of their academic ability with an appetite for all the other opportunities too."
History
The North London Collegiate School now admits girls from the ages of 4 to 18 and was founded by pioneering girls' educator
Frances Mary Buss in 1850. It is generally recognised as the first independent girls' school in the
United Kingdom, as it was the first to offer girls the same educational opportunities as boys.
George Bernard Shaw's mother was a director of music at the school, followed in 1908 by
J.B. Manson's wife, Lilian, whose ambitious revival of
Purcell's
Dido and Aeneas in 1910 gained coverage in
The Times.
[Buckman, David (1973), James Bolivar Manson, p. 9, Maltzahn Gallery Ltd, London.]North London Collegiate is arguably the most academically successful school in England, having been placed in the top five in the
Daily Telegraph exam league tables every year for over a decade. It has been an
International Baccalaureate World School since October 2003. The first year that it offered the International Baccalaureate, it had the highest average mark in the country for five consecutive years and five of its girls were among only ninety students worldwide to score the maximum possible IB score of 45 marks.
Headmistresses and dates of headship
- 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 (1945 – 1965)
- Joan Clanchy (1986 – 1997)
Noted alumnae
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, and regulations concerning Prefects and Monitors. Published by OUP (Oxford University Press) in 1950 with 231 pages, including the index. (No author or Editor)
- "And Their Works Do Follow Them" by Watson, Nigel London, James & James, 2000 [ISBN 0907383300]
Notes and references
