St Augustine’s Priory is a Catholic, independent day school for girls aged 3–18 and also welcomes boys in the nursery.
Our school empowers pupils to embrace a love of learning, while exploring alternative ways of thinking and achieving outstanding results. Students thrive in an environment which has a strong focus on academic excellence and pastoral support. Girls benefit from an outstanding setting with 13 acres of unique space, which includes a working farm and impressive sports facilities. Staff are at the forefront of research-based approaches, using different platforms to inspire and engage students.
Our vision is for girls to leave St Augustine’s equipped with an outstanding academic education and also with the full range of skills required to lead an effective and fulfilling life as women. As part of their journey, in a girls’ school environment, they will acquire the skills of self-knowledge, of reflection, of intellectual risk-taking, of persuasiveness and team-building and of emotional strength as well as a cultural fabric for their enriched enjoyment of life. Our team of dedicated and enthusiastic teachers, teaching assistants and support staff care for the girls and encourage them in all aspects of their education and development. We believe ‘Our girls will change the world’.
The school was founded in France in 1634 by Lady Mary Tredway to provide a haven where young English women could be provided with an independent education. Moving to Ealing in 1914–15, the school follows the philosophy expounded by its Patron, St Augustine of Hippo: children (and for that matter adults) achieve their best when they are happy.
Number of pupils. 400 girls aged from 3–18 across the school.
Location. The School is well served by public transport, with Central and Piccadilly line connections within a ten-minute stroll, Ealing Broadway Underground and main line station approximately 20 minutes’ walk away and buses stopping nearby. The School sits in an idyllic setting of 13 acres.
Admission. St Augustine’s Priory is a unique and vibrant community; the best way to understand it is to come and look around the school and meet the pupils, Headteacher and staff. During the application process we invite Parents to visit us on Open Morning during the Michaelmas and Lent Terms and you are also warmly invited to visit the school for a private appointment at other times.
St Augustine’s Priory operates a selective entry procedure. Selection is based upon academic merit and potential, which is assessed through an entry examination, an interview at the school and references from the candidate's previous school. Our selection process is designed to identify pupils who are able to benefit from our balanced and well-rounded education and to make a positive contribution towards the life of the school. Admission to the Prep is via interview and assessment in the Michaelmas Term. Girls in the Junior School move up seamlessly into the Senior School. External candidates for 9+, 11+, and 16+ sit entrance examinations on our various Selection Days in the Lent Term.
Those wishing to join the Sixth Form are invited to visit the school and meet with the Director of Sixth Form. Interviews are then conducted by the appropriate Heads of Department along with the Headteacher and offers are sent out with conditional GCSE pass requirements.
Faith. St Augustine’s Priory is a Catholic Independent Day School for Girls. The Chapel is at the heart of school life and is used for assemblies, weekly Masses and as a place for moments of quiet reflection and prayer. We also welcome girls from other religions and faiths and learn from them.
Pastoral care. Children from all backgrounds and all races, with a wide range of gifts, make up the community which is St Augustine’s Priory. From their first day, girls become part of a community which respects the beliefs and customs of its members and learns to work together. When problems arise and questions need to be asked, we encourage a very personal approach.
Curriculum. We offer an extensive and balanced curriculum including PSHEE, and offer 20 subjects at GCSE and IGCSE and 24 subjects at AS and A2 level. Girls will usually take ten or more subjects at GCSE.
Priory 6 (Sixth Form) and careers. Priory 6 facilities include a common room, ICT suite, kitchen and balcony.
We expect girls to think about their next steps and to make informed decisions at every stage of their development. Priory 6 students are supported by the Careers Coordinator and Head of UCAS who provide advice and guidance. We work with the students to consider their many future options, assisting with university and course selection, preparation for Oxbridge and other university applications and subsequent interviews. This process is supplemented by a fortnightly programme of guest speakers and a biennial Careers Evening.
Working with Form Tutors and the Director of Priory 6, every girl is expected to examine her own strengths and to explore possibilities suitable for her interests and personal abilities. Talks, conferences, seminars, courses and University Open Days allow all our students to keep abreast of opportunities on offer.
All of this support builds on the guidance received throughout the school. When our girls leave here for university, they take with them not only impressive qualifications but also kindness, an understanding of, and the ability to adapt to, the world in which they live, the confidence to succeed in whatever they choose to do and above all, friendships which will last them through life.
