Age range. 7–13.
Number of girls. 100.
Fees per term (from January 2025). Boarders: £7,752–£10,115, Day Girls: £6,504–£7,758. All fees inclusive of VAT.
Hanford School, located between Blandford and Shaftesbury in Dorset, was founded in 1947 by the Revd and Mrs C B Canning. It is housed in a beautiful 17th-century Jacobean manor house set in 45 acres of land in the Stour valley. The amenities include a Chapel, Laboratories, a Computer Room, a Music School, an Art School, a Gymnasium, a Swimming Pool, a Handwork Room, two Netball/Tennis Courts (hard) and an indoor covered Riding School.
Girls arrive from the age of seven onwards and leave at 13 after taking Common Entrance. Hanford is non-selective and prides itself on bringing out the best in each and every girl. Pupils are prepared for entry to Independent Senior Schools including: Marlborough, Bryanston, St Mary’s Shaftesbury and Sherborne Girls.
Hanford believes children should be children for as long as possible, climbing trees, building dens, riding ponies and playing in the garden. Giving girls free time is something Hanford has always believed in as it encourages girls to become lost in their own imagination and develop creatively. Hanford took the decision to switch off all ‘Smart devices’, iPhones, tablets, etc. during term time. Unplugging the girls from social media, games and communications was not done to protect them but to encourage them to make their own fun; they will have plenty of time to use social media but a relatively short time in which to be silly, fun-loving children. The girls use their free time to play games such as British Bulldog, riding the Hanford ponies, tending the chickens, gardening or climbing trees.
Hanford teaches girls to combine having fun with working hard. A strong and committed teaching staff seeks to bring out the best in each and every girl. This combination of fun and hard work pays dividends when it comes to Common Entrance and Scholarships. Evidenced in year on year Scholarships for the past 27 years: academic, art, drama, sport and all-round. Class sizes are small, normally 10–12, and there is learning support available if required. Alongside the core curriculum girls are taught handwork, where they make their own school uniform skirt, and Art Appreciation (Art Apre) where they can begin to understand and appreciate the cultural world around them. Music has always been central to life at Hanford with almost all girls learning at least one instrument or joining one of the choirs or folk group; music composition is also offered as an activity.
Sport is also strong at Hanford. The rounders, tennis and athletics teams have all been county champions. Hanford is perhaps most famous for its ponies and stables with most girls choosing to have riding lessons and some testing their equestrian skills at local and national events including tetrathlons.