Co-curricular activities. A wide variety of co-curricular activities aim to ensure spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of all pupils, and to enable students to develop their talents to the full by searching for excellence. Girls will develop and practise new skills, integrate with children across year groups and be challenged and encouraged to take risks. Clubs on offer include ballet, gymnastics, fencing, yoga, life drawing, cake decorating, photography, cipher & ink illustration and poetry. The school excels in its extremely popular sports activities fielding winning teams in hockey, netball, swimming and cross country.
While Drama forms part of the curriculum we also stage a biennial major production in the Spring at Questors Theatre, which allows involvement by the whole Senior School. We offer LAMDA, qualifications in Acting, Speaking Verse and Prose and Speaking in Public. A Musical Theatre & Drama club is run for Preps.
Music flourishes throughout the school with girls taking part in school orchestras, ensembles, choirs and concerts. A wide range of private musical instrument lessons are also on offer.
Art is outstanding and the girls’ work is displayed throughout the school. An annual Art Exhibition is held each summer and is open to the public, and the department makes use of visits to the many theatres, museums and galleries in London.
A majority of girls complete The Duke of Edinburgh’s Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards. Visits to Iceland, New York and Salamanca enrich Modern Foreign Languages and Geography learning, as well as History visits to Berlin, sports tours to Paris and Holland and ski trips to Italy and Canada.
Facilities. St Augustine’s Priory offers superb amenities including a full-size floodlit all-weather Astroturf pitch, floodlit competition-sized netball court and indoor sports hall set in stunning 13-acre grounds. A Chapel and School Hall complete with acoustics and soundproofing.
In addition to sporting facilities, our 13 acres include a dedicated Prep meadow, orchards, Sixth Form Rose Garden, outdoor stage and Priory Farm which homes chickens, ducks and sheep. The state-of-the-art Science Wing has four laboratories and dedicated Senior and Prep music and drama rooms. To complement this there are two IT suites, music practice rooms, a Nursery block, Senior and Prep Art rooms, a Sixth Form Art studio and separate photography studio, Modern Languages Academy, dedicated Sixth Form areas, private studies and seminar rooms, and Scriptorium. Breakfast and After-school Clubs are available, with Holiday Club Provision available courtesy of Camp Beaumont during Half terms, Easter & Summer Holidays. Kitchens are on site and the Chef and catering staff serve freshly cooked lunches daily.
Fees per term (2024–2025). Nursery from £2,200 (5 mornings/afternoons + 15 free hours); Pre Preps from £5,805 (full time + 15 free hours); Preparatory Department: £5,190; Senior Department: £6,948. Fees listed excluding VAT.
Additional information may be found on the school’s website and a more detailed prospectus may be obtained from the School.
Charitable status. St Augustine’s Priory School Limited is a Registered Charity, number 1097781.
Governors & Staff:
Board of Governors:
Mr P D’Arcy (Chair)
Miss M Bowler (Chair of Finance & Capital Projects Committee)
Mr B Cassidy (Chair of Academic Committee)
Mr J Davies (Chair of Safeguarding Committee)
Mrs J Job (Governor)
Dr B Marino (Chair of the Nominations & Successions Committee)
Mrs A Sparks (Chair of Health & Safety Committee)
Mr M Kendall (Governor)
Mrs A Sparks (Chair of Health & Safety Committee)
Mrs C Jeffries (Co-opted Governor)
Mr J Lacken (Clerk to the Governors)
Senior Leadership Team:
Headteacher: Mrs C Macallister, BA ACA ALCM, PGCE
Deputy Head (Pastoral) Seniors: Mrs A Lenton
Deputy Head (Academic) Seniors: Mr P McCarthy
Assistant Head (Co-Curricular), Head of Year Upper School & Deputy Director of Priory Sixth: Ms L Hales
Deputy Head Preps & Pre-Preps: Olivia McLoughlin
Director of Priory 6 & UCAS: Mrs H Maclennan, MA Cantab, MEd
Bursar: Mr J Lacken
Registrar and Head of Communications: Mrs A Rafter
Director of Operations & Exams Officer: Miss L Masih, BSc, CSBMs
Welfare Staff:
School Nurse: Mrs R Finnegan, RGN
Counsellor and Play Therapist Consultant: Ms Carly Steuart, BSc, PGCE, Dip Therapeutic Counselling
Key Administration Staff:
Mrs K Bhatti, MSc Econ, ACLIP, DipLis (Librarian)
Miss L Naylor, MAAT (School Office Manager, Finance and Examinations Assistant)
Mrs T Sumpter, RGN, AMSPAR (PA to the Headteacher)
Mrs G Vymeris, MA (Assistant Bursar)